Prophet’s creative work is grounded in the belief that uncommon growth demands uncommon creativity.
Our team has grown—bigger than ever across our four global studios—to reflect the new challenges brands face, bringing in new talent and expanding our capabilities to meet a broader range of client needs.
From AI-driven identity systems to immersive campaigns and experiences, we aim to inspire and transform. Every project begins with brand strategy and purpose, helping us tell authentic stories that go beyond what a brand sells to show who they are. As demand grows for creative that bridges strategy and execution, we deliver bold, results-driven work that builds equity, drives growth and elevates brands and businesses in a fast-moving world.
Work Featured in Prophet’s Design Reel
00:13 JetBlue: Redefining Airline Expectations
JetBlue has always done things differently—its brand needed to reflect that. Prophet helped evolve JetBlue’s identity to challenge how airlines are “supposed” to act, look and speak. The result? A bold, unmistakable brand that defies convention and elevates the customer experience.
00:21 UBS: Energizing 60,000+ Employees Through Brand
After UBS acquired Credit Suisse in 2023, we helped management reaffirm UBS’s status as a foremost global financial institution. We created the central idea of “Craft,” and executed it through a new brand expression, customer experience initiatives and a global creative campaign.
00:31 Abu Dhabi: A Destination Brand That Moves at Your Pace
To position Abu Dhabi as a world-class cultural and leisure destination, Prophet developed a new brand and campaign: “Experience Abu Dhabi. Find Your Pace.” With a bespoke logotype, dynamic visuals and a human-centric image library, the brand invites the world to explore the emirate’s rich offerings.
00:44 AEG: Challenging the Expected in Home Appliances
To help AEG stand out in a functional category, Prophet refreshed the brand with a bold new strategy: “Challenge the Expected.” We expanded its iconic red palette, introduced expressive characters and launched a 360° brand experience at IFA 2024.
1:13 Invesco: Editorial Thinking for a Client-Centric Brand
Prophet helped Invesco evolve its brand with an editorial mindset by introducing expressive typography, CGI-enhanced visuals and a distinctive tone of voice: “The Intelligent Conversationalist.” A global employee campaign and new EVP brought the transformation to life.
1:18 MB Bank: A Bold Identity for a Digital-First Future
To mark its 25th anniversary and transformation into a digital-first bank, MB partnered with Prophet to launch a new brand: “Intelligent Banking. Enriching Your Future.” The refreshed identity fueled growth, earned industry accolades and attracted over 8 million new customers.
Is Your Company Undervalued? It’s Time to Rethink Your Story of Value
As global markets stabilize, a new challenge emerges for resilient companies: the strategic opportunity hidden in widespread undervaluation.
In today’s world of relentless volatility, geopolitical tension and economic uncertainty, many companies have spent the last few years focused on survival—restructuring operations, building resilience and navigating crisis after crisis. But now, a new challenge is emerging: undervaluation.
Across global markets, undervaluation is a striking trend. In the U.S., small-value stocks are trading nearly 25% below their fair value, signalling untapped potential. In Europe, countries like the Netherlands and Denmark show discounts of 10–14%, while even large-cap firms in Germany, France and the UK remain undervalued—particularly in sectors like industrial tech, digital trust, and cybersecurity. Meanwhile, in Asia, many companies—especially in technology, logistics, and industrials—are trading at 40–50% below estimated fair value, despite strong fundamentals and growth prospects.
Why? Because the market doesn’t always see what you see. And that’s not just a financial issue—it’s a strategic one.
Three Gaps That are Holding you Back
At the heart of this undervaluation lie three critical gaps:
The Valuation Gap
Short-term decisions, reactive strategies, or misunderstood pivots can obscure long-term potential. When the market doesn’t grasp your trajectory, your valuation suffers.
The Differentiation Gap
Your value proposition may no longer be clear or compelling. Assets are in place, but the dots aren’t connected. Your competitive edge isn’t obvious—internally or externally.
The Narrative Gap
Somewhere along the way, the story of what makes your company exciting, unique, and future-ready has faded. Teams lose clarity. Investors lose confidence. Momentum stalls.
If any of this sounds familiar, it’s time to take a step back—not to rebrand, but to rethink your Story of Value.
What is a Story of Value?
This isn’t about marketing claims or slick campaigns. A Story of Value is a strategic narrative that articulates the true, enduring value your company creates—today and tomorrow. It’s a unifying force that aligns leadership, energizes teams and restores market confidence.
A well-crafted Story of Value:
Clarifies what your company is capable of
Defines where you can play and how you can win
Inspires belief across stakeholders—from boardrooms to frontlines
Becomes a catalyst for growth, innovation and cultural transformation
Why it Matters Now
Without a sharp, distinctive, and inspiring Story of Value, growth becomes harder. Teams hesitate. Investors question. Opportunities slip away.
But with it? You unlock a new wave of momentum. You simplify complexity into a compelling, credible, and actionable narrative. You speak a common language that wins in the market.
What you Gain
Rewriting your Story of Value often leads to:
New growth opportunities you haven’t seen before
Cultural shifts that align with your future ambitions
Brand strategy alignment that supports your next chapter
How it Works
The process is both rigorous and inspiring. It includes:
Asset Inventory: A deep dive into your tangible and intangible assets—client-facing capabilities, operational strengths, cultural mindsets and more.
Strategic & Messaging Frameworks: A structured methodology to crystallize your Story of Value, grounded in data, co-created with stakeholders, and validated through market testing.
Depending on your organization’s size and complexity, this journey takes four–12 weeks. We combine classical analysis, stakeholder interviews, co-creation workshops, and proprietary AI tools to ensure a 360° view—inside-out and outside-in.
The Outcome
You walk away with more than a story or strategic framework. Working with us will provide you with:
Let’s rethink your Story of Value and reignite your path to growth. When your Story of Value is told right, it doesn’t just describe your business—it defines your future.
Because clarity inspires confidence, and confidence fuels growth.
How Shiseido Drives Uncommon Growth by Breaking Boundaries Through Customer-Centric Innovations
Uncommon Growth Leaders is an article series featuring bold leaders driving faster, smarter, more sustainable, more human and more actionable growth—what we call uncommon growth.
Carol Zhou is the Senior Vice President of Shiseido Group’s China Business Innovation & Investment and the GM of Ziyue Fund, Shiseido’s beauty-focused investment fund. She unlocks growth drivers across the globe by leading incubation efforts of internal new ventures, while identifying and investing in external emerging startups.
