Marketing, Machines & Mischief

Holiday shoppers started early, AI bots are comparing products, and Cyber Monday leaves marketers with barely five traditional sales weeks. Fear not, fellow marketers! Matthew and Chris focus on the practical fixes brands should make now, from machine-readable product data and creator content to exclusive bundles that avoid a race to the bottom. We also prune the walled garden of Target’s incremen...

On this “Kathy Bates Approved” episode of Marketing, Machines & Mischief, Matthew and Chris invite you to the private club of the verification economy, where proof of humanity may matter more than raw digital reach. They discuss private communities, AI slop, deepfake crisis planning, and why brands are trading public feeds for gated Discord servers, DMs, and invite-only spaces. They also unpac...

Matthew & Chris things off with Taco Bell and Duolingo making people learn a language before earning food rewards. Then they get into the backlash around fossil-fuel advertising, AI-generated green imagery, and whether marketers can really separate technology from the systems powering it. The main event is the rise of AI agents, which could drive $100 billion in online sales. Matthew and Chris...

Amazon is bringing sponsored product placements into ChatGPT, turning conversational search into a new paid channel for marketers. Matthew and Chris unbox what “answer engine optimization” could mean for campaigns, product data, and the future of discovery. The conversation also takes on Google’s ad strength ratings, Amazon’s decision to block Meta’s Muse shopping agent, and the rise of agentic co...

Is AI making marketing better, or just making the internet noisier? In this episode, Matthew and Chris examine LinkedIn’s crackdown on generic AI content, YouTube’s new view metric, and Meta’s push to measure chatbot ROI. They also unpack the “anti-slop premium,” the performance cost of content that merely feels machine-made, and the growing demand for unmistakably human perspective. Matthew share...

AI is moving from marketing tool to marketing territory. Matthew and Chris examine ChatGPT’s rapidly growing advertising business, the rise of real-life experiences as premium marketing assets, and the latest forecast pushing U.S. ad spending toward a historic milestone. Then they tackle the bigger question: what happens to marketing departments and agencies when one AI-assisted marketer can handl...

If you're watching AI eat your industry's budget while HR quietly circles the wagons, you need to hear this episode before your name shows up on a spreadsheet somewhere. Agencies are cutting 15% of their workforce. 90% of them think AI is coming for the rest. And nearly two-thirds of marketers admit they're overwhelmed — most too scared to even tell their manager. Matthew and Chris break down why...

Why can your best customers remember the recommendation, but not the ad that started it? Matthew and Chris investigate the $60 billion attribution gap created by private messages, social platforms, podcasts, and AI tools. They also unpack Wendy’s appointment of former McDonald’s CMO Tariq Hassan, the rise of creators moving into strategic marketing roles, and Liquid Death, Garage Beer, and Jason K...

Can a marketing department create fandom, or can it only recognize, enable, and occasionally ruin it? In this episode, Matthew and Chris examine the thin line between a repeat customer and a genuine fan, from Mountain Dew loyalty and learning Klingon to Lego, Formula 1, Poppi, and shows revived by streaming audiences. They also cover Spotify’s experiment with skippable podcast ads at 01:01, Google...

If you're still white-knuckling your Google ranking while ChatGPT quietly decides which brands get mentioned — and which get ghosted — you're already playing yesterday's game. This week on Marketing, Machines & Mischief, Matthew and Chris break down what it actually takes to get cited by ChatGPT, Claude, and every other AI app rewriting how customers discover businesses. From schema markup to...

On today’s episode, Matthew & Chris tumble down the wild and wacky rabbit hole of Big Pharma’s prescription drug TV advertising—where anime secret agents fight nausea, Broadway musical numbers break out over diabetes meds, and even the ball dog steals the commercial. The duo also unpacks some of the week’s biggest headlines: Meta faces another eye-popping fine and new safety rules, Google quie...

e want small businesses to succeed. We jump into the everyday challenges that small businesses face when it comes to marketing strategy, exploring where entrepreneurs should focus their limited time, money, and energy—and what they can afford to skip. The episode kicks off with a rundown of the latest impactful marketing headlines, including Unilever and Coca-Cola’s impressive World Cup ad results...

t’s high time we get into the future of marketing to children in an era shaped by AI and digital connectivity. We tackle everything from international legislation—like France’s recent ban on social media for kids under 15—to the ever-evolving patchwork of US regulations, and the ingenious ways advertisers adapt, from fine print tricks to product placements in kids’ movies. Whether you’re a markete...

