Digital Marketing Trends to Plan For in 2027

Google users clicked a traditional result in 8 percent of visits when an AI summary appeared, against 15 percent without one, according to Pew Research. That gap sets the agenda for 2027: the seven trends to plan for are AI-driven search with fewer clicks, AI inside everyday marketing work, video as the default format, retail and commerce advertising, first-party data, creator and community marketing, and tighter measurement.

dentsu-e4m also projects digital to reach 70 percent of India’s ad spend by 2027. Use this guide with our overview of AI changes to social media algorithms and the end of third-party cookies when you build next year’s plan.

Trend 1: How Will AI Search Change Traffic?

AI summaries answer questions on the results page, so fewer people click through. Pew’s study of 900 US adults and about 69,000 Google searches found a click rate of 8 percent with an AI summary and 15 percent without, and only 1 percent clicked a link inside the summary. Longer, conversational questions triggered summaries far more often: 53 percent of searches with ten or more words, against 8 percent for one- or two-word searches.

What to do: write pages that answer a specific question in the first two sentences, add clear tables and named sources, and track brand searches and conversions, not only visits. Our guides on how to rank in ChatGPT and AI Overviews and AI Overviews optimisation go deeper.

Trend 2: What Does AI Change in Daily Marketing Work?

It speeds up drafts, analysis and variation testing. Gartner found 22 percent of CMOs said generative AI let them depend less on outside agencies for creative and strategy, and 39 percent planned to cut agency budgets. The risk is sameness: if every brand uses the same prompts, content looks identical. Add what AI cannot supply: your own data, customer stories and a clear point of view. See ChatGPT marketing prompts and AI marketing personalisation examples for practical starting points.

Trend 3: Is Video Becoming the Default Format?

Yes, in India especially. The dentsu-e4m 2026 report projected online video to grow 22.3 percent and reach a 29 percent share of digital ad spend by the end of 2026, with social media holding a similar share. Short video is now a normal first touch for many buyers. Plan a monthly rhythm of short videos that answer buyer questions, and reuse each one across platforms. Our YouTube Shorts guide covers the approach.

Trend 4: Why Are Retail and Commerce Ads Growing?

Because ads placed near the point of purchase are easy to measure. The same dentsu-e4m report found e-retail accounted for 25 percent of digital media spend in India, and FICCI-EY’s 2026 report credited e-commerce and point-of-sale advertising for part of the growth in overall advertising, which rose 13.5 percent in 2025. If you sell on marketplaces, treat their ad tools as a channel with a budget and a target return.

Trend 5: Why Does First-Party Data Matter More?

Because you own it. Emails, WhatsApp opt-ins, purchase history and survey answers survive platform changes. A simple customer list, used well, often beats broad targeting. Build the habit now: ask for permission, explain the benefit and keep data clean. Our guides on building an email list and customer data platforms show the steps.

Trend 6: What Is Happening With Creators and Community?

Creators carry trust that brand pages struggle to match. DataReportal’s 2026 India report shows about 500 million social identities, and many of those people follow creators more closely than brands. Measure creator work by sales and sign-ups, not only views. See influencer marketing ROI for a method.

Trend 7: How Should You Measure in 2027?

Use fewer, clearer numbers. Track cost per lead, conversion rate and repeat purchase rate, then compare each channel on the same sheet. Add brand search volume and direct visits as signs of growing awareness. Set targets with a method such as OKRs and KPIs.

What Should You Do First?