Justifying creativity is key in 2021

Proving the impact of creativity is now a key priority for both clients and agencies, according to new research from LIONS.

This finding comes from responses by 1,500 brand and agency professionals to a survey by LIONS, the results of which were first shared at March’s Lions Live event.

Why it matters

Despite best practice indicating that brand building is essential to get ahead in recovery, an ability to justify investment before the fact remains elusive for many marketers. This  points to an important area for upskilling.

Details

• Showing the impact of long-term creative work was extremely or very challenging, say 61% of brand leaders. A slightly higher proportion (64%) of agency leaders say the same.
• Twenty-eight percent of brand leaders say there’s greater focus on proving the effectiveness of their creativity.
• “Our business has been negatively affected by the pandemic, so we are cutting the budgets to help the P&L”, says one marketer. “Media, brand activation and long-term equity driving initiatives are often the first to be sacrificed.”
• “Short-termism and the consequential questioning about the inherent value of investing in brand and creativity vs tactical price or offer advertising is a major challenge,” a network chief strategy officer reports.
• At the same time, the lockdown-induced need to buy online brought media and retail closer together than ever.
• Sixty percent of brands listed e-commerce as a top priority for the coming year, and 45% said social commerce was one of top three areas for experimentation.