In advertising, it’s easy to separate data and creativity.
But to achieve great creative work, we need to combine both perspectives. And that’s exactly what this standout Cannes Lions session did.
In Science + Magic: Where Data Meets Creativity, Sunil Bajaj, Senior Writer and Analyst at Contagious, acted as the creative perspective, and Paul Stringer, Managing Research Editor at WARC, was the voice of data and statistics. Together, they offered comprehensive tools to help marketers combat some of today’s most relevant trends and marketing problems.
Creative Fragmentation
Marketers are having trouble adapting to increasingly fragmented channels. Stringer explained that audiences are being spread broader and thinner across more platforms and devices, and it’s causing huge headaches for media executives. But creative fragmentation isn’t only a media planning challenge; it’s also a creative challenge.
According to a study by CreativeX, more than 50% of creative assets do not follow best practices for their channel, and 85% fail to get enough attention to be remembered. This presents a two-fold problem: How do we produce advertising that’s high-volume and channel-specific while keeping it imaginative and interesting?
Stringer suggested that to solve fragmentation, marketers should utilize “imaginative repetition.” He defined this as creative concepts that can be replicated uniquely over hundreds of executions. Bajaj posited that the best way to do this is to create an idea that inspires user-generated content.
He highlighted Vaseline Verified as a key example of successful UGC. The campaign called on social media users to showcase their favourite Vaseline hacks. With this strategy, they were able to convince 450 creators to make videos across passionate communities. Bajaj explained that this is only possible by establishing compelling creative ideas that users can get behind.
Vaseline Verified – Case Study
Platforms > Campaigns
Stringer emphasized that to make an impact, brands need to leverage long-lasting creative platforms.
In their 2025 report, The Multiplier Effect, WARC argued that brand growth and performance growth should be brought closer together. That means making full-funnel creative platforms that are built from big ideas. In the study, WARC found that doing this achieved 90% higher ROI.
As a key example, Bajaj highlighted Meat & Livestock Australia’s Share The Lamb brand platform. In their latest version, MLA satirized the toxicity of online comment sections and showcased lamb as the only thing that will bring Australia together.
Lamb – Case Study
While the platform had suffered from low performance in 2016 – 2020, the team decided to commit to it, resulting in impressive brand growth. According to the Head of Effectiveness at Droga5, “the platform has got a long prosperous future ahead of it.”
Brand Lore
If brands want to succeed, they need to build stories around their product.
Stringer highlighted a new trend in advertising — brands are putting a greater emphasis on building social worlds filled with characters and storylines, all for the sake of entertainment.
With customers more distracted than ever, Stringer suggested that advertisers need to be entertainers. He shared a quote from Liquid Death Founder, Mike Cessario: “In a world where everything is skippable, you have to actually entertain people to get their attention.”
Bajaj showed how Supercell did this with Clash of Clans’ Hammerless. Leading up to their annual sales event, Hammer Jam, the mobile gaming app removed a character’s real in-game hammer. They then created a true-crime podcast and gave listeners clues to help solve the mystery. The initiative grew their daily active users by 16% and increased engagement by 1220%.
Clash of Clans Hammerless – Case Study
Bajaj concluded, “the next time you think of brand lore, maybe instead think of it as a brand lure.”
Key Takeaways:
- To solve creative fragmentation, imaginative repetition is key.
- Focus on building platforms, not siloed campaigns.
- Marketers need to think much more like entertainers, not like advertisers.
