Brand and Performance Are One
Too many marketers treat brand and performance as separate. In Episode 7 of Beyond the Billboard, Chantal Rapport, CMO and EVP of Growth at Upstart, makes it clear: they are connected. Every touchpoint shapes your brand. Every performance effort reflects your brand. You cannot split them if you want long-term success.
Watch the full episode below.
“Brand and performance are not two different things. They are interrelated. They’re impossible to break free from one another.” – Chantal Rapport
Stop Thinking Brand is Just a Marketing Function
Your brand is not owned by marketing. It is owned by everyone in your company. From customer service to product development, every action feeds into the brand experience.
If marketing is the only team focused on brand, you’re missing the point. Rapport says companies need to embed brand thinking across every team and level.
“The idea that the marketing org or the CMO owns brand, I just can’t comprehend.” – Chantal Rapport
Brand Is Performance
Your brand directly impacts performance metrics. A strong brand lowers acquisition costs, increases retention, and improves lifetime value. The key is to stop isolating brand investments. Instead, track how they influence core business outcomes.
“The company is brand, and brand is performance.” – Chantal Rapport
Educate Internally: Align Everyone Around Brand
To make brand work, your team needs to understand its value. Chantal talks about the need for internal marketing. Leaders must show how brand drives results over time, just like product development or customer success.
Action step: Build a simple internal deck that ties brand efforts to business goals. Show examples from past campaigns. Use language your CFO or CEO cares about: retention, revenue, growth.
Time Is Your Most Valuable Resource
Marketing leaders waste time chasing fast results instead of building lasting impact. Rapport reminds us that time, not money, is the limiting factor. Brand efforts take time to pay off, but when done right, they continue to deliver.
“The most finite resource we all have is time. It’s not money. I can make money. I can’t make time.” – Chantal Rapport
Creativity Still Wins: Make Your Brand Memorable
In a world full of digital ads, creative work that stands out is more important than ever. Billboards, great visuals, and smart storytelling leave lasting impressions. People may forget a quick ad, but a strong brand experience stays with them.
“When a billboard is done right, and you’re standing in front of it, it’s pretty impactful.” – Chantal Rapport
Use New Tools, But Stay Creative
Generative AI can speed up content creation, but it should support creativity, not replace it. The brands that win will use AI to produce faster, while still focusing on unique, engaging ideas that build both brand and performance.
“Marketing tools are about to blow up with generative AI. We can bring things to life faster and easier.” – Chantal Rapport
Key Takeaways to Apply Now
- Stop separating brand and performance. Plan them together.
- Make every team in your company aware of their role in brand building.
- Tie brand investments to long-term business results, not just short-term clicks.
- Use internal marketing to get buy-in from leadership and teams.
- Focus on time as your most valuable asset. Plan for long-term impact.
- Stand out with creative work that people remember.
- Use AI to scale, but keep creativity at the center.
Want More? Listen to Episode 7 of Beyond the Billboard
Hear the full conversation with Chantal Rapport on how to break the divide between brand and performance. Get real-world advice and more examples from a top CMO shaping today’s marketing strategies.