Nasser: Welcome to Shift Happens. I’m Nasser Sahlool. I’m mindful that, so far in our episodes, it’s been a bit of a cavalcade of nerds and dorks. So, people like Luke Regan and Dan Temby in particular, fit that bill. 

So, we thought we would switch it up a little bit today and go to the other side of our brain, the other hemisphere. And joining me today, I am delighted to welcome Mylene Savoie. Welcome to the show, Mylene. 

Mylene: Thank you so much. 

Nasser: 

So Mylene is our GM of our Montreal office. The best thing to come out of Quebec since Denis Villeneuve. Big fan. And so Mylene, I guess a good place to start for us today – Because we’re going to be talking about creativity as it relates to the work that we do here and, and how brands really need to think about how that’s changing. 

You come from a very strong creative background, you know, creative agencies and so on. So why are you working in a media agency and one with a heavy focus on performance marketing and getting surrounded by nerds and dorks like Dan Temby and Luke Regan?  

Mylene: 

Well, that’s a great question. I think nerds and dorks, have ever since high school, I’ve noticed that nerds and dorks is where it’s at. They’re actually the cool kids, when it comes down to it. And for me, 20 plus years in creative agencies and of course always been passionate about brands and big ideas. 

I believe in the power of, why and how brands can help transform clients’ businesses and achieve their business objectives. But I was starting to feel that I, or the creative industry was getting a little bit left behind from where media performance marketing was going. 

I know in your last episode, with Robert, we’re talking about how a lot of the CEO and CMOs, you know, post-COVID have been shifting a lot of their budgets, away from brand and towards, mid funnel and performance marketing, which, was necessary at the time. 

We talked about the pendulum. You guys talked about the pendulum as well. And I felt that there was a need for me to dig into that a little bit more. And, my observation of the market and where clients were looking to invest increasingly and looking for thought leadership from their agencies, and where they were assigning more value was with media and performance marketing. 

So I was like, that’s the train, that’s where it’s going, and I want to get on that train. 

Nasser: 

So it’s interesting because when we think about, creative from a media perspective… A lot of us get very, very practical and tactical extremely quickly. And we think of creative as assets. Is that a fair statement or is it something bigger than that? 

Mylene: 

Of course the assets are part of it, but they’re, a product of the bigger idea and the bigger brand. And I think that it’s really important for brands to remember to always ladder up to the larger brand ecosystem. Because I believe that’s where the power of the brand lies, is when everything is connected. Everything ladders up to one idea, one purpose, one vision, that’s clear for the consumers. 

And so ultimately then once you have that brand idea and that brand ecosystem, the media then just becomes the channels that you choose to reach the specific audience that you’re looking to reach. But what’s most important is that every touchpoint within the brand ecosystem looks and feels the same, so that the audience can recognize themselves regardless of what channel they’re in and what part of the consumer journey they’re in. 

Nasser: 

All right, so that’s interesting because when we think about assets and media assets and creative assets, one of the hallmarks of media activation in 2026 is the speed and the scale of it. 

So, you know, how does the central idea fit within an environment where you’ve got platforms and channels and tactics kind of flying at you all the time?  

Mylene: 

Well, ideally, and I think the best brands obviously do it. Ideally you have a brand idea, a brand strategy and a brand ecosystem. That is solid enough, flexible enough and timeless enough to allow you to adjust, and be reactive, and adjust to all the various channels that are constantly growing. 

I just saw today, ChatGPT is now testing ad formats. So it’s, you know, the brands that already have the strong brand ecosystems are going to be able to say, yeah, let’s go into that, no problem. And the brands that have a little bit more identity crisis and that are reinventing themselves every time they switch platforms and switch channels, are going to struggle with that, a little bit more. 

 Nasser: 

So that’s interesting because if we think about how when new channels emerge, the way that a lot of brands go about addressing that is okay, I don’t know anything about this new channel, whether it’s TikTok or an AI platform or what have you. I need an agency that specializes in that. Does that still work? 

Mylene: 

It works for sure. Understanding how to best leverage a channel for your brand is guidance and thought leadership that that every marketer, CMO would benefit from. But where I think that some advertisers, lose the mark or lose their way, is that they will adapt too much to a certain platform and the needs of that platform, and then the brand gets a little lost in that. 

So a consumer that is being exposed to the brand across multiple platforms might not recognize the brand from one platform to the next, or maybe not as quickly as they should. Because as you know, the more channels you’re introducing, the more fragmented, the more the attention span is ever more split up. 

