Kantar

CMOs Struggle to Prove Value of Ad Creative

A Digiday Future of Marketing briefing highlights that many chief marketing officers lack confidence in proving the effectiveness of ad creative to finance teams. A Gain Theory survey of 115 brand marketers found 49% were not confident their data could defend marketing decisions to a CFO, and 62% said they were buying media carrying creative assets whose true value was unknown. Marketers apply more scrutiny to media than creative, while most generative-AI investment targets efficiency rather than measurement. The piece cites advertisers (Lenovo) running integrated media-and-creative measurement with partners (Seedtag, Kantar, Lumen) that delivered measurable brand lifts, and notes measurement vendors (Mutinex, System One) reporting growth. The article frames a widening “confidence gap” that has already led to budget cuts for some marketers and is driving increased investment in measurement and AI-driven MMM approaches.

Engagement Alone Insufficient to Judge Creator Campaigns

A Kantar whitepaper, “The Creator Game Plan”, analyzed more than 15,000 branded creator posts across TikTok, YouTube Shorts and Instagram and finds that platform engagement rarely maps directly to brand impact or ROI. Only 6% of evaluated posts delivered both high platform engagement and strong brand effectiveness; even in the mid-range engagement band the match rate was only about 27%. Kantar warns marketers that likes and interaction metrics alone are an unreliable success signal and recommends combined KPI sets and deeper brand- and sales-focused measures. The study notes 61% of marketing leaders plan to increase spending on creator content but stresses strategy, audience fit and long-term brand integration are required for lasting effect. Kantar and quoted marketers provide a ten-point checklist for better creator-campaign measurement and execution.

AB InBev Wins 183 Cannes Lions in Five Years

AB InBev’s global CMO Marcel Marcondes opened Cannes Lions 2026 and highlighted the brewer’s decade-long marketing transformation that produced 183 Cannes Lions trophies between 2021 and 2025. The company — the first brand to win Cannes’ Creative Marketer of the Year three times — rebuilt its marketing culture beginning with a 2018 marketing culture and capabilities function and the introduction of the Creative X framework. AB InBev trained roughly 2,400 marketers, established an external creative council, and shifted investment toward global “megabrands” (Budweiser, Corona, Stella Artois, Michelob Ultra), which represent about 57% of revenue. The company reported $59.3 billion in net revenue in 2025, has a multi-year Netflix integration deal, extended its FIFA World Cup sponsorship through 2030, and uses AI via its in-house agency DraftLine while retaining human oversight in creative workflows.