Content series are becoming part of how Fender and Marshall try to improve their visibility in AI search. The guitar and amplifier makers are building video and editorial experiences that give consumers and AI tools more material about their brands, according to Digiday’s report.
Fender has overhauled its website to work as what interim CMO Kelly Magrath called a storytelling platform. Its destination site includes short videos about the company’s heritage, artists who have played its guitars, and the craftspeople who make its instruments.
Content Series Extend Brand Stories
On Fender’s owned social channels, video series mark 75 years of the Telecaster, favored by George Harrison, Chrissie Hynde and James Hetfield, and demonstrate guitar pedals.
Magrath said the effort may help Fender appear during product research. She did not disclose its annual paid media budget; Fender typically directs paid spending toward search, YouTube and social platforms.
Marshall Group, which makes Marshall amps and headphones, has also built a YouTube series. Its “Dead Venues” episodes stage performances by new bands in venues that have closed, including London’s London Fog and New York’s China Chalet.
Content Series and AI Search Visibility
Marshall’s series is part of a broader brand campaign that has run since May. The company is also using YouTube advertising, partnerships with independent music publishers, outdoor advertising and experiential activity.
Marshall maintains a record label and sponsors tours and venues. The campaign connects that support for live music with its products, while aiming to distinguish the company in the competitive headphones market, said Christine Kennedy Grant, vice president of brand marketing.
“We are known as an iconic guitar amp brand, and as we differentiate into these new categories, we have really needed to reconsider who we want the consumer to know us as,” Kennedy Grant told Digiday. She also said AI Overviews and large language model tools are important places for Marshall to appear.
Fender and Marshall’s work comes as more consumers use AI tools while researching products. Seven out of 10 U.S. consumers use ChatGPT or AI summaries for product or company research, according to a survey published by content marketing agency Skyword.
Skyword CEO Andrew Wheeler said distinct editorial gives AI systems and consumers ideas and points of view to trust, cite and recommend. Brands cannot control ChatGPT descriptions, but can create material rooted in their expertise, he said.
Originality Matters More Than Keyword Volume
Some marketers are still testing whether paid promotion helps branded content enter AI answers. Stephani Estes, chief media officer at The Shipyard, said her agency is experimenting with brand-owned content, creator activity and boosting videos on platforms such as YouTube. She described the effect of paid media on AI visibility as an open question and said there is no established silver bullet.
Meanwhile, three-fourths (75%) of marketers plan to increase spending on visibility in AI assistants next year, according to a Kantar survey published at the beginning of October. The article does not specify the calendar year for “next year.”
Content strategists emphasized original expertise. Happylucky CEO Emily Stutzman said useful context and firsthand experience give AI platforms richer material than posts built around 20-30 keywords. Her agency has created style editorials for Adidas and is seeing more owned-content projects from Stanley 1913 and Salt & Straw.
Companies considering this approach can also read about why AI search ignores brands, how firms rebuild content strategy, and the move toward answer engine optimization. Owned material is one source AI systems may draw on; Fender and Marshall can keep building stories for fans and search tools.
