The Aftermath

Navigating the CMO’s Journey Out of the Performance Era and Into a Creative Reawakening

For years, marketing has been a battlefield of competing priorities. The emphasis on short-term performance metrics has overshadowed the importance of long-term brand building, leaving creativity sidelined and brand equity diminished. As CMOs grapple with delivering immediate results while fostering sustainable growth, a fundamental shift is taking place—a strategic call for balance.

At DeVito/Verdi, balance is more than a guiding principle; it’s a foundation for our work. It drives us to find harmony between performance marketing and brand strategy, art and science, immediate returns and lasting impact. This ethos has inspired our latest innovation: LIBRA, a first-to-market planning and optimization platform that brings creative and media strategies into perfect alignment.

The Challenge:

Finding Balance in a Fragmented Landscape

This imbalance has fractured marketing strategies:

• Performance-Driven Myopia: A focus on direct-response metrics has overshadowed creativity.
• Siloed Departments: Agencies and brands alike have developed isolated specialties, creating gaps in strategy and execution.
• Stifled Innovation: With limited resources and funding, many marketers struggle to build meaningful connections with consumers.

As Leslie O’Brien, former CMO of Target, noted:

“The best marketers understand that while short-term results are important, the long-term health of the brand is what really matters.”

Introducing LIBRA:

Balancing Creativity and Outcomes

LIBRA is DeVito/Verdi’s response to the growing need for balance in marketing. This all-in-one planning and optimization platform merges the science of regression analytics with the art of creative strategy, ensuring campaigns are both effective in the short term and enduring in their impact.

Key Features of LIBRA

1. Creative Quotient (cIQ): A proprietary metric that measures emotional resonance, storytelling effectiveness, and call-to-action strength.
2. Predictive Analytics: Advanced modeling forecasts the impact of media and creative decisions on ROAS, revenue, and traffic.
3. Integrated Planning: LIBRA unifies media and creative strategy, bridging the silos that have long divided them.
4. Holistic Dashboards: Real-time insights into brand performance, audience sentiment, and competitive benchmarking.
5. Continuous Optimization: LIBRA evolves with campaigns, offering actionable recommendations for ongoing improvement.

Client Benefits

How LIBRA Works:

A Three-Phase Approach

1. Onboarding & Data Collection:
   • Define business goals through a collaborative intake process.
   • Collect and analyze first-party and external data for scenario planning.
   • Stage the platform for testing and strategic alignment.
2. Scenario Planning & Message Testing:
   • Test creative concepts for emotional impact and brand strength.
   • Build channel-specific strategies with short- and long-term priorities.
   • Develop an outcomes framework with KPIs and forecasted results.
3. Activation & Iteration:
   • Launch campaigns with tactical media plans and optimized ad formats.
   • Track and adjust media mix to maximize ROAS and campaign outcomes.
   • Continuously refine strategies with real-time insight

The Strategic Advantage:

Balance in Action

LIBRA isn’t just a tool; it’s a philosophy. By aligning creativity and performance, it empowers brands to achieve what was once thought impossible—a marketing strategy that delivers both immediate results and long-term impact.

This alignment is exemplified in LIBRA’s Holistic Brand Performance Dashboard, which evaluates emotional resonance, brand strength, and audience sentiment. Meanwhile, the Predictive Marketing Mix Dashboard ensures budgets are optimized for maximum ROI, bridging the gap between strategy and execution.

Conclusion:

The Creative Reawakening

As CMOs move beyond the performance era, the path forward lies in balance. Great marketing isn’t about choosing between short-term results and long-term brand equity—it’s about integrating the two. LIBRA represents this strategic evolution, offering a unified approach that marries data-driven decision-making with the transformative power of creativity.

As Beth Comstock, former CMO of GE, aptly stated:

“You can’t sacrifice one for the other. It’s about finding that sweet spot where short-term wins and long-term growth coexist.”

With LIBRA, DeVito/Verdi invites marketers to embrace a new era of strategic balance—one where creativity and performance thrive together.

Are you ready to redefine your marketing strategy? Contact us to learn more about LIBRA and its Q2 2025 beta launch.