In our discussion, Ms. Zhou shared her in-depth perspective on the evolving consumer landscape and Shiseido’s global strategy for innovation and growth. Through continuous innovations rooted in relentless customer-centricity, including ventures into ingestible beauty and medical beauty categories, Shiseido focuses on creating compelling value propositions to continuously win consumer trust, and drive high-quality, sustainable growth.
How is Shiseido driving growth within your organization?
Carol Zhou: As an industry leader and the ‘Asian Skincare Expert,’ Shiseido is committed not only to shaping the future of beauty but also to deeply understanding and anticipating consumer needs—transforming insights into strategic brand excellence and sustainable growth drivers.
Growth is a long-term process, and the key lies in building an enduring brand through vision and consistency. Beyond packaging or storytelling, it’s about stewarding our core values at every touchpoint. Our goal extends beyond reaching a wider audience; we strive to cultivate meaningful consumer connections that inspire loyalty and mutual value creation.
Shiseido has been increasingly investing in the ingestible beauty (inner beauty) and medical beauty categories. In pursuing high-quality growth, what motivated the decision to redefine the traditional boundaries of the beauty industry?
CZ: From my earliest days at Shiseido, our global CEO recognized China as both our most strategic future market and the ultimate proving ground for global innovation. This innovation extends far beyond product development—it’s about defining ecosystems, reimagining business models, creating unique consumer value and establishing enduring brand equity.
Our approach to innovation outlines two essential principles. First, comes our commitment to anticipating future trends and staying acutely attuned to market evolutions. Equally important is our dedication to protecting the brand’s core value, ensuring every innovation strengthens rather than compromises Shiseido’s long-term values and heritage.
The ingestible beauty category (beauty-from-within) came naturally to us. It represents the perfect synergy between Japan’s centuries-old philosophy of holistic beauty and China’s tradition of wellness harmony.
Shiseido launched its tech-driven ingestible beauty brand INRYU in 2021.
Medical beauty, in comparison, was a more challenging venture. Initially, there were internal concerns: Is this too radical? But after observing global beauty trends and consumer habits, we recognized that medical beauty is becoming an essential component of people’s daily skincare regimens, potentially displacing traditional premium skincare. As an industry leader, Shiseido must embrace change rather than cling to convention. So, we’re cautiously yet decisively exploring how to empower the medical beauty sector—seizing new opportunities while preserving Shiseido’s core DNA: “people-first” innovations blending “art & science.”
Shiseido introduced its first medical beauty brand RQ PYOLOGY in China.
Empowering the medical beauty industry is now a key pillar of Shiseido’s global strategy. We’re leveraging China—the world’s most dynamic and competitive market—as fertile ground for innovation, then scaling successful practices globally.
With shifting consumer habits, what challenges do you face in brand marketing?
CZ: We don’t react passively. Instead, we proactively build systematic consumer insights and development capabilities, laying the foundation for sustainable, long-term growth.
With unprecedented information transparency, consumers’ decision-making processes have radically evolved. They no longer passively accept brand narratives—instead they proactively investigate and demand substance. For example, proof points such as ingredients, clinical data and scientific validation are scrutinized, revealing a new generation of discerning consumers. Thanks to platforms like TikTok (Douyin) and RedNote, consumers are often better informed about industry trends than marketers. This shift is rewriting the rules of brand marketing.
In the past, branding was a “one-way broadcast.” Corporations had control over channels with carefully crafted brand stories. Today, the narrative belongs to consumers—they share, educate and influence. Brands must evolve into enablers. This shift in power dynamics presents new challenges. With people’s attention spans shorter than ever, the pressure is on; brands must deliver value, instantly.
But the real test isn’t to grab attention—any brand can do that with flashy campaigns. The true measure of success is converting buzz into lasting brand equity: loyalty, advocacy and repeat purchases. Shiseido focuses not just on communicating our core values, but on fostering continuous dialogue with consumers, reinforcing trust through delivering product quality and customer experiences.
Shiseido launched “ULTIMUNE FOUNTAIN,” a sustainable refill service for the iconic Ultimune Power Infusing Concentrate, promoting sustainability while boosting loyalty.
Amid market uncertainties, how does Shiseido reconcile bold innovation with risk mitigation when entering new sectors and ecosystem partnerships?
CZ: We take a test-and-learn approach—validating concepts through controlled pilots before scaling, ensuring systems and strategies mature in lockstep. At our core, we prioritize high-quality growth, rejecting short-term tactics like price wars or short-term traffic grabs and instead delivering authentic value that earns long-term loyalty.
For instance, in medical beauty, we noticed gaps in the consumer journey—the experience from pre-treatment to post-care isn’t seamless. So, we’re exploring how Shiseido can enhance this holistic experience by integrating into the customer journey beyond providing specialized products. By partnering with clinics, we hope to help elevate their services and experiences, therefore increasing retention and customer lifetime value.
Agility is also critical amid the fast-changing landscape. Internally, we strive to streamline cross-functional collaboration and accelerate decision-making. Externally, we cultivate strategic partnerships that complement our capabilities across the customer journey, allowing us to rapidly innovate in high-potential areas while maintaining our commitment to excellence.
Finally, what metrics do you prioritize when measuring marketing success?
CZ: When assessing brand performance, I prioritize customer retention—particularly the repurchase rate—as one of the most critical metrics. More importantly, beyond broad brand awareness (which often correlates with marketing spend), I place greater emphasis on meaningful brand recognition among precisely defined consumer segments.
This requires a sophisticated approach across different stages of the marketing funnel. At the upper funnel level, we focus not just on impression volume, but on expanding reach through precision targeting. We develop specific consumer personas based on our brand strategy, extending beyond basic demographics to incorporate lifestyle patterns and purchase drivers. For instance, ingestible beauty consumers may be primarily motivated by wellness consciousness or fitness routines.
At the lower funnel, our emphasis shifts from short-term conversion (which can be artificially inflated through promotions) to driving repeat purchases and long-term value.
Carol Zhou SVP, China Business Innovations & Investments; GM of Inner Beauty & Wellness Division Shiseido
As the SVP of Shiseido Group’s China Business Innovation & Investment, Ms. Carol Zhou helps unlock the next growth drivers for the Group across the globe by leading incubation efforts of internal new ventures, while identifying and investing in external emerging startups.
Ms. Zhou successfully led the launch of Shiseido’s first ingestible beauty brand, INRYU, in China. As the head of Shiseido’s ingestible beauty division, she will further expand the brand portfolio in this category to deliver greater value to increasingly sophisticated beauty consumers. Additionally, as the General Manager of Ziyue Fund, Shiseido’s beauty-focused investment fund, she continues to concentrate on high-growth sectors in the Chinese market, exploring new brands to enrich the Group’s business portfolio while creating synergies with existing brands.
