How the AI web is changing discovery and decision making

Wednesday, March 25, 2026

New consumer insights, product updates, and customer success stories | View as a web page

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March 2026

Microsoft Advertising Insider

Hi there,

This month, we're highlighting new consumer research on the AI web, along with Microsoft Advertising product updates to implement, new search insights to shape your strategy, and recent customer success stories to learn from.

As apps, operating systems, and websites converge into AI native experiences, discovery and decision making are changing fast. Our Race to Zero UI playbook shares data-backed insights into how consumers expect AI agents and brand experiences to work together. You'll get the guidance you need to help your brand stay visible and trusted as interfaces fade.

Get the Race to Zero UI playbook

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New insights: The AI Web

In addition to the Race to Zero UI playbook, our new AI Web hub brings together the latest insights on how the AI web is evolving. You'll find curated blog posts, playbooks, on‑demand webinars, and practical guidance on topics like AI search answers, AEO and GEO, and agent‑driven experiences. It's a central place to explore what's changing and how to prepare your brand for what comes next.

Visit the AI Web hub >

Success story: Ray‑Ban builds early momentum to win Black Friday

Ray‑Ban partnered with Microsoft Advertising to reach shoppers earlier in the Black Friday journey, focusing on discovery before competition peaked. Using Native ads, in‑market audiences, and impression‑based remarketing, the team built early momentum that ultimately tripled investment. The campaign delivered an 80% lift in searches and a 15% increase in site visits, showing how capturing early intent can drive stronger results during peak shopping periods.

Learn from their strategy >

Product updates: Negative keywords for Performance Max

March updates bring new controls to help advertisers guide performance with greater precision. Performance Max now supports self‑serve negative keywords, giving you more control over where ads should not appear while continuing to benefit from AI‑driven automation. Other updates include streamlined automated bidding options for simpler setup and new health check diagnostics for Lodging feeds, making it easier to identify and resolve issues that impact delivery.

See all the updates >

Search insights: Mother's Day trends shaping early demand

Mother's Day search activity starts building weeks ahead of the holiday as shoppers explore gift ideas, compare options, and plan experiences. Across markets, interest grows across categories like flowers, beauty, jewelry, dining, and experiences, with shoppers moving between inspiration and purchase multiple times. Early visibility during this discovery phase is key. Explore your local insights to see how Mother's Day search behavior is evolving in your market.

Explore my local insights >