The Value of Strategic Campaigns

CMOs have been fighting for decades to get marketing recognized as an investment, not a cost center. And stories like the one Jeremy Bullmore shared below may be the best proof we have that we’re right. “Many years ago, the late Len Heath, then in his mid-forties, sold his interest in an advertising agency and took me out to lunch. Afterwards, he offered to drive me back to my office. I protested (it was only a 10-minute walk) but Len insisted. And when we got to his car, I understood why. It was a shining, stunning, elegant, arrogant, latest-model Aston Martin. ‘You may be interested to know why I bought this car,’ said Len. ‘I bought it because I saw an ad for it. But that’s not the interesting bit,’ said Len. ‘What’s interesting is that I saw that advertisement when I was 14.’” Thirty. Years. Earlier. Bullmore never tracked down that ad. But he didn’t need to. Because even without seeing it, we can imagine exactly what it was, and maybe more importantly, what it wasn’t. It wasn’t a price promotion. It wasn’t a limited-time offer. It wasn’t shouting “SALE ENDS SUNDAY!” Whatever it was, it built desire. The kind that lasts decades. That’s the difference between marketing as a cost and marketing as an investment. Tactical campaigns deliver results, then disappear. Sometimes, they even devalue your brand. But strategic brand building compounds. It protects you from competitors. It preserves desirability. It allows you to command a premium. And yes, sometimes it delivers returns 30 years later. Of course, the pressure for short-term results is real. (Quarterly earnings matter, I know!). But the truth is, you don’t have to choose between short-term sales and long-term brand value. Every campaign, every ad, email, social post or billboard, should do both, or at least contribute to both. It should drive immediate action AND add to your brand equity. David Ogilvy said it 60 years ago: “Every advertisement should be thought of as a contribution to the complex symbol which is the brand image.” Every. Single. One. Every other department budgets religiously for capital expenditure to protect tangible assets like machinery or buildings. For marketing, our most valuable asset is intangible: our brand. And that intangible asset deserves the same disciplined investment. The wild part? It doesn’t cost more to build brand value than to just push a product. It just takes consistency, conviction and a little artistry. 🎨 So next time someone questions your brand budget, tell them the Aston Martin story. And remind them: every dollar spent building your brand isn’t disappearing into thin air. It’s capital. And it’s compounding. 😎

Last click measures are 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗱𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁. A large majority of brands know that last click (and/or MTA) measurement is wrong, but a majority continue to use it as the primary measure of marketing performance. There are typically two main reason why: • 𝗟𝗲𝗴𝗮𝗰𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗱𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀 - This is a big challenge and tough to change quickly. I have shared a few methods we use to help with this which is linked in comments. • 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗸 𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗶𝘀 "𝗱𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁" - Many brands assume that while the data is wrong, it is correct enough to optimise towards success. This is unfortunately not true, many of the strongest performance last click channels show the weakest incremental value. And vice versa. On the chart below we map campaign types on Last Click ROAS index (100 = best performing on last click ROAS) and MMM ROAS Index (100 = best performing on MMM ROAS). The first thing you should notice, is that the correlation is weak.  Virtually non existent. But there are some clusters of campaign types: 1. 𝗟𝗼𝘄 𝗜𝗻𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗭𝗼𝗻𝗲 - Campaigns which look brilliant on last click ROAS but show poor incrementality. These look great on a marketing report, but drive little real value. 2. 𝗚𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝗹𝗹 𝗠𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗭𝗼𝗻𝗲 - These look good on Last Click ROAS and look good on MMM ROAS, campaigns which drive clear measurable performance and with strong incrementality. 3. 𝗗𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝘇𝗼𝗻𝗲 - These are bad on Last Click ROAS and bad on MMM ROAS. These campaigns just don't work, not every test succeeds. 4. 𝗡𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝗟𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗖𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗸 𝗭𝗼𝗻𝗲 - These look terrible on Last Click ROAS, but actually drive strong modelled incremental performance. These campaigns drive really valuable indirect impact, but the last click measurement can't see their value. Normally on a quadrant chart, the bottom left is the troublesome corner. But here the real issues are in top left and bottom right. Campaigns in bottom left get turned off or changed, because they don't work on any measure. It is a failed test, we learn and move on. Campaigns in the top right get continued investment, and will continue to drive business value. The trouble lives in the top left and the bottom right.  Campaigns in top left get increased investment because the spreadsheet looks good, while they deliver little value. Campaigns in bottom right get turned off, then everyone wonders why overall performance got worse. While everyone's focus is on moving up on the chart, the 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗳𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗽 𝗹𝗲𝗳𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗼𝗺 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁. It will make your marketing reporting spreadsheet look worse, but make business performance better.

