Dentsu Creative has published a new strategic playbook, Word of Mouth. Word of Machine, designed to help marketers respond to the way AI is reshaping how people discover, evaluate, and choose brands. The report lands as conversation increasingly becomes delegation, and it argues that the brands which thrive will be those that are engineered for recommendation but designed for difference.
Traditional approaches to brand building need to evolve, the agency says. Search is becoming conversational, and AI systems now sit between consumers and decision-making. The report identifies a growing tension for marketers: brands must be understood by machines while remaining meaningful to people. Many organisations have focused on AI's impact on productivity and content creation, but Dentsu Creative points to a larger opportunity in rethinking visibility, trust, and relevance in an AI-mediated world.
Five principles for future-fit brands
The playbook introduces five principles designed to guide brand building in this new environment:
- Brand clarity
- Machine readability
- Creative consistency
- Human referenceability
- Authority
These principles were developed in collaboration with experts across media, technology, and innovation, drawing on perspectives from the Financial Times, Reddit, futurist Tracey Follows, and specialists across the dentsu network.
The symbiotic relationship between humans and machines
Chris McKibbin, chief strategy officer at Dentsu Creative UK, said the central question clients bring is not simply how to use AI, but how brands grow when AI mediates consumer decisions. "Many marketers are asking whether they need to build brands for humans or machines. We believe that's the wrong question," McKibbin said. "The relationship is symbiotic. Machines influence people and people influence machines. The brands that win will be those that successfully combine machine readability with human relevance."
Jessica Tamsedge, CEO of Dentsu Creative UK, reinforced that visibility alone will not be enough as AI transforms discovery. "The future won't belong to brands that simply optimise for algorithms. It will belong to brands that create experiences worth talking about, communities worth belonging to and stories worth remembering," she said. "That's why creativity remains the competitive advantage."
Creativity's rising value
The report pushes back against the notion that AI diminishes the importance of creativity. Instead, it concludes that as AI systems increasingly aggregate, summarise, and recommend, distinctive creative work becomes more valuable. The brands that win will speak fluently to machines while meaning something to people-a balance that places creative craft at the centre of brand strategy.
The playbook will form the basis of a Cannes Lions discussion hosted by Tamsedge, featuring senior marketing leaders from BT, Adobe, IKEA, and Reddit. The full report is available to download now.
Why this matters for creatives
For creative professionals, the report reframes AI not as a threat to craft but as a reason to double down on what makes work distinctive. When machines determine what gets recommended, the brands that stand out are those with clear identities, consistent creative signatures, and experiences people actively talk about. The principles of creative consistency and human referenceability are, at their core, creative challenges. For those looking to deepen their understanding of how AI intersects with creative work, resources like AI for Creatives offer practical guidance on integrating these tools without sacrificing the human insight that drives memorable brand building.
Your membership also unlocks:
