These are the marketing trends of 2025

Janina Pihlaja, Country Marketing Manager, IKEA Finland

“When you look ahead, start with the context: the world is still quite unpredictable for the consumer. A shrinking bank account and distrust in the Finnish economy have forced people to weigh up which purchases are really necessary. At the same time, people have put many things on hold: for example, many are waiting for the right moment to move or renovate.

One impact of the economic cycle on marketing has been an increasing focus on performance, as well as a shift in focus to short-term campaigns. There is space at the other end of the spectrum: I believe that next year, we will see renewed interest in long-term and systematic brand building.

At the same time, I think we are probably moving away from competitive shouting: in marketing, a recession is visible as a cacophony of sales.

I believe that the growth potential lies in identifying a unique position that leaves an emotional imprint.”

Steve Brown, Executive Creative Director | Co-Founder , United Imaginations

“In 2025, brands will brighten their relationship with society and summarise their values into clear, understandable marketing communication concepts.

Social themes will be detached from commercial statements, which brings more credibility and sharpness to communications. At the same time, this brings more creativity to social activities, which makes them more distinctive. The result is marketing communications that provoke genuine interest and a desire to be involved – as well as creating a longer-lasting impact for the brand.

Oh, and the R word – we will see less of it in future. Responsibility is no longer a competitive advantage or a means of differentiation – it is a basic requirement without which one simply cannot function.”

Ville Fredrikson, Strategy Director, Dagmar

“Marketing will fulfil the first promises of artificial intelligence next year as AI is integrated as part of marketing processes. At the same time, many marketers no longer wear rose-tinted glasses, as the initial enthusiasm has turned into healthy realism.

In 2025, instead of a general ChatGPT, we are moving more towards tools intended for marketing that help us with processes such as content production, customer service or reporting. However, building or deploying such tools requires the organisation to change.

I argue that the benefits calculated by pioneering organisations do not come primarily from the adoption of AI technology. Results are generated when you find a balance between artificial intelligence and human competence. In particular, it means engaging and inspiring people with determination, learning new skills, and a clear development of process and data capabilities.

This does not require a massive development budget or huge data masses. At best, it frees marketers to focus on what people do best – that is, creative thinking, strategic planning and building genuine customer relationships. In addition, I believe that something surprising will emerge as a by-product – something we cannot even predict.”

Terhi Villanova, Head of Client Leadership, dentsu Finland

“Next year, marketers will return to the basics by thinking about how to direct marketing investments correctly to enable growth, and what the role of the brand will be in this equation.

Marketing will become even more data-driven than before as we achieve more advanced opportunities to model and verify marketing results. At the heart of everything is high-quality data, as well as its management and accessibility for marketing use. This is also a prerequisite for the effective use of AI in companies.

We will see more holistic modelling that can verify both short-term sales and, in the longer term, the measurable impact and value of the brand for the company. Brands will take on a larger, role and their value to businesses and marketing will be reassessed.”

Varpu Varpela, Business Unit Director, Miltton

“A fragmented media field. Flood of messages. Global and local crises. Regulation. Artificial intelligence. Bubbles and even more polarised values. Information distortions. Accelerating political tensions. The forces that affect people are more complex than ever, and it also makes consumers difficult to predict.

The image of our time may well be that meat-eating is no longer polarising – illustrating or not illustrating meat is enough.

In 2025, if you want marketing to have an impact on a company’s earnings, you need to understand what moves people and society. This can only be achieved if marketing asks “why” more often. Why do our customers choose us over competitors – and why might they switch? Why is responsibility a purchase driver for some and not for others? Why do our customers’ real needs and desires change? Why make a fun ad or invest in an AI bot now? Why can our customers’ trust in us be shaken – and why is it so difficult to restore?

If you do not understand the person and the society around that person, you cannot influence them. And if you cannot influence the person, you cannot sell to them either.”

