How could your Brand's Expertise Work Harder for your Business?

The commercial value of connecting marketing channels

Bauer Media's Winning the Great Brand Race report analysed 569 award-entered advertising campaigns over 15 years, examining how different combinations of media channels are associated with brand and business performance.

One of the most striking findings was that campaigns combining the advertising channels studied reported 33% more significant brand effects than campaigns using none of those channels.

Brand effects are the longer-term outcomes that influence how people perceive and remember a business. They include brand awareness, trust, perceived quality and brand values, all of which can affect whether consumers recognise, consider and ultimately choose a brand.

The research also found that 66% of campaigns using the full combination reported very large improvements in brand trust, compared with 39% of campaigns using none of those channels.

For an industry where consumer confidence, clinical credibility and informed decision-making are fundamental, that finding is particularly relevant. Strong brand perceptions can influence consumer decisions well before someone is ready to book a consultation or purchase a treatment.

Are brands making the most of the expertise they already have?

Aesthetics manufacturers have access to an extraordinary depth of clinical knowledge, respected practitioners, scientific research and specialist education.

Much of this expertise already supports professional training, conferences, trade publications and communications with clinics.

But consumers increasingly encounter aesthetics through a much wider range of channels, including social media, online searches, beauty journalism, influencers and conversations with practitioners.

The opportunity is to consider how existing expertise can support more of these consumer interactions.

For example, a respected clinical expert may already contribute to professional conferences, training programmes and industry publications. Could that same expertise also inform consumer-focused discussions, educational video content, journalist briefings and live Q&A sessions?

The objective is to extend the value of existing investments and connect them with the questions consumers are asking.

Why the final enquiry doesn't tell the whole story

While brand effects help establish familiarity and trust over time, activation effects measure more immediate responses, such as website visits, enquiries, phone calls and footfall.

The Bauer Media research found that 45% of campaigns combining the advertising channels studied reported significant activation effects, compared with 15% of campaigns using none of those channels.

This is particularly interesting because it suggests that channels associated with stronger brand building can also contribute to shorter-term commercial outcomes.

It also reinforces a long-established challenge in marketing measurement: the limitations of last-click attribution. Marketers have recognised for years that attributing a conversion to the final interaction can overlook the influence of earlier brand-building activity. The Bauer research adds further evidence to the importance of evaluating how channels work together.

A consumer might first encounter a brand through a magazine article, hear a practitioner discussing a treatment, watch an expert interview and then research the brand online before booking a consultation.

The final enquiry may be attributed to search or social media, but the confidence behind that decision could have developed over several earlier encounters.

For aesthetics brands, this makes it particularly important to consider both longer-term brand effects and immediate activation when evaluating marketing investment.

Where live experiences and communities fit into the wider marketing mix

The Bauer Media research findings raise useful questions about the role of face-to-face and community engagement. Live experiences and trusted communities can offer something different from traditional media: the opportunity to meet experts, ask questions, understand complex information and develop confidence through direct interaction.

For aesthetics brands, this could involve bringing existing clinical experts into consumer conversations, creating educational content for wider distribution, connecting with relevant journalists and content creators, or gaining a better understanding of consumer interests and concerns.

Rather than operating as a standalone activity, these experiences can become an integral part of the wider marketing strategy, amplifying PR, digital marketing, influencer relationships, clinic education and existing content.

A single expert discussion, for instance, could provide educational value to the people attending while also generating material for subsequent articles, videos, social content and brand communications.

The commercial opportunity lies in planning these activities together, with clear objectives and a consistent message.

Making existing investment work harder

For aesthetics brands, the question is not simply where to invest next, but how to generate greater value from the expertise, content and relationships they have already built.

That means considering how marketing activity works across the entire consumer journey, from initial awareness and education to building trust, influencing consideration and supporting eventual decisions.

It also means measuring success beyond immediate enquiries, recognising the wider contribution of brand visibility, consumer engagement, content and meaningful relationships.

Live experiences and community platforms have an important role to play in this approach, particularly when the conversations, insights and content they generate continue to create value long after an event has finished.

At AesthetiX Live, we're exploring how consumer education, thought leadership, expert-led live experiences and relevant industry partnerships can contribute to that wider marketing picture.