Having spent over a decade steering digital and ATL marketing and communication strategies in the highly competitive telecom sector in Switzerland, I've witnessed firsthand how this short-sighted focus on immediate returns often steers companies off course, eroding brand equity and long-term profitability in the process. Fortunately, the industry is finally waking up. Over the past year, driven mainly by a highly influential study by Les Binet & Field ("The Long and the Short of It."), there's been a noticeable shift towards a rebalancing of the scales, with marketeers increasingly rediscovering the value of brand-building - an area I have worked in extensively in my career and that I've always advocated for (supported strongly by empirical insights, such as this study).
Les Binet and Peter Field's landmark study reaffirms what seasoned marketeers have long known intuitively: sustainable business growth demands a careful blend of short-term activation and long-term brand building. Topics such as "Mental Availability" and its part in the decision making process to buy suddenly resurface as crucial elements in the how we evaluate our campaigns and communication. The findings in the study challenge the telecom industry's entrenched belief that aggressive promotions and direct response tactics are sufficient to ensure continuous growth. In reality, these practices often drive price sensitivity, commoditize offerings, and diminish profitability for all businesses involved.
My professional experience has also shown that the findings from Les Binet & Field are very well reflected in reality. In the telecom sector, where differentiation through emotional connections and brand preference is crucial in order to win customers and keep them for the long-term, an unbalanced focus on sales activation and CPO reliance merely leads to an erosion of value in the market. The exact numbers might differ from sector to sector and business to business, but investing in brand building and making sure the brand is looked upon favorably and that it is mentally available at the time of purchase absolutely pays dividends. Don't believe me? Then have a look at what I was able to achieve in 2024 with a brand new product launch for the U30 target audience. I created a 360 communications strategy that is rooted in sound target audience and media usage analysis, balanced the media spend in favor of brand building (60%) and phased these budgets and splits over an entire year (long-term) in order to reflect the nature of the product (new). The results are astonishing: 6 pp. increase reached in TOM Awareness, 7 pp. increase in Brand Consideration & Brand Preference, 29% increase in Sales within the age group..
Another critical insight the study highlights, is that creativity and emotional resonance amplify long-term impact (also here, several examples of this in reality can be found in the "my projects* section of this website). In telecom marketing - where price wars are fierce and product differentiation is minimal - emotional campaigns that foster brand salience and top-of-mind awareness not only sustain market share but grow it. Yet, the industry's obsession with immediate CPO optimization metrics frequently blinds marketeers to these broader, more profitable impacts.
As marketing leaders, it's essential to recalibrate our metrics, budgets, and strategic mindset. We must balance immediate sales activations with deliberate, emotionally engaging brand-building campaigns. If your strategy continues to revolve solely around short-term KPIs, it’s time to rethink your approach - before your brand’s long-term health suffers irreparable damage.
Have you experienced similar insights or struggles? I'd love to hear your perspective.