Jussi Salminen, Marketing Director, Bauhaus Finland & Estonia

“The craziness of the 2020s will continue. 2025 is certainly a time of uncertainty in all respects, but this is an opportunity for all of us. If a company can continue building the groundwork for future success even through difficult times, it will be able to seize the momentum of the emerging economy from the very start.

The brand, the brand, the brand… This is a mantra that marketers never get tired of, and it is the winning element. Almost every study shows that strong brands and investments in marketing are worthwhile even in economic down-cycles. So why don’t companies act accordingly? When the cash reserves scream red, it is hard to see the value of the treasure waiting a year or two away.

While I hope that Finnish companies and marketers can keep a cool head and invest in our brands, the majority will not. So – be different. Of course, it must be said that all marketing builds your brand. But only truly distinctive and interesting (brand) marketing that speaks to the target group builds it in a way that gives it meaning.

To avoid just using the perpetual trend of “invest in the brand”, here are a few other trends worth looking into: Media innovations: Not just marketing innovation – successful people will also find media innovation. Mobilise creative implementation with media acts that enhance it.

Demand courage: Dare to demand other decision-making bodies within the company for courage. If an amazing creative idea goes through senseless approval and commenting processes, all that is left is crumbs. There is no point in wasting media money on those crumbs.

Phenomena: Spend part of your budget on foolishness. In Finland, we rarely create advertising that truly speaks to you. I encourage you to allocate a certain portion of your annual budget for phenomena.”

Leevi Parsama, Chair of the Board, Digital Commerce Finland

“Every person is already digitalised, but what is the status of your business? For example, measured by customer experience? Today, it is challenging to succeed by selling everything to everyone; instead, companies must invest heavily in customer understanding. Who are our best customers? And why are they buying from us?

You must work on customer understanding from two perspectives: emotional understanding and hard facts – that is, data and euros. In terms of emotions, study customers’ ultimate purchasing motivation: their starting points and for what needs they make decisions. This typically means working on segments and customer profiles, leading to the development of purchase paths, service models and selection.

Of course, the real secret to deepening customer understanding is data, which makes it possible to draw various measures for everyday sales and marketing, especially now that AI is making a huge contribution. For example, even a basic decile exercise reveals the most profitable customers and those that might even create a loss for the company. After this, it is good to focus on CLV calculations and cohort analyses and to build various marketing automations on top of them with the aid of an RFM matrix, for example.

The true winners are those who know how to combine emotional behaviour and data in a multidimensional way. This will turn the marketing metrics (e.g. COS, CAC and ROMI) into a completely different kind of upward angle, and the company will begin to grow rapidly. In my own work as a digital commerce expert, I have already seen this so many times.”

Katja Willberg, Marketing Strategist, Vaasan

“Growing a successful commercial brand is increasingly expensive and rare. The fragmented media environment challenges advertisers to invest excessively to reach their target audience with the desired message. Brand building increasingly focuses on authenticity and storytelling. Customers appreciate transparent brands that have a clear mission. Strong brands stand out from their competitors and create long-term customer relationships. Emotional stories make an impact, and the brand’s tone of voice must be long term and consistent. 

Price competition is no longer the only way to stand out in the market. Companies focus on delivering value to their customers, such as better customer service, unique products or experiences. Customers are willing to pay more if they feel they are getting value for their money. 

Responsibility is the lifeblood of companies – it is no longer a differentiating factor. It isn’t enough to talk about goals and ambition; you need to do genuine deeds and communicate them. Utilising responsible actions in marketing is difficult and not always appropriate, which means that the money invested in it rarely brings a competitive advantage. Advertisers should return to the origin of their meaning: why, what, and for whom. 

Influencer cooperation and content further emphasise relevance and compatibility between the brand, the influencer and the target group. For individuality, you need more targeted content, which increases the importance of digital channels. Invest more in channel-specific strategies and long-term communication. Multi-channel is important, but selecting the right channel and message is even more important. Don’t push the same message in all channels – use the right content in the right channels.”

