Digital Marketing Will Be Obsolete by 2027. Here's What Replaces It (+5 AI Workflow Prompts)
Why most agencies will die, what smart businesses are doing instead, and the exact workflows already replacing traditional marketing.
Digital marketing as we've been doing it will be completely obsolete within two years.
I'm not being dramatic. I'm not speculating. I'm watching it happen in real time.
Any task that digital marketers were doing before ChatGPT will be completely obsolete by 2027, with one exception I'll get to.
This has massive implications for every small business that spends money on marketing. Let me explain exactly what's happening, how far we've already come, and what digital marketing will look like in two years.
How Far We've Already Come
Most people still think of AI for marketing as asking ChatGPT to write a rough draft of a blog post. In 2023, that’s about all it was a fun toy for generating ideas. But for those of us keeping up, it’s become something completely different.
My workflow is already 80-90% different than it was before ChatGPT.
When I get a new client, the first thing I do is set up a series of custom AI workflows specifically for that client. Each workflow involves a custom GPT, Gemini Gem, or Claude Project, a large language model with access to all the information I have about the client, along with specific instructions for one specific task.
Here’s what each client gets:
Brand Ambassador: An AI that can answer any question about the client so I never have to chase them for information. It has access to everything online about them, every meeting we’ve had, every document they’ve shared.
Blog Post Generator: Knows how to write in the client’s brand voice, which pages to link to, what CTAs to include, plus best practices for SEO and engagement.
Web Page Creator: Uses their template, their messaging framework, their conversion principles.
Video Script Writer: Hooks, scripts, calls to action, all in their voice.
Backlink Outreach Strategist: Identifies opportunities and crafts personalized pitches.
Press Release Writer: Ready to generate newsworthy content on demand.
These workflows take time to set up properly. But when they’re done right, you can print high-quality marketing materials for a brand on demand. And as I improve the workflows, it improves the process for all my clients.
I’ve included 5 prompts in a PDF at the top of this article to help you start building these workflows for your own business or clients.
What's Coming Next
Here’s where it gets really interesting.
Right now, building these custom AI workflows requires expertise. You need to know how to structure prompts, what information to include, how to connect different tools.
But hundreds of companies are working on software that small businesses could use themselves to handle these processes automatically.
The software isn’t quite there yet custom-built workflows for your specific brand still outperform generic solutions. But it won’t be long before they’re close enough.
Take Facebook ads as an example.
Right now, you definitely want to pay a professional to run a Facebook ad campaign for you. The platforms are complex, the optimization requires expertise, and the creative testing takes experience.
Within one to two years, running an effective ad campaign will be as simple as giving Facebook your website and a budget.
From there, AI will automatically generate high-performing ads and creatives specifically for your brand and offer. It will test, optimize, and iterate without human intervention.
What Digital Marketing Looks Like in 2027
Based on the trajectory I’m watching, here’s how I see the landscape:
Budget under $1-2K/month: It’s just going to be software. For a couple hundred dollars a month, you’ll get results as good as or better than the average digital marketing agency delivers today.
Budget $2K-$20K/month: You’ll want to hire someone (or a small team) to build custom AI workflows specifically for your brand. But you won’t need a traditional agency to “handle” things for you. The workflows do the handling.
Massive budget (Coca-Cola, Nike): AI probably still won’t match the best human copywriters and designers in the world by 2027. If you can afford to hire a team of the absolute best creative talent, an agency model might still make sense.
For everyone else? The math is about to change dramatically.
What Happens to Agencies
Let’s be honest.
Most marketing agencies around today will have to survive one of two ways:
- Completely change their business model becoming AI workflow builders and strategists rather than content producers and campaign managers.
- Hope their clients don’t figure out they’re getting ripped off.
I know that sounds harsh. But the reality is that many agencies are still charging 2019 prices for work that AI can now do faster, cheaper, and often better.
Digital marketing has been disrupted more than any other industry by AI. Most small businesses and many marketers have been slow to realize it.
The agencies that survive will be the ones that embrace this shift and find new ways to add value probably by building and managing AI systems rather than replacing them.
What to Do Now
I’m not sure there’s a single action everyone should take today. The landscape is shifting fast.
But here’s what I’d recommend:
If you’re a business owner: Start asking your agency hard questions. What are they actually doing that AI can’t do? Are they building you AI workflows? Are they adapting? If they’re just doing what they did in 2022, you might be paying for services that will be commoditized within two years.
If you’re a marketer: Start learning how to build AI workflows. The marketers who thrive in 2027 won’t be the ones who write blog posts or manage ad campaigns they’ll be the ones who design and optimize AI systems that do those things.
If you run an agency: Pivot now. Your value proposition needs to change from “we’ll handle your marketing” to “we’ll build AI systems that handle your marketing.” The transition will be painful, but it’s better than becoming obsolete.
The 5 prompts in this article’s download can help you start building these workflows today whether you’re a business owner, marketer, or agency leader.
The Bottom Line
Digital marketing has been disrupted more than any other industry by AI.
The disruption is already here. Most people just haven’t noticed yet.
By 2027, software will do what agencies charge thousands for for a fraction of the cost. The businesses that adapt will thrive. The ones that don’t will keep paying premium prices for commoditized services.
The question isn’t whether this shift is coming. It’s whether you’ll be ready for it.
What are you seeing in your industry? Is your agency adapting? I’d love to hear what’s happening on the ground.
- Your Next Step
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FAQs
Not necessarily. The question to ask is: what is your agency doing that adds genuine value? If they’re building AI workflows, staying current with technology, and adapting their approach, they might still be worth the investment. If they’re doing the same things they did in 2022, start planning your transition. The shift won’t happen overnight, but two years goes by fast.
Start with Custom GPTs (in ChatGPT Plus), Gemini Gems, or Claude Projects. These let you create specialized AI assistants trained on specific information with specific instructions. The prompts in this article’s download will help you get started. As you advance, look into tools like Make or Zapier for connecting AI to other systems.
Only if you use it poorly. The key is training AI on YOUR brand voice, YOUR messaging, YOUR standards. When done right, AI-generated content is indistinguishable from human-written content because it IS your content just produced more efficiently. The workflows I describe aren’t about generic AI content; they’re about scaling your specific brand’s voice.
A basic workflow can be set up in a few hours. A properly trained, high-quality workflow that matches your brand voice and produces consistently excellent output takes several iterations over a few weeks. The investment pays off quickly once a workflow is dialed in, it can produce in minutes what used to take hours or days.
At the very top end massive budgets, Fortune 500 brands, campaigns that require the absolute best creative talent in the world. For Coca-Cola or Nike, the best human copywriters and designers will likely still outperform AI in 2027. But for 99% of businesses, the gap will have closed enough that the cost difference won’t justify human-only approaches.