Marketers only accurately predict the outcome of an A/B test 52% of the time. With today's viewers constantly multitasking, creative has seconds—not minutes—to make an impact. But many brands still rely on outdated approaches, leading to forgettable commercials.

In this episode, Elena, Angela, and Rob are joined by Chief Creative Officer Steve Babcock to discuss Marketing Architects' new report on TV creative effectiveness. They explore why strategy must come first, why pretesting is no longer optional, storytelling lessons from marketing effectiveness research, and how AI is enhancing (not replacing) human creativity.

Topics covered: 

• [01:00] New research on what makes TV creative effective in 2025
• [05:00] Why the old creative playbook no longer works
• [08:00] Finding the "elephant in the room" for strategic development
• [13:00] How AI-powered pretesting is changing creative development
• [21:00] The cost of "dull" advertising that evokes no emotion
• [25:00] Using AI as a creative engineering tool
• [36:00] The future of "shootless" video production 

 





To learn more, visit marketingarchitects.com/podcast or subscribe to our newsletter at marketingarchitects.com/newsletter. 
 

Resources:  
2025 Marketing Architects Report: https://www.marketingarchitects.com/NewRules
 

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