Hertta Saarikangas, Head of New Business & Senior Client Director, Bob the Robot

“The breakthrough of artificial intelligence and AI-enabled tools will continue in the coming year, providing an addition to the creative toolbox that is growing at an unpredictable pace. For this, you need curiosity and an entirely new way of thinking. The debate has been dominated by how artificial intelligence is changing how we work. The ongoing change doesn’t only concern us professionals in the field – it also requires the recipient of the message to develop media literacy and careful source criticism.

Artificial intelligence will therefore inevitably continue to shaping the marketing field and our method of working in ways we can barely perceive yet. Although the rapid and continuous development may seem challenging, a success-oriented person understands that it is a vital development step to take in the field of marketing. Even in this transition, strong brands and the resulting authentic stories and concepts that stand the test of time are still the key to success – we now have more diverse ways to build them.”

Reetta Thurman, Marketing Strategist, Sanoma Media Finland

“In 2025, it will no longer be enough to have wide coverage in marketing, as brands are moving towards uniform and integrated multi-channel solutions. This means that television, radio, print and digital platforms no longer act as separate channels, but as a seamless entity that provides consumers with a coherent and unified experience.

Consumers expect consistency from communication regardless of the channel, but the importance of wide coverage isn’t going away – it is just changing. TV and radio continue to build awareness and strengthen the credibility of the message, as they reflect the trustworthiness of the advertiser. Alongside them, digital channels allow more accurate targeting in the later stages of the purchase path, meaning consumers can receive messages tailored specifically to their needs.

Consistent multi-channel marketing emphasises combining the strengths of different channels and adapting messages to the needs of channels and consumers. Media outlets that provide seamless solutions to combine wide coverage and targeted content are key to brand success.”

Niklas Puschmann, Director Media Services, GroupM Nexus Finland

“Even though we’ve already been hearing about AI for several years, 2025 is when we will see more practical solutions for the masses, such as AI search. On the expert side, integrations with marketing technology systems will become more common, which will have a tangible impact on the everyday lives of professionals.

The GenAI hype has eased a little, and various industries are starting to find ways to take advantage of it at a low threshold. As the EU Artificial Intelligence Act enters into force, the rules of the game will become clearer.

Video consumption continues to fragment as streaming services add ad-funded subscription models, and new players emerge on the market. Domestic services and linear TV will continue to be strong in Finland but, from the advertiser’s perspective, reaching customers requires a more specific video strategy as the differences in consumption habits between target groups increase.

Consumers will determine whether they like the fragmented field, or whether we will see more centralisation than before, which would already lead to a changing market situation next year.

Lastly, more of an optimistic wish: hopefully, the need to save, general caution and budget cuts will turn into considered investments, courage and growth, both globally and here in the Nordic region.”

Anna-Riikka Hovi-Taunila, Managing Director, Toinen PHD

“Next year, collaborative intelligence will develop. This means a very tangible change of approach in the connection between human intelligence and artificial intelligence. The next couple of years will be an era of experimentation, after which we will proceed to the acceleration phase.

Organisations will think carefully about how to use AI, practise prompt creation and integrate it into their processes. Why do I call this step collaborative intelligence? Because AI-assisted technology focuses on human intelligence so that the benefits of increased efficiency and impact can be obtained faster. Human intelligence plays an important role in increasing creativity and bold thinking, and challenging AI to make new kinds of decisions.

Another trend is related to consumer behaviour. We marketers need to understand that the older age groups also have strong purchasing power. People live longer and feel better for longer. They have also had time to accumulate property. For example, the consumption of 75–84-year-olds has increased sharply and risen to the level of 35–44-year-olds. In recent years, the number of retired people visiting restaurants has doubled. 

There is also another trend related to consumer behaviour. As price awareness increases in everyday consumption decisions, mid-priced products will be pressured to highlight their premium perspectives. Brands between low-cost and premium brands face a challenging situation, as they need to position themselves in a way that makes people willing to pay a little extra for them. In many organisations, the task of marketing is to build visual premium elements for products and services.”