Before you pour budget into your next big campaign, discover the proven testing frameworks that help businesses identify what truly works and avoid costly mistakes early.
Marketing teams often spend millions on campaigns that do not deliver. The key is not guessing, it is testing. Systematic experimentation shows what truly resonates before committing significant resources.
With marketing budgets under scrutiny and consumer behaviour constantly evolving, testing campaigns before scaling protects investment and maximises returns. Businesses that validate ideas through structured testing can confidently scale what works whilst avoiding expensive failures.
This week on Let’s Talk, our experts explore how testing campaigns before scaling can protect your investment and maximise returns.
Lauren Clemett, CEO, The Audacious Agency
“The fastest way to test if a new campaign is worth scaling is to start with a laser-focused goal and immediately gauge the effect of your promotional efforts.
In profile-building, we start with the 3R’s: defining the desired Reputation, securing Recognition, and ultimately earning Respect. A successful campaign creates a “snowball effect” where every win, whether it’s being named an award finalist or featured on a podcast, adds another layer of credibility to your personal brand.
You quickly know if your campaign angle is working based on the level of interaction and engagement it generates. The most efficient test is to brand by association – aligning your business with reputable and relevant awards and media channels and measuring your impact using platforms like Thinkers360.
With strategic selection of exactly the right awards and categories, you can quickly increase your visibility and authority as a thought-leader, building a long-term, trusted and winning profile.”
Josif Zanich, Managing Director, JAPAC, Nexxen
“Brands and advertisers are increasingly embracing new ways to better understand and engage audiences.
Knowing exactly which elements of a campaign are capturing consumers’ attention – before it’s even run – allows brands and advertisers to optimise their ads and thus drive the strongest results.
Our Nexxen Studio insights team tests your creative against your designated audience using second-by-second facial coding analysis. Their learnings are then used to optimise your assets and provide guidance on how to allocate spend to your audiences.
This approach empowers media buyers and traders alike to make more informed decisions on their investments.”
Gagan Batra, Founder & Director, Insighten
“Understanding your ‘north star’ and having a clear view of the success metrics will help you determine whether a campaign is worth scaling. Having clarity on both of those things will help you decide when to pause, pivot, or build on what is already working. When the team aligns on what success looks like, it becomes easier to analyse performance.
“The fastest path to campaign confidence is to apply an agile mindset: launch the idea to a high-quality subset of your audience that reliably represents your broader customer base, which gives you a meaningful understanding of whether the campaign is working.
“For the campaign testing to be trustworthy, the quality of your data becomes critical. You need to trust that the information you are using is accurate, consistent and consented for the audience you are testing with. High-quality data ensures the insights you draw from your campaign testing reflect real customer behaviour, guiding your decision on whether to scale the campaign.”
Elise Balsillie, Head of Thryv Australia and New Zealand
“When small businesses ask me this question, my advice is always the same – start small, stay focused and let the data do the heavy lifting.
“The quickest way to validate a campaign is to strip it back to a single audience segment, a single message and a single call to action. This creates a clean test environment so you can see whether the idea resonates without the confusion of competing variables.
“I encourage businesses to begin with their warmest audience. These are the customers already familiar with you, which means the response is a clearer indicator of whether the concept has genuine pull. A simple value exchange — such as a seasonal offer or a strong educational insight – can reveal early momentum within hours.
“From there, track the essentials: engagement, click-through, conversion and the time it takes for someone to act. When these signals exceed your normal benchmarks, you have early proof that the idea is worth expanding.
“Automated follow-ups help close the loop quickly, giving you real-time insight and freeing you to adjust in the next iteration. Fast experiments sharpen decision-making and ensure small businesses scale only the ideas that deserve it and give them growth.”
Aimee Gossage, Head of Investment, Audience Group
“At Audience Group, we’ve learned that the quickest path to campaign confidence doesn’t necessarily come from big budgets or elaborate testing scenarios. It comes from clients willing to come on the journey with us to run controlled and evidence-led experiments.
Before we scale anything, we would run a tightly defined test or pilot that isolates the key core variable, be it the audience, the message or even the placement. By using clean, clear holdouts and measurable conversion or behaviour shift signals, we can then validate whether the idea is genuinely moving the needle. It is a matter of mathematics!
