Data insights + creativity = Powerful, Effective Results

Pal Kondel examines why data has such a powerful effect on campaign effectiveness by delivering actionable insights that in turn drive messaging that resonates.

The best advertising creative has always been borne out of consumer truths. Look at the eponymous Marmite campaign created by DDB London in the late 1990s. It's a great example of a message that was developed out of a key insight derived from extensive research data: people either love it or hate it and (this is the key insight) you're never going to persuade the latter group to change their minds. The wonderfully imaginative creative team, backed by a very brave client, leveraged this insight and developed an idea that not only resonated, it transformed the brand image of a product that was - until that moment - on a downward spiral. Sales soured. And - twenty years on - they continue to. The campaign's "Love it or Hate it" message entered public consciousness and is even a cultural phenomenon. We say "it's very marmite" to describe binary choices or preferences.

And what's it all down to? I'm going to stick my neck out here and say: data. Yes, it's an old campaign, but the message is bang up to date. When data insights inform creativity, the result is powerful. Why? Because the resulting messaging resonates with your target audience.

Extracting the right insights

This all sounds totally reasonable and logical. But the fact is that many brands are simply unable to leverage data like this. Why? It's because they face very real challenges, most of which boil down to knowing:

We see this all the time at Netcentric. Clients come to us and say, "We've got so much data, but we can't see patterns", or "We produce reports, but no one knows what they're telling us". Fortunately for them, our analytics experts - once they are familiar with a brand's business objectives - are able to address these overarching problems and establish robust data strategies which allow our clients to gather insights from data, which then becomes an engine driving their business forward.

It's especially relevant right now. We're all living through a period of almost unprecedented change, a technical revolution that has already altered the way we live, work and relate to each other – and which is still unfolding. Digital transformation is unlike anything humankind has experienced before. It’s different from previous revolutions because it’s developing at an exponential, rather than linear speed.

Measuring change

But throughout all of this change - chaos almost - one thing does remain constant. And that's our ability to measure and derive insight. Data insights we gather from people who interact with us - regardless of what stage they're at in their customer journey - helps us to build a picture of who they are and - crucially - what motivates them.

If it's set up correctly, we can also keep a close eye on how this motivation shifts over time in reaction to the societal, technical, economic or political changes happening all around us. So, going back to the Marmite example I started with, the data insight and resulting creative helped a struggling brand to find relevance in a fast-changing world to re-find itself and set itself up for the future.

Is this a message that resonates with you?

Will you be at the Adobe Summit in London? Book your slot to continue the discussion with me, or one of Netcentric's other Thought Leaders.