"In this world of filters and celebrities and influencers, what I'm seeing is that people are wanting something that feels real," said Patrick Buchanan, SVP of marketing at Lulus on a recent episode of “Behind the Numbers.” "When they hear stories that feel like their own or see people who look like they're in a similar life stage, you see people relating to that."

Marketers face pressure to be data-driven while maintaining authentic human connections.

• Buchanan approaches this challenge by viewing data and instinct as partners rather than opponents.
• "Data and instinct, I consider them partners not opposites," Buchanan explains. "When you find a way to let the instinct create the idea, but the data to be the guiding force to help you fine-tune and find new ways to make the idea better."

This partnership approach helps brands navigate the complexity of modern marketing, where clear KPIs are essential.

"The way I see success is making sure those KPIs are really clear up front and that as a leadership team, we talk about them and make sure that we're holding our teams accountable," said Buchanan.

The return to brand fundamentals

After years of obsession with last-click attribution, marketers are rediscovering traditional brand metrics that measure deeper consumer connections.

"What I've seen is that there's now a little bit of a shift towards the old school brand measurements," said Sonal Gandhi, chief content officer at The Lead. "We were so obsessed with the last click metrics for a long time, but I've noticed a lot of people talk about brand affinity and brand recognition."

This shift reflects a growing understanding that while performance marketing drives immediate sales, brand building creates lasting value. According to Gandhi, forward-thinking companies are aligning their organizations around engagement with target audiences rather than focusing exclusively on revenue metrics.

Authenticity wins

As consumers tire of polished, artificial content, brands succeed with genuine storytelling and influencer partnerships.

"Influencer marketing is still growing much faster than overall digital advertising and even social advertising in the US during our forecast period," said our analyst Sky Canaves. "But there's a paradox in there because there is some influencer fatigue taking place and less trust in that overtly sponsored content."

Because of this, brands are increasingly working with smaller creators who have authentic connections to their audiences.

• "More than half of [influencer marketing spend] will go to influencers with less than 20,000 followers by 2026," Canaves notes, highlighting the shift toward micro-influencers who can build genuine community engagement.
• Lulus leverages this trend with their "You and Lulus" series, featuring actual customers wearing their products in real-life situations.
• "You get to see real people," said Buchanan. "These are how real women wear our dresses and how they show up in their real life. That tells a better story and really shows how practical the items are versus someone who's only wearing the brand because they're being paid."

Preparing for the next wave

As marketing evolves rapidly, brands must stay nimble while remaining true to their core identity.

• Gandhi observes that all brands now face the cyclical nature of consumer attention that was once unique to fashion trends.
• "All brands now are sneaker brands," she said. "Sneaker brands had to be like, it's a wave of Sambas, and then waves of [another style], and the New Balance. Every brand has to think that: They'll be on top, and tomorrow, it'll be somebody else."

Marketers must constantly seek new opportunities while maintaining authentic connections with their audience.

“In an always-on world, relevance matters more than volume,” said Buchanan. “People come to you for a reason, and I would say just deliver on that reason.”

Listen to the full episode

This article was prepared with the assistance of generative AI tools to support content organization, summarization, and drafting. All AI-generated contributions have been reviewed, fact-checked, and verified for accuracy and originality by EMARKETER editors. Any recommendations reflect EMARKETER’s research and human judgment.

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