Marketing in the Dispersion Era: How to Connect with Customers Without Controlling the Path

Fragmented and unpredictable; this is the current online shopping journey.In a matter of minutes, consumers move between social networks, search engines, marketplaces, applications and physical stores, crossing platforms and stimuli in a non-linear way. It is the end of the funnel logic as a marketing strategy guide and immersion in an era of dynamic chaos.

Faced with such decentralized paths, the control of the journey is no longer viable, but the commitment to a good experience remains. For e-commerce, it is necessary to understand the signals that the consumer emits in real time and create relevant, fluid and consistent touch points. “You can not wait for the customer to walk a trail. The connection needs to happen where he is, when it makes sense for him”, says Gabriel Carlini Vieira, digital marketing expert and CEO of the FG Agency.

With this new scenario, personalization is no longer a differential and has become a starting point. Behaviors, interests and navigation patterns have become more important than demographic profiles. “Instead of creating predictable journeys, brands need to map opportunities for interaction and remove friction anywhere along the” path, Vieira points out.

According to consultancy Menlo Ventures, 1.8 billion people have already used AI tools, and about 600 million interact with them daily. Technologies such as generative search engines and autonomous agents directly influence purchasing decisions, often before the consumer even realizes it. And this needs to be taken into account and used strategically.

In 2025, AI advances beyond basic automation and starts to operate as the strategic brain of brands that operate in e-commerce. Generative models are being integrated directly into CRMs, media platforms and product recommendation systems, allowing hyper-personalized actions in real time throughout the entire buying journey. Tools such as generative search, virtual sales assistants and autonomous media agents, capable of making decisions, testing and adjusting campaigns without human intervention, are already beginning to be implemented on a large scale in digital operations. 

In addition, creating personalized AI videos and emotional analytics applied to customer service and user experience ushers in a new phase in consumer relationships, where each touchpoint is shaped not just by data but by context, intent, and conversion potential.

Still, the technology alone does not solve.Efficiency has also become an essential attribute. A survey by Verint shows that 86% of consumers value fast interactions and 73% prefer to solve everything by digital channels. This requires not only optimized platforms, but also data intelligence, functional UX and teams able to adapt the operation with agility.

“We are living a marketing that operates at the pace of culture and technology. It is necessary to observe, adjust and deliver value continuously. The focus is not on predicting all the steps of the consumer, but on being present, with relevance, at the moment he decides to act. Growing today means operating with more awareness, strategy and intelligence, understanding that there is no longer control of the” journey, concludes Gabriel.