As a global leader in SEO, content marketing, and data analytics, Anastasia Braitsik has a unique perspective on the evolution of digital advertising. She has watched the industry shift from a creative art to a strategic science and is now at the forefront of a renaissance that reunites the two. In our conversation, we explored the diminishing returns of purely data-driven campaigns, the rise of a new “performance-creative” strategy, and how brands can treat their campaigns as living experiments to achieve optimal impact. Anastasia shares her insights on using data to inspire rather than dictate creativity, ultimately crafting messaging that truly connects with and moves an audience.
As advertisers focused more on data, many consumers began viewing targeted ads as intrusive. What are the key performance indicators that show this purely data-driven approach is becoming less effective, and how can brands measure the resulting negative consumer sentiment?
It’s a powerful shift we’re seeing. For years, the gold standard was hyper-targeting, but now the digital marketplace is so saturated that consumers are developing a kind of ad blindness. The most glaring indicator is that even perfectly relevant, data-driven ads are simply being ignored. You see it in declining engagement rates and click-throughs, but the more alarming signal is active avoidance. When consumers start to feel that an ad is intrusive, they don’t just ignore it; they take action. They block the brand, install ad-blockers, and develop a lasting negative perception. That sentiment is the real cost, a deep-seated frustration that erodes brand trust far more than any single campaign’s failure.
Forward-thinking brands are now blending data-driven insights with creativity. Could you walk us through a practical, step-by-step example of how a team uses this “performance-creative” strategy to develop a more impactful and engaging ad campaign from start to finish?
Absolutely. The performance-creative process begins with data, but in a more foundational way. First, we use data to set the stage. We’re not just looking at who is ready to buy; we’re diving into psychographics, platform habits, and intent signals to understand the audience’s mindset. This initial analysis informs the first creative iteration—our starting hypothesis. From there, the campaign is launched not as a final product, but as a living experiment. We immediately start tracking, assessing, and responding to performance data in real time. This continuous feedback loop allows us to see which creative elements are resonating and adjust our strategy, ensuring the campaign evolves to deliver optimal impact rather than remaining static.
For data to “set the stage” without “owning the show,” teams must look beyond basic targeting. What specific data points, such as psychographics or platform habits, are most crucial for informing the initial creative direction, and how does this create messaging that truly moves an audience?
This is the heart of the new strategy. The most crucial data points are those that get you closer to the why behind consumer behavior. Psychographics tell us about their values and lifestyles. Intent signals show us what problems they are actively trying to solve right now. And understanding their platform habits reveals the context in which they are most receptive to a message. When you combine these factors, you move beyond just knowing who is shopping and what they want. You start to build a genuine understanding of what moves them on an emotional level. This insight is what empowers messaging that feels personal and relevant, not just targeted and transactional.
Viewing a campaign as a “living experiment” allows for continuous improvement. What is your process for tracking, assessing, and responding to performance data in real time, and can you share an anecdote where a mid-campaign creative adjustment led to a significant boost in results?
Our process is a constant cycle of learning and adapting. We track key metrics from day one, but we’re not just looking for wins or losses; we’re looking for patterns. For instance, in one campaign, we noticed that an ad with a specific visual style was underperforming on one platform but excelling on another. Instead of killing the ad, we dug into the platform habits data we’d collected. We realized the audiences on each channel had different expectations for content. By adjusting the creative to better match the native feel of the underperforming platform—a simple tweak to the color palette and font—we saw engagement triple almost overnight. That’s the power of treating a campaign as an experiment: you’re empowered to make informed, real-time adjustments that drive real results.
The quest for the “perfect ad” can cause costly delays. How does a performance-creative strategy help teams avoid this trap, and what advice would you give a creative professional who is hesitant to launch a campaign that is positioned as a work in progress?
The “perfect ad” trap is fueled by the fear of failure, leading to endless, obsessive tweaking that burns through time and money. A performance-creative strategy fundamentally reframes the launch. It’s not a final exam; it’s the first step in a conversation with your audience. By positioning the campaign as a work in progress, you remove the pressure of perfection. My advice to a hesitant creative is to trust the process. Your initial launch isn’t the final word; it’s the beginning of a data-inspired journey. The data doesn’t replace your creativity; it gives it direction and reveals how to make your powerful ideas connect even more deeply with the people you’re trying to reach.
What is your forecast for the future of digital advertising?
I believe the future lies in this synthesis of data and creativity. The pendulum is swinging back to the middle. For too long, we treated advertising as a pure science, and we’re now seeing the consequences of that in consumer fatigue and distrust. The next wave of successful advertising won’t just be about precision targeting; it will be about creating genuinely engaging and impactful experiences that feel human. Brands that learn to use data as a tool to unlock deeper creative insights—to understand and respect their audience—are the ones who will not only capture attention but also build lasting relationships.