Because we work in a tech-agnostic way, the channel or the platform isn’t the hero; the data is. Also, we connect to real word business outcomes, versus media metrics or assumptions. If a concept can prove incrementality quickly, even at a small scale, then it earns the right to graduate into a larger investment phase.
In a cluttered and experimental media landscape, speed doesn’t have to be sacrificed for detail. The fastest way to know if an idea is worth scaling to test it in the real world, measure it cleanly and clearly, and let the evidence speak for itself.”
Mei Ching Koon, Chief Marketing Officer, Elmo Software
“We’ve completely changed how we validate campaign ideas by using AI to synthesise customer and prospect insights at scale. Instead of relying on gut feel or waiting months for research, we’re now extracting deep insight into buyer pain points, workflows, and what “good” looks like for them — in days.
That insight becomes our central source of truth. It tells us what specific groups of customers are challenged with right now, what language resonates, and where our product genuinely moves the needle.
From there, we sprint. Build sharp, problem-solving content that speaks directly to what customers actually said — not what we assumed. Test it. Measure. Look for repeatable signals.
The game-changer? AI has collapsed our insight-to-execution cycle so dramatically that what used to take three months now takes two weeks. We’re not just moving faster — we’re moving smarter, with conviction backed by real customer voices.”
John Harris, Chief Sales Officer, JCDecaux
“The most effective and efficient way to test whether a campaign idea is worth scaling is to understand whether people will notice it and understand it almost instantly. Most campaigns don’t fail because the idea is wrong, they fail because key elements simply aren’t seen or understood fast enough.
Our Australian creative effectiveness research with System1 analysed Out-of-Home campaigns to identify patterns in high-performing creative. The research proves that creative effectiveness is the single biggest driver of campaign success. Those that make an immediate visual impact and are easily understood are the strongest.
At JCDecaux we also use Optix, a deep-learning saliency tool that predicts which elements of a creative are likely to attract attention. Its saliency share feature shows precisely how much attention key components such as a headline, product image or brand logo, are expected to receive. This gives advertisers early certainty about whether their idea will cut through before the campaign rollout.
For small and medium businesses without access to specialist tools, the principle is the same. Test lightweight versions of your creative with a small audience for example on social, online or in person, and look for two things: What do people notice first? And what do they remember?
If those foundations are strong, the idea is worth scaling.”
Mariam Rehman, Director, Monale
“As someone who works closely with CMOs and leadership teams, I see one challenge repeatedly: budgets aren’t as flexible as they once were, and that’s forcing a hard reset on how we test ideas.
Every campaign now has to prove its value early. The fastest way to know if an idea deserves scale is strict prioritisation paired with rapid, low-cost validation.
I advise implementing a mix of HADI (Hypothesis, Action, Data, Insights) and micro-testing frameworks. Choose hypotheses that are tied to a real growth lever – not just “let’s test this new ad,” where testing is narrowed to media buying, but an ecosystem shift. For example: “If we update our value-led messaging across onboarding email, the website and social, CTA click-through rates will increase because the promise is consistent end-to-end.”
Hypotheses that pass go through a Minimum Viable Test: small audience, micro-budget, and a clear success threshold – usually a 20% lift above baseline in 7–14 days. If it doesn’t meet the bar, we stop. If it does, budgets follow a disciplined 70/20/10 split to scale, optimise and keep experimenting.
Extract insights from every test, even failures, and document learnings to improve over time. The speed doesn’t come from throwing more campaigns at the wall. It comes from being brutally selective about what we test and utterly honest about what the data is telling us.”
Jonathan Reeve, Regional Director, ANZ, Eagle Eye
“The fastest way to know whether a new campaign idea is worth scaling is to test it in real time using real-time marketing platforms. With a real-time platform, you can launch a small-scale version of the campaign to a targeted audience and immediately track customer response, for example redemptions, conversions, basket impact and more.
“A great example is Asda Rewards in the UK, which piloted its innovative “pounds not points” loyalty proposition in a single store using Eagle Eye. By issuing offers and rewards in real time over the course of the pilot, Asda was able to validate how customers engaged with the concept, refine the experience quickly and build the confidence needed to expand to more stores.
“This ability to issue and adjust campaigns instantly turns experimentation from a slow process into a continuous feedback loop. You learn faster, optimise faster, and only scale once the data shows clear incremental value. We think it’s a highly efficient path from idea to proven impact.”
