There is a significant paradox in France: the Chinese fashion platform Shein currently has 25 million active users in the country (approximately 36% of France’s total population), making it one of Shein’s main markets in Europe alongside the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom. However, the French government wants no involvement with the company or its products. In the past five months, Shein has been required to pay more than €190 million in fines for misleading business practices and violations of user privacy.

This is compounded by the recent controversy regarding the sale of sex dolls with childlike features, which has raised alarms among organizations protecting children’s rights. Additionally, French authorities have repeatedly questioned the damage that the fast fashion industry is causing to local businesses and the environment.

Despite all this, Shein has decided to open its first physical store in Europe in the very heart of Paris, occupying the sixth floor of the iconic BHV Marais, one of the most emblematic buildings in France. The opening event was marked by a striking contrast of opinions about the brand: on one hand, there was a long queue of people—some waiting since 6:00 a.m.—anticipating the store’s opening; on the other, dozens of protesters gathered outside the building to denounce Shein and everything it represents.

The Prime Minister of France calls for the suspension of the platform

Just hours after the inauguration, the French Government ordered the temporary suspension of Shein’s digital platform. This measure, driven by Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu, was a direct reaction to the controversy generated by the sale of illicit products such as sex dolls with childlike appearances and bladed weapons.

Lecornu did not mince words and described Shein’s operation as a threat to republican values. Meanwhile, Minister of Industry Sébastien Martin denounced “an aggressive strategy that undermines our values”, while Yann Rivoallan, president of the Fédération du Prêt-à-Porter Féminin, was even more critical: “Shein has already lost. Its strategy was to use the crowd effect to silence controversy and pretend to represent the French, but reality is different.”

In response to mounting pressure, Shein announced the temporary suspension of third-party product sales on its French platform, ensuring that it will review “compliance with national regulations” to guarantee “the highest standards of consumer protection.”

A divided public

While a red carpet was being prepared for the Chinese retailer inside the BHV, outside the store, activists, environmental associations, and child rights organizations protested chanting “Shein, non merci”, with banners demanding protection for children, not support for ultra-fast fashion. Some demonstrators even displayed flags from the Chinese region of Xinjiang, protesting the alleged use of forced labor.

Across the street, the line of shoppers remained resolute. Young people, teenagers, and middle-aged women had waited since early morning, some out of curiosity and others wishing to take advantage of the gifts promised by BHV. “Shein is more affordable,” some repeated. However, other customers clarified: “It is not cheaper than H&M or Zara,” and indicated that they primarily came for the promotions rather than out of brand loyalty.

An Ipsos survey cited by the Fédération du Prêt-à-Porter Féminin reveals that 70% of the French population supports taking action against Shein. Nevertheless, the fact that there are 25 million active users in the country demonstrates that the French relationship with the brand is far from straightforward.

6,000 items and aggressive discounts

With more than 1,000 m² and 6,000 items spanning women’s, men’s, children’s, sportswear, and accessories, Shein has brought its full fashion arsenal to the sixth floor of BHV Marais. According to the store staff, the pieces were “carefully selected” from among the millions of products offered on the online platform.

Pricing remains one of the strongest attractions, with garments starting at €15 and coats up to €100. However, it should be noted that there are no two-euro t-shirts as seen on the website. “We do not sell Shein t-shirts for two euros here,” stated Frédéric Mérlin, president of the Société des Grands Magasins (SGM), owner of BHV. According to him, physical retail operates under different conditions and cannot offer the same discounts as the digital channel.

Furthermore, for the opening day only, the department store offered a significant incentive: for every purchase made, customers received a gift voucher for the same amount spent. In other words, if you made a purchase for €30, you would receive another €30 in voucher form—a strategy that further fueled the already long lines from the early morning.

Adding another layer of controversy, the agreement between Shein and BHV has led to Galeries Lafayette severing ties with La Société des Grands Magasins (SGM), resulting in the termination of their partnership for seven shopping centers in the country.

Photo: Shein.

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In today’s competitive market, the brands that win are the ones that build strong, lasting relationships with their customers, and then turn those customers into advocates. A referral platform makes this possible and scalable. By getting happy customers to recommend your brand to friends, family and colleagues, you tap into one of the most powerful forms of marketing: word-of mouth. Unlike traditional advertising, which can feel impersonal and interruptive, referrals come with built-in trust.

The person receiving the recommendation knows the referrer, so they’re more likely to believe in your brand and buy. When done right, a referral program can drive both revenue and retention, turning your existing customers into your most effective sales team.

How referral platforms drive growth and loyalty

A good referral platform is a growth engine. It simplifies the process of setting up, running and optimising a referral program so that it delivers results without overloading your marketing team. Rather than relying on one-off campaigns or manual tracking, the platform provides an automated framework for incentivising referrals, rewarding participants and monitoring performance.

From a growth perspective, referrals have a unique advantage: they attract high-intent leads. People referred by someone they trust are more likely to convert quickly, often with a higher average order value. From a loyalty perspective, the customers who refer are also more engaged. They’ve invested in your brand’s success and in return are rewarded for their advocacy — creating a positive feedback loop that strengthens your customer base over time.

The link between customer referrals and higher retention

One of the best reasons to invest in a Mention Me’s referral program is the retention. Research shows consistently that referred customers have higher lifetime value and are less likely to churn than those acquired through paid advertising. This is because referrals create an emotional connection. When a customer recommends your brand, they’re putting their personal reputation on the line. If the referred person has a good experience, it reflects well on the referrer, so they’re more connected to your business.

The referral platform is key to this cycle. By making it easy for customers to refer — and by delivering rewards quickly — you encourage repeat referrals and ongoing engagement. Over time, your referral program becomes part of your retention strategy, working alongside loyalty programs and personalisation to get customers back.

Key features that drive revenue

Not all referral platforms deliver the same results. To drive revenue, you need a platform with features that support both acquisition and retention goals. Key features include:

• Customisable campaign templates that match your brand and allow you to launch promotions quickly.
• Real-time tracking and analytics so you can see how many referrals are coming in, where they’re coming from and how they’re converting.
• Automated reward distribution to keep participants motivated without adding admin burden. Fraud detection tools to ensure the integrity of your referral program.
• Mobile optimisation so customers can refer on the go, from any device.

These features work together to create a seamless experience for referrers and referees, resulting in higher participation rates and more revenue.

Creating incentives that encourage sharing

Your referral program success depends on your incentive structure. A referral platform gives you the flexibility to test different reward types and find what works for your audience. Common incentive models include “give/get” offers (e.g. give $10, get $10), percentage discounts, loyalty points or even exclusive experiences.

The key is to find the balance between motivating action and profitability. Your incentives should be valuable enough to inspire participation but also align with your margins and customer lifetime value. Many brands find success by offering tiered rewards — increasing the benefit for multiple referrals — which encourages customers to keep referring beyond their first attempt.

Automating and simplifying referral management

Manual referral tracking is not only time consuming but also prone to errors. A modern referral platform eliminates this problem by automating key processes. From generating unique referral links to verifying conversions and issuing rewards, the platform does everything behind the scenes. Automation also allows for personalisation at scale. For example you can send automated thank you emails to referrers, update them on their reward status and remind them of ongoing referral opportunities — all without manual intervention. This level of efficiency keeps your referral program active and engaged without overwhelming your marketing team.

Measuring ROI and program success

A successful referral program isn’t just about generating more sales but achieving profitable, sustainable growth. That’s why measuring ROI is key. A robust referral platform gives you the analytics you need to measure performance, including:

• Number of referrals generated.
• Conversion rates for referred leads.
• Revenue attributed to referrals.
• Customer lifetime value for referred vs non-referred customers.
• Cost per acquisition (CPA) for referral driven customers.

These insights help you see what’s working, optimise your incentive structure and allocate budget more effectively. Over time, you can refine your strategy to get the most out of every dollar spent.

Get started with your high-impact referral platform today

Launching a referral program doesn’t have to be complicated. With the right referral platform you can be up and running in just a few steps:

1. Define your goals — Decide if your focus is on acquisition, retention or both.
2. Choose your incentives — Pick rewards that motivate your audience and stay within budget.
3. Set up your campaign — Use the platform’s templates to design referral pages, emails and promotional materials.
4. Integrate with your systems — Connect to your CRM, eCommerce platform and email marketing tools.
5. Test and launch — Run a small pilot, gather feedback and make adjustments before rolling out to your entire customer base.
6. Promote actively — Use email, social media and post-purchase touchpoints to encourage participation.
7. Track and optimise — Monitor performance data and refine your referral program over time.
8. By following these steps, and using a proven solution like Mention Me, you can turn your customers into your most reliable growth channel.

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A little over a year ago, the introduction of AI Overviews (AIO, for short) by Google was not simply an enhancement of how search results were presented; it represented a significant upheaval for the digital marketing industry and, in particular, for search engine optimization (SEO). Google’s promise was to offer concise and direct answers generated by artificial intelligence, displayed at the very top of the SERP, while continuing to channel traffic to websites.

However, this naturally raised a pressing concern for brands and content creators: if users could obtain the answer directly from Google, why would they click on an organic result? Why would they choose to visit my content, regardless of how prominently it appeared in the results?

For years, the primary SEO objective for any content creator had been to achieve the top organic ranking. Yet, AIOs not only displaced these results, but they also fundamentally changed user intent, transforming the search process from a navigational portal to a tool for generating answers. How would this affect websites that rely on Google traffic as part of their business model?

Now, with 15 months of concrete data compiled by Seer Interactive, the answer is clear: the initial concern was justified, but the impact has proven to be even more complex than anticipated.

CTR in free fall

Seer’s analysis, which covers data gathered from June 2024 to September 2025 and reviews millions of impressions across various search queries, confirms the damage inflicted on CTR.

Organic results CTR

On the organic front, the trend indicates a steep decline for queries where an AIO is present. Starting from a CTR of 1.76% in June 2024, the click-through rate dropped by almost two-thirds, stabilizing at 0.61% by September 2025, after hitting a low of 0.57% in July. This 61% reduction demonstrates that AIOs are indeed fulfilling their purpose of resolving user needs without requiring them to visit a website.

Paid results CTR

However, the most alarming scenario emerges in the CTR for paid results. Ads for these queries with AIOs began with a CTR of 19.70% in June 2024 but suffered an even more dramatic decline, with an overall decrease of 68%. The most concerning moment occurred during July 2025, when paid CTR fell to just 3.26%. Although a slight recovery followed the summer, this volatility highlights the instability of the current environment. For advertisers, these figures serve as a serious wake-up call.

Does being quoted matter?

According to the study’s data, for queries where an AIO was present and the brand was not cited, organic CTR plummeted by 65.2% year-over-year. This drove the average CTR down to 0.52%. Furthermore, paid content also suffered: the paid CTR dropped by 78.4%.

The study also makes it clear that being cited by Google’s AI Overview has become a strategic necessity. Brands that were cited experienced a significantly smaller drop in CTR and superior performance: citation is associated with a 35% higher organic CTR and a 91% higher paid CTR compared to not being cited at all. In any case, the study explicitly warns that it cannot establish causality between these factors, since it may simply be the case that brands with higher authority are cited more frequently.

• Google’s AI Overviews are causing a 50% drop in organic CTR

CTR is falling, even without AI Overviews

Another of the study’s most noteworthy findings is that the CTR crisis is not limited to queries containing AIOs. Seer Interactive refuted its own initial hypothesis by demonstrating that queries without AIOs have not become a safe haven, but are also experiencing a decline. Organic CTR for these queries fell by 41% during the analyzed period, settling at 1.62% in September 2025.

This finding is essential because it suggests that the problem is broader than simply the appearance of Google’s AI. According to the study’s authors, users—particularly for informational queries—may be migrating away from Google or using the SERP differently. They are seeking fast, direct answers via large language models (LLM) such as ChatGPT or Perplexity, or turning to social platforms. Google continues to be the starting point, but the willingness to click on traditional results has decreased dramatically across the web.

And now… What comes next?

The study also revealed an insight regarding the causality of AIOs: Google’s AI tends to appear in queries that have historically generated fewer clicks. In other words, AIOs are intensifying a pre-existing pattern of low CTR in informational searches, rather than arbitrarily eliminating high-performing results.

The final point from Seer Interactive is that marketing professionals must stop expecting a recovery in CTR. The digital landscape has changed, and it appears to have done so permanently. The solution is not to try to evade AIOs, but to change the KPI. The metric can no longer be simply traffic acquisition, but rather “visibility share” and “citation rate” within AIOs. Therefore, SEO strategy must, by necessity, become a strategy of authority and AI-driven visibility, where optimization focuses on becoming the trusted source that Google must cite—redefining what it means to “win” in the age of artificial intelligence.

Image: Gemini

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It may sound like a joke, but it is not. Pexplexity published an official statement entitled “Bullying is not innovation”, in which it accuses Amazon of intimidating it so that users of Comet stop using the tool as an intelligent shopping assistant on the marketplace.

According to the startup, the objective of the online retail giant is to eliminate users’ rights in order to sell more advertisements now and to partner with AI agents designed to exploit users in the future. “It is not just harassment: it is madness,” the document asserts.

In response, Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon, stated that Perplexity should respect its wish for the shopping agent to avoid its website, in order to “ensure a positive customer experience.” According to the executive, external AI agents lack personalization and purchase history, and therefore provide inaccurate prices and incorrect delivery times.

Who holds the power: users or the Marketplace?

Here, the discussion goes beyond a mere corporate dispute: can you use your own AI assistant to shop on Amazon, or only those that the marketplace approves? According to Perplexity, the answer Amazon is delivering is a clear “no.”

Let us recall that Amazon has its own AI-based shopping assistant, Rufus, which we have recently discussed, and which has not gained much popularity worldwide. In fact, the country most suspicious of the tool is the United States itself, birthplace of Amazon. Despite having been launched less than two years ago, the marketplace has not succeeded in securing natural and frequent use of Rufus among its users. The arrival of Comet further complicates its plans to strengthen its native assistant.

In this regard, Perplexity asserts that, although websites have always had the right to block bots attempting to crawl them, it is not unusual for major technology companies to try to impede potentially disruptive tactics employed by new competitors. “Amazon generates tens of billions annually by selling advertising space on its marketplace, a highly profitable source of revenue that would decrease if people began to use agents to shop instead of browsing themselves,” it argues.

The influence of an AI Assistant on purchase intentions

Perplexity poses the same question: “The rise of agentive AI presents a choice: will this technology empower users to control their digital lives, or will it become another tool for corporations to manipulate and exploit them?”.

The startup maintains that tools such as Comet enable users to save time, make better decisions, and simplify the purchasing process, since these assistants are not distracted by advertisements nor are they swayed by sponsored products. They go straight to the point.

Amazon justifies its decision with reasons related to quality: it claims that external assistants provide unreliable data, incorrect delivery estimates, and prices that might be outdated.

Perplexity denies this and views it as a means of stifling innovation and maintaining complete control over how consumers navigate and make purchases within its platform: “The Comet Assistant quickly finds and buys the item for you, saving you time for more important tasks (…) But Amazon does not care. It is more interested in showing you advertisements, sponsored results, and influencing your purchasing decisions with upsells and confusing deals.”

How AI Agents should be

According to Perplexity’s perspective, personal agents represent the future of online navigation. “They are distinct from crawlers, collectors, or bots. A user agent is your AI assistant: it has exactly the same permissions as you, acts only when you request it, and solely on your behalf,” it explains, and adds that in order for user agents to fulfill their true purpose, they must be private, personal, and powerful in order to be genuinely useful for users.

Therefore, in response to Amazon’s demand, Perplexity asserts that it will not be intimidated and will continue to fight for users’ rights. “People love our products because they are designed for them. User freedom and choice are at the heart of everything we build,” it states, while addressing a pointed comment at Jeff Bezos: “Amazon also forgets how it became so large: users love it. They want good products at a low price and delivered quickly. Agentive shopping is the natural evolution of that promise, and people are already demanding it. Perplexity demands the right to offer it.”

Photo: Gemini

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Google remains the most visited website on the planet. This is confirmed by the Digital 2026 report produced by We Are Social and Meltwater, in which data from Similarweb was analyzed, collected between June 1 and August 31, 2025.

While previous editions of the study were released at the beginning of the year reflected in the report’s title, We Are Social has decided to change its approach and is now publishing the report months before the start of that year. Thus, Digital 2026 was published in October 2025 in order to serve as a useful guide for companies as they develop their digital strategies for 2026.

Therefore, by the end of 2025, the Top 10 most popular websites on the internet are comprised of the following:

1. Google.com
2. YouTube.com
3. Facebook.com
4. Instagram.com
5. Chatgpt.com
6. X.com (formerly Twitter)
7. Reddit.com
8. WhatsApp.com
9. Bing.com
10. Wikipedia.org

However, there are many more conclusions that can be drawn from this ranking, especially if we expand the list to the top 20 most popular websites on the internet. In this case, the results are as follows:

When comparing this ranking to the previous edition (Digital 2025, which considered data from September 1 to November 30, 2024), we see the Top 4 ranking with positions for Google, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram has remained stable. The only new entry into the top 10 is Bing.com, now in ninth place, following an impressive leap from 18th position in the previous edition. For its part, Yahoo.com has exited the top ten and now occupies the twelfth spot.

The rise of Chatgpt.com from position 8 to 5 highlights the increasing popularity and prominence this generative AI has gained over recent times. This trend becomes even more evident if we look at data from the Digital 2024 report, when Chatgpt.com did not even appear within the top 20.

The ranking also reveals that adult content websites continue to lose relevance within the top 20: Pornhub remains in 19th place, after its decline from twelfth in the previous edition.

For comparison, here is the ranking from Digital 2025 of the websites with the highest number of visits worldwide:

Social networks lead the list of the world’s most visited websites

The report shows that, on average, internet users spent 10 minutes and 10 seconds browsing Google (42 seconds less than in 2024), with a total of 83.3 billion visits. In contrast, YouTube succeeded in capturing users’ attention for an average of 20 minutes and 8 seconds (one second longer than the prior year).

Facebook recorded 11.9 billion visits, with an average length of stay on the site of 10 minutes and 11 seconds. The social network continues to see a decline in user attention, revealing that the upward trend seen in the previous edition after two years of decline was merely a temporary illusion.

Instagram registered an average visit time of 8 minutes and 28 seconds (10 seconds less than in 2024). Meanwhile, WhatsApp dropped from fifth to eighth position and logged an average user session of 9 minutes and 57 seconds (5 minutes and 13 seconds less than in 2024), in addition to achieving a total of 3.84 billion overall visits.

For its part, X remained in sixth place and achieved an average visit duration of 12 minutes and 49 seconds (32 seconds longer than in the previous edition).

• How many Internet users are there in the world

The most visited types of websites worldwide

According to data from the Digital 2026 report, during the second quarter of 2025, 94.1% of internet users worldwide connected to chat and instant messaging platforms, the same proportion (94.1%) that used social networks.

On the other hand, 80.3% visited web search engines or dedicated portals, 75.1% accessed email services, and 74.5% visited sites related to shopping.

The most searched terms on Google

According to data collected from July 1, 2024, to June 30, 2025, “Google” and “YouTube” are the most searched terms. Rounding out the Top 5, “You” ranked third, “Weather” held fourth place, and “WhatsApp” came in fifth.

Photo: Depositphotos

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Had you heard of Rufus before reading this article? If your answer was “no,” then you are among the majority (and we had already warned you). According to a study conducted by Remazing in collaboration with Appinio—titled the “Amazon Shopper Report 2025”—70% of Spaniards are unaware of the existence of Rufus, Amazon’s virtual shopping assistant powered by artificial intelligence.

Globally, this lack of awareness is even greater: 72% of respondents have never heard of him, and only 15% actually interact with the tool, which demonstrates that it has not yet become an organic part of the customer journey within the marketplace.

The data is the result of 1,000 surveys conducted among individuals aged 16 to 65 in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

What is Rufus, and what can you do with it?

In early 2024, Amazon introduced Rufus as an AI-driven shopping assistant that has complete knowledge of the platform’s entire product catalog, customer reviews, community questions and answers from the marketplace, as well as all the general information on the site.

With all these foundational data points, Rufus is able to answer questions about products, compare items, make recommendations based on the conversational context, or provide information about current or past orders.

Does it work well? Let us say it is not 100% reliable, but it is certainly useful for straightforward and specific tasks that can save you a significant amount of time. So, if you have never used it before, I recommend giving it a try. To use Rufus, you simply need to ask a question or click on one of the frequently asked questions that will appear beneath the product images:

73% of online shoppers are not aware of Rufus

Worldwide, only between 20% and 33% of respondents are familiar with Amazon’s AI assistant. In the U.S, the figure stands at 33%, placing the country before other countries such as the United Kingdom (26%) and Italy (28%). France is the country with the lowest level of awareness regarding Rufus, with only 20% of shoppers cognizant of its existence.

While 28% of those surveyed claim to have heard of Rufus, only 13% use it on a regular basis. This reflects a gap between awareness of the tool and its effective integration into the purchasing process. In fact, 58% of respondents indicate that they never or rarely use it.

Search, evaluation, and comparison

Rufus is valued primarily during the initial stages of the purchasing process. Forty percent of users utilize it at the beginning of their search, underscoring its usefulness for product discovery, and 46% employ it to evaluate specific products.

Additionally, 39% use it to narrow down their options during the mid-funnel phase, while 26% rely on it for final confirmation before completing their purchase.

Only 6% use Rufus after completing their transaction, clearly indicating its main strength as a decision-support tool rather than as a decisive factor in the final purchase.

Why is Rufus not used more frequently?

The low usage rate of Rufus may be attributed to several factors, although it is likely that the primary issue is that users have not yet perceived a significant improvement in the purchasing process as a result of its use.

Of the 75% who had heard of the assistant and completed a purchase, only 17% attribute the transaction directly to Rufus’s influence, even though 37% state that the assistant provided valuable information. This indicates that Rufus serves more as a supporting role in the decision-making process rather than as the primary driver.

Twenty-five percent of users have not purchased anything suggested by Rufus yet, and 21% completed a purchase but felt that Rufus had no impact, underscoring the opportunity for growth in converting engagement into action.

In this context, Francesco Magnanimi, Global Sales Lead at Amazon, explains that “We all expected Rufus to have a stronger impact on consumers’ purchasing habits, especially in the United States, where it was launched much earlier than in Europe. While its start has been slow, innovation cannot be halted, so we should expect further developments in the coming years.”

The perception of Rufus is positive

Sixty-two percent of users who have tried Rufus indicate they trust it, with a distrust rate that does not exceed 12% in any of the countries included in the analysis. In Europe, trust levels are even higher: in Germany, 70% trust Rufus, while in Spain, the figure is 68%. By contrast, in the United States, only 54% express trust.

Nevertheless, there is still a considerable proportion of users—particularly in markets such as the United States (36%) and Italy (34%)—who remain neutral about the tool’s effectiveness. This reflects an opportunity for Amazon to reinforce its value and performance in order to increase adoption.

Artificial intelligence support in purchasing decisions

Despite the fact that Rufus has not been a disruptive factor, the majority of consumers report a willingness to use artificial intelligence in their online purchasing decisions. Sixty-nine percent of respondents approve of AI-generated product descriptions; 64% view AI-generated videos positively; and 63% value images of products generated by this technology. Even AI-generated images in advertisements received an approval rating of 60%.

Photo: Amazon

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For several years now, Canva has been one of the benchmark tools for any digital professional working within the field of content creation. In our case, we use it for (almost) everything: from editing the images that enhance our articles to creating advertising banners or posters for our events. It is a paid tool, yet its simplicity and universality make it one of the most practical solutions available on the market.

And now, Canva intends to take this “universality” to a whole new level.

Quite simply, it wishes to compete head-on with the giants of graphic design.

And for free.

What is Affinity by Canva?

Affinity is a professional design tool that combines three key areas of visual creation within a single environment: photo editing, vector design, and editorial layout. Until now, these components have been distributed across three different apps (Affinity Photo, Designer, and Publisher), but the latest version, presented alongside the most recent suite of Canva updates, unifies all these functions into a single tool.

Its objective is clear: to enable designers, illustrators, photographers, and creators to develop complex projects without switching between programs, without sacrificing control, precision, or performance—whether illustrating, retouching, developing visual identities, or laying out books.

In 2024, Affinity was acquired by Canva, and of course, the new owner has decided that the time has come to fully realize its potential.

As the company explains in its official press release, “When Affinity joined the Canva family last year, we pledged to preserve its power while expanding its possibilities. Today, that vision becomes a reality with the new Affinity: a professional-grade creative application that brings together vector, photo, and design tools in a high-performance platform. Comprehensive. Ultra-fast. And completely free.”

Affinity is already available for Mac and Windows, and will soon be available for iPad as well. To download it, you simply need to create a free account on Canva.

Who is Affinity intended for?

In recent years Affinity has become a tool favored by professionals: graphic designers looking for versatility and precision, illustrators who value advanced vector control, creative studios interested in seamless workflows, and photographers working with advanced editing.

However, the new version greatly expands its target audience thanks to two key factors:

• It is free for everyone, removing the financial barrier that many creatives encounter when seeking access to professional tools.
• It integrates with Canva, opening the door for teams, marketers, and content creators who have so far mainly operated within more simplified environments.

Main new features of Affinity

This move by Canva marks a turning point for Affinity. The most relevant innovations include:

1. A unified app

Affinity now brings together vector, photo, and editorial design tools in a single application. This enables users to avoid constantly switching software, maintain creative flow, and, of course, work more efficiently. As the company explains, the aim is to facilitate work quality and guarantee tool stability; for this reason, every change processes in real time, even “when working with thousands of layers or zoom levels up to 10,000,000%.”

2. Complete workspace customization

Every designer works differently, and Affinity recognizes this. That is why it has introduced various features:

• Blend vector, photo, and layout tools simultaneously
• Rearrange panels
• Remove unnecessary tools
• Save different configurations
• Share “studios” with other users

This enables users to adapt the interface to each type of project or professional requirement, from illustrators to layout designers.

3. Integration with Canva + AI Studio

Canva Premium users also gain access to artificial intelligence tools within Affinity, thanks to Canva AI Studio. Among these are some of Canva’s most popular features, such as:

• Generative Fill
• Expand & Edit
• Remove Background

Their inclusion promises to accelerate repetitive tasks without sacrificing control over details.

4. Enhanced performance

The company explains that Affinity leverages a high-performance engine, designed to guarantee smooth operation even with large files, as well as instant panning and zoom effects and GPU acceleration. This may prove especially valuable in complex illustration projects, advanced photo retouching, or dense editorial design.

5. Compatibility with multiple formats

Affinity can now open and edit files from widely used formats such as PSD, AI, PDF, SVG, or TIFF.

6. Free forever

And of course, there is also what is probably the most striking innovation: Affinity is now completely free. There are no cut-down versions, no subscriptions, and no fine print.

Who does Affinity compete with?

Now then, having reviewed this, let us evaluate it from a business perspective—Affinity’s own business strategy.

It seems clear that Affinity’s free status is a strategic shift following its integration into Canva. Rather than being software required to generate revenue independently, it now serves as a gateway to attract professional designers into the Canva ecosystem. Its free availability removes a historic barrier to advanced tools (cost) and positions Canva as a genuine alternative to Adobe, while tremendously expanding its user base. The strategy resembles that of other technology platforms: offering a powerful product free of charge to drive adoption and foster integration with complementary services.

From this standpoint, profitability does not stem directly from Affinity, but rather from the added value it generates around it: Canva Premium subscriptions, use of AI tools, collaboration services, a resource marketplace, or solutions for teams and enterprises. In other words, Affinity serves as a catalyst that increases Canva’s presence in the professional market, strengthens its brand, and creates monetization opportunities at other points within the ecosystem.

Clearly, this presents a considerable challenge. Keep in mind that Affinity now competes against giants such as Adobe Creative Cloud, especially Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign, which until now have dominated photo editing, vector design, and editorial layout. It also faces competition from CorelDRAW, another long-standing graphics suite, as well as specialized solutions such as Figma for UI/UX design. Within the free software arena, its only significant rival is GIMP, although GIMP covers only photo editing and does not offer advanced vector or layout capabilities.

The result is a hybrid tool that combines the power of a professional studio with the accessibility of an open platform. An ambitious undertaking that promises to democratize advanced design.

We shall see what the outcome of this endeavor will be.

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Generative AI has rewritten the rules of search. With platforms and models like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini competing to deliver synthesized answers, traditional SEO is no longer enough. Today, visibility is won and lost on the playing field of AI-powered search engines.

To understand this paradigm shift, I interviewed Jim Yu, CEO and Founder of BrightEdge, the content performance platform used by over 8,400 global brands. With a track record that includes leading teams at Salesforce and IBM, Jim explains how their platform helps companies navigate the new reality of GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) and why authority and trust are now more critical than ever

To transform organic search and content into a measurable, strategic advantage for enterprises

Throughout your professional journey, you’ve worked for major companies like IBM and Salesforce. What led you to create BrightEdge in 2007? How did the idea come about, and what challenges did you face while developing it?

Early in my career, I led product development at Mercator Software, which was later acquired by IBM. The platform I built went on to generate over $100 million in revenue and it taught me what it takes to design enterprise technology that truly scales.

When I joined Salesforce, I saw a different problem: companies were investing heavily in digital marketing, yet organic search — their main source of traffic — was a blind spot. Paid channels were trackable down to the dollar, but there was no way to connect SEO and content performance to real business outcomes.

That realization was the spark for BrightEdge. In 2007, we set out to change the game by building the first enterprise-grade SEO platform to give organizations the same level of visibility and accountability for organic search as other channels. Once we proved the impact SEO could deliver to the bottom line, leading brands quickly came on board. And that trust has fueled BrightEdge’s growth ever since.

BrightEdge is an all-in-one platform that has become essential for more than 20,000 digital marketing professionals from 8,400 brands worldwide. What are the keys to your success? What does your tool offer that others don’t?

BrightEdge was founded with a simple mission: to transform organic search and content into a measurable, strategic advantage for enterprises. As the industry has evolved, our vision has only grown in relevance, and what continues to differentiate us is the combination of scale, innovation, and measurable impact.

Eighteen years ago, we pioneered enterprise-grade SEO technology. A few years later, we began weaving AI into our platform, laying the groundwork for the innovations that followed. In 2015, we introduced DataMind, a deep learning engine that surfaced search trends, competitive threats, and market shifts in real time. In 2018, we accelerated this journey with an AI-First strategy, embedding AI natively across the platform and augmenting our capabilities with Generative AI.

Building on that foundation, we launched Copilot and Autopilot to help marketers move faster from insights to action and automate routine but critical tasks. In 2023, we extended this leadership into AI Search with the BrightEdge Generative Parser, which for the first time enabled marketers to detect patterns in these new experiences (beginning when Google was still calling them Search Generative Experiences). This gave marketers unmatched visibility into how engines like Google’s AI Overviews, ChatGPT, and Perplexity interpret and surface information.

Data Cube X delivers the most comprehensive generative research dataset for both traditional and AI Search, helping marketers track performance, monitor customer journeys, and spot trends over time. And with AI Catalyst, brands can see their full presence across AI search engines in one place, right down to how those engines frame a brand’s strengths and weaknesses, so strategies can be fine-tuned with confidence.

Equally important, all of this innovation is unified. Customers aren’t bouncing between disconnected tools or teams. By bringing everything together — from traditional SEO to AI search analytics and recommendations — we ensure insights turn into action that drives growth, efficiency, and stronger customer experiences.

That’s ultimately why so many of the world’s leading brands rely on BrightEdge: we don’t just help them keep up with search. We help them stay ahead of it.

You’ve developed AI-powered tools like Copilot and Autopilot. How do they help companies when addressing their SEO strategy?

When we introduced Copilot and Autopilot, the goal was simple: make SEO less complex and help marketers move from insight to action faster.

Copilot works like your expert advisor. It understands your unique situation then surfaces opportunities, flags issues, and delivers recommendations directly in the workflow, so teams know exactly what to act on. Autopilot takes it further by automating many of the routine but critical tasks, from technical fixes to optimizing content, so marketers can scale their efforts without adding headcount.

Together, these tools shift teams from chasing problems to driving performance. Instead of digging through data, marketers can focus on strategy, creativity, and growth, knowing that Copilot and Autopilot are handling the heavy lifting in the background.

The new reality of SEO determined by AI

Speaking of AI, this technology is revolutionizing the world of SEO. More and more people are turning to ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Gemini to search for information. How do you think generative AI is transforming user search habits? What implications does this have for traditional SEO strategies?

Generative AI is fundamentally reshaping search behavior. Instead of typing in keywords, then browsing links, then refining the search with more keywords and browsing links again, people now ask questions and expect immediate, synthesized answers, sometimes even next-step recommendations.

That’s a seismic shift for SEO. Ranking for keywords alone isn’t enough anymore. Now it’s about whether AI models understand, trust, and surface your brand in their responses. In other words, how is AI telling your story? Authority and credibility matter more than ever because AI engines are increasingly shaping the answers that drive decisions.

For marketers, this means expanding the playbook. Yes, you still need to optimize for Google, but you also need to understand how your brand is showing up across platforms like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini. At BrightEdge, that’s why we built AI Catalyst, to give marketers visibility into how they’re showing up in AI-driven environments and the tools to adapt.

The bottom line: SEO is no longer just about being “search-visible,” it’s also about being “AI-visible.” Brands that make that shift early will be the ones that win.

In response to this paradigm shift, Google didn’t fall behind and launched AI Overviews in May 2024 in the U.S. According to a recent study of yours, during the first year of AI Overviews, the CTR in Google search decreased by 30%, but impressions increased by 49%. Tell us about this new reality and how brands can adapt to avoid losing visibility.

The launch of Google AI Overviews changed the way people interact with search results. Our research shows that AI Search can handle most of the user’s research needs, without the need to click through to a site.

For brands, this means visibility can’t be measured by clicks alone anymore. You have to understand how your brand is showing up inside the AI-generated overview. This could mean whether you’re mentioned with or without a citation, how your brand is positioned against competitors, and even the sentiment of that mention.

The takeaway: SEO isn’t disappearing, but the definition of success is evolving. It’s no longer just about ranking on page one, it’s also about ensuring AI engines surface your brand in ways that drive measurable outcomes.

There has been much discussion about the effects of generative AI search engines on news websites and blogs. But how do they affect the eCommerce world? How can online stores turn this technology to their advantage?

We’re seeing a big shift in how people shop online. Instead of starting with a keyword on Google, consumers are asking AI Search Engines for specific product recommendations: “What’s the best moisturizer under $50 for someone with sensitive skin?” or “What are the best running shoes for a 30-year-old male looking to run his first marathon?” The traditional shopping journey is being shortcut by AI agents surfacing specific products and brands directly in the answer.

That creates both challenges and opportunities. On the one hand, shoppers may never reach a brand’s site if the AI provides enough information upfront. On the other, brands that optimize can gain visibility at the exact decision-making moment.

To win in this new landscape, retailers need to expand their approach. It’s no longer just about ranking on Google. Brands must ensure their product data, such as descriptions and reviews, is accessible and easy for AI systems to process. Real-time accuracy is critical, because AI often collects website information instantly in response to searches. If they can’t easily understand or surface your product, they’ll skip it.

