Advertising us Showmanship: Rediscovering the Power of Entertaining Ads

By Diego Usai – Marketing Analytics

Somewhere along the way, marketing started measuring the wrong thing.

We became obsessed with what gets clicked today, instead of what gets remembered tomorrow.

Orlando Wood describes two creative instincts in advertising: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘄𝗺𝗮𝗻 and 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗻. One draws attention through storytelling, humor, music, or emotion. The other leans on urgency, claims, and direct offers.

Both have their place but in most reporting frameworks I review, it’s the salesman that gets all the credit.

That’s partly a measurement issue. 𝗔𝘁𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹𝘀, 𝗥𝗢𝗔𝗦 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴, and 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘁-𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘇𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁𝘀 are all better suited to direct response. It’s easier to tie revenue to a strong call to action than to a great line or a moving film.

But rather than the method, the real problem lies in what we ask it to prove.

𝗕𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱-𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗽𝗲𝗿. It primes memory structures, builds trust and familiarity, shifts price sensitivity and drives share of choice before the customer even enters the funnel.

If we only measure the clicks, we miss the compound effect of brand.

This is where 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗶𝘅 𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 can help rebalance the conversation.

𝗔 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹-𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗠𝗠𝗠, 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮 𝗿𝗼𝗯𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗲𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗲𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗲 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴-𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗺 𝗱𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀 such as brand perception, product proposition, customer experience and historic advertising.

So when clients ask, “Did the ad work?”, I’ll ask a qualifying question “𝗪𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝗱 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁?“

The bit that drove the immediate click or the idea that made the ad relatable in the first place?

The Showman doesn’t just entertain, 𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲.

If we want marketing to drive growth beyond the quarter, our measurement needs to recognise that.