Brand Isn’t New, but How Businesses Operationalise It Is – Chello Research Finds

Why It Matters

The findings expose a systemic bottleneck that limits brand’s commercial impact, prompting firms to redesign governance and invest in cross‑functional brand systems—a shift that could unlock sustained growth and competitive differentiation.

Key Takeaways

• 86% of leaders rate brand as commercial driver 7/10+
• Brand remains largely owned by marketing despite cross‑functional relevance
• AI and performance data pressure marketers to prove brand value instantly
• Companies shift to decentralized models granting teams brand autonomy
• New systems aim to embed brand into product, hiring, operations

Pulse Analysis

Chello’s latest brand‑leadership benchmark draws on extensive conversations with senior marketers, revealing a paradox that many executives recognise brand as a growth engine yet keep it confined to the marketing silo. The report’s headline metric—86% of respondents rating brand as a top‑tier commercial driver—underscores the strategic weight of brand, but the operational reality remains fragmented. This disconnect hampers the ability to translate brand promise into consistent customer experiences across product design, service delivery, and talent acquisition, limiting long‑term value creation.

The research also flags the accelerating influence of AI and an always‑on performance culture. Marketers now face relentless demand for immediate ROI, with data‑driven optimisation tools scrutinising every campaign in real time. While these technologies boost efficiency, they also pressure brand teams to justify intangible assets on short‑term metrics, creating tension between brand’s inherently long‑horizon nature and the need for rapid, measurable outcomes. Leaders are therefore seeking ways to protect creative experimentation and strategic brand equity while satisfying the new data‑centric expectations.

In response, firms are experimenting with decentralized operating models that distribute brand stewardship across business units. Scalable brand platforms, clear governance principles, and cross‑functional training are emerging as the infrastructure needed to embed brand into everyday decisions without sacrificing coherence. By empowering product, HR, and operations teams to act autonomously within a unified brand framework, companies aim to turn brand from a marketing checkbox into a company‑wide growth lever, positioning themselves for sustained competitive advantage in an increasingly data‑driven market.