Why performance marketing alone won’t build the business you want

Performance marketing is great - until it's all you've got.

Relying on it gets you clicks, conversions and some nice-looking numbers ready to whack into your monthly report. But what if you stop spending? Success stops too.

That’s the reality of performance-only marketing. It works - but only while you’re paying for it. You’re not building momentum, you’re buying it.

Meanwhile, the brands that go the distance are doing something else. They’re not just optimising for the next click. They’re building meaning, trust and recognition. An identity people want. Something people want to come back to and be part of.

This isn’t about scrapping performance marketing. It’s about giving it something to stand on. Because when brand leads, performance works harder - and costs less.

Renting attention is expensive. Invest in making lasting impressions.

Renting's expensive - invest in lasting impressions instead

When we say brand, we mean more than a logo or a set of values gathering dust in a brand guidelines PDF from 2018. We mean:

• A clear position - what you stand for, who it stands for and why it matters

• A consistent identity - tone, visuals, values, personality

• A reason to care - beyond price point

It's what makes someone choose you over a competitor, and it's what makes performance marketing work better and convert faster - because people already know who you are why you're worth the investment.

The proof's out there

Apple.

Other phones have better specs but Apple still owns nearly 28% of the global market. Because people aren’t just buying a phone - they’re buying trust, familiarity and status. That’s brand equity. And it’s worth over $480 billion.

Nike.

Plenty of brands make decent running shoes but Nike built something bigger - a movement people want to be part of. That emotional pull turns browsers into buyers without the need to count every click.

Airbnb.

In 2021, they cut $100 million from their performance spend. No Google ads or paid social, yet bookings went up. Because 90% of their traffic was already coming direct. 

Tesla.

For years, they didn’t spend a penny on traditional advertising because there wasn’t a need for it. Their brand - and their mission - brought people in.

It's not just big brands

Smaller, newer brands are proving the same point.

Liquid Death.

Canned water sounds like a hard sell. But they built a brand around a lifestyle choice. From $2.8 million in 2019 to $130 million in 2022, without leaning on traditional advertising.

Gymshark.

Started by a teenager in his bedroom, this now billion-dollar business grew through early influencer partnerships and a strong identity without big ad budgets. 84% of their traffic is organic.

Warby Parker.

Built a $7B brand without relying on paid media. Their Home Try-On programme sparked tens of thousands of organic social posts and that kind of reach can’t be bought.

What happens when brand leads?

When you lead with brand, performance marketing doesn’t become redundant. It just gets sharper.

Here’s what shifts when brand comes first:

• Lower acquisition costs - branded search terms are cheaper

• Higher conversion rates - people buy from brands they recognise

• Better ROAS - long-term customers, not one-time buyers

• Compound returns - every campaign builds on the last

  
  

Take Dollar Shave Club’s viral brand video. It wasn’t just a funny ad that made it go viral. It was the brand - clear, confident, slightly ridiculous. It didn’t just support performance but drove it, with a result of 12,000 orders in 48 hours and a $1B acquisition by Unilever. This kind of traction doesn't come from running more ads.

And this kind of brand-led performance isn’t just for disruptor startups. Glossier built a skin-first beauty brand that felt like a community so their ads didn’t need to explain everything. They just nudged people toward something they already wanted to join.

Monzo built trust and clarity into their product and tone of voice. Their paid ads weren’t doing all the heavy lifting - they were just directing traffic toward something already compelling.

Compare that to performance-only marketing, where you spend £5k on paid social before offering 20% off > you get a spike in traffic > next month you do it again, because you have to. Sound familiar?

Try 'brand-led performance'

If you want your marketing to move the business - not just the numbers - start here:

• Get clear on your positioning - what do you stand for, and why should anyone care?

• Balance your budget - aim for a 60/40 split between brand and performance

• Measure more than conversions - track awareness, recognition and preference

• Use performance to test brand messages - A/B test ideas, not just headlines

• Be patient - brand equity compounds over time, but only if you stick with it

Stop renting attention

Performance marketing without brand is just renting attention. It only works while you’re paying for it. Brand-led performance is different because it builds something that lasts, and keeps paying back, even when you’re not spending.

You could keep chasing clicks. Or you could build something people come looking for.

Up to you.