The Truth about Marketing Success: Why Strategy beats Shiny Objects every time? Here's a reality check for marketers: No amount of glitter can outshine a well-laid plan. The allure of the latest trends, tools, and tactics is real. AI, viral campaigns, gamification, influencer marketing, there's always something new promising to "revolutionize" your results. And many brands fall into the trap of chasing these shiny objects. But here's the truth: Success isn't built on fads. It's built on fundamentals. Take any successful marketing campaign. What do they all have in common? A rock-solid strategy. ➡️The audience is crystal clear. ➡️The messaging speaks directly to their desires, fears, and needs. ➡️The channels are chosen with precision, not because they’re trendy, but because that’s where the audience actually is. The magic lies in connecting the dots: understanding your customer deeply, crafting a value proposition that resonates, and executing with consistency. Shiny objects may amplify results, but without a strong foundation, they’re just noise. Would Nike be Nike if they only chased trends? No. They stuck to their ethos—empowering athletes & anyone who thinks like an athlete—and built campaigns that told stories, created emotional connections, and added value. So, before you invest in the next big thing, ask yourself: Does this align with my strategy? Will it genuinely serve my audience? Or is it just a distraction? Marketing is a long game. Trends will come and go. Strategies that put your audience at the center? They last. What’s been your experience? Have you ever been tempted by a shiny object, only to realize strategy was the missing piece? #marketing #businessgrowth #marketers

If it hasn't been said before, then it needs to be said: Bring in communications professionals during the campaign/project design phase, not just when you realize that specific deliverables need to be fulfilled. Shocking as this may be to hear, communications experts do far more than merely writing press releases, monitoring media coverage and pushing out social media posts. We help lay foundations, set the stage and shape the narrative from the outset. We help in ensuring that the project’s goals, outcomes, and messages are clear and aligned with the target audience, and have the intended impact – and are actually achievable. Not a wise play to relegate the immense value that a sound communications strategy can bring to an afterthought. Substantive impact is lost when rushed deliverables become the sole driver, and can even lead to major missteps along the way.

I once sat before an interview panel made up of many professionals except Communications yet they were recruiting a Communications Specialist. Considering how diverse Communications is as a field, I found it to be very strange. As the interview progressed, they asked me how I would run a campaign. I explained the process. They asked again, “But how would you do it?” I went deeper. They asked again. That was the moment I realized we were not speaking the same professional language. Communication does not operate in a vacuum. It is not an isolated activity that exists outside institutional strategy. It is an enabling function. It translates organisational mandate into meaning. It supports programme objectives. It protects reputation. It strengthens stakeholder trust. It does not manufacture purpose; it amplifies it. When someone says, “Run a campaign,” my first response is not tactics. It is diagnosis. What kind of campaign? An awareness campaign? An advocacy campaign? A behaviour change intervention? A reputation management exercise? Why a campaign? What institutional objective does it serve? Which stakeholder segment are we prioritising? What problem are we solving? What behaviour are we seeking to influence? What perception are we trying to shift? Only after that do we talk about channels, messaging frameworks, media mix, budget allocation, KPIs, baseline data and evaluation methodology. Measurement also depends on intent. Awareness is measured differently from behavioural change. Advocacy is assessed differently from brand visibility. Impressions are not the same as impact. Activity is not the same as outcome. Communication strategy must align with organisational strategy. It may have its own tactical roadmap, but it derives legitimacy from institutional goals. As the saying goes, “If you do not know where you are going, any road will take you there.” If you are hiring a communications professional, include communication expertise in the room to ensure strategic clarity. Campaigns are not events. They are structured interventions designed to move something measurable. Before running one, first agree on why.