Emma Scoringe, Chief Marketing Officer, JAVLN
“As a challenger B2B insurance SaaS company, JAVLN doesn’t have the luxury of big marketing budgets — we’re the disruptor, and we move fast. That’s why we use the Minimum Viable Test (MVT) to validate our messaging before we scale.
We strip a campaign back to its simplest form. A provocative LinkedIn post, a one-pager, or a 60-second product demo. Then we run a controlled, micro-budget test on a high-intent channel aimed at our ideal broker audience.
The metrics that matter most? Demo booking rate and the quality of feedback from our sales team. We’re not chasing traffic, we’re looking for brokers who book a call and come prepared with real questions about renewals management, compliance workflows or system consolidation.
When those brokers show up informed and genuinely engaged — not tyre-kicking — that’s our signal the message is landing, and we’ve hit product-market-message fit.
So, the fastest validator isn’t a form fill. It’s that lift in high-intent conversions that gets the sales team excited. This is when we scale hard.
Test boldly. Learn quickly. Double down on what works.”
Billy Loizou, AVP & General Manager, APAC, Amperity
“Start with your customer data. Before you can run any meaningful test, you need a unified picture of who your customers actually are. Most companies have pieces of customer information living in different systems, and duplicate profiles make it hard to understand what’s really happening.
“That’s why identity resolution is the first step. If the same person shows up as five or six separate records across your CRM, email platform, and transaction tables, you can’t tell whether a campaign truly influenced their behaviour or if you’re just hitting the same person multiple times.
“Once those profiles are unified, you can set up a clean control group, measure incrementality, and trust the results. Segmentation that used to take days becomes a matter of minutes, which means you can test, learn, and adjust far faster.
“The teams seeing the strongest outcomes are the ones treating customer data as fuel for performance, not just another technical asset. When your data is clean and connected, your test results actually mean something — and you’ll quickly see whether a new idea is worth scaling.”
Marissa Candy, CEO, The Marketing Factory
“In a world where attention spans are shrinking and competition is multiplying, the biggest marketing risk small businesses face isn’t launching the wrong campaign, it’s spending too long trying to perfect it. The fastest way to know whether a new idea deserves real investment is to launch a lean, testable version and let the market decide.
“Start by stripping your concept down to its simplest form: one message, one offer, one audience. Then send it out through a channel where you can measure behaviour quickly. Paid social, landing pages, or email are ideal because they offer immediate data. The goal isn’t to generate big numbers, it’s to gauge a level of interest.
“Within 48–72 hours, you should know whether people are clicking, converting, or completely ignoring you. If you see early traction, double down. If not, pivot fast.
“Marketing moves too quickly for guesswork. Real-world feedback is the ultimate truth. By testing small, learning rapidly, and scaling only what resonates, you not only save money, you build campaigns that customers actually want.”
Greg Wilkes, CEO of Develop Coaching
“Most campaigns never fail because the idea was bad. They fail because teams scale too early, without proving anyone actually wants what they’re offering.
“The fastest way to test a new campaign is to run a micro-experiment: a stripped-back version of the idea pushed to a very small, highly targeted audience. No brand polish. No multi-channel rollout. Just a clear message, a simple offer, and a measurable action.
“Start with one audience, one message, one CTA. Build a quick landing page, pair it with a small paid test or a short outbound sequence, and cap your spend. You’re not chasing revenue at this point, you’re chasing signal.
“Within a few days you’ll know. If you’re seeing strong click-throughs, replies, or cost-per-lead numbers well below your norm, the idea has legs. If it barely moves the needle, don’t kid yourself: scaling it will only burn cash.
“The real discipline is killing weak ideas fast and doubling down on the ones that spike early. Scale only after proving demand at the smallest possible cost.
“Smart teams don’t guess. They experiment small, learn fast, then invest big.”
Sarah James, Founder of The Sensory Specialist
“The fastest way to know if a campaign is worth scaling is to look at the data within the first 72 hours. Engagement tells you almost everything: Are people watching it? Sharing it? Bookmarking it? Commenting because they’re genuinely interested? If early engagement is strong, it’s a good indicator you’ve tapped into a real need or emotion.
