Gone are the days of simply broadcasting ads without utilizing extensive insights, advanced targeting, and ad tech to reach consumers. Every day, marketers are discovering new acronyms, data attributes, and tactics to advance their digital marketing efforts and find consumers.
However, once a consumer is face-to-face with your ad, there is no technology that can compel them to click or make a purchase: that is a job solely for creative.
According to Nielsen, strong creative is responsible for 86% of sales lift in digital ads. MAGNA media reports that creative accounts for 56% of purchase intent and 77% of brand favorability, while Google says creative is responsible for 70% of purchase intent. While the exact numbers might differ, the sentiment is the same: creative is a crucial component in advertising success. But that doesn’t mean media, data, and martech teams can fly under the radar.
It’s a mistake to think that creative success rests completely on the shoulders of the creative team. Data, process, and technology all play vital roles in shaping creative outcomes. The true creative genius occurs when all four are perfectly aligned.
Data is essential to developing a successful piece of creative content. Insights enable creative to connect with consumers and deliver personalized content at just the right time. Data can make or break a creative concept, and some of the most successful campaigns owe their impact to the strategic use of data. Kentucky Fried Chicken and Spotify are two that have mastered the blend of data and creative, earning them a spot in our hall of fame.
KFC
KFC used data and consumer research to identify their customer’s peak moment in the KFC dining experience. They discovered that their customers take their time to search out the crispiest, juiciest spot to take their precious first bite from, a discovery that was transformed into their ad campaign “First Bite”. As KFC’s marketing lead put it, “This whole campaign speaks directly to that relatable truth of how people savor our food.” By aligning their creative concept with real consumer behavior, KFC’s campaign spoke directly to a genuine and common experience among their customers. Personal connections like the one showcased in “First Bite” are not possible without the extensive data to find relatable truths and inform creative development.
Spotify
Spotify’s famous year in review campaigns are possible due to the amount of data they collect from their users. By analyzing listening trends, favorite tracks, and unique user behaviors, Spotify uncovers compelling statistics that capture each user’s music journey over the past year. Spotify then turns these insights into creative, engaging, and often humorous content. By using real user data, Spotify creates campaigns that are highly relatable and resonant. This approach consistently results in millions of social media shares and a growing subscriber base, and would not be possible without the blend of creative and data.
Incorporating creative into the process for campaign development is not just beneficial—it’s essential for a cohesive and impactful campaign. A well-defined process is the key to success, and creative is no different. Ensuring that creative has a seat at the table along the entirety of the campaign planning process has endless benefits. Creative teams gain early insight into the overarching campaign strategy and objectives, enabling them to develop messaging and visuals that are not only aligned, but enhance the campaign’s effectiveness. Vice versa, the strategy and planning teams will be able to develop tactics that work seamlessly with the campaign creative.
This symbiotic relationship leads to campaigns that are not only visually compelling but also strategically sound, driving better engagement and results. To achieve this, it’s crucial that creative is involved early and actively participates throughout the entire planning process, contributing insights and ideas that can shape and refine the overall strategy. While this might seem like a daunting task, there are a few tried and true strategies we have learned to incorporate creative into campaign processes.
- Early Involvement: Include creative team members in the initial brainstorming sessions for shared understanding of campaign goals and objectives
- Cross-Functional Teams: Form cross-functional teams that include creative, marketing, and strategy members
- Clear Communication: Establish open lines of communication between creative and other departments
- Encourage Experimentation: Allow space for experimentation and unconventional ideas
- Celebrate Successes: Recognize and celebrate the creative contributions that lead to successful outcomes to cultivate a positive environment
While seemingly opposite sides of the brain, technology and creative are intrinsically intertwined. Especially with today’s increased AI capabilities, technology is a pivotal part of creative development and execution. This synergy has provided a new path for innovation, efficiency, and personalization in marketing campaigns.
The introduction of AI has changed the way that creative and technology interact. These tools are creating new ways for marketers to develop campaign creative and target consumers, offering more opportunities to produce content and provide personalized experiences.
Netflix exemplifies the power of AI-driven personalized creativity. Leveraging AI and machine learning, Netflix customizes video thumbnails based on a user’s preferences and viewing history. For example, if a user has recently watched Uma Thurman movies, they might see a Pulp Fiction thumbnail featuring Uma Thurman, while someone who recently enjoyed Grease could see a thumbnail showcasing John Travolta. This type of AI enables Netflix to provide a more personalized and improved experience for their consumers to keep them engaged on their platform.
As technology continues to evolve, the relationship between creative and technology will only deepen. Those that embrace and blend these two dichotomies will be better equipped to push the boundaries of what is possible in brand creativity.
Data, process, and technology not only play a role in creative development- they are critical components. To truly harness the power of this intersection, seamless collaboration across all teams is vital. Media, data, and MarTech teams must integrate the creative process into their own development workflows to achieve hall-of-fame-worthy creative strategies.
Developing robust creative strategies and processes that involve data and technology requires careful planning, regular check-ins, and seamless information sharing throughout the campaign planning process. Collaboration and understanding across all teams is crucial; without it, this kind of success is unattainable.
If you’re ready to elevate your creative strategy and process by integrating these critical elements, Transparent Partners is here to help. Get in touch with us today!
