CES Announcements to Inspire Your Marketing in 2025
Earlier this month, CES—the world's premier tech event—took center stage in Las Vegas. Known for showcasing cutting-edge electronics, TVs, and gadgets, this year’s event also spotlighted transformative advancements in AI, AR, and more. These innovations got us thinking about how rapidly technology is shaping the future and which could have an immediate impact on marketing this year.
What a robot vacuum can teach us about smart marketing
There were robot vacuum cleaners everywhere at CES this year. However, there were two that stood out from the crowd by adding a robotic arm on top of their chassis. Instead of following the pack and using AI advances to improve object avoidance, like going around socks and keys on the floor, these cleaning pioneers took a different approach. What if the vacuum could simply move stuff out of the way with its arm? Reframing the problem led them to a smart, differentiated and very marketable solution.
Make sure your marketing solutions are targeted to solve the right problems. We worked with a premium casual restaurant chain who thought they had a problem with loyalty. Through data analysis we discovered what they really had was a problem with frequency. They had very loyal customers, customers who’d been visiting for years, but only once or twice a year. Once we’d reframed the problem, our marketing strategy focused on getting loyal customers to visit more often… but a robot arm would have been cool too!
AI Assistants Are the Future—But Great Experiences Can Start Today
In the Delta Key Note, they unveiled their AI Assistant which promised to deliver a better travel experience in the next few years. The Assistant is shown alerting customers of an increase in drive time to the airport, inviting customers to the Delta lounge after flight check in, and directions to connecting gates.
Most of the experience enhancements would be made better and faster with AI but, a lot of the experiences are something you could easily build out with marketing automation today. Take the time to map out your customer journey to find the things that would be meaningful and helpful to your customers and build experiences using the tools you have today. As technology advances, you can always update the experience. Why wait when you can provide excellent experiences for your customer today?
Smart Glasses at CES: Marketing Strategies Ready for a Comeback
When Google Glass was first launched in 2014, it was met with skepticism and quickly faded from the market, with production ceasing just a year later. Fast forward to this year’s CES, and the sheer volume of Smart Glasses on display suggests the concept’s time may finally have arrived.
So what does this have to do with marketing in 2025? It highlights the potential of once-dismissed strategies making a comeback. In your 2025 planning, consider techniques like forum marketing, text-only emails, and yes, maybe even direct mail. (We know - It’s not every day a digital marketing agency will recommend direct mail but if applied correctly and in the right circumstances can be an amazing lead generator.) These approaches—previously seen as outdated—are experiencing a renaissance and could be good additions to your 2025 marketing.
In Conclusion:
CES 2025 showcased groundbreaking innovations, all offering lessons for marketers looking to stay ahead. Whether it’s reframing challenges like the robot vacuum with a robotic arm, building meaningful customer experiences with existing tools, or revisiting strategies that have worked previously, the key takeaway is clear: success lies in combining creativity with practicality. As technology evolves, marketers don’t have to wait for the next big thing—real opportunities are available now to create smarter, more engaging solutions. Take inspiration from CES to reimagine your marketing approach and deliver impact in 2025 and beyond.