Marketing changed big time in June 2025. These aren’t just new tactics- they’re changes that will affect how you compete, spend money, and grow your business.
This article covers three key areas: why human content is suddenly beating AI content, how brand partnerships are evolving, and why customers expect brands to genuinely stand for something.
Here’s why this matters: Organisations that adapt to these changes in the next few months will get ahead of their competition. Those that don’t will likely see smaller budgets and miss what customers actually want.
Whether you’re planning your marketing budget, thinking about partnerships, or need to show that marketing is working, these trends will make or break your success. Here’s what you need to know and what to do about it.
Human Vs. Ai content paradox
Human created content is decisively outperforming AI-generated content this month, even as 68% of us remain bullish about using generative AI tools.
This isn’t anti-AI sentiment- its market maturity. Consumers have developed “AI fatigue” faster than expected. The lesson? AI should enhance human creativity, not replace it. Smart marketers are using AI for research, ideation and optimization while keeping humans in the creative helm.
Look at how you create your marketing content. If you’re relying heavily on AI to write your copy, it’s time to bring humans back into the process and use AI as a helper instead.
The collaboration gold rush
Data shows 36% of marketers believe surprising brand collaborations will dominate 2025. But here’s what the surveys don’t tell you: most collaborations fail because brands choose partners based on the size of the audience that sees their content, not relevance.
The most successful partnerships I’ve seen aren’t between megabrands- they’re between complementary organisations serving the same customers. Map your customers’ entire lifecycle. Where do they go before and after buying from you? That’s where the collaboration goldmine lives.
Value driven content shifts
Modern buyers want to work with companies whose values genuinely align with theirs- not just lip service but evidence. 21% of marketers are exploring value driven branded content, an approach that focuses on creating genuine, tangible benefits for their audience. This isn’t corporate social responsibility- its customer expectation evolution.
Values-based marketing backfires spectacularly when it feels performative. Authentic value-driven content starts with genuine practices, not marketing campaigns.
These critical shifts are happening simultaneously.
The question isn’t whether these trends will stick, it’s whether your organisation can adapt fast enough to capitalise on them.
Sources
- Brandwatch Digital Marketing Trends Survey, 2025 – “Essential Digital Marketing Trends to Watch in 2025”
- Multiple sources including Salesforce Generative AI Statistics 2025 and KPMG AI Quarterly Pulse Survey, January 2025
- HubSpot Marketing Trends Survey, 2025 – “The Top Marketing Trends of 2025” (1400+ global marketers)
