Strategy vs Impulse. Welcome to the Chessboxing of Marketing.

Chessboxing – A Sport That Shouldn't Exist

Have you heard of a sport called chessboxing? It's a strange but real combination of two worlds: a game of chess and boxing rounds. One moment, cold calculation over the chessboard; the next, a fast punch in the ring. Strategy and impulse in a single fight.

Sounds absurd? Maybe.

But it's the perfect metaphor for modern marketing.

Two Systems, One Game

Marketers today play like chess players. They set up their campaigns on multiple boards at once: television, Google, Facebook, Allegro. On each one, they try to predict moves several turns ahead, plan budgets, and analyze data. These are their classic chess games — a game of logic, planning, and a sense of control.

At the same time, consumers are playing chessboxing. One move, one punch to the face — fast, short bursts of emotion. Scroll, click, reaction to an impulse. They analyze for a moment, but then make a decision under the influence of a sudden hit: laughter, surprise, anger.

Both sides are sitting at the same board — on television, Facebook, TikTok, or Allegro. But they are playing by completely different rules. Marketers conduct their games in the logic of planning. Consumers respond with the logic of impulse.

**And the algorithms? They are not referees. They are the owners of the board.** They decide how long the strategy round lasts and when the emotional round begins. And they always set the rules so that the host — the platform owner — wins.

Strategy versus impulse. Welcome to the chessboxing of marketing.

Where Is Attention, and Where Is Budget?

Poles spend on average nearly two hours a day on social media, while younger generations spend three to four hours.

Globally, TikTok already absorbs around 35 hours per user per month, making it the platform of first choice among Gen Z. Meanwhile, people aged 65+ still live by the rhythm of the television schedule, spending over four hours a day in front of the TV.

The consumer world has split into parallel realities. Some scroll TikTok, others watch the evening news at 7:30 p.m., and still others browse Allegro, which already accounts for nearly 40% of the entire Polish e-commerce market.

**The problem is that marketers still invest the largest budgets in "planning" channels: television and Google.** From a chess player's perspective, this is rational — it's easier to calculate, plan, and compare year over year. But consumers increasingly choose impulse channels: TikTok, Instagram, Allegro Ads. That's where decisions are made.

The metaphor is therefore simple: marketers play their games in classical chess, while consumers fight in chessboxing. And both games take place on the same board.

**Reflection:** marketing has drifted apart. This is not only a matter of different places, but of different rules of the game.

Google and the End of Chess-Like SEO Logic

Just a decade ago, everything started with Google.

Today, search increasingly ends in zero-click: the user receives the answer directly on the results page and does not click further. Ahrefs research has shown that **the CTR of the first link drops by 34% when results include an AI module**. This is a blow to the entire logic of "chess-style" SEO and SEM strategy. Marketers invest months in positioning content, while the user gets a ready-made answer and never reaches the website. For the consumer, this is convenience. For the brand, it is loss of contact and data.

Trust in Google is also weakening. AI overviews can hallucinate, undermining credibility. Young users are starting to search elsewhere altogether: **40% of Gen Z prefer checking information on TikTok or Instagram rather than in a search engine**.

The picture is clear: the marketer plans traffic in Google — pawns set, strategy written out. At the same time, the consumer watches a thirty-second TikTok video and makes a decision on impulse. One move, one punch.

**Reflection:** marketers are playing their games in Google, but the audience has moved to TikTok's ring.

Different Generations, Different Disciplines

Gen Z spends over nine hours a day online, with a large portion of that time on TikTok and Instagram. For them, these platforms are not only entertainment, but also a search engine and a shop.

Boomers have remained loyal to television. Over four hours a day in front of the screen, often still following a linear schedule. Streaming is growing, but among older audiences it remains niche.

Millennials are in between. Some Netflix, some YouTube, some social media, some Google. Their media consumption is fragmented.

Marketers dream of a single board on which one game could be played for everyone. But this is an illusion. Each generation fights in a different discipline — chess, chessboxing, or something in between.

**Reflection:** marketers try to win different games with one strategy. And that is impossible.

Retail Media – Impulse Logic in Its Purest Form

Retail media is impulse logic in its purest form. On Allegro or Amazon, advertising is not a promise of purchase — it is the purchase.

In Poland, **Allegro accounts for 39% of all e-commerce**, and revenue from Allegro Ads grew by 32% in 2024. Globally, Amazon has become the third-largest advertising player after Google and Meta, and **50% of all product searches in the U.S. begin directly on the platform**.

It's like a punch to the ribs. The consumer enters Allegro, types a phrase, sees an ad, and clicks. The decision is immediate. Marketers can plan budgets months in advance, but the final outcome is decided in seconds — one move, one purchase.

**Reflection:** there is no plan here. The game is played on impulse — whoever appears in that second wins.

Two Boards at Once

What does this mean for brands? That they must learn to play on two boards at the same time. Chess and chessboxing.

**Example: TikTok Shop.** In the U.S. in 2024, the platform generated around USD 9 billion in sales, with 58% of transactions occurring directly from video. This is the fusion of entertainment and commerce, emotion and transaction.

**Example: Allegro.** The average user spends nearly two hours per month there. It is not only a place to buy, but a digital bazaar where people browse, get inspired, and click on impulse.

Strategy therefore has to take impulses into account. Chess is not enough — you also have to be able to take a punch and return it at the right moment.

**Reflection:** marketers must learn to combine chess planning with the unpredictability of chessboxing.

Trust in the Era of Virtual Influencers

In the background, there is also the issue of trust.

Only **46% of Poles trust content found online**, and among Gen Z trust drops to 38%. Globally, 77% of consumers declare greater trust in other customers' opinions and photos than in brands.

**Case: Aiva Harmony** — a virtual influencer. Although she does not physically exist, thousands of fans interact with her and treat her like a real person. This shows that trust does not stem from biological presence, but from emotional relationship.

For brands, this is a challenge. Every mistake in authenticity can be a punch that is hard to recover from. Strategy does not protect against a knockout if the consumer senses that something is fake.

**Reflection:** in the chessboxing of marketing, it is not only the move that matters, but also the emotion behind the punch.

Who Really Wins?

Marketers can play a simultaneous exhibition on many boards — TV, social, retail. They can analyze CTR, ROAS, and CPA. They can feel that they are in control of the game.

But consumers play chessboxing — fast rounds of logic and emotion. And it is these rounds that decide the outcome.

Algorithms are not referees. They are the owners of the board. They set the ring so that the host always wins.

**Reflection:** this is not a question of who wins — the marketer or the consumer. In chessboxing, the platform always wins.

Conclusions

Marketers play their games like in classical chess. Consumers respond in the rhythm of chessboxing — one move, one punch, fast emotions. Both games take place on the same board, but according to different rules.

And here the question arises: will brands learn to play both logics at the same time? Strategy and impulse, planning and emotion. Because this is not a choice — chess or chessboxing. It is a necessity to reconcile both, so that the match does not end in an empty arena.

Perhaps the answer is not to abandon other people's boards — TikTok, Allegro, or Google — but to learn how to play on them, while at the same time strengthening your own. Because in the chessboxing of marketing, the winner is not the one who chooses one game. **The winner is the one who can combine cold strategy with the impulse of the moment.**

Are brands ready for that?