In April of this year, Ms. Zhou introduced the Group’s first high-end biotech skincare brand, RQ PYOLOGY, in Shanghai, offering a full-cycle medical beauty and skincare solution, fusing medical-grade efficacy and cosmetic elegance. The brand will partner with premium specialized beauty clinics to provide safer, more effective, and precise full-cycle skincare solutions for Asian skin through high-performance medical beauty products and outstanding customer experiences.
Ms. Zhou has held senior management positions at several multinational corporations, including Unilever, L’Oréal Group, Burberry, and Marriott International, where she led brands in cross-regional and cross-sector global strategic innovation. She graduated from New York University’s Stern School of Business and holds an MBA from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.
Ms. Zhou successfully led the launch of Shiseido’s first ingestible beauty brand, INRYU, in China. As the head of Shiseido’s ingestible beauty division, she will further expand the brand portfolio in this category to deliver greater value to increasingly sophisticated beauty consumers. Additionally, as the General Manager of Ziyue Fund, Shiseido’s beauty-focused investment fund, she continues to concentrate on high-growth sectors in the Chinese market, exploring new brands to enrich the Group’s business portfolio while creating synergies with existing brands.
In April of this year, Ms. Zhou introduced the Group’s first high-end biotech skincare brand, RQ PYOLOGY, in Shanghai, offering a full-cycle medical beauty and skincare solution, fusing medical-grade efficacy and cosmetic elegance. The brand will partner with premium specialized beauty clinics to provide safer, more effective, and precise full-cycle skincare solutions for Asian skin through high-performance medical beauty products and outstanding customer experiences.
Ms. Zhou has held senior management positions at several multinational corporations, including Unilever, L’Oréal Group, Burberry, and Marriott International, where she led brands in cross-regional and cross-sector global strategic innovation. She graduated from New York University’s Stern School of Business and holds an MBA from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.
Prophet helps clients unlock Uncommon Growth—the high-impact growth that is sustainable, faster, smarter, more human and more actionable, requiring organizations to increase speed to market while building the right capabilities, culture and business models to outpace disruption and drive lasting impact.
Rooted in consumer insights and business outcomes, we create strategy that’s sharp, focused and pragmatic. Explore how we can partner with your organization to drive real growth.
Human-Centered AI: Culture as the Catalyst for AI-enabled Growth
To turn AI into a true growth engine, organizations must expand beyond tech and tools and start thinking about culture. Our latest research reveals how aligning people, purpose and progress is the key to sustainable AI adoption.
There’s never been a more important time for organizations to be human. AI has leapt from buzzword to boardroom priority—redefining roles, reshaping workflows and unlocking new levers for growth. But while the technology accelerates, the cultural transformation needed to support AI is lagging.
This new report builds on our ongoing research into human-centered transformation. We interviewed CEOs and CHROs from leading global companies to explore how AI is impacting culture and what leaders must do now to embed AI at the heart of their organizations.
To unlock AI’s full potential, organizations must take a holistic approach—embedding it across every layer, from strategy and systems to people and processes. A successful AI-enabled workforce strategy requires more than investment; it demands synchronized leadership, clear priorities and a strong cultural mandate.
Prophet’s Human-Centered Transformation Model (HCTM) frames the organization as a living system—with a DNA, Mind, Body and Soul—that must evolve in concert for real, sustainable impact. Our research shows that true transformation happens when culture, leadership and talent align—turning AI from a tool into a powerful engine for growth.
Four Key Levers of Human-Centered AI
DNA: Aligning AI with Purpose and Values. Organizational DNA defines purpose and anchors strategy. When AI is aligned with core values, it gains direction, momentum—and staying power.
Mind: Scale Skills for What’s Next. AI demands new capabilities across the workforce. Equip employees with the skills and mindsets needed to adapt, grow and lead through change.
Body: Redesign How Work Gets Done. AI is reshaping roles, systems and workflows. To scale transformation, organizations must rethink how work happens and make agility the norm.
Soul: Deepen Human Connection. By removing routine tasks, AI allows employees to focus on meaning, creativity and connection. The result: stronger engagement and purpose-driven work.
The Future is Human-Centered AI
It’s time to move beyond fragmented experimentation and toward intentional transformation.
AI isn’t just about automation—it’s about reimagining how people work, connect and grow.
When embedded across the DNA, Mind, Body and Soul of an organization, AI becomes more than a tool. It becomes a catalyst for purpose-driven growth, empowered talent and lasting cultural change.
The Future is Human-Centered AI
It’s time to move beyond fragmented experimentation and toward intentional transformation.
AI isn’t just about automation—it’s about reimagining how people work, connect and grow.
When embedded across the DNA, Mind, Body and Soul of an organization, AI becomes more than a tool. It becomes a catalyst for purpose-driven growth, empowered talent and lasting cultural change.
LET’S BUILD HUMAN-CENTERED AI SOLUTIONS TOGETHER
Get in touch with our team to explore how Prophet can help your organization unlock uncommon growth through culture-led, AI-enabled transformation.
Client expectations are rising faster than most banks can keep up. In a world of shrinking margins and nonstop disruption, fast transactions and solid service aren’t enough.
Today’s commercial clients want real-time visibility, personalized digital experiences, and strategic partnership—and they’re measuring you against top B2C experiences.
It’s no longer about incremental improvements. The banks that thrive will be those that reimagine how they deliver value at every touchpoint.
Five New Realities Reshaping the Commercial Banking Experience
Boundaryless Banking – Platforms, ecosystems and partnerships are rewriting the rules of engagement.
AI is the New Infrastructure – Intelligent systems are now core to personalized service, risk analysis and growth.
The End of Back-Office Onboarding – Client onboarding must be seamless, digital and immediate.
Research Is a Blind Spot – Commercial insights must go beyond surface-level segmentation.
Exponential Risk – New threats demand faster, more transparent responses—and stronger client trust.
Read this report to learn what leading commercial banks are doing differently and the three key principles they are adopting to stay relevant.If your bank is serious about relevance, growth and differentiation in a platform-driven world, this report is your roadmap.
Download the full report to explore the five new realities and how to lead with experience.
This is how we’ve been building an AI-ready organization at Prophet.
At Prophet, we’ve been exploring AI’s potential for some time—experimenting, building and learning across teams. But our biggest leap forward didn’t come from a new tool or top-down policy. It came from a collective shift in focus.
