The Shift Back Toward Human Marketing: People Are Buying From People
- Meg Manzoni
- Dec 11, 2025
- 2 min read
We’ve arrived in a new era of marketing — one where people crave real connection more than curated perfection - and personally I LOVE this for us. AI is everywhere, automation is everywhere, and yet the brands winning today are the ones showing face, showing process, showing imperfections, and personality.
You don’t need to be loud or overly personal. You just need to be human.
If you’re building a brand right now, whether you’re scrappy and solo or you’re in a corporate team trying to modernize your approach, leaning into human-first marketing is your biggest unlock.
Behind-the-Scenes Builds Trust
People love seeing the human hands behind a product or service. It instantly makes your brand feel more real, more grounded, more “oh wow, actual humans made this.” Show the mess, the process, the coffee-fuelled chaos — it makes your audience feel like they’re part of the journey, not just spectators waiting for the final result.
Personality Makes You Memorable
You don’t need to be funny or dance on Reels. Just speak like a real person. It’s wild how rare that actually is today.
People don’t connect to perfect brands — they connect to familiar ones. A little personality goes a long way.
Authenticity Still Wins (But It’s Evolving)
Authenticity used to mean oversharing your whole life on the internet like a digital diary. Now it looks a little different. It’s more about:
transparency
clarity
giving real value
showing your process
being honest when you’re still figuring something out
It’s “real,” but with boundaries. Human, but not chaotic.
So…
The world might be automated, optimized, and AI-assisted — but people still buy with emotion, so keep it clear, keep it human, keep it simple.
Honestly, simple is the new clever.
