Report: The State of IMC 2025 – How Integration Is Reshaping the Future of Marketing
Executive Summary The Spiegel Research Center conducted a nationwide survey of 161 experienced marketing professionals to uncover the most pressing challenges and trends in Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC). The findings reveal a marketing landscape in transition, where rising quality expectations collide with increasing operational complexity. The Generalist Reality Modern marketers function as tactical generalists rather […]
Americans Feel the Holiday Spending Squeeze
Executive Summary The latest Prosper Insights & Technologies survey paints a clear picture of how Americans are feeling—and spending—as they head into the holiday season. While some demographic groups show resilience, overall financial sentiment remains cautious, shaped heavily by inflation, tariffs, and uncertainty about the broader economy. Key findings include Only 22% of consumers feel […]
How Online Reviews Influence Sales
Evidence of the Power of Online Reviews to Shape Customer Behavior
SRC partner: New Black Friday with Less Impulse, More Intention
Congratulations Black Friday You’ve come a long way since your name was coined 50 years ago. You’re growing up. Your adorable children—Cyber Monday, Small Business Saturday, and Giving Tuesday—are carving out their own identities and becoming part of culture. You’re not as volatile; we’ve seen fewer doorbuster dustups make the national news in recent years. You’re less frenzied; your […]
Google AI Overviews Decoded
At the Spiegel Research Center, we collaborate with faculty, organizations, and students on advertising research projects. One of the ways we engage students is through the Spiegel Scholars Program, where they collect and analyze real-world data, develop recommendations for marketing managers, and identify opportunities for future research at the Spiegel Research Center. This summer, the […]
How Generative AI Is Transforming Modern Marketing
In a recent presentation titled Transforming Marketing With Generative AI: A Research-Based Approach, Kelly Cutler, Associate Professor of Marketing and Communication at Northwestern University, explored how generative AI is reshaping the marketing landscape and what organizations must do to adapt. She begins by noting that most marketers feel excited about AI, but many lack the […]
Strategic Shopping: Why Americans Start Early but Spend Less
Executive Summary The 2025 holiday season reflects a growing tension between enthusiasm and economic restraint. Data from the October 2025 Prosper Insights & Analytics survey, conducted in partnership with the National Retail Federation (NRF), shows that while 92.8% of adults plan to celebrate the winter holidays, shoppers are changing how and when they buy. Consumers […]
Retail Media Networks and Creator Marketing in the Digital Marketing Ecosystem
Executive Summary Digital Marketing has become a mainstay in modern marketing, commanding significant budgetary allocation. Within this dynamic landscape, Retail Media Networks (RMNs) and Influencer Marketing Platforms (IMPs/ Creator Marketing Platforms) have emerged as two of the fastest-growing components of digital marketing. However, despite their potential, brands are facing significant friction in effectively leveraging these […]
Insights From P2PI LIVE & Expo: Shopper Emotion
At the Path to Purchase Institute’s P2PI LIVE & Expo, new research highlighted how deeply emotion shapes today’s shopping experience—and what that means for brands and retailers. The findings show that retailers perform very differently when it comes to both emotional impact and ease of shopping, pointing to opportunities to borrow best practices across channels, […]
ANA Feature: GEO Is the New SEO
GEO Is the New SEO Generative engine optimization — or how to supply content that will capture AI bots’ attention — is gaining ground By Chuck Kapelke October 29, 2025 sk ChatGPT for its opinion on the best search engine optimization (SEO) agency for the cybersecurity industry, and one name consistently shows up near the […]