Earlier this year, we hit pause across all 15 global offices to host our AI Learning Jam—a firmwide sprint designed to upskill, energize and unlock new ideas. We brought in outside experts, spotlighted internal pioneers already integrating AI into their work, and carved out time for hands-on experimentation. Teams tackled real client challenges using AI—and the momentum was immediate.
Feedback from the event was among the strongest we’ve seen for a firmwide initiative. But more powerful than any metric was what it set in motion.
We followed it with our first AI Demo Day, inviting submissions in three categories:
How we’re using AI to enhance current work
How we’re guiding clients on AI strategy
How we’re building AI products and solutions
Twenty demos. Ten teams were selected to present to our executive leadership. The range of use cases was eye-opening—from custom GPTs that accelerate insights and storytelling, to AI-powered tools that generate consulting outputs, to strategic frameworks helping clients define their AI vision. We carefully considered the potential for each demo and recognized the top contributors. We are now scaling these solutions firmwide.
One team reported a 90% time savings on market mapping tasks—freeing them to focus on strategic thinking and creativity. Another team doubled their content output using a custom GPT trained on a specific tone of voice.
Our focus on AI solutions isn’t a one-off initiative. It’s a cultural shift—and we’re seeing it in the data. The number of custom GPTs built internally has grown exponentially.
We’re early—but we’re all in. Because when transformation starts with people and is guided by purpose, it scales faster and sticks deeper.
And we know many organizations are asking the same questions: Where do we start? How do we move beyond pilots? What should we build, automate—or advise on?
If you’re looking to scale AI adoption, build internal momentum, or embed AI into the customer experience—we welcome that conversation. Get in touch.
A guide to creating cultures that energize employees and unlock uncommon growth.
In today’s fast-changing business landscape, culture is no longer a soft, secondary concern—it is a strategic asset that can make or break an organization’s success. Prophet’s report, “Making Culture Pop” presents a fresh and actionable guide for leaders seeking to harness the power of culture to drive sustainable growth, energize employees and navigate transformation with confidence.
Culture change doesn’t have to be daunting A strategic, people-centered approach can make it intuitive, engaging and even fun.
The power of focus Instead of overhauling everything, the most effective culture shifts involve amplifying what already makes an organization unique.
The right time is now Waiting for the ‘perfect moment’ to address culture is a costly mistake; the best companies integrate culture into their ongoing strategic imperatives.
Lessons from the Frontlines: What Works & What Fails
Don’t make culture an ‘HR thing’ True cultural shifts must be embedded into business strategy and operations.
Leaders must lead Executive teams play a critical role in setting the tone and modeling desired behaviors.
Follow the love Culture thrives when employees are inspired, engaged, and empowered to be active participants in shaping their work environment.
A Practical Roadmap for Culture Transformation
The report outlines a simple, five-step framework for leaders to create a thriving, resilient culture:
01 Co-create the foundations – Define and align on cultural values and behaviors that will drive success.
02 Lead the change – Equip leaders to champion and model cultural transformation.
03 Inspire a movement – Create momentum by making culture tangible and actionable for employees.
04 Elevate the employee experience – Align people practices to reinforce cultural aspirations.
05 Rewire the business – Integrate cultural shifts into structures, processes, and decision-making.
The Competitive Advantage of Culture
As industries face seismic shifts from AI, digital transformation, and evolving consumer expectations, culture remains a company’s most powerful differentiator. Making Culture Pop is an essential read for leaders ready to build organizations that not only adapt to change but thrive in it. By embracing culture as a strategic driver, businesses can unlock growth, resilience, and a shared sense of purpose that propels them into the future.
How to Build a More Resilient Growth Strategy with Scenario Planning
Scenario planning equips business leaders to navigate uncertainty and seize emerging opportunities.
A Timely Exercise
In 2025, business leaders are grappling with continued uncertainty driven by macro forces such as technological advancements, geopolitical tensions and economic volatility. Forces such as AI disruption, global policy shifts and market fluctuations make it hard to predict which will most severely impact their industry—positively, negatively or not at all. Yet, scenario planning offers a lifeline, enabling leaders to envision multiple futures and prepare for them. In an age of unpredictability, it turns uncertainty into opportunity.
Best Guessing for Business
Scenario planning is a strategic method to explore possible futures by identifying key uncertainties and developing plausible scenarios. It’s not about predicting one outcome but preparing for many, ensuring businesses can adapt to changes in competitive advantage or demand outlook.
Take, for example, evolving U.S. trade policies and tariffs. These disproportionally affect sectors and companies depending on their global exposure. Businesses with international supply chains or customer bases face heightened vulnerability, while those with a more domestic footprint may see new competitive advantages emerge. Scenario planning allows for visibility into these dynamics, potentially enabling leaders to uncover a new competitive advantage and value capture outlook.
How to Approach Uncertainty
Start by pinpointing uncertainties, like tech trends or policy changes. Then develop a set of scenarios that reflect varying degrees of impact. For example:
Scenario A: Rapid AI integration accelerates innovation and efficiency.
Scenario B: Economic slowdown leads to tightened capital and reduced consumer demand.
For each scenario, outline strategic implications and prepare corresponding responses, whether that means investing in R&D, restructuring operations or reallocating resources. Regularly revisit these scenarios as new data becomes available. Evaluate both the certainty and severity of each trend to prioritize where your leadership team should focus its attention and scenario planning efforts.
Real-World Success Stories
At Prophet, we’ve helped clients use scenario planning to navigate complexity and emerge stronger. Here are a few examples:
A global healthcare company needed a long-term view of the home health market. We developed scenarios examining addressable market size, regulatory changes and competitive dynamics for a 7-10 year future outlook. This work served as a key input to developing a long-term roadmap and strategy to become a successful market marker in the home health ecosystem.
A major sweet treat company anticipated disruption from changing food regulations and the growing adoption of GLP-1 receptor agonists. Scenario planning enabled the company to identify strategic pivots that would keep it competitive, compliant and innovative in a rapidly evolving market.
For a leading educational services provider, we assessed future demand and market opportunities for AI-powered solutions. This shaped the company’s product development priorities and investment roadmap across its business segments.
These examples show that scenario planning doesn’t just prepare companies for what’s next—it helps them lead into what’s next.
If you believe your competitive edge or demand outlook will shift, scenario planning is essential. It helps you prepare for best and worst cases, ensuring you’re not caught off guard when market conditions shift. In 2025’s volatile world, it’s not just smart—it’s survival.
From Manufacturer to Connector: How BOE Unlocks Brand-Led Growth
Uncommon Growth Leaders is an article series featuring bold leaders driving faster, smarter, more sustainable, more human and more actionable growth—what we call uncommon growth.
Da Si is Vice President and Chief Brand Officer of BOE Technology Group. Heoversees BOE Group’s global branding and communications, driving strategic support for the group and its businesses worldwide.
In our conversation with Mr. Si, we uncovered how BOE is driving brand-led growth and transformation amid market complexity. By evolving from a traditional B2B manufacturer to a human-centric brand, BOE is activating both internal agility and external brand strength. The company is fostering a change-ready culture, deepening cross-functional trust, and forming ecosystem partnerships—while rapidly deploying innovation to deliver business results and build brand impact.
How has BOE’s growth strategy evolved during its transformation from a manufacturer to an IoT technology leader?
Da Si: In recent years, BOE’s growth engine has shifted to focus on application-led innovations. We have moved beyond the traditional B2B hardware-centric business model by integrating our advanced manufacturing capabilities, core R&D strengths and scaled ecosystem resources to accelerate our transformation into an IoT innovator.
The transformation is fueled by our relentless drive to redefine business boundaries—from automotive displays to gaming screens. Today, display-powered IoT solutions already generate over 30% of the group’s revenue.
BOE partnered with Geely Auto to develop 8K Ultra-Wide Automotive Display
How does brand play a role in your transformation?
Da Si: The role of brand is pivotal. Whether expanding globally or innovating for different applications, strong brand equity remains an indispensable competitive advantage. BOE is now adopting a dual-engine strategy that synergizes technology and brand, where technological innovations and brand building reinforce each other.
In 2021, BOE pioneered China’s first semiconductor display technology sub-brand and product portfolio — comprising premium LCD (ADS Pro), advanced flexible OLED (f-OLED) and cutting-edge glass-based MLED (α-MLED) technologies. This move redefined industry standards, providing end consumers with high quality products and greater values driven by both the technology and our brand.
We’ve moved beyond conventional Business-to-Business or Business-to-Consumer frameworks to adopt a Human-Centric (Business-to-Human) marketing philosophy.
Whether engaging business clients, end consumers or supply chain partners, we’re fundamentally communicating with people—where every decision-maker is first and foremost a consumer in daily life. Thus, we strive to balance technological expertise and human connection in our brand strategy and communications. Through consistent storytelling, we strengthened our brand image and enhanced consumer experiences. This shapes BOE’s brand as an innovative tech leader.
When technology becomes tangible, half the battle is won. We’re revolutionizing how technology communicates, replacing jargon and spec sheets with real-world scenarios and experiences that let users feel the technology’s value. In our branding, we deliberately avoid dogmatic promotion, opting instead for experiential engagement that embeds innovations from datasheets into users’ lived experiences.
「Hello BOE·2023」Brand Exhibition
Why is long-term brand building necessary?
Da Si: Brand building is inherently a long-term commitment. As a leader in the semiconductor display industry, we’ve shifted our focus from bolstering our market leadership to demonstrating “how our innovative technologies empower, enhance and transform industries and lives.” This way of storytelling not only humanizes our technology, but also makes BOE’s brand more youthful, energetic and relevant. It also helps consumers better recognize BOE’s capabilities and innovations, their applications in daily lives, and our partnerships across the ecosystem.
Amid global uncertainties, our brand power and human-centric values have strengthened our business resilience. Every effort we make today is an investment in the future: the more solid our groundwork, the greater our ability to withstand risks.
When challenges arise, we’ll be more adaptable and recover faster. That is the true strategic value of brand building.
How does BOE enhance its brand influence through ecosystem partnerships?
Da Si: Building a brand can’t be done in isolation—it requires collective momentum. That’s the thinking behind our ”Powered by BOE” vision, where we co-create brand value through strategic partnerships. We’ve even established a dedicated Brand Partnership team within our Brand Center to drive two key collaboration models: deep alliances with industry supply chains (i.e., automakers and device manufacturers) and cross-sector partnerships (i.e., museums), blending hardware excellence with compelling content-driven experiences.
Take our collaboration with the Palace Museum as an example: as its strategic digital transformation partner, we undertook all digital exhibition projects for the Museum’s centennial exhibition. When audiences marvel at the perfect integration of traditional culture and modern technology, they naturally pay attention to the technology provider behind it. This partnership model subtly marries technology and culture while steadily ingraining BOE’s brand value in people’s minds.
BOE jointly hosted the immersive digital exhibition “The Way in Patterns” with the Palace Museum and Tencent.
In esports, BOE has teamed up with e-commerce giant JD.com and ecosystem partners to form the “Best of Esports Alliance.” This initiative establishes a comprehensive ecosystem spanning e-commerce platforms, live streaming services, esports organizations, hardware manufacturers and device brands. The alliance has already attracted major global players such as JD.com, Intel, AGON, ASUS, Lenovo Legion, Mechanic, Mechrevo and MSI, connecting with esports enthusiasts while fostering a collaborative esports community.
Two years post-implementation, this ecosystem approach has delivered strong outcomes: continuous improvement in consumer brand recognition and additional partnership opportunities across business units.
More importantly, this model is catalyzing meaningful changes within our group, transforming internal collaboration mechanisms and organizational mindsets.
How do you foster agility and open thinking in your marketing organization to enable cross-functional collaboration and better results?
Da Si: I always emphasize two core principles with my team: First, we must reject complacency and embrace bold innovation. Second, we should apply critical thinking before implementing any directives—even those from leadership. Effective brand building demands disruptive thinking that combines creativity with healthy skepticism—only then can we surpass our own expectations.
In change management, I consider internal communications to be as vital as external messaging—often more so. This becomes particularly crucial when overcoming operational bottlenecks or driving rapid transformation. Our approach establishes a comprehensive communication framework: securing executive buy-in through top-down alignment, fostering interdepartmental consensus through lateral collaboration, and unlocking grassroots innovation through bottom-up engagement. Most importantly, we validate every initiative with concrete results—measurable outcomes ultimately speak louder than rhetoric.
Da Si Vice President & Chief Brand Officer, BOE Technology Group
Da Si oversees BOE Group’s global branding and communications, driving strategic support for the group and its businesses worldwide—spanning display technologies, sensors and solutions, MLED, smart IoT innovations, and smart engineering medicine businesses.
Since joining BOE in December 2020, he has spearheaded the company’s transformation into an IoT leader, achieving key breakthroughs:
Revamped BOE’s master brand architecture to reflect its IoT pivot, launching China’s first semiconductor display technology sub-brand and shifting competition from scale-driven to value-driven.
Championed BOE’s “Empower IoT With Display” strategy through integrated campaigns, reinforcing its market leadership.