Welcome to this special quadrennial edition of Marketing, Machines & Mischief! In this banger, we break down the marketing madness behind the 2026 FIFA World Cup—doing deeeeeep into the record-shattering viewership, standout advertising moments, unexpected brand winners (hello, ranch dressing!), and creative ambush tactics from major brands. From the influence of shows like Ted Lasso to the vi...

We dive into the rapidly changing world of digital advertising and retail innovation. From ChatGPT cautiously opening ad opportunities in regulated industries to Spotify and Amazon revolutionizing their ad platforms, the landscape is shifting fast. We'll cover how trust issues and measurement challenges are shaping AI-driven marketing, why retailers like Uber are leaning hard into advertising, and...

Halfway through 2026 and the marketing world has already delivered a synthetic skin car that sunburns on camera, a dictator in a hoodie generating millions of free impressions, and kids' juice brands quietly adding vodka to the lineup. Matthew and Chris break down exactly what made a campaign a genius move versus a brand crisis waiting to happen, and why the difference usually comes down to one de...

Your favorite Marketing specialists dive into the biggest stories shaking up the marketing world: Polymarket faces a lawsuit over deceptive influencer tactics, with fake “winning” bet videos and undisclosed sponsorships under heavy scrutiny. Influencer marketing’s power keeps growing—now, more than one in four Americans discover products via influencers, outpacing even TV and radio, especially amo...

We break down down OpenAI’s debut at Cannes Lions and its bold ambitions to redefine the advertising business. We examine how the “time and materials” agency model is declared dead, dig into the ongoing saga of advertising transparency, and spotlight Sesame Street’s Count going undercover in an anti-scam campaign. Plus, we explore the creative genius behind logo “cover ups” at the upcoming FIFA Wo...

Get ready to be the smartest marketer in the room. In today’s episode, Matthew and Chris welcome special guest Jacob Hiler—a professor at Ohio University and pioneer of the Influencer 101 course—and his students’ BS Meters were off the charts! First, we explore DoorDash’s transformation into a global advertising powerhouse, and what it means for small businesses and the future of retail media. Nex...

Matthew and Chris dive into the high-stakes marketing juggernaut behind the upcoming release of Grand Theft Auto 6. Hear why even the world's most famous game franchise needs a massive push—and what that means for marketers everywhere. Then, the duo unpacks the FTC's latest crackdown on deceptive AI advertising practices, explores how "people like me" marketing is driving real cultural moments, an...

We’re serving you up a rapid-fire rundown of the hottest industry headlines, from Google’s game-changing AI ad formats to the rise of locally driven marketing in India. Dive into the seismic shift toward agentic advertising, where AI is poised to take the wheel on campaign creation and optimization. Plus, get inspired (and entertained) by creative brand storytelling—from a Waitrose ad that’s out o...

This week, Matthew and Chris tackle Tesla’s latest legal tangle over its “autopilot” claims, shine a spotlight on tobacco companies’ sneaky tactics to lure young users with kid-friendly nicotine pouches, and celebrate the rise of influencer marketing as a legit college course. Plus, stick around as they debut their own hilarious take on fake ads—from “Blue Sky Meth” to the relentless Acme Corporat...

Welcome back, marketers, influencers, and mischief-makers! In this week’s episode of "Marketing, Machines & Mischief," Matthew and Chris break down the biggest headlines shaking up the world of advertising. Meta is set to overtake Google in global ad revenue for the first time ever—find out what this milestone really means for brands and marketers. Then, we hit the East Coast, where Virginia B...

We break down the week’s wildest updates from the world of marketing. Get the first look at ChatGPT’s new AI ad platform – where $100 million flowed in just six weeks, but brands are keeping suspiciously quiet about their results. We also dive into the surprising resurrection of digital cookies, why OpenAI’s move might mean cookies are here to stay, and poke fun at X’s long-overdue ad manager upgr...

Your favorite marketing astronauts float into the rise of zero click marketing, dissect Duolingo’s shift from “unhinged” social media antics to a more wholesome approach, and react to the Cannes Lions Festival’s brand new AI Craft Award. Plus, don’t miss our spotlight on KFC Brazil’s finger-licking fashion statement and the surprising cultural journey of Nutella, all served up with a side of wit,...