Next, compare that engagement to actual sales or website actions. Did add-to-carts increase? Are people searching for that product on your site? Are emails or DMs coming through with questions? High engagement with low sales means the idea resonates emotionally but needs a sharper offer.
Timing also matters. Some ideas only work when aligned with behaviour patterns, for example return-to-school weeks, holiday seasons, or budget cycles. A great concept launched at the wrong time will always underperform.
Finally, test your hook and offer. If your opening line “stops the scroll” and your offer solves a real problem, scaling becomes obvious. If the data doesn’t move in the first 48 hours, don’t scale it, pivot!”
Christopher Melotti, Founder of Melotti Content Media
“Testing a new campaign idea quickly is a balancing act.
“Every marketer faces this tension: you want accuracy but you need speed. Interviews and deep analysis give the clearest picture yet they take time. So, when momentum matters, start small and simple: use a social media poll or a quick survey to gauge sentiment. People love sharing opinions, especially when the question feels fun or cheeky. Within hours, you’ll see whether your idea sparks interest. It’s not perfect and it won’t replace thorough research but it gives you a pulse fast. The goal isn’t flawless data; it’s direction. Fast feedback beats waiting for perfect answers, and that’s how you decide whether to scale with confidence.”
Moe Iman, Co-Founder, OnlyFounders
“Run it small for 3-5 days with $50-200/day and watch your numbers closely.
I look at cost per acquisition or ROAS—whatever actually drives the business. By day 3, you can usually tell if something’s got legs or not.
If you’re anywhere close to your target metrics, keep going. If you’re burning twice what you should be to get a customer, shut it down. I’ve wasted too much money hoping bad campaigns would magically turn around. They don’t.
The biggest mistake I see founders make is not knowing their benchmark before they start. You need to know what a customer is worth to you and what you can afford to pay. Without that, you’re just guessing.
Some campaigns click immediately. Others are dead on arrival. The data usually tells you which is which pretty fast. Trust it and move accordingly.”
Maria Kathopoulis, CEO & Chief Marketing Officer at UNTMD Media
“The fastest way to test if a new campaign idea is worth scaling is to treat it like a scientific experiment with a ruthless ROI lens: no emotion, no ego, just data.
Start with a minimum viable creative pack: 2 hooks, 2 primary texts, 2 visuals, 1 offer. Don’t overthink it, you’re not building the full funnel yet. You’re testing directional truth. Launch it to a tight, high-intent audience first so you can see signal quickly without burning budget.
Within 72 hours you should know if it has legs. I’m looking for three things:
- Thumb-stop rate (did people even care?)
- CTR (does the idea cut through?)
- Cost per key action (is it commercially viable to scale?)
If it hits even ONE strong indicator, I keep iterating. If it hits two, I scale. If it hits none, I kill it immediately: no emotional attachment, no “maybe it needs more time.” Time is money.
Then, duplicate the winning angle into fresh variations: new creators, new hooks, new formats. Scale budget in controlled increments while watching MER and blended CAC, not just pretty ad metrics.
Fast. Clean. Data-driven. And you only scale what proves itself.”
Peter Curran, Founder & Business Development Manager, Digital Surfer
“In my more than a decade working with businesses on successful campaigns, something I (and by I, that’s my team and I) do is work backwards from the goal. If you are serious about growth, this is what you need to do.
First, determine what that goal is. It could be needing to bring on an extra person by the end of the year, and to do that you need X number of new clients. Next, we take a look at your average conversion rate and how many leads you need to do to make that number. With data, we can see what you need to invest and how you need to scale your ads to meet this quota. If the campaign goes to plan and you have the room for further growth,it can continue to be scaled. If it goes too well and you get too much business than you can handle, which can be the case, a good campaign can be scaled back temporarily while you work out the logistics. We saw this exact scenario with one of our campaigns that has a finalist spot in the 2026 APAC Search Awards.
In some cases, there may not be room in the budget to go as big as needed for a specific goal, which in some really competitive industries, can sometimes be the case. But then that means taking a look at the goal and making sure it’s realistic for what is being worked with and what can be achieved, treating it like a stepping stone.
It can be tempting as a business owner to just want more and more and more, scaling as far as you can go, but you need to keep in mind the logistics behind that. Which is where having a very experienced campaign manager who can be upfront about that really makes a difference.”
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