Basispoint Design

In marketing, as in investing, you can go long or short.

• Long means brand – broad-reaching, trust-building and designed to generate demand over time (top of funnel).
• Short is performance – targeted, measurable and focused on converting the few allocators already in-market (bottom of funnel).

During times of uncertainty, businesses often chase quick wins, shifting focus to short-term performance marketing to ride out volatility. But increasingly, firms are recognising that brand marketing is a hedge against downside risks. It also builds long-term value.

The rise of ‘brandformance’, the combination of brand and performance strategies, is a response to this. Done right, it delivers near-term results that steadily increase brand equity.

Emerging managers may not have the brand recognition or distribution muscle of larger firms, but that’s where brandformance creates leverage. By combining thoughtful content with targeted execution, smaller firms can punch above their weight, building credibility while engaging allocators in a way that reduces perceived risk.

Nearly 4 in 10 marketers now prioritise brand, up from just 14% last year. This shift makes one thing clear: balancing brand and performance isn’t a trade-off, it’s an edge.