---
title: "Deep Dive: The Communication Logic for Brands Has Fundamentally Changed!"
description: "Years ago, when I first heard the term 'brand-effect integration,' I was repulsed by it. I believed that if you wanted a brand, you shouldn't consider short-term results, and if you wanted results, you could just offer red envelopes, lucky draws, or discounts. I always thought brand and effect were opposites, like the poles of a magnet, unable to be integrated. However, given the current economic environment, internet communication landscape, and consumer cognition, which have undergone disruptive improvements, we need to adopt a new mindset toward 'brand-effect integration.' I believe it is now achievable. Note: the brand-effect integration I'm referring to is not about adding promotional information or QR codes to creative ads, but rather a more abstract approach that may yield higher conversion rates."
author: "杨不坏"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
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published: "2018-12-19"
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# Deep Dive: The Communication Logic for Brands Has Fundamentally Changed!

> Years ago, when I first heard the term 'brand-effect integration,' I was repulsed by it. I believed that if you wanted a brand, you shouldn't consider short-term results, and if you wanted results, you could just offer red envelopes, lucky draws, or discounts. I always thought brand and effect were opposites, like the poles of a magnet, unable to be integrated. However, given the current economic environment, internet communication landscape, and consumer cognition, which have undergone disruptive improvements, we need to adopt a new mindset toward 'brand-effect integration.' I believe it is now achievable. Note: the brand-effect integration I'm referring to is not about adding promotional information or QR codes to creative ads, but rather a more abstract approach that may yield higher conversion rates.

Years ago, when I first heard the term "brand-effect integration," I was repulsed by it. If you want a brand, don't consider effects; if you want effects, just send red envelopes, run lucky draws, or offer discounts—those will definitely yield results. I used to think brand and effect were opposites, like the positive and negative poles of a magnet, unable to be integrated.

But now, after the current economic environment, internet communication landscape, and consumer cognition have undergone disruptive improvements, we need to adopt a new mindset toward "brand-effect integration." I believe it is now achievable. **Note: the brand-effect integration I'm referring to is not about adding promotional information or QR codes to creative ads, but rather a more abstract approach that may yield higher conversion rates.**

So today, I'll mainly discuss how I came to understand this concept. Enjoy:

**Traditional Era: Effects Lag Behind**

Before discussing brand-effect integration, let's talk about why advertising and marketing professionals hate it. Brand-effect integration means building the brand while boosting sales. For advertisers, our ads are creativity and art; adding the stench of commerce and products tarnishes the art. Advertising is for long-term brand building, not short-term sales. Clients who pursue brand-effect integration must be short-sighted.

Advertisers are right—brand and effect are hard to integrate, and it's not their fault. In the traditional advertising era, the path from brand to effect was long. We saw ads on media like TV, newspapers, and magazines. If the ad sparked a purchase desire, the nearest point to get the product might be a convenience store at the village entrance, or a large department store in the county town. The physical distance was too long. If the ad sparked only a slight desire, it would fade away before seeing the product, making conversion difficult. In such a context, pursuing long-term brand building was the wiser choice.

Now consider the methods for pursuing effects: handing out flyers at the store entrance, large pull-up banners with discount info, or even bigger—announcing in advance when and where a promotion would take place. **The most important aspect of all effect-oriented methods is that the information is close enough to the product; after seeing the information, you can see the product within a short distance, which can induce purchase.** This is crucial.

So, in the traditional industrial era, when all business activities were offline and physical, brand and effect had to be separated. Brand was for long-term mind-set change, and effect was for short-term regional consumption stimulation. They couldn't be integrated. **The conversion path from brand to effect was too long; during that process, consumers lost the desire to act. People always lose passion in hesitation.**

**Re-understanding Brand-Effect Integration**

Now, in the contemporary era, what do people understand by "brand-effect integration"? I observe that most still interpret it with traditional thinking. When they talk about brand-effect integration, they inevitably add links, QR codes, or mini-programs to ads—something that jumps to a direct conversion. Based on the data I know, the conversion rate for internet feeds and video pre-roll ads is steadily around a few thousandths, which rounds to zero.