Here's secret few marketers know: The real opportunity isn't black Friday It's Q5: Dec 1 to Jan 1 Few brands pay attention. Fewer know how to use it. That’s where you win. Here’s the insider play: → The quiet window After the BFCM blitz, many advertisers pull back, so CPC dips But people are still researching and planning. That's the best time for you to “buy the dip”. Invest when ad costs are more favorable, and competition is less. → B2B isn’t fully offline Your audience is in the office, but not slammed. They’re receptive to ideas and learning. That's the best time to stay on top of mind for Q1. Don’t push demos. Build relationships, credibility, and relevance. → Shift the goal Q5 isn’t about conversion. It’s about engagement, list-building, and mindshare. Invest time and budget in campaigns that plant seeds for Q1, not just flash sales. ↪ How to win in Q5 - Keep campaigns alive after Cyber Monday: Move from “deal frenzy” to “last-minute gifting” or “still time to shop.” - Retarget wisely: Use post-BFCM campaigns to capture warm traffic. People who visited but didn’t convert? Retarget them with seasonal messaging. - Brand-first campaigns: Focus on awareness, education, and value-driven content. Discounts are optional. - Plan for post-Christmas dip (Dec 26 → Jan 1): People aare reflective and planning for the New Year. Your messaging should meet them there. - Use smart budget pacing: Don’t burn everything on BFCM. Save some for quieter weeks to dominate attention when others sleep. Brands who treat peak season as a cycle, not a one-off event, capture more value. If you ignore Q5, you’re leaving low-hanging fruit on the table while others burn their budget in the peak chaos. This December window isn’t a lull. It’s a strategic gap and your moment to do deep brand work, and audience build. Leverage it, and you’ll start Q1 ahead of competitors who were too busy chasing the Black Friday chaos.

Here’s the honest truth: You can be great at your job and still not be seen as a strategic communicator. It’s not about how many town halls you organize. It’s not how beautifully your intranet stories are written. And it’s not the number of campaigns you’ve launched or emails you’ve sent. The difference between tactical and strategic communication comes down to one question: Is your work directly aligned with business goals? Too often, communicators get stuck in execution mode: busy supporting every team’s announcements, launching new channels, and “getting the word out.” That’s important work. But it’s not strategic unless it connects back to what your company is trying to achieve at the highest level. Let me give you a clear example. Tactical Communicator Let’s say the company wants to increase customer retention. The tactical communicator thinks, “We should launch a new internal newsletter focused on customer success stories.” Even if it's well-written, beautifully designed, and goes out on time, there's a problem: It's an assumed solution, not a business-aligned one. There are no metrics that show increase retention. Strategic Communicator The strategic communicator starts with the business goal. If retention is the goal, they ask, "What are the biggest drivers of customer churn? What do employees need to do differently to reduce churn? How are frontline teams being supported to improve service in order to reduce churn?" Then they work with business partners and data teams to identify gaps, co-create messaging that supports behavioral change, and embed communication into operations such as onboarding, frontline manager huddles, or incentives. They don’t just tell a good story. They move the needle. This is where the leap from tactical to strategic happens. The deliverable isn’t the point. The impact is. If you’re a communicator looking to earn a seat at the table, stop thinking of your job as “translating” strategy and start thinking of yourself as a co-creator of it. The real value of communications isn’t in making people aware. Instead, it’s in helping the business perform.

