Brandformance: New Perspective on the Brand vs. Performance Argument

In 1999, during the height of the dot-com boom, E*TRADE aired a Super Bowl ad featuring a dancing monkey, two guys clapping and a message: “We just wasted two million bucks. What are you doing with your money?”

There was no product demonstration. No clear call to action. Just chaos, cheekiness — and a massive price tag.

But here’s the twist: in the following days, E*TRADE saw a spike in website traffic and a rise in new account signups. What was intended as a quirky branding moment unexpectedly delivered tangible performance results.

These results were seen as a fluke. In fact, branding and performance were thought to belong to different worlds — one emotional, the other measurable — with different teams, different goals and different KPIs.

However, the E*TRADE ad hinted at something new: what if branding and conversions didn’t have to live apart? Today, that “what if” has a name: Brandformance.

In this article, we’ll explore what brandformance is, how it bridges branding and performance, what its future potential is — and why native advertising may be the ideal format to deliver it.

What is Brandformance Marketing?

At its core, brandformance is the meeting point between two long-standing marketing mindsets: branding, which builds emotional connection and awareness, and performance, which drives action and measurable results.

For decades, these approaches operated on separate tracks. Branding focused on shaping perception and nurturing loyalty, while performance was about clicks, conversions and cost-efficiency. One spoke to the heart: the other to the spreadsheet.

Historically, marketers had to pick a side: branding or performance marketing. But with evolving adtech, data capabilities and customer expectations, the choice is no longer binary. You can now tell compelling stories and measure their impact — in real time.

So where does brandformance sit in the funnel? Brandformace places itself right in the middle — at the consideration stage — where buyers already know what they want but haven’t yet made a decision. At this point, both emotion and logic play a role in users’ next move. A campaign that makes the product feel familiar and trustworthy while nudging the user to act is exactly where Brandformance shines.

Up next, we’ll examine how this hybrid approach balances both sides — and why it's becoming the new standard for marketers.

The Three Pillars of Brandformance

Think of brandformance as a framework that thrives when three key elements come together: emotional storytelling, data accountability and smart channel selection. Let’s look at each of these pillars.

1. Creative Storytelling with Purpose

Brandformance starts with the why — why should someone care about your brand?

This pillar leans into the emotional core of branding. It’s about creating a story that resonates on an emotional level, whether that’s a feeling of trust, excitement, aspiration or even nostalgia. When people feel something, they remember what sparked that feeling. And when they remember, they’re more likely to convert.

2. Data-Driven Optimization

Great storytelling is only half the equation. Brandformance campaigns must also be measurable — with metrics that go beyond the usual CTRs.

Modern marketers have the tools to test messaging, visuals, formats and timing in real time. If a story doesn’t click, the data will tell you. If a creative outperforms, you scale it.

Metrics to track may include:

• Time in view (How long did people engage?);
• Completion rate (Did they watch to the end?);
• Scroll depth (How far did they go?);
• CPA, ROAS, brand lift and more.

We’ll dive deeper into brandformance-specific KPIs in the following sections.

3. Channel Flexibility

Finally, brandformance doesn’t live in just one format. Its strength lies in the ability to adapt across channels, choosing the right environment for both story and scale.

Native advertising is especially effective: it mirrors the content experience, reaches users at the right moment and delivers both visibility and engagement.

Whether it’s a sponsored post in a premium publication or a short-form video on social media, brandformance works best at the intersection of storytelling and scale.

Where Does Brandformance Work Best?

Brandformance thrives where emotional storytelling meets scalable, measurable delivery — and that sweet spot depends on your choice of platform. Here’s a look at the most effective channels for brandformance campaigns, along with their pros and cons.

Native Advertising

Native ads blend into their environment, appearing within editorial content and matching its tone and format. This makes them ideal for brandformance efforts: native advertising respects the user experience while enabling both awareness-building and action-driving.

On the MGID platform, native campaigns go a step further. With access to over 32,000 content websites and a reach of 850M+ unique monthly visitors, marketers can launch campaigns that are:

• Scalable – with global reach across premium publishers like MSN, Newsweek, The Week, Investing.com and more;
• Contextually relevant – native placements appear next to trusted content, enhancing message credibility;
• Fully measurable – track everything from impressions and clicks to brand lift and conversions

Whether you're highlighting product benefits or launching a branded storytelling campaign, native ads via MGID offer the control, flexibility and impact that brandformance demands.

TikTok

A storytelling powerhouse. TikTok thrives on creator-driven content, community interaction and authenticity — all of which play well with brandformance goals.

YouTube

Perfect for longer-form content, YouTube gives brands the space to tell richer stories while offering robust performance tracking.

SEO

Often overlooked in brandformance conversations, SEO helps reinforce branded search intent. Optimizing around your brand name and related queries can drive organic discovery, support campaign messaging and increase authority.

Programmatic Advertising

Programmatic advertising enables precise audience targeting across display and video inventory — great for combining reach with real-time optimization.

