The year 2026 should mark an important turn in the marketing and communication market. The transformations accelerated by artificial intelligence, the change in consumer behavior and the maturation of digital platforms will require companies to adopt smarter, agile and, above all, more human models to communicate. The analysis is from marketing and business strategies specialist Frederico Burlamaqui, who points out: the future of the sector does not belong to blind enthusiasts of technology, but to those who know how to balance innovation with critical thinking.
For Burlamaqui, Artificial Intelligence is no longer just an operational tool and starts to act directly in supporting strategic decisions, especially in the processing of large volumes of data, predictive analysis and reading complex scenarios. However, it makes an important caveat: “We are not against AI, but we are absolutely against the replacement of human intellectual capital. Strategy is not automated. It builds”.
According to the expert, there is an excessive enthusiasm of the market to delegate tasks to AI that require sensitivity, repertoire and context vision. “There is the illusion that technology solves everything.In 2026, the brands that will stand out will be those that use AI sparingly, as a support tool, and not as a creative shortcut”, he says.
Burlamaqui advocates a more artisanal marketing, in which strategic processes, concept creation, brand positioning and content production remain essentially human. “We do not use images generated by AI, for example. We prefer to hire photographers, creative teams and specialized professionals. Writing, design and creative direction need people, to look, to experience. AI enters where it really aggregates: in data analysis and reading of” patterns, he explains.
Another relevant change for 2026 is advanced customization, driven by technology, but guided by human intelligence. Platforms begin to understand context, preferences and buying moment, allowing more accurate approaches. Still, Burlamaqui points out that customization only works when there is strategy behind. “The funnel does not disappear, it adapts. But who defines the path still needs to be”.
With the explosion of automatically generated content, what the expert calls “human-first” content gains strength: real narratives, behind-the-scenes, vulnerability and depth. “The consumer realizes when everything is generic. In 2026, authenticity ceases to be discourse and returns to being a competitive advantage”, he says.
Among other trends expected to gain traction next year, Burlamaqui highlights:
- Social Commerce 3.0 ''integrating content, selling and serving across platforms, with AI supporting processes, not replacing relationships;
- Multimodal SEO Optimization for voice, video and image, following the evolution of search engines;
- Communities as a strategic asset Reducing reliance on algorithms and strengthening trust;
- Brands as educational hubs . In-depth content, training and intellectual authority;
- Clean data ethical and transparent management of own data in the face of the advancement of regulations;
- Hybrid experiences in XR . Conscious use of immersive environments to bring the consumer closer to the real experience;
- Genuine impact marketing ''purpose sustained by consistent actions, not automated narratives.
For the expert, 2026 will be the year when the market will need to choose between technological shortcuts and long-term strategic construction.“A IA is powerful, but it does not think, does not feel and does not create culture. The differential will continue to be human. Whoever understands this grows. Whoever delegates everything to machines, loses identity”, he concludes.
