The marketing using artificial intelligence It is no longer just a promise, but has become the foundation on which campaigns that really work are built. You don’t have to look far to see this: from 9 to 11 June, Málaga hosted the tenth edition of DES – Digital Enterprise Show, one of the most important business technology events in southern Europe, and the conversation kept coming back to the same topic: how AI is reshaping the way we plan, execute and measure marketing.
At Vandelay, we follow these events not for the novelty’s sake, but because they often foreshadow what will eventually come knocking on any business’s door in a few months’ time. According to the coverage of the event published by Direct Marketing, the 57% among Spanish professionals is already using artificial intelligence proactively. This is not a passing fad: it is a fundamental shift. We have reviewed the key takeaways from DES 2026 and distilled them into five specific indicators, with practical implications for businesses that do not have an innovation department but simply want to improve their sales.
1. AI is moving beyond being a tool to become infrastructure
For years, we’ve talked about “using AI” in the same way one uses a calculator: as an occasional aid for a specific task. At DES 2026, that framework proved inadequate. The recurring theme among the speakers was that artificial intelligence is being integrated throughout the entire marketing workflow, from the initial briefing to the final report, including content creation and data analysis.
In practice, tools such as Claude, Canva, Jasper AI and Semrush are already changing the day-to-day work of teams: what used to take an afternoon is now done in minutes. It’s important to understand this properly, because it changes the question. It is no longer a question of “Which AI tool should I buy?”, but rather “Which parts of my process can I redesign so that AI works with me from start to finish?”. It is that second question that distinguishes those who simply automate individual tasks from those who achieve real efficiency gains.
2. ROI is back in the driving seat (and in a cookie-free environment, no less)
If one thing became clear, it is that creativity and technology cannot be sustained without measurable results. Return on investment was one of the key themes of the event, and not by chance: brands are demanding ever greater precision and less hot air. What’s interesting is that this demand comes just as third-party cookies are becoming less useful and traditional tracking methods are proving inadequate.
The sector’s response? To rely on its own data (the famous first-party data) and AI-powered attribution models capable of estimating what is working, even though we can no longer track everything click by click. For an SME, this translates into very practical advice: look after your own customer database, your website and your email as if they were assets, because they are becoming increasingly valuable. AI can help you make the most of them, but first you need to have that data in-house.
3. Hyper-personalisation becomes a competitive advantage
The relationship between brands and consumers is becoming increasingly nuanced. AI makes it possible to segment audiences, anticipate needs and interpret behaviour with a level of detail that would have been unthinkable five years ago. The event even touched upon so-called “spatial AI”, which combines sensors, computing and artificial intelligence to create more immersive experiences in retail and at events.
Without going to such extremes, the underlying idea applies to almost any business. *Direct Marketing* highlighted a striking statistic from the conference coverage: recent studies suggest that AI could improve the customer experience by up to 83% over the next five years. It is worth taking that figure for what it is — a forecast, not a fait accompli — but the direction is unmistakable. A customer who receives a message tailored to them is more likely to convert than one who receives the same mass email as ten thousand other people. Personalisation is no longer a luxury; it is what is expected as standard.
4. “Machines Learn, People Lead”: human judgement remains in charge
The slogan chosen for this year’s event was precisely that: Machines learn, people lead. And we think this is the most important statement of the whole event, because it puts things into perspective. AI is extraordinary at generating, summarising and analysing, but it lacks brand judgement, it doesn’t know your customer as well as you do, and it doesn’t take responsibility for strategic decisions.
We’ve seen it far too often: companies that delegate every last detail to AI and end up publishing generic, soulless content that’s indistinguishable from that of their competitors. The advantage isn’t in producing content faster, but in using that time saved to think more carefully. Technology provides the speed; the team sets the direction. When that balance tips in favour of the machine, the result is obvious… and customers notice it too.
5. Adoption is no longer just for the big players
One of the new features of this year’s event was “Universo DES”, a format comprising six themed areas — AI, cybersecurity, cloud, retail, SMEs and entrepreneurial talent — as well as a section dedicated to digital marketing. The fact that SMEs have their own dedicated section speaks volumes: artificial intelligence is no longer a field reserved for multinationals with large budgets.
These days, a local business can automate customer service with a well-configured chatbot, generate content drafts for its social media channels, analyse which campaigns are delivering results, and personalise its emails without spending a fortune. The barrier is no longer money or technology; it’s knowing where to start and having a plan that links every action to a real business objective. And that’s where a partner who understands both the tool and your business makes all the difference.
What shall we do with all this from tomorrow onwards?
DES 2026 confirms a trend we’ve been seeing for some time in our day-to-day work: artificial intelligence doesn’t replace marketing – it enhances it. It reduces the time we spend on routine tasks and leaves us more scope for what really makes a difference: strategy, creativity and customer insight. The companies that will grow the most in the coming months will not be those that accumulate the most tools, but those that best integrate those tools into a well-thought-out plan.
If you’re wondering how to apply AI-powered marketing to your business without getting lost in the noise of all the latest trends, that’s exactly the sort of conversation we’d love to have. Get in touch and we’ll look at it with the data on the table and a down-to-earth approach.
Source of event data: Marketing Directo, “AI establishes itself as the new driving force behind marketing at DES 2026” (26 May 2026) and coverage of DES – Digital Enterprise Show 2026.
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