DRTV (Direct Response TV)

Think infomercials, but smarter. DRTV blends narrative with a clear call to action, often prompting immediate responses via QR codes or direct links.

Creative Best Practices for Brandformance

If brandformance is the strategy, creativity is the engine. But unlike traditional branding or pure performance ads, brandformance creatives need to strike a balance: they should connect emotionally and convert efficiently. While not always easy, this is absolutely possible.

Here’s how to build creatives that do both.

1. Write Headlines That Tell a Story (and Get Clicks)

The headline is your campaign’s first impression. It should capture attention, spark curiosity and hint at what the user will gain — emotionally or practically.

What works:

• Headlines that highlight a benefit or solve a problem
• Curiosity-driven or emotionally charged statements
• Framing the story from the user’s perspective

Examples of high-performing headline styles:

• This One Feature Made Drivers Fall in Love with the New SUV
• Why Thousands of Parents Are Switching to This School Lunch Hack
• Feeling Stressed? This Simple Ritual Might Help (Backed by Science)

What to avoid:

• Overly vague or generic lines (Check this out, Best product ever)
• Clickbait that doesn’t match the landing content
• Overused phrasing or hard-sell language

2. Match Visuals to Emotion and Action

A good visual isn’t just a nice image — it sets the tone. In brandformance, your visuals should evoke emotion and guide the user toward the next step.

Tips:

• Use lifestyle imagery that mirrors the audience’s values and aspirations.
• Show the product in use (not just in a static packshot).
• Keep visuals clean, focused and consistent with brand tone.

3. Align Creative with Brand + Performance KPIs

Before launching, ask yourself: “What emotion do I want to trigger?” and “What action should the user take?”

Then, design creatives around both answers.

Brandformance Metrics: How to Measure Success

The key to the success of brandformance is tracking the right metrics at each stage of the funnel, ensuring that campaigns build brand perception and drive measurable results.

At the macro level, brandformance metrics fall into three categories.

1. Brand KPIs (Awareness & Sentiment)

• Awareness lift – How much did brand awareness increase?
• Brand recall – Do users remember seeing the ad?
• Share of voice (SoV) – How much visibility does the brand have in the market?

2. Performance KPIs (Conversions & Efficiency)

• CTR (Click-through rate) – Are users engaging with the ad?
• CPA (Cost per acquisition) – How much does it cost to acquire a customer?
• CAC (Customer acquisition cost) – How efficiently are we converting new buyers?

3. Hybrid / Attention Metrics (Engagement & Depth)

• Viewability rate – Did the ad actually appear on-screen?
• Completion rate – Did users watch the full video/ad?
• Time on ad – How long did they engage?
• Scroll depth – Did they explore the content?

How Brandformance Metrics Fit Into the Funnel

Below is a visual representation of how different KPIs align with the customer journey.

Awareness (Top of funnel)

• Views
• Cost per view (CPV)
• Unique users
• Brand lift KPIs: awareness lift, ad recall lift

Consideration (Mid-funnel)

• Click-through rate (CTR)
• Favorability lift
• Consideration lift
• Brand interest lift

Action (Bottom of funnel)

• Customer loyalty index
• Purchase intent lift
• Post-click and post-view conversions

Common Brandformance Strategies and MGID Success Cases

Brandformance campaigns go beyond simple awareness or conversions — they create a measurable brand impact while keeping a strong performance-driven approach. To achieve this, two key factors come into play:

• Finding the right context – сhoosing suitable publishing platforms and applying brand suitability filters to ensure the message resonates with the right audience;
• Crafting impactful creatives – associating the brand with key values (e.g., security, sustainability or trust) while integrating performance-driven elements such as compelling CTAs and value-driven messaging.

Let’s take a look at two real-world examples of how companies successfully combined branding and performance marketing using native advertising on MGID.

Tata Motors: Turning Consideration into Action

Imagine you’re in a fast-growing city in India, where cars aren’t just a mode of transport — they’re a sign of progress. Tata Motors, one of India’s leading automakers, wanted to capture this emerging demand in Tier 2 cities, where consumers were increasingly interested in upgrading their vehicles but hadn’t made a final decision.

The challenge? Make a brand memorable while also ensuring that potential buyers take the next step toward purchase.

The Approach

Instead of running traditional performance-driven ads that simply pushed discounts or financing options, Tata Motors embraced brandformance. The campaign was designed to:

• Position Tata Motors as a trusted choice for modern Indian drivers;
• Educate potential buyers on the unique benefits of each model;
• Encourage action — but only after building credibility.

Using native advertising via MGID, they strategically placed content-driven ads across high-relevance digital publishers. The ads blended seamlessly into editorial environments, making them feel more like recommendations than ads.

What Happened Next

• Users clicking on the ads landed on engaging, well-crafted landing pages that showcased Tata’s car models, benefits and financing options.
• Instead of a hard sell, the focus was on how each car fits different lifestyles — from young professionals to growing families.
• Smart retargeting ensured that interested users saw follow-up ads based on their interactions.

