From Streams to Strategy – Turning Data into Direction

The Challenge: “How do we stand out in a sea of sameness?”

Despite healthy streaming numbers and growing recognition, this artist wasn’t cutting through culturally. Fans knew the songs — but not the story. There was a widening gap between the artist's sound and her self. The label came to us with a deceptively simple brief:
“Help us define who she is — and how to position her for long-term success.”

What We Did:

We went far beyond streams and skips. Using a mix of quantitative profiling and qualitative deep-dives, we recruited audiences from our proprietary Fan Map segmentation, ensuring we spoke not just to fans, but the right kind of fans.

• Quantitative deep-dive: social media profiling of 30,000 followers

• 6 x fan immersion sessions: across three UK cities, aligned to 3 key attitudinal segments:

  • Segment-A - Pop-forward, digitally engaged

  • Segment-B - trend-conscious, culturally aware

  • Segment-C - mainstream, feel-good music lovers

• Creative workshops: co-developed with the artist's team to turn insight into action

What We Found:

The problem wasn’t the music. It was the missing story.

• Fans loved the tracks, but couldn’t connect them to a distinct personality

• Her visuals were well-produced, but felt “too polished” and disconnected

• Female empowerment was expected, but it needed to feel real, not rehearsed

• Her best content? Unscripted, acoustic, emotionally raw, and yet hidden away on the wrong platforms

• Social media was active, but not engaging, it lacked emotional access and personality cues

Our key discovery became our positioning:

This wasn't about inventing a brand. It was about discovering TRUTHS about the artist that could be ‘dialled-up’ and clearly expressed.

The Results:

We reframed how the team thought about content, creative and communication, using the insight to unlock strategic and commercial value across the board:

• Positioning: A powerful, ownable brand narrative grounded in her ‘truth’ of relatability and strength

• Creative direction: Shift toward stripped-back, emotionally-led performances to reveal the real artist

• Content strategy: Platform-by-platform content blueprints tailored to audience expectations

• Styling & imagery: A move away from stylist-led perfection to self-styled individuality

• Partnerships & press: Prioritising touchpoints that aligned with fan values (empowerment, emotional authenticity)

What the ‘What’ Data Wouldn’t Tell You:

Streaming stats can show what’s popular. But they can’t tell you WHY.

• They wouldn’t reveal that fans saw her as powerful, but couldn’t see that power in her videos

• They wouldn’t show how some felt confused by the shift from raw to ‘global’ visuals

• They wouldn’t explain why she reminded them of everyone else, but could actually be no one else

Only attitudinal insight could decode the emotional gap between music and meaning and turn it into a strategic leap.

Why It Matters:

This case proves that insight isn’t a report, it’s a launchpad.

• It shapes creative.

• It reframes marketing.

• It drives ROI.

Or to put it another way: