Times Have Changed. Effective Content Marketing Now Also Requires a Clear Understanding of AI

According to the Content Marketing Institute, content marketing is a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly-defined audience — and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer action. It’s particularly relevant to B2B marketers, but it’s become increasingly more and more important for B2C as well.

But these days, effective content marketing must take into account AI -- both in the assisted creation of content and in its optimisation to enable discovery by AI.

Back in the day (2024!), marketers only had to contend with Google's Featured Snippets, which answered searchers' questions right there on the Google search results. One third of searches generated zero clicks -- the searchers didn't have to click through to any website, they'd already learned the answer they needed, right there on the Google results page.

Then, as competitors such as ChatGPT started offering more detailed answers through the use of AI, Google added its own AI services on search results pages.

AI Overviews was first. By early 2025, most informational queries (the types of questions that Content Marketing is designed to answer) typically drew a response from Google's AI Overviews. The need to click dropped even further: 43% of Google Searches resulted in zero clicks.

Then, in July 2025, Google dropped another bombshell: AI Mode. Now searchers could chat with Google AI, right there on the search pages. Don't get your questions answered right away? Ask more questions, Google AI is there to answer.

Now, 93% of those who use Google AI Mode leave satisfied. Just 7% click through.

So how do you get your content featured by Google's AI Mode, or in ChatGPT, Grok, Claude or Perplexity?

 By optimising your content for AI, as well as for Search Engines.

Oh, and there's another wrinkle as well, already in use by B2B companies, especially offshore (but starting to spread to NZ): more and more companies are using AI Agents to do the initial homework and shortlisting on their behalf.

Gartner reports that 40% of enterprise software evaluations are now initiated by autonomous AI procurement agents (AI software that conducts its own analyses of prospective suppliers). And the company predicts that by 2028, 90% of B2B buying will be AI agent intermediated, pushing over $15 trillion of global spend through machine-to-machine exchanges.

So what does all this mean for Content Marketers?

Simply that your content now has at least two (and for B2B businesses, three) target audiences:

1. Humans (who may also, for B2B, be separated into multiple audiences: users, influencers, decision-makers)
2. AI (who look for reputable sources to quote and attribute in the answers they provide)
3. AI Agents (who will be given a range of criteria and then scour the Internet to find suppliers that match those criteria -- initially for B2B, will spread in due course to general consumers as well)

Yes, it's a whole new paradigm.

That's why we're now releasing our Content Marketing Essentials in the Age of AI online training course, an eleven-part course designed to show you how, when, where and why to use Content Marketing to provide relevant, useful resources to your prospective customers, in accordance with their wants and needs.

The Content Marketing Essentials in the Age of AI course covers:

Lesson One: First Steps, AI for Content Marketing

In this lesson, we discuss the importance of content marketing and show you how the whole Customer Buying Journey has evolved. We explore how effective content creation MUST include optimisation for Search Engines (SEO) and AI (AEO, Answer Engine Optimisation)  so that -- provided that your content is designed properly around appropriate keywords and structured to satisfy buyer intent -- content marketing can help you more easily get found in search engines and quoted by AI.

Then we cover what's become known as Prompt Engineering, the process of writing briefs ("prompts") for AI software, in order to generate the desired output. A well-crafted prompt helps guide the AI model to produce more accurate, relevant, and contextually appropriate responses.

AI Tool: We'll give you access to our proprietary Promptcaster Pro tool, which takes basic prompts and then adds content and context to deliver highly-refined prompts for you to use.

Lesson Two: Content Writing

As more and more marketers learn how to use AI, they've started flooding cyberspace with AI-generated content, overloading their unfortunate recipients. This information overload has been dubbed "AI Slop", and it's a real problem for businesses trying to get noticed with real, valuable, relevant content.

In Lesson Two, we discuss how to avoid AI slop (while still making effective use of AI to brainstorm ideas, explore possibilities and multiply your productivity), and the importance of gaining a better understanding of your audience in order to do so.

We also discuss:

• why people share
• the 22 types of content most likely to be shared
• how to carry your unique Brand Voice through the content you create

Lesson Three: Search Intent

Your audience has a specific intention when they search online and it is up to you to meet that intent with your content.

When you are coming up with a content idea, you need to put yourself in the mind of your audience and think about what they really want to know when they search online in your category. Then give them what they want.

In this lesson, we discuss how to identify exactly what audiences want (which varies, of course, depending on exactly where they are in their Customer Buying Journey).

We also discuss the ways that search intent varies between devices, especially if searches are generated using AI (which tends to be much more conversational in nature) and how you can cater to those different needs.

Lesson Four: Using AI for Design

Design can play a crucial role in content marketing campaigns, and AI-powered tools can simplify the design process. In this lesson, we will explore various AI design tools for creating custom visuals, branding, and product usage imagery. We will also discuss best practices and guidelines for personalizing designs using AI technology.

Lesson Four covers:

• AI Design Tools: Learn about various AI-powered tools (such as MidJourney, Nano Banana Pro, Leonardo and AI additions to Canva, Microsoft Designer and the Adobe suite of products) that can assist in creating custom visuals, branding, and logo designs.
• Creating Custom Visuals: Discover how AI can simplify the process of generating unique and eye-catching visuals for your marketing campaigns.
• AI for Branding: Understand how AI can be used to create cohesive and professional branding elements, ensuring consistency across all marketing channels.
• Product Usage with AI: AI can now take simple images of products and create multiple images showing the products in use.
• Design Personalization: Learn best practices for personalizing designs using AI, enhancing customer engagement and brand recognition.
• AI-Powered Website Builders: Learn about AI-powered website builders and their capabilities in creating professional and optimized websites.

Lesson Five: AI for Video & Audio

Video and audio creation can be amongst the most labour-intensive of marketing tasks. AI has been at work behind the scenes of many video and audio programs for a number of years but now the curtain has been lifted, many new tools have been released, and content marketers can leverage AI to dramatically enhance the creation process. In this lesson, We take you through some of the latest tools and techniques available to help you make marketing magic.

Lesson Five will cover:

• Instant AI video generation applications that transform your text prompts into immediate visual content.
• AI-enhanced video editing solutions designed to accelerate the editing workflow.
• AI-Powered video productivity tools for swift content creation and distribution across various marketing outlets and platforms.
• Text-to-speech AI tools that will bring your words to life using either your own AI-cloned voice increasingly realistic human-sounding voices.
• AI music creation tools that can create background music or even local performances, based on text prompts.

Lesson Six: Social Media

Social media is a powerful marketing platform, and AI can help marketers optimize their social media efforts. This lesson will discuss AI's role in social media content creation, management, social listening, and sentiment analysis. We will also explore AI's potential in influencer marketing and audience targeting.

Lesson Six drives the conversation about:

• AI and Social Media Content: Learn how AI can assist in creating engaging and relevant social media content, increasing audience engagement.
• AI for Social Media Management: Understand how AI can simplify and enhance social media management, leading to more efficient and effective campaigns.
• Social Listening and Sentiment Analysis: Discover how AI can be used for social listening and sentiment analysis, providing valuable insights into your audience's needs and opinions.
• AI and Influencer Marketing: Explore the role of AI in influencer marketing, including identifying potential influencers and measuring their impact.
• AI for Audience Targeting: Understand how AI can enhance audience targeting on social media, resulting in more personalized and effective marketing efforts.

Lesson Seven: Email Marketing

Email marketing continues to be a highly effective marketing channel. In this lesson, we will explore email subject line creation, personalisation, segmentation and targeting. We will also discuss strategies to improve email deliverability and performance. And, most importantly of all, we will cover key NZ legislation that regulates how you can and CANNOT market with email, including the Unsolicited Electronic Messages Act, the Privacy Act 2020 and the May 2026 IPP3A update.

Lesson Seven delivers:

• Email Subject Lines: Discover the importance of compelling email subject lines, leading to higher open rates and engagement.
• Email Personalisation: Learn how email personalisation increases relevancy and improves customer relationships.
• Segmentation and Targeting: Understand how you can streamline segmentation and targeting in email marketing, ensuring your messages reach the right audience.
• Improving Email Deliverability: Explore  strategies to improve email deliverability, maximizing the reach of your email marketing efforts.
• Overall Performance Improvement: Learn how to optimise your email marketing performance, leading to higher click-through rates and conversions.

Lesson Eight: Mapping the Modern B2B Buying Committee

In this lesson, we'll show you how to build detailed personas covering every influential stakeholder (e.g. CEO, CFO, CMO, CIO/CTO, procurement, legal, end users). you'll learn how to assess the typical priorities, concerns and success metrics of each role (with the aid of AI).

We'll help you to identify the roles involved in their customers’ purchasing decisions, research each persona’s pain points and preferred content formats, and visualise the typical buying journey.

AI Prompt: Buying Committee Intelligence Assessment – produces comprehensive persona profiles and buying‑journey maps, highlighting content preferences and competitive insight.

Lesson Nine: Crafting Persona‑Driven Value Propositions

Using the personas from the preceding lesson, we'll show you how to refine your own product/service descriptions so that each stakeholder sees clear value. You will also learn how to pre‑empt objections specific to each role.

We'll cover how to write tailored value propositions for each persona, list likely objections and craft responses, and ensure business outcomes and financial benefits are explicit.

AI Prompt: Stakeholder Value Proposition Generator – prompts users to enter product benefits and returns separate value statements and objection‑handling scripts for each decision‑maker.

Lesson Ten: Optimising for AI Procurement Agents

In this lesson, you will learn the principles of optimizing content for AI Agents, which involves three core pillars.

First, we will look at LLM Citation Readiness. This is all about training your content to speak the language of generative AI, like ChatGPT or Claude. You will learn how to structure your key information into concise "Answer Blocks" that these models can easily scrape and quote. The goal is to ensure that when an AI summarizes your industry, it cites you as the definitive "Source of Truth" rather than generating a generic overview.

Second, we will cover Agent Readiness, which focuses on the "invisible" side of your website that procurement bots use. Unlike humans who look at design, these agents are scanning your backend for "Verifiable Truths" like your business numbers and security certifications. You will learn the importance of having a "digital handshake"—a specific signal that tells these automated buyers you are a safe, verified vendor they can trust.

Finally, we will explore the Buying Committee Consensus. As noted above, in B2B, decisions aren't made by one person, but by a group. You will see how to tailor your content so that it satisfies multiple AI agents simultaneously—providing ROI data for the "CFO bot," technical specs for the "IT bot," and compliance details for the "Procurement bot". The objective is to remove friction so that every digital stakeholder gives you a "Yes" without human intervention.

Lesson Eleven: Measurement & Accountability

Finally, as always, it comes down to money. Is the time and effort that you devote to content marketing delivering a decent return on your investment?

How do you track that? What metrics should you be measuring? We look at your options.

Then we consider what makes a successful content marketer.

And we close by reviewing content marketing trends for the near and slightly more distant futures.

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WHO WILL BENEFIT FROM THIS COURSE?
Every Kiwi business wanting to promote and sell online. If you want your customers to trust you, and buy anything from you, you need to demonstrate your credentials by providing relevant, objective information first.

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WHAT CUSTOMERS ARE SAYING ABOUT OUR COURSES

Feedback from previous digital marketing training course and workshop participants:

• It is great that we have managed to get an external perspective on marketing in the digital space – your expertise in this area is greatly appreciated. – Hazel T.
• I really enjoyed the [Digital Marketing Workshop] today and got a lot out of it  – Nikki H.
• Thanks for a great [Digital Marketing] session yesterday, really enjoyed it and learnt lots – Izi W
• “this was the best professional development course I have done in many years” – Mark R, senior Agency Exec responsible for social media
• “thought the information within was outstanding” – Ed P, General Manager
• “What I loved was that I started with a fairly rudimentary understanding of social media but have learned a lot – including where to find more information as I need it.” – Fiona W, Marketing Manager
• “I found it relevant, informative, topical, insightful and a bloody good read. It’s never evangelical, too techy, patronising, assumes that you know too much or too little about digital and has a warm sense of humour in the communication throughout which helped faciliate the learning process for me.” — Adrienne B, new media senior executive
• “Thanks for pointing me in the direction of this course! It’s been extremely enlightening” — Shayne P, design agency director
• “Rapt with what I have seen of the course” — Julia R, fashion editor
• “I’m really enjoying the course – learning a lot – and I know the two friends I persuaded to join us are also loving it.” — Lavinia C, designer
• “Am thoroughly enjoying the content!” – Kara B, magazine co-ordinator
• “I was already engaging with social media and have been doing so for about 6 years or so. But, did I know how to use social media in a marketing and business sense? No, I simply did not. This course was a great way to show me how to do that.” — Sheryl K, online marketer

