Rippling doesn't measure brand campaigns on direct-response metrics. Instead, creative top-of-funnel ads are designed to "implant a seed" of brand awareness. Success is measured by how these campaigns increase the efficiency and conversion rate of subsequent mid- and bottom-funnel ads shown to the same audience.

At Rippling, content creation is not a standalone, organic-only activity. The core philosophy is that almost every piece of creative, from humorous videos to customer stories, is ultimately designed to be used as fuel for their paid media engine. This ensures that brand-building efforts are maximized for reach and have a measurable pathway to impact.

Use organic social as a mid-funnel testing ground. When a post wildly overperforms, don't just celebrate the viral moment. Repurpose that proven creative for lower-funnel performance ads and upper-funnel brand campaigns to maximize its impact across the entire funnel.

The brand's media strategy prioritizes top-of-funnel entertainment to build massive, broad awareness. This continually fills the pipeline with new audiences, which makes lower-funnel, conversion-focused tactics like retargeting cheaper and more effective than chasing a limited pool of in-market buyers.

To maintain its 'unexpected' brand pillar, Liquid Death's marketing team deliberately avoids repeating successful formulas or executing ideas that feel predictable. This forces constant innovation and ensures their marketing remains genuinely surprising to their audience.

Stop planning creative and media buys simultaneously. Instead, post creative organically first. Then, exclusively allocate media spend to amplify the content that has already demonstrated strong consumer engagement, forcing creative to be effective on its own merit before receiving paid support.

A balanced media approach uses two extremes. Highly produced content, like a TV show, builds brand authority and reaches new audiences (top of funnel). Raw, unpolished content is more effective for building intimacy and driving conversions (bottom of funnel).

Retail media networks, once dominated by conversion-focused tactics, now require a full-funnel approach. Hanesbrands sees significant returns from upper-funnel video content (OLV/CTV) to build awareness, which in turn feeds the lower-funnel conversion pipeline on platforms like Amazon.

In a volatile market, pressure mounts to focus only on short-term performance marketing. However, brands can't neglect brand building because strong brand awareness and relevance are what make lower-funnel tactics like retail media more efficient and effective in the first place.