Nội dung
- Instacart pushes content marketing toward full-funnel with video and AI
- Walmart shows CTV and retail media are moving closer together
- E.l.f. taps the power of soccer fandom to build cultural connection
- Challenger brands: fewer “swings,” but sharper ones
- AI search optimization emerges as a new layer alongside SEO
- Scrunch or Semrush: the battle between AI visibility tools and traditional SEO suites
- Americans are redefining success, and brands need to keep up
- Streaming ads are not just for reach, but also for sales impact
- A perspective for the Vietnamese market
- References
The content marketing market is changing fast as video, AI, AI search and connected TV channels continue to bring content closer to business goals. For Vietnamese marketers, the stories below point to one clear common thread: content is no longer just for awareness, but must also support conversion, measurement and the ability to appear at the right moment in the buying journey.
Instacart pushes content marketing toward full-funnel with video and AI
Marketing Dive says Instacart is developing a full-funnel marketing strategy, using video and AI to better connect stages from awareness to conversion. The notable point is that content is no longer seen as a single communications layer, but as a system of assets that can be personalized and optimized for each touchpoint.
For marketers, this approach reflects the broader trend in modern content marketing: the same campaign must be restructured for multiple formats, multiple contexts and multiple objectives. Here, AI not only helps speed up production, but also enables brands to use data to choose the right message, the right content version and the right delivery time. Source: Marketing Dive.
Walmart shows CTV and retail media are moving closer together
In a deal involving Vibe.co, Marketing Dive analyzes how Walmart is helping clarify the convergence trend between CTV and retail media. This matters greatly for content marketing because video is no longer just about reach; it is increasingly tied directly to the shopping ecosystem and transaction data.
As CTV becomes part of the commerce journey, video content needs to be designed with a more performance-driven mindset: engaging enough to hold viewers, but also clear enough to move them to the next action. For retail and consumer brands, this is a reminder that video content should be measured by business impact, not just views. Source: Marketing Dive.
E.l.f. taps the power of soccer fandom to build cultural connection
E.l.f. is cited by Marketing Dive as a brand leveraging the women’s soccer fan community, including activities tied to the NWSL and the World Cup. This strategy shows that content marketing increasingly needs to “enter culture” rather than stop at product promotion.
Being present at events such as House of Goal in New York is not simply sponsorship, but a way for the brand to blend into an existing context of emotion, language and community. This is an important takeaway for Vietnamese brands: when content connects with a real community, the message is often more natural, more memorable and easier to share. Source: Marketing Dive.
Challenger brands: fewer “swings,” but sharper ones
Marketing Dive discusses how challenger brands can create differentiation without launching too many big campaigns. Instead of constantly increasing pace and spreading messages thinly, the task is to choose fewer touchpoints while ensuring each one is clear, intentional and strong enough to stick in memory.
For content marketing, this is a very practical reminder: more content does not necessarily create more impact. A leaner, more focused and more consistent strategy can be more effective in a context of tighter budgets and increasingly overloaded users. Source: Marketing Dive.
AI search optimization emerges as a new layer alongside SEO
HubSpot Marketing says AI search optimization is the process of optimizing so brands have a chance to be cited and mentioned by answer engines such as ChatGPT, Gemini or AI Overviews. The article also emphasizes that traffic from AI may not be large in scale, but it can be higher quality, especially among users with clear intent.
The key point for content marketing is that content distribution thinking is changing. Instead of writing only for traditional search engines, brands need to create content that is clear, trustworthy and structured enough for AI answer systems to understand, synthesize and cite. HubSpot also notes that this is a complementary direction to SEO, not a replacement for it. Source: HubSpot Marketing.
Scrunch or Semrush: the battle between AI visibility tools and traditional SEO suites
Also from HubSpot Marketing, the comparison between Scrunch and Semrush raises a question many marketing teams are facing: does a business need a specialized tool to track visibility in AI answers, or a comprehensive SEO platform with an added AI visibility layer? The difference is that one focuses deeply on AI-generated answers, while the other leverages an existing SEO toolkit but adds AI tracking capabilities.
For content marketers, this shows the tool market is splitting into two needs: tracking presence in AI environments and optimizing traditional SEO performance. Which option is more suitable will depend on team size, data maturity and the company’s content goals. Source: HubSpot Marketing.
Americans are redefining success, and brands need to keep up
Marketing Dive reflects a shift at the cultural level of consumer behavior: Americans’ idea of success is changing, bringing new demands for how brands speak to the public. When social values change, content marketing cannot keep the same old tone.
The message here is not about a specific campaign, but about the lesson of audience research. Effective content must reflect the priorities, pressures and expectations of consumers at each moment. For brands, this is why insights need to be updated continuously rather than relying only on a fixed customer persona. Source: Marketing Dive.
Streaming ads are not just for reach, but also for sales impact
Marketing Dive shows that advertising on streaming platforms is being seen as a tool that goes beyond reach. When connected to data and shopping behavior, streaming ad content can help drive conversion and support revenue.
This is very important for content marketing because the line between content, advertising and commerce is becoming increasingly blurred. Brands that can tell stories well on the big screen while also measuring real behavioral impact will have a clear advantage in a period when content is competing across too many channels and formats. Source: Marketing Dive.
A perspective for the Vietnamese market
Seen from Vietnam, these 8 stories point to one unified direction: content marketing is shifting from “making lots of content” to “making content in the right context, on the right platform and for the right business goal.” Vietnamese businesses should prioritize three things: building content that can be reused across formats; preparing for AI search with clear, trustworthy information structure; and connecting content to conversion data rather than stopping at engagement metrics.
In a context where budgets increasingly need to deliver efficiency, the best approach is not to chase every trend at once, but to choose the few levers most relevant to the category: video for the sales funnel, community content for brands that need cultural connection, and AI search optimization for brands that want early visibility in users’ new search journey.
See more marketing news and guides at https://marketing365.vn.
Follow more updates from Marketing365 to stay on top of the latest marketing trends.
Read more articles in the Digital Trends category.
References
- How Instacart is cultivating full-funnel marketing with video, AI
- What Walmart’s Vibe.co deal means for CTV, retail media convergence
- E.l.f. taps into soccer fandom with NWSL, World Cup activations
- How challenger brands can stand out with fewer marketing swings
- What is AI search optimization? (& why marketers should care)
- Scrunch vs Semrush: AI visibility or traditional SEO?
- Americans are redefining success. Brands need to catch up.
- From foot traffic to sales: streaming ads are more than a reach play