Your instructor for this course is Michael Carney, one of New Zealand’s most experienced digital marketing practitioners and educators. As the founder and director of Netmarketing Courses, Michael has dedicated the last fifteen years to researching, creating, and delivering practical, relevant online training designed specifically for the Aotearoa market. His mission is to empower Kiwi organisations and marketers with the skills they need to thrive in a competitive digital landscape. To date, he has trained over 3,000 students through partnerships with leading industry bodies including the NZ Marketing Association, NZ Retailers Association, Tourism Industry Association NZ, and Hospitality NZ.

Course participants range from absolute beginners just starting to come to grips with digital marketing through to senior marketing professionals looking for Continuing Professional Development and seeking to stay up-to-date with the latest changes in the ever-evolving digital environment. Specific courses are offered for organisations of all sizes, from solopreneurs and small businesses through to local and central government bodies and large corporate businesses.

Michael has practical, hands-on experience with all aspects of digital marketing, from website creation to social media advertising, from strategic guidance and trend analysis to thought leadership. He has been online since 1987 and involved with digital marketing in all its aspects since the mid-1990s. He was an early adopter of Generative AI when ChatGPT launched in late 2022, and now has extensive experience with using AI for research, brainstorming, content creation, design, video creation and editing and what's become known as "vibe coding", using AI to develop web applications.

Michael’s expertise is built on a career spanning more than four decades, during which he has developed marketing and advertising strategies for many of New Zealand's most iconic brands. His extensive client list includes The Warehouse, ANZ Bank, Lion Breweries, Griffins Foods, Sony New Zealand, Honda New Zealand, and Heinz Wattie. This deep, hands-on experience at the highest levels of the industry ensures that every course is grounded in real-world application, not just academic theory. He has held senior strategic roles in major advertising agencies, including National Media Director at HKM Advertising and Strategic Planning Director for The Media Counsel. He currently also is Digital and Strategic Director of the creative agency Good Gravy. 

Beyond his client work, Michael is a respected thought leader, published author, and industry contributor. He wrote the bestselling book "Trade Me Success Secrets," which sold out its first printing in just six weeks, and has ghost-written several other business books on topics like digital transformation. For years, he chaired the Network of Digital Marketers for the NZ Marketing Association and he has been a regular magazine columnist for Marketing Magazine and other titles. This unique combination of in-the-trenches experience, proven teaching ability, and strategic insight makes him the ideal guide to help you master digital marketing.

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HOW THE COURSE WORKS

This course is browser-based and can be accessed through Chrome, Firefox or other web browsers.

The course is a blend of text, images and videos.

Each section includes recommended Action Steps and Exercises to help you implement what you have learned.

Individual advice and assistance is available if required from the course tutor, Michael Carney, typically in the first instance via email.

TIMING

The next course begins on Thursday 26 February, 2026.

We release course lessons every week, on Thursdays (we operate on a timed-release timetable so that we can ensure the content is as up-to-date as possible, since digital marketing changes so much).

We typically recommend that you allow an average of 2-3 hours per lesson — less in the early stages of the course, more in latter stages as we explore more detailed topics.

Once you have access to a course lesson, you can take it whenever you wish, anytime 24/7. There is no requirement to complete the course over any particular timeframe.

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INVESTMENT

This eleven-part online training course is available for $1097+GST. However we offer an EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT of $100 — pay just $997+GST for bookings received by the end of Thursday 19 February, 2026. Bookings are confirmed on receipt of payment. We can raise an invoice in advance if you need it.

To reserve your place in this course, please click to enrol:

If you need more information, or require an invoice in advance, please send an email to info@netmarketingcourses.co.nz with your requirements.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

You’ll receive our emailed confirmation of your booking. Then on the first day of the course we’ll follow up with details of your Login and Password for the Content Marketing Essentials online training course.

If you have any questions, or would like more information, please email us at info@netmarketingcourses.co.nz