Pioneered innovative initiatives like ‘Hello BOE’ exhibitions and China’s first tech-edutainment show, “BOE’s Wonder Lab of Worry Solutions,” boosting awareness and engagement among end consumers.
Introduced microfilms and video-driven storytelling to humanize BOE’s brand, conveying “BOE is Always with You” through warmth and innovation.
With over 20 years of brand and marketing leadership across China and APAC, Da Si has held executive roles at Motorola, AMD, and Amazon before joining BOE.
Since joining BOE in December 2020, he has spearheaded the company’s transformation into an IoT leader, achieving key breakthroughs:
Revamped BOE’s master brand architecture to reflect its IoT pivot, launching China’s first semiconductor display technology sub-brand and shifting competition from scale-driven to value-driven.
Championed BOE’s “Empower IoT With Display” strategy through integrated campaigns, reinforcing its market leadership.
Pioneered innovative initiatives like ‘Hello BOE’ exhibitions and China’s first tech-edutainment show, “BOE’s Wonder Lab of Worry Solutions,” boosting awareness and engagement among end consumers.
Introduced microfilms and video-driven storytelling to humanize BOE’s brand, conveying “BOE is Always with You” through warmth and innovation.
With over 20 years of brand and marketing leadership across China and APAC, Da Si has held executive roles at Motorola, AMD, and Amazon before joining BOE.
Prophet helps clients unlock Uncommon Growth—the high-impact growth that is sustainable, faster, smarter, more human and more actionable, requiring organizations to increase speed to market while building the right capabilities, culture and business models to outpace disruption and drive lasting impact.
Rooted in consumer insights and business outcomes, we create strategy that’s sharp, focused and pragmatic. Explore how we can partner with your organization to drive real growth.
As GenAI transforms customer experiences, brand authenticity and transparency are more critical than ever. Learn how companies can use AI to deepen brand loyalty and drive growth in Asia’s fast-evolving markets.
Does branding still matter in the AI era? The answer is not just yes—it’s becoming more critical than ever.
AI is radically transforming how people shop, communicate and make decisions. In Asia, consumers are embracing these powerful technologies faster than anywhere else in the world. They’re using AI assistants, experiencing AI-powered recommendations and creating content with generative tools daily.
Something surprising emerged from Prophet’s research, The Rise of the AI-Powered Consumer, comparing GenAI trends in Asia and around the world: As technology advances, human connection becomes more valuable. We surveyed consumers across five countries and discovered that people in China and Singapore aren’t just AI enthusiasts—they’re also the most insistent on authentic brand relationships. They want the efficiency AI brings and the transparency, trust and genuine human touch that brands can uniquely deliver.
This creates both a challenge and an opportunity for brands in Asia. Here are three key trends brand leaders should keep in mind, along with examples of companies already building powerful, practical connections in the wake of AI disruption.
Consumers Want Authenticity
Consumers are adopting GenAI at a fast pace, especially in Asia. Prophet’s study found that 60% of Chinese consumers and 56% in Singapore are using GenAI, well ahead of consumers in Western markets. Moreover, 84% of consumers in China and 75% in Singapore say they are excited about brands that integrate AI.
With brands being more dynamic than ever, they must evolve into intuitive storytellers, balancing machine insights with human judgment. If brands are not careful, GenAI content and experiences can appear too polished or too perfect. That may feel generic and inhuman, undermining trust and connection.
At the same time, concerns persist. Globally, 43% of consumers find some aspect of AI worrisome, but in Singapore, that rises to 57%—the highest among surveyed countries. People also expect companies to be honest, with 82% saying companies should always disclose the ways they use AI.
As consumers become more aware of AI’s role in marketing, brands must continue to lead with authenticity to maintain credibility and long-term loyalty. Brands that leverage AI for personalization can enhance their identity and relevance, but they must also be cautious of over-reliance on technology, not losing the humanity that makes for meaningful and enduring relationships with consumers.
One powerful example of authentic AI use comes from Telekom Malaysia. To celebrate Hari Kebangsaan (Malaysia’s Independence Day) in 2024, it launched “Sejuta Suara, Satu Ritma, Jiwa Merdeka,” using AI-driven lip-syncing and voice cloning to let Malaysians sing in their preferred language. Rather than showcasing AI for its own sake, the campaign celebrated Malaysia’s rich linguistic diversity and highlighted the brand’s promise to open doors to a promising tomorrow.
The result: AI amplified cultural identity rather than diminishing it, showing how technology can strengthen authentic connections.
Other brands are also using AI in service of authenticity. Zalora, a fashion ecommerce site, developed an intuitive, multilingual chatbot deeply integrated with customer service data. It helps users track orders, manage returns and resolve issues quickly—and it does this in ways that look and feel distinctly “on brand.” This demonstrates how AI can enhance the customer experience while maintaining the authentic brand voice that shoppers trust.
Brands can enhance authenticity by:
Ensuring overall brand strategy is built based on core human insights and not technology alone
Creating AI tools that solve real customer problems rather than showcasing technology
Maintaining consistent brand voice and values across touchpoints using custom-built AI assistants
Combining human oversight with AI to ensure outputs stay true to brand tone, audience needs, and real-world relevance
Consumers Crave Human Connection
In China, 89% of consumers believe GenAI improves people’s lives by automating tasks and boosting efficiency; in Singapore, it’s 84%. (These enhancements are proving so valuable to consumers that 83% of Southeast Asian shoppers say they would pay more for them.)
But even with their enthusiasm, consumers remain wary of losing human interaction. In Singapore, 75% of consumers worry that AI might replace human contact—the highest level of concern among surveyed markets. Almost half of Chinese consumers also share this fear.
Many companies begin their AI journeys by solving customer pain points. When AI simplifies transactions, consumers welcome it. But in the meantime, the role of brand remains crucial by ensuring that technology complements—not replaces—human connection.
AirAsia’s “Ask Bo” concierge app is a strong example. While it automates travel tasks like booking and gate changes, recent updates allow customers to seamlessly transfer to a human agent when needed—combining AI efficiency with human reassurance. This hybrid approach acknowledges that while AI can handle routine tasks, human intervention remains essential for complex situations—preserving the human touch that builds trust.
Shiseido offers another best practice. Partnering with Revieve, a beauty tech developer, it uses AI for skin analysis but complements it with in-store beauty consultants who personalize recommendations. The result is an experience that feels deeply human, even when AI powers the initial interaction. By combining technological analysis with human expertise, Shiseido creates a premium experience that neither AI nor humans could deliver alone, deepening the customer relationship.
