Here’s an uncomfortable number for you to sit with: in the first four months of 2026, 68% of Google searches ended without a single click – not to your site, not to a competitor’s, not even to one of Google’s own properties. Nobody went anywhere. They asked a question, got an answer, and got on with their day.
Picture this. A prospect books a discovery call with you. When you ask how they heard about you, they say: “Someone mentioned you in a Slack group I’m in.” You check your attribution model.
Picture this. A prospect books a discovery call with you. When you ask how they heard about you, they say: “Someone mentioned you in a Slack group I’m in.” You check your attribution model.
Picture the scene. A client walks into a briefing room (or, more likely, hops onto a Zoom call with an unreliable connection and a dog barking in the background) and presents their idea for a campaign. It’s not quite right. The targeting is off, the message is muddled, and the budget they’ve allocated wouldn’t buy you a decent LinkedIn ad, let alone a full campaign.
We’ve come a long way since the clunky “How may I assist you today?” pop-ups of the past.
Every December, brands reach for tinsel-covered templates: “Season’s Greetings!” “Happy Holidays!” “Merry Christmas from all of us!”
It started with a simple email. A “domain renewal” notice, complete with a logo, invoice number, and urgent call to action: “Your domain is about to expire — pay R99 to renew.”
For years, TikTok has been both overhyped and underestimated: a staple app for Gen Z and its juniors, yet often dismissed by “serious” marketers. But while many brands were busy debating its legitimacy, others quietly built multi-million-rand audiences, reshaped their digital strategy, and redefined what brand engagement looks like – all thanks to TikTok.
For decades, Google reigned supreme in search. Its monopoly over traffic, advertising, and online visibility seemed untouchable. But the ground is shifting. Legal pressure is mounting, AI is changing how people find information, and a new discipline, Generative Engine Optimisation (GEO), is quickly becoming a necessity, not an option.
Traditional search engines like Google are no longer the only gateways to online information. Today, large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT and Gemini, along with AI-powered search overlays such as Google’s AI Overviews, are reshaping how users interact with content.