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Market trends 2026: what will redefine consumption and marketing
From digital burnout to purposeful consumption.
The starting point for market trends in 2026 is a consumer saturated with stimuli, but much more intentional in their choices. After a decade marked by polarization, intermittent inflation, and hyperconnectivity, price remains important, but it is no longer enough: trust, convenience, and alignment of values are definitively at the heart of the decision. In 2026, products and services need to prove real utility and positive impact, not just wear the ESG discourse. Conscious consumption ceases to be a niche and becomes an aspirational default: the customer wants to know what they are buying, from whom they are buying, and why they are buying, demanding transparency in the production chain, data, and communication. For marketing, this means exchanging occasional campaigns for consistent long-term narratives that connect brand, social impact, and experience. Those who insist on greenwashing, performative diversity, or empty storytelling tend to face a rapid backlash, amplified by creators and communities that monitor inconsistencies in real time.
AI at scale, mature creators, and data as the fabric of culture.
Looking ahead to 2026, the boundary between behavior and technology virtually disappears: the use of generative AI and AI agents at scale becomes mass behavior, no longer just a curiosity for early adopters. Studies by consultancies like Kantar already point to automated shopping assistants directly influencing the customer journey, forcing brands to think not only about the human consumer but also about the systems that filter offers, reviews, and recommendations. Personalization ceases to be an advantage and becomes a basic requirement, driven by first-party data, retail media networks, and closed platform environments. Creators move from being ‘alternative media’ to becoming a strategic element of effectiveness, with clear metrics for brand contribution and sales. In this context, data ceases to be merely a performance input and becomes a cultural asset: guiding product, communication, pricing, and even positioning, in a logic of continuous experimentation. For marketing, the challenge is to combine data intelligence with creative intelligence, avoiding both the risk of blind decisions and the excessive automation that empties the human touch.
Market trends: collapse of models and a new grammar of branding.
Market trends for 2026 point to the silent collapse of rigid, poorly data-driven business models. Traditional sectors face competition from digitally native players operating on platforms, testing quickly, and treating real-time data as infrastructure, not as a project. At the same time, pressure is growing for brands to occupy a relevant space in areas such as well-being, financial security, inclusion, and sustainability, going beyond advertising to operate in services, communities, and education. Consumer behavior is fragmenting into micro-communities, where creators, interest groups, and cultural niches become the new ‘media grid’. In this scenario, a strong brand is less a logo and more a set of recurring proofs: coherent products, effective customer service, a consistent positioning, and connected experiences between the physical and digital worlds. For those working in marketing, content, and martech, 2026 is the year in which cultural strategy, data architecture, and brand narrative converge. Those who manage to orchestrate these elements gain not only market share but, above all, attention and trust.
References
- Marketing and consumer trend reports for 2026 from global consulting firms and research institutes.
- Studies on Brazilian consumer behavior, conscious consumption, and the impact of AI on the purchasing journey.
- Market analysis on retail media, creators, and data-driven business models through 2026.