Spending $5M on clicks that lead to low conversion rates and a long payback period is not sustainable. Last week I audited $5M in paid search spend for a client. On the surface, things looked solid: 350K clicks, steady traffic, and positive feedback from the C-suite. But when I took a deeper dive, the reality was a bit diff. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟭: 𝗙𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘀, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰 High traffic numbers can be misleading. It’s critical to evaluate how that traffic translates into actual business results. Discovery: Despite the $5M spend, we only drove 800 platform conversions, resulting in $3.5M in pipeline and $1.2M in closed-won ARR. → $6.25K per MQL → $15K per qualified opportunity → $50K cost to acquire a single customer, with a 36-month CAC payback period. This wasn’t hitting their growth targets. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟮: 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗯𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗲𝘁 Over $200K was spent without driving a single conversion, revealing inefficiencies that needed immediate attention. Discovery: 50% of the search budget ($2.5M) was allocated to non-branded campaigns, but these only accounted for 25% of total opportunities, with a cost-per-opportunity nearing $40K. → Non-brand CAC: $120K → Brand CAC: $35K Non-branded campaigns were clearly underperforming, costing far more to bring in leads. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟯: 𝗔𝗱𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗯𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀 To resolve this, I recommended reallocating spend and resetting the bid strategy to focus on high-intent keywords. Discovery: A one-size-fits-all budget approach hides inefficiencies. We needed to direct more spend toward keywords and campaigns that consistently generated qualified leads. → Pause keywords that haven’t generated high-intent conversions in the past 90 days. → Optimize the bid strategy for high-intent conversions instead of TOFU metrics. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟰: 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝗺𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 The search ads were largely attracting low-intent prospects due to education-based keywords. It’s important to shift messaging to target higher-value audiences. Discovery: “What is” and “how to” queries attract traffic, but they often don’t convert into paying customers. → Focus on intent-driven queries that are aligned with decision-making stages in the buyer’s journey. 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗽 𝟱: 𝗦𝗲𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀 Whenever you make major adjustments to budget allocation and bidding strategies, there’s a stabilization period before performance can be accurately assessed. → Allow a few weeks for algorithms and bid strategies to stabilize before reevaluating results. TL;DR Budget cuts shouldn’t be reactive—they should be strategic.

Marketing metrics are like icebergs:  Most clients only see what's above water. Most businesses stop at surface analytics. But real campaign success hides in plain sight. Here's what 20 years of marketing taught me about saving good campaigns (that don’t require anyone to ‘honk if you see this’) 1. The Measurement Myth ↳ Data shows behaviour, not belief ↳ Analytics track actions, not loyalty ↳ Numbers tell what, not why 2. The Hidden ROI ↳ Brand trust doesn't show in dashboards ↳ Word-of-mouth skips tracking pixels ↳ Reputation compounds invisibly 3. The Long-Term Leverage ↳ Customer loyalty takes years to build ↳ Relationship equity grows silently ↳ Trust generates future revenue 4. The Experience Effect ↳ Memorable moments don't fit spreadsheets ↳ Emotional connections escape metrics ↳ Impact outlasts measurement 5. The Brand Building Truth ↳ Short-term metrics kill long-term value ↳ Quick wins often cost brand equity ↳ Performance marketing isn't brand marketing 6. The Attribution Problem ↳ Last click lies about value ↳ Customer journeys cross channels ↳ Real influence defies tracking 7. The Success Signals ↳ Watch sentiment, not just sales ↳ Monitor mentions, not just metrics ↳ Track trends, not just transactions Hard truth? Killing campaigns too early is expensive. Not understanding true impact costs more. Smart marketers know: - When a campaign needs time - When metrics lie - How to prove hidden value Before you kill your next campaign, Make sure you're measuring what matters. Anyone else being asked to measure the wrong thing? 👇 ♻️ Share with your marketing network  🔔 Follow Dawn Farrow for no-fluff marketing advice

Viral campaigns are tempting. But are they building your brand or just your views? “We want to go viral.” That was the brief from a client a few months ago. It’s a request we hear often and we get it. In an attention economy, viral feels like victory. But we asked a simple question: Why? What unfolded was a deeper strategy conversation.  About the brand’s core identity. Who are you trying to reach?  What do you want to be known for?  What’s the story you want people to carry with them after the views fade? Yes, we built a campaign that did take off.  It made waves on social, sparked real-time conversations, and gave the brand a buzz it hadn’t seen in years. But it worked because it was rooted in clarity and consistency not just virality.  It aligned with the brand’s long game. It didn’t just attract attention, it earned trust. Because here’s the truth we’ve seen time and again: Viral campaigns can get you seen. But brand value? That’s what gets you chosen. It’s tempting to chase the spike. The headlines. The dopamine hit. But the brands that win over time are the ones that play for resonance, not just reach. So before you go viral, ask yourself: Is this just noise or part of a longer narrative? Will people remember your message, or just that you made them laugh once? Viral is a moment. Brand value is momentum. Both have their place. But only one compounds.