So sometimes, you know, we think we’re putting a creative asset out there, assuming that the person’s going be able to see it from beginning to finish. And it’s not always the case. 

Nasser: 

So what you’re saying is maybe a defense contractor, getting a lot of views through a TikTok dance is not a good thing. 

Mylene: 

Probably not. Or they might not get the brand assignment or allocation, as quickly as they could or should. 

Nasser: 

Well, that’s a shame. So, let’s talk a little bit about … because you mentioned audience right. And brands typically don’t have one audience. That audience is segmented in all kinds of different ways, whether it’s demographically, psychographic, based on their journey stage, and geographically as well. How does a brand remain consistent while trying to appeal to different audiences at different stages of the journey? 

Mylene: 

So again, I know I’m kind of repeating myself, but I’m a big advocate for consistent brands, for brands that ladder up to a very clear, concise brand ecosystem, brand idea, or brand purpose. Because to me, you’re going to have so many hands. I mean, obviously it’s global brands…You’ve got teams across countries, across continents, multiple agencies working on your brand. 

You know, I’m going to quote the obvious one, but Apple. For anybody in a creative agency or media agency that’s worked on Apple, the brand guidelines are as rigorous as they get, and there’s not a lot of creative… and would arguably say there’s not a lot of creative freedom in there. There is though, and that makes it so that when you are encountering or coming across any piece of Apple creative or media, it’s an instant recognition. So to me, they are kind of obviously the gold standard. 

And there are other examples, Ikea, Coca-Cola, Nike. I know they’re the usual suspects, but we cite them often because they’re doing it really well. 

Nasser: 

And it’s interesting because, I mean, the last one was the example of where they veered away from that, in terms into that direct-to-consumer environment. And it didn’t quite work out, because central to who they were was their relationships with their vendors and all of these kinds of things.
So you talk about these brands like these really storied brands that have long term equity that they built, through that brand promise and the idea. But does having that idea unlock opportunity in the short term as well? 

Mylene: 

Absolutely. I think I mean, for the brands that have invested over an extended period of time into their upper funnel brand identity, brand love, they can take those liberties in the short term to kind of shift away from it. Again, referring back to your previous podcast, a lot of marketers, a lot of the clients that I’m working with even, today, are looking for what’s that magic number? What’s that magic mix? What’s the impact on my business if I shift out of that, instant gratification mid funnel, or performance marketing that the CMOs and CEOs  are kind of really reluctant to let go of because it’s like immediate. 

But to Robert’s point, some of the brands … have the pendulum has swung too far and the piggy bank of brand equity is running a little low on funds. So there’s a, I think a need to for those brands… the bigger brands, they have the benefit of, of maybe moving away from that right. Some of the mid-tier brands, I think there’s a lot of benefit in shifting, investments back into your brand.  

Nasser: 

So those businesses that perhaps haven’t taken the time and effort to define that, and they’ve been growing in a channel specific way, which a lot of businesses today do. Whether it’s search or social or programmatic, what would you say to them on a practical level? Like where should they start, in terms of unifying all of this? And what’s the benefit to them in terms of doing this? 

Mylene: 

I’ll bring it back to something that’s not even a marketing expression. I don’t know if I can say this word, but the notion of keep it simple, stupid – I think applies to marketing, applies to branding. And I think my advice to any brand, small, medium or large would be to really take a look at your brand ecosystem. And, you know, if you’re not able to define your brand in one word or a couple of words, then you should be looking at how you can perhaps boil it down, clarify it, simplify it. 

Nasser: 

To what benefit? 

Mylene: 

To the fact that it’s it’ll be more widely understood to a larger group of people, in a shorter amount of time. Making it more efficient, effective… as we said, talked about the number of channels and the continually growing number of channels. 

I think the more brands that are able to do that ahead of time, as the media ecosystem continues to change, the better equipped they’ll be to be able to react, to whatever shift in media strategy that’s being recommended. 

Nasser: 

It is interesting when I look at the different sectors, categories that we work with, one category that generally lags behind when it comes to investment in creative is B2B, right? 

Because you’ll hear them say it, you’ll hear a lot of people at B2B organizations say it’s like it’s B2B, you know, it’s not cool. It’s not fun.  

Mylene: 

I don’t need it. I know my target. I already know. 

Nasser: 

So what do you say to them? 

Mylene: 

I say the power of a brand is the power of the brand, no matter who you’re targeting. And you never know also where your business is going to evolve. Just recently, I worked on a proposal for a B2B business, who had the exact same discourse that you just mentioned. And now they’ve had an opportunity to have some investment in their business, and now they’re going to be actually developing a new line of products, which will be B2C. 