Brands can maintain human connection by:
Clearly signaling human oversight within AI systems
Giving customers access to live human support when needed
Designing AI experiences that complement rather than replace human expertise
Creating opportunities for emotional connection even within automated processes
Loyalty Still Matters
Even as AI changes consumer expectations, and transforms the customer experience, loyalty remains at the heart of brand value AI enables brands to deliver personalized, relevant interactions that serve to strengthen bonds with customers.
This is especially true in Asia, where consumers are particularly optimistic about AI’s potential. In China, 76% believe GenAI will improve their financial well-being by offering smart insights, as do 65% of Singapore’s consumers, creating an opportunity for brands to deepen trust by delivering tangible, AI-enabled value. Asian consumers also show greater trust in AI’s ability to spot opportunities they might otherwise miss. About 72% of Chinese and 76% of Singaporean consumers believe AI can help them make better decisions—higher than any other region surveyed.
DBS Bank, headquartered in Singapore, exemplifies loyalty-building AI. It has embedded more than 800 AI models across 350 use cases, offering customers personalized financial advice. Its AI-powered virtual assistant supports call center employees, reducing call handling times by up to 20%—making human help faster and more satisfying for customers. By making human help faster and more effective, DBS strengthens its reputation for exceptional service—turning AI into a loyalty-building advantage.
Anthony Tan, Grab Group CEO and Co-Founder at GrabX 2025 (Image Source: GizGuide)
Grab, the Southeast Asian super app, is also investing heavily, introducing AI Merchant Assistant and AI Driver Companion tools in collaboration with OpenAI and Anthropic. The two AI-powered solutions are personal, intelligent assistants designed to help Grab’s merchants and drivers optimize their businesses and maximize productivity. By making daily tasks easier for its partners, Grab builds loyalty by showing its AI innovations have heart, not just efficiency. These tools demonstrate Grab’s commitment to supporting its ecosystem of partners, building a community of loyal merchants and drivers who in turn provide better service to end customers.
Brands can build loyalty by:
Personalizing experiences in ethical, human-centered ways
Designing AI solutions that save customers time and help achieve their goals
Using AI to empower employees to deliver better service
Creating feedback loops that continuously improve AI tools based on customer input
Prophet’s global research study is applied and brought to life in client engagements. We help organizations unlock uncommon growth by understanding and taking advantage of digital disruption. There are several ways to work with us:
AI-powered growth consulting: Creating future-back business and brand positioning strategies that help you act on GenAI consumer and business trends to drive tangible results
AI-enabled products and experiences: Envisioning and bringing to life new products, services and experiences that are enabled and accelerated by GenAI
AI-driven marketing organization for the age of GenAI: Understanding your marketing vision, activating relevant AI use cases and deploying new capabilities
AI is reshaping the customer journey, but it cannot replace the human elements that are central to strong brands. Consumers in Asia are embracing AI faster than anywhere else—and yet they still demand authenticity, trust and connection. Brands that use AI to enhance—not replace—these human values will be the ones that earn lasting loyalty and drive growth in the new AI economy.
Introducing Business Strategy at Prophet – The Uncommon Growth Company
In today’s economic climate, businesses are facing a dual challenge: managing financial pressure while still being expected to deliver growth. Market volatility, shifting customer expectations and rapid technological change have made it harder than ever to find clear, actionable paths forward. Many organizations are being asked to do more with less—yet the demand for innovation and transformation has never been higher.
At Prophet, we’ve seen this tension firsthand. Over the years, we’ve worked closely with C-suite leaders—more and more with CEOs—who are not just looking for incremental improvements, but for bold market-moving strategies. These leaders value our ability to think creatively, act decisively and move quickly. They’ve come to us not just for brand and marketing expertise, but for help answering the big questions:
Where should we play? How do we win? And how do we do it faster than the competition?
That’s why we’ve formalized our Business Strategy offering.
While we’ve been doing this work for years, we’re now bringing it to the forefront because the need has never been greater. Our clients are asking for more than traditional consulting. They want a partner who can help them uncover new opportunities, test bold ideas and bring them to market with speed and confidence.
Growth-Oriented Business Strategy: Where Rigor Meets Imagination
At Prophet, we craft business strategies that ignite demand swiftly. Whether it’s building new categories, redefining revenue streams or launching innovative ventures or services, we bring a relentless focus on the customer.
Our approach focuses on identifying high-potential opportunities and developing bold, actionable ideas. We break free from traditional methods, embrace human-centered creativity and harness AI. We seamlessly transition from ‘where to play’ to ‘how to win,’ accelerating speed-to-market and enabling rapid testing and experimentation.
Prophet is the ideal partner for businesses eager to develop their strategy with a go-to-market mindset. By combining strategic precision with a creative mind and skill set, we quickly uncover actionable pathways to drive sustainable success and competitive advantage.
Our Business Strategy Offerings
We help organizations unlock uncommon growth through a suite of interconnected strategy services:
Story of Value
Define and articulate the unique value your business delivers—and why it matters now & in the future.
Future Casting & Scenario Planning
Explore multiple futures to anticipate change, reduce risk and build resilient strategies.
Growth Landscaping & Opportunity Identification
Map the market, identify white space and prioritize the most promising growth opportunities.
Offer Portfolio Optimization
Align your products, services and experiences to customer needs and business goals.
Uncommon Growth Moves
Identify and execute bold, differentiated strategies that challenge industry norms and unlock new value.
Business Model Design
Reimagine how your business creates, delivers and captures value in a rapidly evolving landscape.
Integrating Brand and Demand Marketing for Maximum Impact in Healthcare
Chief Marketing Officers who engage strategically, advocate for patients and demonstrate marketing’s value can help unleash growth even in uncertain times.
It seems that every CMO, in every sector, faces increasing pressure to demonstrate value for every dollar in their budgets. It’s the classic brand-demand tension, where CFOs and other senior business leaders seem to prefer the clear and tangible metrics (e.g., lead generation, conversion) associated with demand or performance marketing over the softer measures of brand value (e.g., awareness, propensity to buy).
Senior marketers know this tension. Prophet recently conducted interviews with senior marketing leaders from health systems and hospitals and their input was clear: effectively integrating brand-building with demand generation campaigns has never been more challenging. Partly that’s a function of cost pressures and resource constraints. Partly it’s due to the unique dynamics of healthcare marketing (where consumers don’t necessarily want to buy your products).
But healthcare organizations that get brand and demand working in sync see clear and compelling benefits: stronger brands, more satisfying patient experiences, higher customer lifetime value and – most importantly – better health outcomes.