Trust signals also matter more than ever. Reviews, ratings, and credible brand storytelling influence whether AI engines choose your product over a competitor’s. It’s harder to measure exactly where traffic comes from, but we know that presence in AI answers is already driving stronger brand recognition and more direct engagement.

What role does the concept of GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) play in this new era of content? How should content creation be rethought to be effective in AI-powered engines?

GEO starts with SEO. Traditional search still drives the majority of traffic, so a strong SEO foundation remains the bedrock for any content strategy. At the same time, large language models rely on traditional search indexes to discover websites, whether their own or from third parties. For example, ChatGPT draws from Bing, Claude from Brave, and Google AI Mode from Google.

From there, it becomes about optimizing for the nuances of AI engines, each of which ingests, interprets, and surfaces information differently. That means aligning content with the signals that matter most for discovery in AI contexts — things like authority, schema, entity alignment, and authenticity.

What we do is help marketers optimize once, rank everywhere with a data-driven approach that is focused on actions that drive business results.

In a context where content can be generated at scale by AI, how can brands maintain relevance, differentiation, and authority without falling into overproduction?

AI makes it easy to generate more content, but more isn’t always better. Flooding the web with generic content risks diluting your brand and eroding trust. The brands that stand out will be the ones that focus on quality, not quantity.

That starts with expertise. AI-powered search engines increasingly prioritize trusted, credible sources. Brands that invest in original insights, thought leadership, and well-structured content will continue to surface more often than those chasing volume.

Second, differentiation comes from brand voice and perspective. AI can generate summaries, but it can’t replicate the authenticity of a brand’s story. That human layer matters more than ever.

Finally, staying relevant means being intentional. Brands should use AI to enhance productivity by automating routine tasks, but ultimately applying human creativity to ensure the final product adds real value. That balance prevents overproduction and keeps content impactful.

AI may change how content is produced, but the fundamentals of building authority and trust haven’t changed. If anything, they’ve become more important.

How is BrightEdge responding to all these changes? What innovations have you developed or what approach have you recently adopted to help your clients stay competitive in this new environment?

BrightEdge has always been ahead of shifts in search, and with AI, that commitment is stronger than ever. We’ve built tools to give marketers confidence and control in a search environment that’s evolving fast.

One of our most important innovations is AI Catalyst, the industry’s first solution that shows brands how they appear across generative platforms. It answers the question every marketer is asking right now: “How is my brand being seen in the AI ecosystem?”

We’ve also evolved from being a pure SEO platform into a full AI-driven content performance platform. That means combining traditional SEO signals with real-time AI insights, automating workflows, and surfacing recommendations so marketers can act fast. Tools like Copilot and Autopilot reduce the manual work and let teams focus on strategy and creativity.

Ultimately, our approach is simple: enable brands to optimize once and succeed everywhere. Whether that’s in Google, in an AI overview, or inside an autonomous agent’s recommendations. We see ourselves not just as a technology provider, but as a partner helping enterprises navigate the AI-first era of discovery.

A trip down memory lane and advice for the new SEO generation

Let’s take a trip down memory lane: what advice would you give to Jim Yu from 10 years ago?

If I could go back 10 years, I’d remind myself to always stay anchored in the fundamentals, even when the hype cycles around technology feel overwhelming. The biggest shifts, from mobile to AI, don’t erase the need for clarity on customer value, data-driven decisions, and building resilient teams.

I’d also tell myself to double down on experimentation sooner. We learned over time that testing new ideas quickly, at scale, is the best way to separate signal from noise.

And maybe most importantly: be patient, but bold. The landscape changes faster than you think, but impact takes longer than you want. The real advantage comes from balancing those two truths.

Finally, what would you say to an SEO professional just starting their career in such a turbulent time?

I’d actually call this one of the most exciting times to be starting a career in SEO. The fundamentals haven’t changed, but the canvas you get to work on is so much bigger now. AI-powered search, generative engines, and new discovery models reshape the field almost daily.

My advice: lean into the change, stay curious, and ground yourself in data. The people who thrive will be the ones who can adapt, experiment, and connect the dots between classic SEO discipline and the new rules of AI-driven discovery.

It’s not turbulence — it’s opportunity. And the skills you build now will put you at the center of how brands grow for the next decade.

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Instagram has introduced a new (and perhaps controversial) feature within its Professional Dashboard: “Competitive Insights”, a tool that enables professional accounts—whether business or creator profiles—to compare their activity with that of other similar accounts. This option is currently in the implementation phase and appears within the dashboard, although it has not yet been made available to all users (for instance, it is not yet operational for Marketing4ecommerce).

The Threads user Sarah Roizman, published a thread on the social network explaining where the feature appears and how the data is displayed:

 

Ver en Threads

 

With this new feature, users may select up to 10 public accounts to compare themselves against in metrics such as follower growth and publishing frequency across different formats: Reels, feed posts, and advertisements. The data is presented in a table format, with comparative figures displayed side by side.

What this new tool offers (and what doesn’t)

The comparison is straightforward; there are no graphs or accumulated data, and the available metrics are limited. One may see how often each account publishes, how its follower base evolves, and some information regarding individual posts, even if an account hides its “likes.” However, indicators such as clicks, engagement rates, conversions, or segmentation by content type are not included.

The design is intended to provide a quick and visual overview. There is no possibility to group accounts or conduct trend analyses. Each comparison is individual, with no functionality to identify broad patterns or analyze the development of entire sectors.

Although the figures shown are public, the feature has prompted debate regarding data exposure and privacy, especially because it displays interactions from individual posts without explicit consent. Instagram has not specified which exact data it processes or how it aggregates them. In fact, no official announcement regarding this new feature has been issued yet.

• How does Edits work: the new video editing app from Instagram that aims to compete with CapCut

This tool positions itself as a basic form of benchmarking within the platform itself, an area previously covered only by external tools. For now, its usefulness will depend on the manner in which each account chooses to utilize it, whether as a guide for content strategies or as support in reporting results.