In most cases, the jump links in ads are simply ineffective. Would you scan a QR code in an elevator? Would you scan a QR code on a subway or bus stop billboard? Links from self-media articles to the App Store often go through an intermediate webpage. Because internet companies are at odds, the jump path becomes complicated.

So, if not through jump links, how can brand-effect integration be achieved?

First, the background: this is the main basis for calling it the "first year." The proliferation of mobile internet and lower data costs allow people to stare at their phones anytime, anywhere, and shop, download new apps, watch, browse, etc. This is a crucial infrastructure. It means that the "effect" in brand-effect integration can mostly be completed on the phone. First conclusion: "brand" may be scattered, but "effect" is concentrated in the phone. No matter where you see it, you can pick up your phone and complete the "effect" conversion.

Next, the conversion path. Due to the widespread internet infrastructure, people's conversion paths have changed. Previously, the channels and forms of "brand" were relatively concentrated—mainly TV stations, plus some niche newspapers and magazines. "Effect" was scattered, mainly offline in various places. Now it's the opposite: "brand" is scattered—online and offline, ads, content, various soft ads, recommendations, AI, etc. "Effect" is relatively concentrated in the phone, though spread across different apps, but still within one screen.

Almost all "effects," if I want, can be completed or initiated within 10 seconds on the phone. As long as you have a phone with internet, you can see and buy, see and experience. In such an environment, the consumer's conversion path is: See — Search — Act.

**See**: See ads, creative, brand communication, etc., anywhere—see content that induces consumption. **Search**: Two meanings: first, search for reviews—check what others say about the product (product, content, experience, etc.); second, search for the location of the product (product, content, experience, etc.) to see if it suits you. **Act**: After checking others' reviews, decide whether to consume. If you decide to consume, act immediately, get it immediately, without waiting a second or taking a step—just swipe your phone and act.

So, let's re-understand the meaning of brand-effect integration. The path from brand to effect now is often not a physical path like QR codes or jump links. All paths are concentrated in the phone; you can see, find, and buy without needing a link to transfer. **The real path from brand to effect is the psychological path: whether the content moves me, whether I have a purchase impulse, whether the ad appears at the right time, etc., together form a reason to act. Convert immediately.**

**Brand-Effect Integration Is: Taking Action**

**So, brand-effect integration is about taking action. This action might be purchasing, downloading, experiencing—not just seeing, but a response after seeing.** Then the question arises: how to get consumers to act? What about the ads and content we've done before? What kind of marketing is brand-effect integrated marketing?

The content is still the same, the forms are still the same, but the most important thing is a shift in mindset. **Previously, the goal of ad content might be exposure, awareness, or creative skill. Now, when thinking about the goal of an ad, consider the reaction of the target audience when they see it. Whether it can get the audience to act is the core goal of all brand communication.** Below, I'll discuss a few action-oriented ideas, hoping they help.

**Clear Information Points**

Clear information points mean that with a glance, you know what they're saying. It must not be a question or a description, but an assertion. For example, "Give gifts, give Brain Platinum" or "Shenzhou Special Car is a safe car." Gift-giving and safety are the core information points, forming an assertion that is powerful and quickly conveys the core message. This is important.

You've probably seen many ads that are incomprehensible. As an advertising professional, sometimes I search a print ad for a long time, trying to find what message it's conveying. Sometimes I find it, sometimes not. So the waste of ad budget isn't the consumer's fault; it's often the brand and the advertiser who fail to give consumers clear information points.

There are two main reasons for unclear information points: First, advertisers think they need to be indirect and euphemistic, thinking consumers will accept it better, and that direct commercial messages are too blunt. Not only should the information point be euphemistic, but the logo should also be as small as possible to look classy. Second, the brand side often rushes to communicate without new information or without sorting out a clear message. Many brand communications are forced, unqualified ads with no new information to convey.

These two points waste more than half of the ad budget, or even more. In reality, consumers need to quickly know what you're saying to decide whether to continue watching or not waste their time. Traditional ads tend to put the brand at the end—first tell a story, a plot, and finally reveal the brand.

For current brand communication, my bias is that **the brand should be front-loaded. First, clearly state who you are and what you want to say, let consumers bring the brand in, and then slowly tell the details or story. That is, clarify the logo and core information, filter out the target audience, and then express more detailed information to them.**

**Specific Action Coordinates**

You've also seen some ads that are creative, with great visuals and copy, but after watching, it's over, and you forget it soon. Some might say some ads are purely for exposure, just to inform, and don't require consumers to do anything. This idea wastes a lot of ad budget every year.

