Creativity Is the New Competitive Advantage: Why Scaleups Need Creative Strategy More Than Ever
- Laura Derbyshire
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
Where scaleups once needed large teams to execute, AI tools can now churn out copy, automate campaigns, analyse performance, and optimise funnels in minutes.
Execution has never been easier, but creativity has never been more valuable, or more scarce.
And the scaleups breaking out right now are the ones using creativity as a strategic multiplier.
The Real Gap: Creativity + Commercial Clarity
Boards and investors already speak fluent CAC, LTV, runway, payback, and revenue efficiency. Founders and CEOs know they need proof points, traction, scalable demand, and compelling narratives.
But in a world where execution is commoditised, one thing is consistently missing:
Creative strategy -> the spark that joins up business, brand, and growth.
Performance marketing gives everyone the same tools. But creative thinking, that is distinctive, strategic, and commercially grounded, is what makes those tools work harder.
How Scaleups Are Using Creativity to Outperform
Here are some examples of UK and US scaleups using creativity to generate disproportionate growth. These show exactly why creative strategy matters, and why now is the moment to invest in it.
1. Monzo: Turning a Commodity Product Into a Cultural Movement
Monzo entered one of the least creative categories on earth: boring banking. But instead of the well-trodden route of competing on features, they created a brand movement, built around transparency, community, and the now-iconic “hot coral” card.
Their creative strategy involved:
Turning their product waitlist into a viral growth mechanism
Publishing honest behind-the-scenes product updates
Using tone of voice as a differentiator
Creating a challenger identity around fixing what traditional banks refused to
Outcome: Monzo grew from zero to millions of users without the paid acquisition budgets of high-street banks.
2. Gymshark: A Brand Built on Story, Not Spend
Gymshark didn’t win by outspending Nike or Adidas. They used storytelling and community-first creativity, combining influencers, founder-led narrative, and emotionally resonant brand content.
Their creative strategy:
Founder Ben Francis’s story became the campaign
They built a global brand via DTC social-led storytelling
Every campaign reinforced identity, belonging, and challenge
Outcome: Gymshark scaled to unicorn status with brand assets and storytelling at the centre, not media spend.
3. Oatly: Creativity That Takes Over the Category
Oatly’s “It’s Like Milk, But Made for Humans” and “Help Dad” campaigns deliberately polarised people.
They used creative bravery as a strategy to:
Redefine a commodity category
Start conversations rather than buy reach
Turn controversy into cultural momentum
Outcome: Oatly became the default alt-dairy brand while outspending….no one. Creativity did the heavy lifting.
4. Liquid Death: Proving That Branding Can Turn Water Into a $1.4bn Company
Liquid Death is the ultimate example of creativity outpacing operational advantage.
They took a basic commodity of water and applied:
A heavy metal-inspired creative identity
Wildly distinctive campaigns
A straightforward challenger narrative (“death to plastic”)
Category-breaking packaging + humour
Outcome: They built a billion-dollar brand with creativity as the core commercial engine.
5. Airbnb: Creativity as Strategy, Not Advertising
Airbnb’s core brand idea is about belonging.
Their creativity has focused on brand narrative, not traditional ads:
“Belong Anywhere” repositioned the entire travel category
Their design language became a strategic differentiator
Community stories became the content
Their global campaign strategy delivered emotion + measurable performance
Outcome: Brand equity directly supported investor confidence and category leadership.
6. Duolingo: Turning a Learning App Into a Cultural Icon
Duolingo used creative weirdness as a strategy.
The Duolingo owl, a Distinctive Brand Asset, became a social media phenomenon, not by accident but through a strategic embrace of humour and virality.
Their creative approach:
Distinctive personality-led content
Fast-reactive brand behaviour
Meme-led performance strategy
Consistency across TikTok, app, push, and ads
Outcome: Duolingo achieved explosive user growth without relying on heavy paid spend.
Creativity + Strategy = Outperformance
Across all these examples, the winners didn’t rely on larger teams, bigger budgets, more channels or more AI tools.
They used creativity as a commercial asset by building:
A strong positioning
A distinct challenger narrative
Bold creative ideas people remember
Brand systems that scale with AI across channels
Stories investors believe in
Content that reaches further than media spend
And they paired it with sharp strategy + efficient execution. This is exactly the gap most scaleups now face, and exactly where disproportionate opportunity sits.
Brand x Performance: Why It Matters for Scaleups
When you unify brand and performance:
Acquisition gets cheaper
Creative yields higher ROI
Brand equity strengthens investor confidence
AI becomes a multiplier, not a substitute for thinking
Your strategy compounds instead of competing with itself
OSER’s model sits right at this intersection: brand + creative + commercial strategy + AI efficiency
Why This Moment Is Wide Open
AI has levelled the operational playing field, with every scaleup having access to the same tools.
The differentiation and growth now come from a clarity of strategy, boldness of creativity, speed of execution and strength of story.
What Would Happen If Your Business Unlocked Its Full Creative Potential?
If you want to sharpen your positioning, build a creative strategy that cuts through, and use AI to scale fast - let’s talk.
Book a call and let’s find out.
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