“The funnel is broken.” It’s a line I’ve read more than once this year, hell a few times this week — but it’s not just provocation. It’s a reflection of a very real shift.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock you’ll have probably felt it too. You type in a question into Google like: ‘Who’s the actor that played Crocodile Dundee (yes a real question I also asked this week)’ And instead of being served a bunch of IMDB style websites to go find out for yourself, you get a really helpful AI Overview. Voila – You need look no more and can pretend that you always knew it was Paul Hogan. (Edit – Bad example – Google just served me his image with a dig digital ‘duh’, no need for the AIO)
The theory still stands which is why there are many sources stating:
👉 Over 60% of Google searches now result in zero clicks.
The traffic apocalypse is here.
And if your success is measured purely on traffic, then yes — this is a disaster.
But here’s the thing: traffic was only ever a means to an end.
Our job in marketing was never to drive page views.
It’s to drive desire. To spark intent and to ultimately make a sale.
That doesn’t vanish in a zero-click, AI-led world.
It just means we need to rethink how we get there.
🚀 Enter The Loop
At this year’s Inbound 2025 conference, HubSpot announced a sweeping rethink of the traditional marketing funnel: The Loop.
Instead of a linear journey from awareness → consideration → conversion, The Loop is a continuous cycle powered by AI but importantly grounded in human creativity. Hurrah!!
It’s not replacing marketers — it’s partnering with them. Just like AI already does in so many parts of our working lives: making complex tasks simpler, faster, and more informed.
The model centres on four stages:
🟡 The Four Stages of The Loop
1. Express — Define Your Brand Identity
Lay the foundations. Voice, tone, perspective. The all important human spark that ensures AI output feels distinct and authentic. Then test, experiment, create — faster than ever. This is where the marketer in me does a ‘Hallelujah’. Because it recognises that whilst AI is phenomenal, there is an all important role for the human creatives. The feeling we put behind a brand, the nuance and gut that lives and breathes in the brand identity creation, the tone of voice and the emotional ideation. That’s still ours to own. (For now)
2. Tailor — Personalised Messaging at Scale
Not just “Dear [Name]”. True personalisation. Using CRM data, behaviour, and intent signals to deliver context-rich messaging that actually resonates. This is where AI can just supercharge creativity. Bringing to life more ‘what ifs’ than any human mind could. And importantly ensuring we don’t miss anything out.
3. Amplify — Meet Customers Where They Are
Not just on your site. On TikTok. Reddit. Podcasts. And crucially, within AI-generated search responses. With tools like AI Engine Optimisation (AEO) graders, the aim is presence wherever discovery happens.
4. Evolve — Measure, Iterate, Improve
AI-enabled rapid feedback loops. Real-time optimisation. Campaigns that adapt in days, not quarters. Each cycle smarter than the last. Again this is where the strategist in makes that little excited squeaky noise. Long gone is the pain of having tons of data to go at and not enough humans or time to properly analyse it but again, its not about letting AI do all the work, the skill is in asking the right questions and letting AI take the brunt of the analysis. If we all spent more time asking interesting questions of data, think of the output and new angles we could uncover.
🧠 Why It Matters
What’s compelling about The Loop isn’t the tech really (however fabulous that is) — it’s the philosophy.
- It keeps human creativity at the heart, particularly at the Express stage.
- It updates the principles of inbound — trust, education, value — for an AI-first world.
- It acknowledges the zero-click reality, ensuring brands stay visible even when the clicks don’t come.
In short: it’s not just about chasing traffic anymore.
It’s about staying present where decisions — human and machine — are being made and enabling smart and curious marketing teams to superpower their ‘What ifs’.
The So What?
I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again. Metrics matter. But they have to be the right ones.
If we obsess over traffic, a zero-click landscape feels catastrophic.
If we reframe around desire, trust, and building salient presence, it’s just a necessary evolution.
And a bloody good one too if like me you’ve had way too many meetings where you need to persuade boards that investing in brand over PPC is in fact a great idea.
The funnel was never perfect. The Loop might not be either. But it reflects something crucial:
Marketing isn’t linear anymore and it is always evolving.
The brands that win will be the ones that stop mourning clicks — and start mastering the art of staying curious in an ever evolving world.
The So What... 
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