Prophet’s extensive research, Brand and Demand: Marketing’s Greatest Love Story, shows how top-performing marketing organizations are 3X more likely to fully integrate brand and demand. And the research, The Multiplier Effect, we conducted in partnership with WARC, Analytic Partners and BERA.ai and System1 shows how a balanced approach can lift overall revenue returns by 25% or more.
So how do marketing leaders successfully integrate brand and demand to optimize results? From our research and market engagement, we see three proven practices.
1. Engaging senior leaders to align marketing strategies to business priorities and outcomes.
Too often, marketing in healthcare is seen as a service function, activated only in response to external pressures or internal requests. But the most effective CMOs reposition marketing as a strategic lever for growth, leveraging brand and demand investments to drive measurable business results.
Strategic engagement with boards, the C-suite, clinical leaders and other stakeholders is essential to shift the perception of marketing as a PR or communications function. When marketing is tied to system objectives—whether that’s growing a service line, expanding reach in a rural market or strengthening reputation with policymakers—it becomes easier to make disciplined choices and avoid reactive spending.
Take the “billboard dilemma,” for instance. Many CMOs face pressure from internal stakeholders who ask, “Why don’t we have a billboard like our competitors?” But this isn’t really a question about outdoor advertising. It’s a proxy for a larger issue: Are we doing enough to be visible and competitive in the market? When CMOs have already built alignment around business goals and shared metrics, these conversations become strategic rather than reactive. It’s no longer about appeasing concerns, it’s about showing how brand investment fits into an integrated marketing mix designed to drive outcomes.
“The best decisions are made collaboratively, with everyone looking at the same data,” said Jason Vandiver, a senior marketing and communications officer. “Because we all understand and agree on the most important activities, there’s no competition for resources.” This alignment allows marketing leaders to advocate for the right choice at the right time—explaining when and how brand investments will pay dividends in the long term and when performance marketing should take the lead to deliver short-term results. And when trade-offs are unavoidable, CMOs who are aligned on strategy are best positioned to guide the successful integration of brand and demand.
20%: minimum proportion of the marketing budget that should be allocated to brand-building
40-60%: the “best practice” range for branding spend of marketing budget
2. Embracing patient centricity and advocacy as a North Star for disparate investments and activities.
CMOs should ensure all marketing activities and investments link directly to the organization’s mission: helping people lead healthy lives. CMOs can be advocates for patient needs, which can—and should—be a unifying force for the entire organization and essential to the brand vision. “We try very hard to focus on the consumer, rather than going to market with a product orientation,” said David Hook, executive director, marketing & consumer experience, John Muir Health. “Yes, we need to sell services, but in our marketing, we invite customers to come to us for their overall health, not for a specific surgery or procedure.”
Delivering on patient centricity requires deeper customer insights, another area where healthcare CMOs can make meaningful contributions. For instance, core insights can be used to articulate a clear brand promise that guides all marketing activities and focuses on patient needs, according to Hook: “When it’s clear to the organization what patients care about, it becomes less about the advertising and more about how we deliver better healthcare.”
In this sense, demand campaigns don’t just produce revenue; they also help people access the care they need. Marketing delivers on their mission when consumer targeting drives people to preventive screenings and procedures.
What leading marketers do:
87%: use customer insights for brand positioning and value propositions vs. 66% of all marketers
86%: apply customer insights to all parts of the marketing discipline, vs. 63%
82%: tie customer data and insights to measurable business outcomes, vs. 59%
Several CMOs highlighted the value of detailed patient journeys across service lines, which can help support consistent branding and promote “right-time/right-channel” messaging. Mapping these journeys also ensures marketing efforts align with patient needs at each stage of care, which increases relevance, enhances experience and strengthens trust. “We have defined some amazing patient journeys that guide our engagement and retention teams,” said Kim Reed, senior marketing manager at a large pediatric health system.
3. Demonstrating both short- and long-term results via data-driven modeling and analytical rigor
As with their peers in other sectors, healthcare CMOs must balance short- and long-term objectives and be data-driven and analytics-led in sharing results. The pressure to carefully measure value will only intensify given the challenging financial situations of most organizations today.
What leading marketers do:
84%: confidently measure and management long- and short-term performance simultaneously, vs. 57% of all marketers
“The need to show hard dollar-impacts lead us to do more performance marketing,” said Hook of Muir Health. He also highlighted the importance of showing leadership what different types of media can deliver. “We bring estimated numbers to the leadership group and say, ‘if we do this, our awareness and preference will go up this much and it will cost this much.” Such efforts are necessary, because “there’s still a disconnect between what we can show actually works and what leaders think works,” according to Vandiver.
Jennifer Horton, associate vice president of marketing, communications and media at UT Health San Antonio, embraces a model that balances brand, engagement, reputation and growth, which she finds resonates well. “These are things that are top of mind for our boards, senior leadership, and our physicians.”
Sophisticated propensity, attribution and marketing mix models, as well as more powerful analytical tools, are becoming more common. Some marketing teams build their own; others rely on external partners, though smaller institutions may be challenged to find the budget for advanced tooling. At Corewell Health, the brand analytics team uses proprietary models to “triangulate the different data sets and go beyond linear reads and gain multi-dimensional visibility into our performance and how to improve it,” according to Holly Sullivan, vice president, system brand and marketing.
Corewell tracks fairly closely to the classic brand-demand budget allocation and aims to be “thoughtful in building long-term brand strength for top-of-the-funnel awareness.” To track brand strength the organization uses a variety of metrics like unaided awareness and system of first choice. Some measures are more specific to healthcare to understand feelings of trust.
Healthcare by its nature creates unique tracking challenges. Vandiver noted that it’s not just the clicks or someone calling a number that shows ROI. “Because the average consumer isn’t looking for healthcare at any time, but only when they or a family member has a need, it’s hard to figure out how we get from interest to conversion to the financial output,” he noted.
In this sense, the brand advertising that creates awareness may be the difference maker when the actual medical need arises as a demand signal. Disconnects between CRM platforms and back-office financial systems also make attribution trickier than in, say, consumer goods or financial services.
Healthcare marketers have always faced unique challenges due to the complexities of the industry. And the perennial tension between brand and demand adds an extra dimension for CMOs facing budget cuts and intense pressure to demonstrate value.
Still, strong marketing teams are critical to keep hospitals and health systems financially stable and individuals and communities healthy. And the more effective CMOs are at integrating intentional, data-driven tactics to drive near-term demand with long-term brand-building programs the more successful they’ll be in helping their organizations fulfill their mission and meet their objectives.
