Constant Contact vs Squarespace

Survey: Short-Term Pressures Undermine Marketing Effectiveness

A survey of 216 MiniMBA in Marketing alumni, conducted by The Drum and MiniMBA, reveals that short-term commercial pressures are the biggest organizational barrier to effective marketing. 28.4% of respondents identified these pressures as the primary obstacle, while 23.1% cited balancing long- and short-term growth as a major challenge. Marketers argue that the relentless demand for immediate results diverts budgets away from long-term brand building. Industry experts like Matthew Stevens of MOI Global and Berit Block of Constant Contact emphasize the difficulty of defending long-term investments in quarterly reviews. The findings suggest that short-termism is an organizational issue, requiring marketers to make a stronger commercial case for long-term strategy.

• 28.4% of marketers surveyed identified short-term commercial pressures as the biggest organizational barrier to good marketing.
• 23.1% said balancing long- and short-term growth was the biggest challenge facing marketers today.
• The survey was conducted among 216 MiniMBA in Marketing alumni.

Constant Contact Launches 'Great Needs Great' AI Campaign

Constant Contact launched "Great Needs Great," a national brand campaign positioning the company as an AI partner for small business growth. Developed with creative agency TBWA\Chiat\Day LA, the campaign spans linear and streaming television, streaming audio, digital video, social and highlights built-in AI features on Constant Contact's platform. The company says its AI can generate tailored email designs and content, recommend send times, segment contacts from prompts, build personalized weekly social plans, and provide a built-in chat assistant. Constant Contact cited proprietary data showing U.S. small business AI adoption rising from 26% in 2023 to 87% in 2026 and said the campaign will run on TV, Spotify, Pandora, SiriusXM, YouTube and paid social.

• Constant Contact launched a national brand campaign called "Great Needs Great".
• The campaign was developed with creative agency TBWA\Chiat\Day LA and spans television, streaming audio, digital video and social.
• Constant Contact promotes built-in AI features that generate email designs and content, recommend send times, segment contacts from prompts, build weekly social plans, and offer a built-in chat assistant.

Founders Driving Short-Form Social Content

Brands are increasingly asking founders to create short-form social content to build authenticity, connect with customers, and support wholesale opportunities. Small-business founders are adopting a "creator" identity and often personally manage social accounts. Reports cited show short-form video delivers high ROI, but founders face challenges balancing content creation with day-to-day operations, maintaining brand-aligned authenticity, and resourcing production. Examples include Kostarina’s founder Katina Mountanos, women’s outdoor brand Seniq’s co-founders (who use analytics and Triple Whale), and Nick Stenson of Nick Stenson Beauty sharing personal and product-focused content.

• Katina Mountanos, founder and CEO of Kostarina, began posting short-form videos about olive oil and the category.
• A Constant Contact survey of over 5,000 people found nearly three out of four small business owners are adopting a 'creator' identity, and 47% personally manage their company’s social media presence.
• HubSpot’s 2026 State of Marketing Report found nearly half of brand marketers said short-form video had the highest ROI of any visual format.

Introducing SMS Campaigns: The Marketing Channel Your Customers Won’t Ignore

Squarespace announces the launch of SMS Campaigns, a new marketing channel integrated into its platform, allowing users to reach customers via text messaging.

August 2026 Product Updates

August 2026 Product Updates by Squarespace

Websites Are Boring — Embrace a Bifurcated Web

The author argues that widespread use of templates (Shopify, Squarespace, Webflow) and optimisation-for-conversion has homogenised websites, eroding brand distinctiveness. With the rise of AI, agents, and agentic commerce, discovery is shifting toward machine-driven flows that risk reducing websites to backend databases. The piece proposes a bifurcated web: a ‘Silent Web’ of machine-readable feeds for agents and a separate ‘Experiential Web’ focused on rich, human-first brand experiences powered by creative use of AI. The article cites industry projections for large economic impact from agentic commerce and multiple survey statistics showing consumer trust and adoption of AI shopping tools.

• The article states the rise of Shopify, Squarespace, and Webflow templates has produced mass homogenisation of websites.
• A McKinsey projection cited in the piece estimates agentic commerce could generate $1 trillion in the US B2C retail market by 2030 and $3–5 trillion globally.
• The article cites that 58% of Gen Z and millennials trust an AI agent to compare prices and recommend options.