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In conversation with Editor Ankur Sharma, The News Strike, Bala Kumaran of BrandStory Digital says performance marketing is not collapsing but undergoing a much-needed correction, as Indian brands in 2026 rebalance toward brand building after years of over-indexing on short-term demand capture. He notes that the focus is shifting to a “Golden Ratio” of balancing brand and performance investments to drive both immediate conversions and long-term profitability. Kumaran also highlights how AI is making vanity metrics increasingly irrelevant, forcing marketers to prioritize revenue influence, pipeline velocity, and true sales outcomes over clicks and user counts.
1. Is performance marketing losing its edge, and are Indian brands rebuilding the brand funnel in 2026?
At BrandStory Digital, we believe it’s long overdue. What we’re seeing isn’t a collapse, but a correction. For a while, brands focused heavily on harvesting existing demand without replanting the seeds of brand building and that inevitably leads to diminishing returns. The data supports this shift that brands investing over 50% in brand advertising see a 31% profit ROI, compared to 18% for those over-indexing on short-term promotions. Indian brands are now recognizing the “Golden Ratio” a 50:50 balance that drives both immediate sales and long-term growth. We’ve always believed the funnel wasn’t broken, but it was just being measured incorrectly.
2. Has AI made vanity metrics obsolete, forcing a new discipline around real marketing ROI?
Absolutely. Metrics like “number of users” don’t hold the same meaning anymore. What matters now are the fundamentals revenue influence, pipeline velocity and sales-qualified outcomes. In an AI-mediated world, ROI hasn’t disappeared, it has simply evolved. Today’s buyers don’t follow a straight path but they interact with AI summaries, peer conversations and brand content long before taking action. That makes traditional attribution models less effective. At BrandStory Digital, we see this as a shift from asking “How many clicked?” to understand “How many truly decided and what influenced them?”
3. Why are more startups investing in brand memory before paid growth?
Because CAC is quietly becoming the new burn rate. In India’s highly competitive startup space, having a strong product alone isn’t enough. What we’re seeing is a deeper understanding that bursts of visibility don’t compound but memory does. When a brand stops investing in itself, it’s not saving money, it’s borrowing from its future at a high cost. Early brand investment helps build owned audiences rather than relying on rented impressions, which reduces cost-per-impact over time. For founders we work with, the question has shifted from “Can we afford a brand?” to “Can we afford not to?” Therefore, we believe that memory is what sustains growth.
4. Are creator ecosystems becoming the new media layer for brands beyond influencer campaigns?
Yes, and this shift feels more structural than experimental. India’s creator economy is not just influencing content but it’s reshaping commerce and culture itself. Brands are moving beyond one-off influencer campaigns and beginning to build long-term creator partnerships that function like distributed media networks. When millions of creators are influencing a significant share of consumers, the approach naturally changes. It’s no longer about buying reach, but about co-building ecosystems of influence. We focus on creating creator-native IP, because that’s where long-term engagement and value truly come from.
5. Can creative agencies survive the AI era, or will strategy become the only real moat?
At BrandStory Digital, we believe that this moment is less about survival and more about clarity. AI is compressing the value of execution, which means tools alone can’t define an agency anymore. What truly matters is judgment where the ability to understand context, culture and direction. The agencies that will stand out are those that move beyond automation and focus on human-centric strategy. By which knowing what to amplify and what to ignore is becoming critical. We’ve already seen how losing brand direction can cost companies significantly. The strategy isn’t just adapting but it’s quietly leading this transformation.
6. Why are traditional sectors now embracing creative-led digital transformation?
A big impact has been the formal recognition of India’s “Orange Economy” in the Union Budget 2026, which places creative industries at the center of growth. Traditional sectors are realising that digital transformation alone doesn’t create impact without creativity, it often becomes inefficient. Audiences today are quick to ignore anything that feels interruptive. What works instead is content that earns attention consistently. We’ve seen legacy brands achieve 3–5x higher engagement when they move from campaign-based thinking to creative-led systems. At BrandStory Digital, we believe creativity is no longer an add-on, but it’s the foundation of effective digital transformation.
7. Is human-centric storytelling the antidote to AI-generated sameness in marketing?
Yes, absolutely. As AI-generated content becomes more widespread, there’s also a growing fatigue around content that feels repetitive or impersonal. Interestingly, “slop” becoming a word of the year reflects this sentiment. What still cuts through is authenticity is the human stories carry emotion and perspective in a way that data alone cannot. The brands that are standing out today are those with a clear and honest narrative voice. We often say AI can scale production, but meaning comes from people. In many ways, the answer to sameness isn’t more content, it’s more soul.
8. Are growth metrics shifting from CAC and clicks to community and trust?
We’re definitely seeing that shift take shape. The brands move beyond transactional metrics toward building long-term relationships. Community-driven approaches are helping lower CAC, improve LTV, and create more resilient growth. What’s interesting is how measurement itself is evolving brands that are looking at conversion quality, retention depth and advocacy. In a zero-click environment, credibility becomes incredibly valuable. Questions like whether a brand is being recommended organically or cited in AI responses are becoming important indicators. We believe trust is no longer a soft metric, it’s becoming a core growth driver.
9. What will the next decade of brand building look like in India’s attention economy?
At BrandStory Digital, we believe that it’s about experience, not placement. We are operating in a space where impressions are abundant, but attention is limited. That naturally pushes brands to rethink how they engage. The focus will shift toward creating meaningful interactions rather than just visibility. We’ll see more brands building ecosystems and owning their platforms instead of relying only on external channels. With stronger digital infrastructure in place, this shift will accelerate. The brands that treat themselves like evolving products will be the ones that truly stand out.
10. Why are brands seeing diminishing returns from pure performance marketing in 2026?
It comes down to a simple reality, where you can’t harvest what you haven’t sown. Performance marketing works best when there is demand to capture. Without brand-building efforts, that demand eventually dries up. Initially, reaching ready-to-buy customers is efficient, but over time it becomes more expensive and less effective. We often refer to this as the “CAC Valley of Death.” With AI changing how discovery happens and attribution becoming more complex, the gaps are more visible. We believe the answer isn’t reducing performance, it’s strengthening the brand alongside it.
11. Is content as we know it dying in the age of video-first consumption, or is the real shift from information-led content to emotion-led storytelling?
At BrandStory Digital, we believe that content isn’t disappearing but it’s evolving. What’s changing is not just the format, but the intent. We’re moving from information-led content to storytelling that connects emotionally. Video is simply the medium enabling this shift. What works today are narratives that feel real, engaging and human. We’re seeing a rise in short videos, story-driven formats that build anticipation rather than interrupt attention. In our experience, emotion-led storytelling significantly improves engagement and recall. While the formats will continue to evolve, the human need for meaningful stories will always remain constant.
