Most brands I talk to have the same problem. They’re not short on ads. They’re not short on content. They’re not even short on data.
They’re short on answers.
They’re spending money every day on creative, on media, on agencies and they still can’t answer basic questions about their own business.
Questions like:
Who’s actually buying? Why do they buy? What should I say to find more of them?
Instead of answering these questions, most brands guess. They test randomly. They follow best practices that worked for someone else. They launch campaigns and hope. Hope is expensive.
The Real Problem Isn’t Creative. It’s Clarity.
When a brand hits a plateau, the instinct is to make more ads. Try new formats. Hire a new agency. Refresh the creative.
But more ads don’t help if you don’t know what’s working or why.
I’ve seen brands spend $50k/month on creative production while having no idea whether their best customers are buying for themselves or as gifts. No idea whether beginners or experts convert better. No idea whether their audience responds to pain or aspiration.
That’s not a creative problem. That’s a clarity problem.
And you can’t solve a clarity problem with more content.
The Questions That Actually Matter
If you’re stuck, it’s probably because you haven’t answered one of these questions:
Who is actually buying? — Not who’s clicking. But who’s purchasing… and who are they really? Are they gifters or self-purchasers? Buying on impulse or after weeks of research? Most brands assume they know. Most brands are wrong.
Why do they buy from you? — What’s the real reason someone chooses you over the alternatives? Is it the product itself? The price? The brand? The convenience? The story? And more importantly, is the reason they buy the same thing you’re saying in your marketing? Usually it’s not.
What should you say to them? — Should you lead with the problem you solve or the outcome you deliver? Does your audience respond better to logic or emotion? Practical benefits or aspirational identity? Every brand has a message that converts better than the others. Most brands haven’t found it yet because they’ve never isolated it.
What’s actually working in your ads and why? — When an ad performs, do you know why? Can you repeat it? When an ad fails, do you know what killed it? Or do you just move on and hope the next one hits? Winners teach you what to do more of. Losers teach you what to stop. But only if you’re paying attention to the right variables.
What should you test next? — Should you test a new audience, a new message, or a new format? What’s the highest-leverage variable you’re currently ignoring? Most brands test randomly. They throw ideas at the wall. They follow hunches. That’s not testing. That’s guessing with extra steps.
The Cost Of Not Knowing
Every day you spend without answers, you’re paying for it.
You’re paying in wasted ad spend on messages that don’t resonate. You’re paying in creative production costs for ads that never had a chance. You’re paying in opportunity cost the growth you’re not getting because you’re stuck.
But the biggest cost is confidence.
When you don’t know what’s working, you second-guess everything. You chase trends. You copy competitors. You make decisions based on fear instead of data.
That’s no way to build a brand.
How To Get Answers
The fastest way to answer these questions isn’t surveys. It’s not focus groups. It’s not asking your customers what they think.
It’s watching what they do.
Real purchasing behavior tells you more than any survey ever could. People lie on surveys, not intentionally, but because they don’t know what they’ll actually do when it’s time to buy. But purchases don’t lie. Clicks don’t lie. Behavior doesn’t lie.
The brands that grow fastest are the ones that turn their ad spend into a learning engine. Every dollar they spend teaches them something. Every campaign answers a question. Every test builds on the last one.
They either win, or they learn. The best brands do both.
The Question Behind The Question
If you take one thing from this, let it be this:
Before you make another ad, before you test another format, before you hire another agency, ask yourself what question you’re trying to answer.
Not “what creative should we make?” That’s the wrong question.
The right question is: What do we need to learn next?
Maybe it’s who your best customer really is. Maybe it’s which message actually resonates. Maybe it’s why your ads stopped working three months ago and you still don’t know why.
Whatever it is, name it. Then go answer it.
Because growth doesn’t come from more ads. It comes from better answers.
If You’re Stuck, Start Here
Ask yourself: If I could know one thing about my customers — with certainty — what would change the most about how I run this business?
That’s your question.
Now go answer it.
If you need help defining your question, send me a DM.