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Ad.com Kicks Off Day 1 of MediaPost’s 2025 Performance Marketing Insider Summit
- Dec 15, 2025
- 2 min read
Ad.com kicked off Day 1 of MediaPost’s Performance Marketing Insider Summit with the opening sponsored presentation, delivered by Jeffrey Alderman, SVP of Sales & Marketing.
As the Premier Sponsor of the event, Ad.com opened the week by addressing a reality many brands felt during Holiday 2025: spending hit record highs, but traditional, Google-centric search did not perform the way it used to.
Holiday 2025 Changed the Rules
Holiday 2025 made one thing clear—how people search, discover, and buy has changed.
Even with U.S. retail spending crossing the trillion-dollar mark, brands that relied only on classic search struggled to capture demand. Clicks declined, zero-click results increased, and shoppers turned to new tools to make decisions faster.
Consumers didn’t just search. They compared prices, checked availability, and discovered products across AI assistants, marketplaces, social platforms, retail media networks, and brand sites.
Why Traditional Search Fell Short
During the highest-spending season of the year, performance teams faced real pressure:
More searches ended without a click
SERP space continued to shrink
CPCs increased across competitive categories
Privacy changes reduced targeting precision
AI-generated answers replaced traditional listings
The result was higher costs, less visibility, and incomplete coverage of the customer journey.
What’s Working Now
Jeff’s opening presentation focused on what brands must do differently to win going forward:
Diversify Beyond Google
Search still matters, but it can no longer carry performance alone. Brands need visibility across multiple discovery points.
Use First-Party Data More Intentionally
As targeting options narrow, first-party data is critical for scale, personalization, and long-term performance.
Invest Where Shoppers Actually Buy
Retail media networks and marketplaces continue to grow because that’s where high-intent decisions happen.
Adapt to AI-Driven Discovery
AI assistants and summaries are shaping how consumers research and decide—brands must be present where those decisions are made.
Setting the Tone for the Week
As the kickoff presentation for the Summit, Ad.com’s session set the stage for deeper conversations around performance, measurement, and growth in an AI-driven market.
The message was simple and clear:Relying on one channel is no longer a strategy. Winning today means meeting customers wherever they search, discover, and buy.
About Ad.com
Ad.com helps brands drive performance through diversified, cross-channel strategies that go beyond traditional search. By combining data, media, and technology, we help advertisers reach high-intent audiences across the full customer journey.
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