AI-powered personalization is available now, but most marketers aren’t using it yet.
Welcome back to this week’s Side Income Roundup, Monday, March 23.
This week is all about timing. A few simple AI tools can give your emails, ads, and content a real edge right now, and that window won’t stay open forever.
Why AI email personalization is closer than you think
3 tools worth opening this week
Meta’s new flexible ad format and Instagram’s Trial Reels
Turning one video into a full week of content
Consumers buying through AI, even when they don’t trust it
Let’s get into it.
THIS WEEK’S BIG IDEA
The AI Email Window Is Open, But Not for Long
“Personalization” used to mean dropping someone’s first name into a subject line. AI is changing that – now every subscriber can get content based on their behavior, purchase history, and intent.
The tools making this possible aren’t built into your email platform yet. Marketers are stitching them together using Zapier, Make, and generative AI. That gap is actually the opportunity, and early movers will have months of data and refined workflows before this becomes a one-click feature for everyone.
Our Take: Pick one segment this week and test a simple personalization layer – different subject lines based on last click behavior, or a conditional content block based on past purchases. You don’t need a perfect system, just a starting point.
TOOLS OF THE WEEK
A free, no-code tool that lets you model ad budget allocations across channels and project ROI in real time. Built on Google’s Meridian marketing mix model.
ActiveCampaign AI Performance Intelligence
Two new features: auto-benchmarks your email campaigns against similar ones and alerts you when something underperforms, plus a brand voice setting so all AI content stays consistent.
Reddit is testing AI-powered shopping search that turns community recommendations into product carousels with pricing and buy links. Worth watching if you sell physical products or promote in product-heavy niches.
Our Take: Google’s Scenario Planner is the one I’d open first. Plug in your current spend, model a few alternatives, and see if you’re leaving money on the table. Takes ten minutes.
TODAY’S QUICK WINS
Meta’s New Flexible Ad Formats
Meta is replacing single-format ad selection with a flexible system. Upload multiple creative types and the algorithm serves whichever format performs best for each viewer.
Trial Reels pushes new Reels to non-followers first so you can test content before it hits your main audience. Sprout Social’s 2026 algorithm update also confirms watch time, shares, and DM replies now carry more weight than likes.
Our Take: Upload at least two creative formats on your next Meta campaign instead of picking one. And turn on Trial Reels so you test on strangers first. Both take under five minutes.
FROM OMC
The One-Video Week: How to Turn One Short Video Into a Full Week of Affiliate Content
Most creators abandon their best content the day after it works. This post walks through a framework for taking one short video that resonated and turning it into a full week of connected affiliate content, so you stop starting from scratch every day.
Our Take: If you posted anything recently that got more engagement than usual, don’t create something new today. Build on what already worked in a different format.
AI SPOTLIGHT
Consumers Are Buying Through AI, Even When They Don’t Trust It
A Klaviyo survey of nearly 8,000 consumers found that 60% use AI tools weekly, but only 13% completely trust them. Despite that, 41% have purchased a product recommended by AI in the last six months. AI is quietly becoming a real product discovery channel.
Our Take: People are buying through AI even when they don’t trust it. Make sure your product descriptions and offer pages answer the specific questions an AI tool would need to recommend you: clear pricing, clear outcomes, clear differentiators.
UNTIL NEXT WEEK…
Keep it simple this week:
Test one AI personalization layer on a segment of your email list Open Google’s Scenario Planner and model your current ad spend Turn on Trial Reels in your Instagram settings Repurpose your best-performing content from the last two weeks
A rough first attempt this week beats a perfect system three months from now.
Talk soon,
Aidan
P.S. Next week I’m breaking down how to make your offer pages speak two languages: one for humans, one for the AI agents doing the shopping. It’s a checklist you can run through in an afternoon.