And now they’re having to backtrack and go relook at the way that their brand hierarchy is structured. So that’s to your point. Had they had a crystal ball and had they put a little more, I don’t want to say importance on their branding, but maybe thought a little bit bigger and said, who knows where my company might go one day. 

And you know, no, I think no matter, even if you’re the smallest company, you’re starting your own restaurant, your own brand of clothing. I think that the importance of building a concise, clear, relatable, purposeful brand from the get go, and with a strong foundation will just make it, easier down the road. 

Nasser: 

And I would argue, especially for those industries, verticals, businesses that may say, well, you know, it’s not that interesting, right? We work in automotive aftermarket or it’s like, well, it’s easier to separate yourself from your competition, right?  If you can say something memorable. 

So let me shift gears a little bit here because obviously creativity as it relates to media in particular, is going through a weird time right now with the explosion of generative AI and so on, and there’s enormous pressure around the ability to do interesting work when it comes to creative. What do you think is the future of the big idea, the creative idea, as it relates to media effectiveness as a result of being able to utilize AI. Is it becoming less important or more important? 

Mylene: 

It’s a good question. I think that the creative industry as a whole, I think is trying to get a little bit ahead of that, you know. The impact of AI on the longevity and the relevance of creative agencies or creative iterations as a whole. 

I think that the brands, the companies that are doing it best are, you know, as DAC does, are embracing AI and saying, you know, how can it improve the way that we work? How could it improve the products that we are delivering for our clients? I also think that audiences I think, at first the defense was like, well, people will know the difference between AI generated content and traditionally produced content and reject it. And that’s not true. 

I think people are embracing it, saying, wow, that’s it’s allowing for even more creativity and even more cost effectiveness, which allows us to generate even more fresh content. Which is what consumers are consuming at a faster pace. They’re used to it, right? The shelf life for creatives is probably the shortest it’s ever been. 

So our ability to, you know, continually generate fresh content, and even the LLMs, they’re all about fresh content. So to me, it’s just embracing a whole new way of thinking and applying AI to everything we do from media planning to brand planning to creative development. 

Nasser: 

I think what’s interesting is, in my opinion, I see the importance of the idea actually becoming even more important. Because if there’s one thing that we’ve seen with the large language models and the ability to scale out creative assets to support media programs, is clarity in the information that you provide it? 

Clarity in what you can and cannot say. Clarity in terms of what the emotional trigger is that you’re trying to create, will only help you with scaling it out, making it brand safe, making it consistent. And telling that connected, unified story. Because if you don’t do that, it goes sideways very, very quickly and you lose out on the opportunity to truly scale out your efforts, make it more efficient and make it more impactful in the end. 

Mylene: 

I agree, and it actually made me think like it could be a fun test for brands to do is to ask an LLM to, you know, can you do an ad for this brand? And again, I think the obvious usual suspects will get a pretty accurate read on what a piece of creative would look like for the brands I named earlier. 

For a lesser known brand or a brand that isn’t as clearly as understood or doesn’t show up as consistently across channels, I think it alone would have a hard time playing back what that would look like. 

Nasser: 

You keep using the word understood right? The brand being understood. So moving forward what do you think is going to separate, the more impactful brands from those that are going to lag behind as it relates to this?  

Mylene: 

Relevance and purpose? I think generationally also, thinking about my teen kids, that’s that’s something that matters to them. I think when they’re preteen, it’s about what’s cool. I think when they get a little bit older, it’s all about, do I need it? Is it relevant? What is it doing? What is it brand doing to, you know, help improve our society? Help protect our environment? These are all things that are kind of on the minds of the up and coming generations. 

So I think the brands that will succeed are the brands that are continuing to tether their brand strategy and the evolution of their brand strategy to purpose. 

Nasser: 

Mylene Savoie thank you very much for your time today. 

So here’s the shift. The brands that win aren’t the ones that are moving the fastest, they’re the ones moving with intent. By leading with a clear idea, creativity becomes a decision making system that brings focus across teams, markets and moments. This is how brands evolve without fragmenting. Stay recognizable in constant change and build long term strength instead of short term noise. 

Now make it happen. Follow Shift Happens. Leave us a review and share this episode with your team. 

If you have any questions for the podcast, please email us at shifthappens@dacgroup.com, we’d love to hear from you. 

Thank you Mylene for taking time. 

 Mylene: 

There’s a lot of fun. 

Nasser: 

Thank you for listening. I’m Nasser Sahlool.