**Memory is composed of experiences; what you remember are events, not times.** Even for exposure and awareness, try to get the audience to take some action. This action might be picking up the phone to download, purchase, experience, or it could be laughing, pondering, putting themselves in the scene, or sharing on Moments. **In short, engage with the audience and make the relationship intimate.**

For example, Coca-Cola's nickname bottles were an interactive idea. Although there was no explicit instruction on what to do, when you got a nickname bottle, you'd put yourself in it, take a photo, and share it on Moments. That's action. Nike's campaign #出来出来# is a highly action-oriented brand campaign. Some videos now use first-person perspective to better immerse viewers in the story, making the final call to purchase or download more persuasive. Scenario-based brainwashing, using video, H5, or other forms to create an ideal scenario, guides consumers to act. And so on.

So-called action coordinates, in my view, are not about telling consumers how to act. Educational action commands are outdated; the new generation of consumers wants to decide for themselves. In a previous chat with a friend, we mentioned a word: "proposal." Propose to consumers, propose to young people, and then let them decide how to act. So action coordinates are not about drawing a roadmap, but providing a scenario display that guides consumers to proactively make the decision and action you want them to make.

I can't tell you how to create action coordinates, but one method might help you focus: "sense of presence." When creating any brand communication content or media mix, abstract a scene in your mind, immerse yourself in it, feel every detail and possible feedback, then adjust, polish, and modify. This "sense of presence" is abstract but crucial in brand content creation. I hope you understand and use it.

**Creating Action Moments**

If it's not a necessity or a new product's first trial, a person's consumption impulse lasts only a short time—a few seconds, a few minutes, maybe up to 10 minutes at most. After that moment, rekindling the impulse requires stronger stimulation. So you need to create an action moment and get immediate conversion.

The information points and action coordinates mentioned earlier might be achieved with one piece of content, if the content is good enough. But creating an action moment is best done with multiple content pieces and media touchpoints working together to create a moment and allow the impulse to be released immediately for conversion. How to use media combinations to create action moments was detailed in the article "Reallocating Advertising Budgets," which you can refer to.

This action moment is composed of multiple factors. For example, you saw it in the elevator before, saw it again in Moments yesterday, and today a former colleague shared it, saying new users get a free trial. So, do you want to try it? This is achieved through traditional ads conveying information points, social media discussions, KOL guidance in circles, and finally perhaps conversion through benefits. This is actually a carefully set net for the audience, gradually trapping them, ultimately triggering an action moment and immediate conversion, achieving brand-effect integration.

**Summary**

Today, I mainly re-understood the term "brand-effect integration." It's not achieved through mutual compromise or sacrifice, but **true integration of brand and effect is getting consumers to act, a conversion in the mind, not discount info or jump links in brand ads.**

Based on the above, let me summarize why 2019 is the first year of brand-effect integration. I think there are two main reasons:

**Shortened conversion path:** Internet infrastructure is now very complete. All "effects" pointed to by brand communication can be completed or initiated instantly on the phone, without waiting, seeing is getting. This is a benefit of improved internet infrastructure. Like electric current, the farther the transmission, the longer the distance, the greater the decay. The same goes for human enthusiasm: the longer the time, the more action enthusiasm decays. Shortened conversion paths mean consumers' enthusiasm barely decays, immediately turning into action.

**Cautious brand budgets:** Another realistic reason is that clients will become increasingly cautious in market decisions. They'd rather do nothing than do ineffective things. Previously, many clients were willing to test different agencies, see which one was active recently, invite them to pitch, and spend a million or so on a project. This will likely become rarer next year. Every penny a client spends should have a clear goal and purpose. Blind, extensive marketing is probably becoming a thing of the past.

The caution in spending and the improved communication environment will drive the entire industry to explore and practice brand-effect integration. The conversion between brand and effect I believe is more abstract, a mental conversion, not a forced integration on a physical path. This requires clients' professional discernment and marketers' meticulous operational skills.

Source: 杨不坏 (ID: yangbuhuai01)

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