4 Stories Changing the Way Canadians Market

How TV, tentpole events, inclusion, and purpose are evolving.

February 24, 2026

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There are a few quiet but important shifts happening across Canadian marketing right now. Shoppable TV is starting to look less like an experiment and more like infrastructure. Streaming is changing how brands think about tentpole moments. And conversations around inclusion are getting more direct and more practical. If you are starting to map out 2026, these are the kinds of shifts worth factoring into your plans.

Coming up

The Living Room Is Becoming a Commerce Channel

For years, shoppable TV in Canada felt more theoretical than practical.

The idea made sense, but the execution never quite felt built to scale. That may be starting to change.

Bell Media has expanded its content to commerce partnership nationally, integrating shoppable experiences across premium programming in both English and French markets. This is no longer a contained test. It is part of the operating model.

For decades, television has been where brands build memory and emotion. Performance happened somewhere else.

But that line is starting to blur.

Viewers are not just watching. They are browsing storefronts connected to the shows they are already engaged with. They are spending time inside those environments. And in some cases, they are purchasing without ever leaving the ecosystem.

In a market as concentrated as Canada’s, shifts like this can scale quickly once a major broadcaster commits. When premium video begins functioning as both a brand and transaction channel, the implications move beyond creative. They touch planning, measurement, and how value is defined.

The question is less about whether shoppable TV works, and more about what role the living room starts to play in the retail landscape.

See how Bell Media is putting this model into practice and what it could mean for 2026 planning.

Jenny Steele on stage at SocialWest 2025 - photo by Neil Zeller Photography

Three Smart Reads

Stories shaping the Canadian marketing conversation this week.

  1. Streaming Is Rewriting the Rules of Tentpole Advertising — While the world’s best athletes competed on the global stage, millions of Canadians watched from their living rooms. The difference this year? Streaming was central, not secondary. We spoke with Ivan Pehar, Director of Ad Sales at Roku Canada, to understand what that shift means for tentpole strategy as streaming continues to evolve.

  2. Beyond February: What Black Marketers Want Canadian Brands to Recognize — Black marketers, founders, and strategists across Canada share lived experience and direct advice on what meaningful inclusion actually requires. The message is consistent and direct. Visibility is not enough. Ownership, investment, and long term commitment are the real metrics.

  3. When “I Can’t Imagine” Isn’t Enough — Childhood Cancer Canada’s new national platform challenges one of the most common empathetic phrases in our language. By confronting the instinct to look away, the campaign turns discomfort into the strategy itself. 

Watch & Learn

Upcoming live webinars, interviews and conversations in the SocialNext Marketing Alliance. Every Wednesday at 10 AM Mountain Time / 12 PM Eastern Time.

February 25: Your Brand Strategy Doesn’t Work Without CRM Strategy
Strong positioning means nothing if your systems cannot deliver on it. When segmentation is weak and lifecycle journeys are unclear, brand experience becomes inconsistent and growth slows. Dani, Director of Digital Brand Strategy at Agency Atlas, shares how CRM architecture turns strategy into sustained customer value and real revenue impact.

March 4: Storytelling on Social Media: How to Reach Audiences in 2026
Algorithms change. Platforms evolve. Trends disappear overnight. So what actually lasts? In this session, Communications Professional Meaghan Walsh shares how to build storytelling frameworks that cut through shifting feeds, connect with your niche, and create content people genuinely want to share.

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Two women chatting on stage at SocialEast 2025 - photo by Mat Higgins-Savidnat

Coast-to-Coast Job Opportunities

Not seeing your province or city? Follow us on LinkedIn for job openings across every province and territory in Canada every Friday.

Thanks for reading. We’ll keep bringing you the stories, ideas, and context shaping Canadian marketing.

Marketing News Canada

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