Photo: Threads account of Sarah Roizman and Canva.

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Since its launch at the end of November 2022, ChatGPT has evolved at a dizzying pace, incorporating new capabilities and modifications that have enabled it to deliver a better service. As its artificial intelligence has grown, OpenAI has introduced different plans and pricing options to meet the needs of every type of user.

ChatGPT Plans in the Era of GPT-5

Following the launch of GPT-5 in August 2025, the landscape of ChatGPT’s various plans and pricing changed in order to adapt to the new context. In general, it can be summarized that GPT‑5 is the new standard, serving as the default model in ChatGPT for all registered users, replacing previous versions such as GPT‑4o, o3, GPT‑4.1, GPT‑4.5, and GPT‑4.

Let us now bring some order to these options 😉

1. ChatGPT Free

This plan, completely accessible at no cost to any user, offers access to the GPT‑5 model, with limited usage compared to the paid versions. Through this plan, you may interact with ChatGPT, upload files and images, and receive enhanced responses utilizing real-time web content. In addition, you have the ability to generate images and perform data analysis, although there are certain restrictions regarding the quantity and depth of interactions. Once you have reached the limit, you will begin to use the GPT-5 mini model.

What is that limit? You may send up to 10 messages every 5 hours. Upon reaching this limit, chats will automatically use the mini version of the model until it is reset. Free users also have access to one GPT-5 Thinking message per day.

Furthermore, you will be able to explore the GPT Store (although you cannot create customized GPTs), but the available voice model is standard only, with no access to advanced features. This plan is ideal for those wishing to utilize the artificial intelligence tool for personal use without extensive requirements, taking advantage of the basic capabilities provided.

2. ChatGPT Go

This is the most recent plan launched by the company. Priced at $5 per month, it is designed to be an affordable paid option for individuals who are already familiar with the free plan and wish to unlock increased access to this AI’s primary tools.

ChatGPT Go increases the usage limits of the features included in the free plan (advanced reasoning with GPT-5, message uploads, image generation, advanced research, and memory) and permits the creation of customized GPTs. However, OpenAI has not yet specified the exact usage limits for this plan.

3. ChatGPT Plus

With a price of $20 per month, ChatGPT Plus is designed for users who seek to enhance their productivity and creativity in projects through the use of AI. This plan offers all the features of the Go plan, but with greater capabilities and fewer restrictions.

Although certain limitations remain regarding messaging, file uploads, advanced data analysis, and image generation, ChatGPT Plus allows you to send up to 160 messages every 3 hours using GPT‑5, after which it switches to the mini model. Nevertheless, during periods of high demand, these conditions may be temporarily reduced.

You may also manually select the GPT-5-Thinking model in the model selector, with a usage limit of up to 3,000 messages per week. Once the weekly limit has been reached, a pop-up notification will be displayed and GPT-5-Thinking will no longer appear in the menu.

Other notable features included in this plan are limited access to Sora 1, ChatGPT’s AI video generator, and the ability to use the programming agent Codex.

4. ChatGPT Pro

The ChatGPT Pro model costs $200 per month and is intended for experts, professionals, and researchers who require advanced capabilities in the field of artificial intelligence.

ChatGPT Pro integrates all the advantages and features of the Plus plan, but with additional improvements, such as unlimited access to GPT‑5 and advanced reasoning models. Users on this plan may utilize models such as GPT‑5 Thinking and GPT‑5 Pro, which are optimized for answering complex queries with greater computational power, improving performance in scientific, mathematical, and programming tasks.

Moreover, ChatGPT Pro provides expanded access to Deep Research, advanced voice mode, and the opportunity to experiment with new OpenAI research projects, such as the Operator model.

5. ChatGPT Business (formerly Team)

The price of this plan varies depending on whether you choose the annual payment option ($25/month per user) or monthly ($30/month per user). ChatGPT Business is designed for teams and small to medium-sized companies, with the ability to support between 2 and 149 users.

It includes all the features of ChatGPT Plus and imposes fewer restrictions (although some remain) regarding web browsing, data analysis, video, and image generation. ChatGPT Business users can utilize GPT‑5 as the default model, with access to advanced features and a higher usage volume compared to the free plans. Additionally, ChatGPT Business contains an administration console for workspace management and guarantees that submitted data will not be used to train the AI model.

As with the Plus plan, a Business user may manually select the GPT-5-Thinking model in the selector, with a usage limit of up to 3,000 messages per week. Once the weekly limit is reached, a pop-up notification will be displayed and GPT-5-Thinking will no longer appear in the menu. This plan also provides access to GPT-5 Pro.

6. ChatGPT Enterprise

This is the plan you should choose if ChatGPT Business is insufficient for your company’s needs, as it has the capacity to serve more than 150 users. The price for this plan is determined based on the specific needs of your company, so you will need to contact the OpenAI sales team for a personalized quotation.

ChatGPT Enterprise provides all the capabilities of the Business plan, but with additional improvements, such as higher message limits, an expanded context window allowing longer inputs and larger files, as well as enterprise-grade privacy and advanced data analysis features. Users also receive priority access to OpenAI models and experts. In addition, it offers 24-hour priority support.

7. ChatGPT Edu

In May 2024, OpenAI introduced ChatGPT Edu, an option designed for universities so that all campus members (students, professors, and researchers) are able to benefit from advanced artificial intelligence capabilities. This model is now based on GPT‑5 and provides access to its features, with fewer restrictions than the free plan.

ChatGPT Edu includes advanced capabilities such as data analysis, web browsing, file integration, and the option to summarize documents. It also enables the creation of customized GPTs, which may be shared within university workspaces. Furthermore, this model includes enterprise-level administration and security controls.

Regarding pricing, OpenAI does not set a fixed rate and requests that universities contact its sales team in order to obtain a personalized quotation. This suggests that the plan’s cost will be adjusted depending on the specific needs and characteristics of each educational institution.

Photo: Canva and ChatGPT

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