The Results

• 4.5 INR CPC on desktop, 3 INR on mobile — highly cost-efficient for the automotive sector.
• 1,000 INR eCPA, showing that the campaign was not just about engagement but real, trackable conversions.
• A stronger brand presence in Tier 2 cities, positioning Tata Motors as the go-to choice for first-time car buyers.

Bumbu Racik: From Awareness to Community Building

In Indonesia, food has deeply cultural sentiments far beyond its nourishing benefits. Bumbu Racik, a local seasoning brand, wanted to make sure that when home cooks reached for a seasoning blend, they picked Bumbu Racik.

The challenge? Create a brand that feels like part of the culture — while still driving real engagement and action.

The Approach

Instead of simply promoting the product, Bumbu Racik built a brandformance-driven content journey.

• Step 1: Use native advertising on MGID to drive traffic to sponsored articles on grid.id, a trusted local platform.
• Step 2: Position the product naturally within traditional Indonesian recipes, making it feel like a must-have rather than a new product being pushed.
• Step 3: Encourage deeper engagement by inviting users to follow Bumbu Racik on Instagram for more recipes and tips.

What Happened Next

• Thousands of home cooks read the sponsored articles, which felt organic and valuable rather than superficial and aggressive.
• Instead of scrolling past another ad, users actually engaged with the content, saved recipes and shared them.
• The brand gained a growing social media audience, ensuring that awareness didn’t just spike — it lasted.

The Results

• 34,512 views of the branded content.
• $0.06 CPC, making it one of the most cost-efficient awareness campaigns in the region.
• A boost in Instagram followers and social engagement, proving that brandformance isn’t just about ads — it’s about community.

How to Build Your Brandformance Strategy

What if we could launch a campaign that captures attention, builds trust and drives real results — all without forcing you to choose between branding and performance? That’s the sweet spot of brandformance, but getting there requires more than just good intentions.

To make brandformance work, you need a clear roadmap — one that blends storytelling with data, optimizes across multiple channels and continuously adapts based on real-time performance.

Here’s how to build and execute a winning brandformance strategy in five key steps.

Step 1: Define Your Objectives Across Both Axes

Before launching a campaign, you need to be clear on your goals. Brandformance campaigns should have dual objectives.

• Branding goals — Awareness lift, brand recall, favorability
• Performance goals — CTR, conversions, CPA

Example: A fashion brand might aim to increase brand perception while also driving traffic to an exclusive online sale.

Pro tip: Map out your primary KPI mix — this will determine which channels, creatives and measurement tools you’ll need.

Step 2: Select the Right Channels & Format

Your platform choice defines how your message is perceived and engaged with. Since brandformance is about balancing visibility with action, you need a mix of formats.

Example: A fintech startup looking to boost credibility might use native ads for trust-building, TikTok for engagement and retargeting for conversions.

Step 3: Design Creatives That Speak to Both Sides

Brandformance creatives should do two things well:

• Tell a compelling brand story;
• Encourage an action (click, sign-up, purchase, etc.).

Best practices:

• Use emotion-driven storytelling (customer stories, relatable narratives).
• Add a clear yet natural CTA (not too pushy, but always present).
• Keep branding consistent across touchpoints.
• Ensure visuals match intent (e.g., lifestyle images for awareness, product-focused visuals for conversion).

Example: A tech gadget brand could use a video ad with an emotional hook (Imagine a world without phone chargers…) and a native ad driving users to a blog review before leading to a purchase page.

Step 4: Launch & Measure Effectively

Once your campaign goes live, tracking the right metrics is key.

Here’s how to measure success at each stage.

• Awareness — views, cost per view, brand lift studies
• Consideration — click-through rates, time on site, favorability lift
• Action — conversions, CPA, post-click engagement

Example: A beauty brand running a native campaign should track brand recall (survey-based) alongside click-through and purchase rates.

Step 5: Optimize in Real-Time for Maximum Impact

Brandformance isn’t a set-and-forget strategy. It’s an iterative process that relies on ongoing optimization.

• A/B test different creatives & CTAs — Which message drives the best engagement?
• Adjust targeting as performance data rolls in — Are users engaging on mobile vs. desktop?
• Scale high-performing formats — If native outperforms display, shift more budget there.

Example: A travel company noticed better engagement on mobile native ads, so they increased mobile bids and tweaked creatives for smaller screens.

Final Thoughts: The Best of Both Worlds

For years, marketers have been stuck in a tug-of-war: long-term branding or short-term conversions? Big emotional storytelling or sharp performance metrics?

But here’s the truth — you don’t have to choose.

Brandformance proves that marketing can have it all. It brings together the best of both worlds: the power of branding to build awareness, trust and loyalty and the precision of performance marketing to drive measurable results.

With native advertising on MGID, brands can seamlessly combine these elements, ensuring that their brand message reaches the right audience, in the right context, at the right time.

And as the digital landscape evolves, one thing is clear: the brands that master brandformance today will dominate tomorrow.

So, the only question remaining is: are you ready to make the shift?