Should a creative studio commit to conversion rates?
Expecting incorrectly is the source of many conflicts between brand owners and image creators.
You should not expect a creative studio to commit to engagement or conversion metrics, as most of those results depend on media operations that the image creators do not control. What is reasonable to expect is the quality of creative direction and the consistency of the visual system, both of which are directly under the studio's control. You should set engagement and conversion metrics for the media operations team, which manages the budget, targeting, and timing.
- expect the studio to be responsible for creative quality, consistency, proper identity, and correct formatting.
- set interaction and conversion metrics for the media operations team, which manages the budget and targeting.
- design a way to separate creative contributions from media contributions before launching.
- demand that the creative studio commits to sales, as both parties can be stuck due to results beyond their control.
- trusting promises about numbers is often a sign of dishonesty.
You should not expect any creative studio to honestly commit to engagement or conversion metrics. Not because the studio is avoiding responsibility, but because advertising results are composed of many factors, most of which are beyond the control of the image creators.
The result of advertising is not decided by one party alone.
According to Nielsen research, creativity is the largest contributing factor to advertising sales. However, it is still just one of many factors, alongside brand, targeting, and reach. No single party can determine the outcome alone.
When a campaign runs, the following factors influence simultaneously:
- The quality of creativity: ideas, images, messages.
- Media budget and coverage.
- Targeting the audience: who sees the advertisement, where, and when.
- Timing and seasonality
- The price and appeal of the product.
- Operations team: who optimizes daily tasks?
The creative studio controls the creative part. The rest belongs to your media team and business department. Assigning all conversion metrics to the studio is misdirecting.
Commitment of authenticity versus empty promises
A genuine commitment should only be based on things that can truly be controlled:
- Quality of creative direction: big ideas, core visuals aligned with brand direction.
- A consistent visual system used everywhere customers see and across all channels.
- A set of guidelines adapted to give the media team the best foundation for implementation.
This is a boundary of responsibility, not a way to avoid it. This boundary protects both parties: you do not sign a contract with unfounded promises, and the studio is not held accountable for factors it does not control.
Short-term and long-term measured by different standards
According to research by the IPA compiled by Les Binet and Peter Field, advertising effectiveness consists of two layers. Sales activation yields quick results but is short-lived. Brand building accumulates over time and is difficult to measure with weekly or monthly metrics.
If you use short-term conversion metrics to evaluate the overall effectiveness of your brand image, it’s easy to draw incorrect conclusions. A set of images built for long-term recognition may appear "unsuccessful" when measured by the click-through rate in the first week.
Sales activation: measured by click-through rates, conversions, and short-term revenue. Suitable for promotional campaign visuals, flash sales, and product launches with clear deadlines.
Brand building: measured by brand awareness, brand sentiment, and accumulated sales over several months. Cannot be measured in the first few weeks.
Common mistakes when setting expectations
- Demanding that the creative studio guarantees sales, then both get stuck due to results beyond their control and conflicts with no resolution.
- Measure brand films by short-term conversion metrics and hastily conclude failure.
- Trust firm promises of specific numbers solely from the creative side, which is often a sign of dishonesty or misunderstanding of roles.
- No pre-designed cut points when writing the main script, making it very costly to extract short clips later and resulting in unnatural outcomes.
Decision checklist
Topic: Should we expect commitments on interaction and conversion results? Sinh Vũ guide, sinhvu.com
Tick each item that applies or that you can already answer, then print or save as PDF to take with you.
If you have marked most of the signs above, this is the time to discuss in more detail. Sinh Vũ can help you review and propose a direction.
References
Nielsen: Creativity is the biggest contributor to advertising revenue, but not the only factor. IPA: Les Binet and Peter Field on short-term and long-term effectiveness in advertising. Sinh Vũ: the boundary of campaign image design services, no commitment to campaign KPIs.
Frequently asked questions
If the images are beautiful but the ads still don’t generate orders, whose fault is it?
There is no simple answer because advertising results are made up of many factors: creativity, targeting, budget, product price, timing. You need to separate the contributions of each part before assigning responsibility. If the imagery is consistent, conveys the right message, and is in the correct format but still ineffective, then you should review the media and product first.
If a studio promises to ensure conversion rates, should I believe them?
Be cautious. Conversion rates depend on budget, targeting, seasonality, and many factors that the creative team does not control. A firm promise about conversion numbers solely from the creative side is often a sign of dishonesty, or the person making the promise is confusing their role with that of the media team.
So what criteria should I use to evaluate the quality of work from a creative studio?
Evaluate based on what the studio can actually control. Does the idea align with the brand direction? Is the visual system consistent across all touchpoints? Are the assets in the correct format and do they have the adaptable guidelines for the media team to implement? This is a more honest measure than assigning the studio a metric influenced by many parties.
This article is for reference. The scope, pricing, and specific commitments of Sinh Vũ are detailed in the proposal and signed contract.