DTC987: AI Downsides, Old Spice Rebrand, and Conditional Splits

‍Here’s what you’ll find in today’s DTC:

• 🤖 The Downside of Using AI in Paid Media  
• 💯 The Rebrand That Saved Old Spice From Being Irrelevant
• 🏋️ Smart Tip To Improve Your Cart Abandonment Flow

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‍🤖 Five Hidden Tradeoffs of Using AI in Paid Media

Last week we talked about the advantages of using AI in paid media to unlock speed, scale, and efficiency.

But those advantages can quickly turn into liabilities without the right strategy behind them.

AI-driven campaigns can quickly hit plateaus without clear goals and oversight.

Below are five common downsides of leaning too heavily on AI in paid media and what to watch for to stay in control.

1. Limited or Incomplete Data

AI is only as good as the data it receives. When tracking or attribution breaks down, optimization suffers.

What to look out for:

• If the Meta Pixel isn’t firing correctly due to browser restrictions or iOS14+ privacy updates, AI lacks accurate conversion data and struggles to optimize effectively.
• When enhanced conversions aren’t properly configured, Google Smart Bidding may optimize toward weaker proxy events instead of final purchases.

2. Unclear or Misaligned Objectives

AI will optimize exactly toward what you tell it to, whether or not that aligns with revenue. You may end up optimizing for vanity metrics instead of business goals.

What to look out for:

For example, TikTok campaigns optimized for Video Views can generate engagement without driving purchases.

Performance Max campaigns optimized for traffic instead of revenue often chase low-quality clicks that hurt ROAS.

3. Over-Reliance on Automation

Automation should support strategy, not replace it. AI lacks brand context, market nuance, and creative intuition.

What to look out for:

• Meta Advantage+ Shopping may overlook niche but valuable customer segments or creative angles a human strategist would identify and prioritize
• Google Smart Campaigns can default to generic keyword targeting, missing brand-specific or competitor opportunities

4. Poor or Incomplete Attribution

Without clear visibility into where conversions originate, AI struggles to scale what’s actually working.

What to look out for:

• If offline conversions aren’t integrated into Google Ads, high-performing channels may be undervalued or deprioritized
• Meta’s last-click attribution can undervalue upper-funnel campaigns, pushing AI to over-optimize for short-term results

5. Loss of Control and Transparency

As automation increases, visibility often decreases.

Without transparency, it’s difficult to refine strategy or apply learnings across channels.

What to look out for:

• TikTok Smart Performance Campaigns provide limited insight into which creatives or audiences drive results
• Google Performance Max restricts asset-level and audience reporting, making iteration and learning harder

The takeaway?

The most effective paid media programs use AI to execute faster and more efficiently within a human-designed framework.

That means: clear objectives tied to revenue, reliable data, and human oversight to spot blind spots and guide optimization.

If AI is running your account, double-check these five areas this week.

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‍🎧 The Old Spice Rebrand That Actually Worked

Old Spice didn’t just change a logo.

They rebuilt relevance.

In this episode, Aves breaks down one of the most successful rebrands of the last 20 years and why Old Spice’s 2010 reset worked when so many modern rebrands fall flat.

From shifting targeting to focus on women to launching online instead of the Super Bowl, this was a masterclass in cultural timing and segmentation.

What we cover:

• Why most rebrands fail before they even launch
• How Old Spice identified that they were losing relevance with an entire generation
• The real reason their competitor, Axe, was winning in the 2000s
• Why delivery and channel strategy mattered as much as the creative
• How humor became the key for net new acquisition

▶️ Watch the full episode on YouTube.

🎧 Or listen here on Spotify.

‍Cart Abandonment Idea 💡

Instead of sending the same abandonment email to everyone, Andreas Janesch recommends this conditional split based on free-shipping eligibility.

Already qualified? Emphasize free shipping.

Not qualified? Offer a cart discount.

A simple flow that protects margin whenever possible.

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DTC Newsletter is written by Rebecca Knight and Frances Du. Edited by Eric Dyck.

Please note that items in this newsletter marked with * contain sponsored content.