Tomorrow First: Senior Leaders Chart the Course for 2026

Citizen Relations recently hosted “Tomorrow First: 2026 Trends & Bets,” a panel discussion in their Toronto office exploring how brands can successfully build reputation, trust, and discoverability in the face of AI and evolving consumer behaviour. Citizen is fresh off a 3-year run on Strategy’s AOY podium and ready to go full force into the new year. The event – moderated by CEO Nick Cowling and framed by EVP, Marketing & Growth Sue Jackman – emphasized Citizen’s “Tomorrow First” approach to keeping clients ahead of culture.

The Panelists:

The discussion featured four distinguished industry leaders navigating transformation in their respective fields:

• Tanbir Grover (Chief Marketing & Digital Manager, Pet Valu): Focused on data-driven growth, analytics, and customer experience.
• Dave Kim (Head of Industry, TikTok): Offered perspective on the creator economy and social discovery.
• Jon Macca (Chief Marketing Officer, RBCx): Shared insights on tech, retail marketing, and adapting established brands.
• Kate Torrance (VP, Head of Brand, Content & Comms, SickKids Foundation): Provided a mission-driven perspective on building trust and brand.

Four Forces Reshaping Marketing

Brand Building Makes Its Comeback

The pendulum is swinging back from pure performance marketing. Data now proves the tangible dollar value of investing in brand reputation and trust. As Kate explained for SickKids Foundation, “Brand work brings in the love, while performance work provides the tactics that close the donation gift.” Jon emphasized the need to rebuild: “We must extend our brand story and invest in the long-term equity that drives organic discovery and recommendation.”

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The Baseline? Being Real 

The panel’s advice on what brands must stop doing was refreshingly direct:

• Stop taking yourselves so seriously. Magic happens when brands loosen up and show personality on social platforms.
• Stop selling in every piece of content. Focus on being genuinely useful rather than creating thinly veiled sales pitches.
• Stop creating overly staged content. Amplify real, human moments from your community instead.
• Stop being performative. As Kate warned, people will quickly notice and call it out.

When we take on a creator approach with this lens, the credibility lies in the genuine connection between the brand, the creator, and the community. When that partnership is truly authentic relationships are built among creator ambassadors and the audience. 

Navigating AI-Transformed Discovery

The classic SEO funnel is fracturing. Dave described the new three-stage discovery journey: using AI chat for planning and structure, TikTok for social proof and lived experience, then traditional search for transactions. In short: AI gives us information, but social is a critical compliment in giving that information texture and human context that we crave. Jon sees AI’s biggest promise in analytics—pulling together disparate datasets for real-time impact and better attribution. Meanwhile, Pet Valu is exploring AI-powered personalization at scale.

Irreplaceable Human Skills

As AI advances, the most valuable leadership capabilities are becoming more human: discernment and bravery to know when to trust data versus instinct, compassion that AI cannot replicate, and cultural awareness to protect brand reputation as things move fast.

Citizen’s Strategic Response

Nick outlined how Citizen is addressing two fundamental industry crises:

Whole Search audits how content performs across social platforms, AI answer engines, and traditional search—ensuring clients show up as the answer everywhere people look.

Experience Renaissance recognizes people’s craving for tangible, real-world interactions that build trust in ways digital alone cannot. The future blends Whole Search discoverability with experiential storytelling.

The Path Forward

The brands that will thrive won’t be those with the biggest budgets or most sophisticated AI. They’ll be the ones brave enough to show up authentically, strategic enough to meet audiences across fragmented discovery journeys, and human enough to build connections that matter.

In a world changing faster than ever, the only sustainable strategy is to stay tomorrow first. If you are ready to future proof your strategy, reach out for a quick chat.