Busy Work = 38% of campaigns
PrincipleBrand Strategy
Advertising Planning Matrix - Growth Engine, Cult Hit, Paid Noise, Busy Work
The Advertising Planning Matrix crosses Creative Dividend against media support. Growth Engine (invest and protect) is 17% of campaigns and reports profit 14% of the time. Busy Work (below average on both) is the most common landing spot at 38% of campaigns and reports profit 5% of the time. Cult Hit needs scale; Paid Noise needs better work before more media.
Source
The Creative Dividend - a partnership between Effie and System1 (2026)
Andrew Tindall (System1), with Effie Worldwide; ESOC advised by Les Binet
Figure 94 and Table 20, p. 95-96, The Creative Dividend (Effie x System1, 2026), 1,153 campaigns
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StatCreative quality and media support together explain most of what a campaign achievesPrincipleCreative Dividend and Excess Share of Creativity - creative advantage, then creative advantage at scaleStatCreative advantage backed by media raises the odds of market share growth in a straight lineStatThe profit payoff from creative advantage compounds rather than accumulatesPrincipleDistinctiveness turns spend into revenue, emotion turns revenue into profitStatDistinctive and emotional work multiplies profit hardest on the smallest budgetsStatCreative quality is the largest profit multiplier a marketer actually controlsWarningMarketers rank targeting above creativity, and the data says it is the other way roundStatCampaigns that deliver several business outcomes are dramatically more likely to deliver profitStatRevenue is the easy result, profit is the rare oneWarningStacking short-term objectives onto a campaign drives its chance of profit to zeroStatThe rise of short-term campaign objectives tracks platform revenue almost perfectly