Brand vs Performance: What actually matters in maritime marketing?

Our 2026 Q2 MiM-masterclass featured a topic that always gets people talking brand vs performance. You cannot escape the battle for ultimate control between Sales and Marketing, it's so divisive, but it's also invigorating to the mind of a marketer. Read on for a glimpse into how our conversation went with a panel of experts, each with their own unique perspectives.  

 We had strong opinions, a bit of healthy disagreement, and (most importantly imo) a conversation that actually reflected what’s happening inside maritime businesses. Budget pressure. Scrutiny. More channels. More noise. More expectation on marketing to deliver. 

So, what did our panel discuss?  

 First things first if you're looking for absolute clarity, you're not going to find it here.  

If you came hoping for a clear answer of “spend on brand” or “spend on performance”, then re-set your expectations. Skilful, strategic Marketers should know that everything 'depends'. An annoying answer to your CEO or even CFO when asked if the campaign you're working on will yield a strong ROI. But it's not flippant. And it's certainly not dismissive! Everything we do is intentional and will 'move the needle' as so many business gurus like to say. However, the real skill is in knowing how, what and what and being able to communicate that back into the business.  

What we heard across the panel was that this isn’t about choosing one over the other. It’s about understanding how they work together, and where your imbalance is. 

• Too much performance, and you cap your growth 
• Too much brand, and you delay revenue 

The real question is: what does your business need right now, and what are you under-investing in? What are the strategic imperatives and is your nice shiny 12-month marketing plan still relevant?  

The tension is real, it matters and it shouldn't be overlooked.  

One of the best parts of the discussion was the contrast in perspectives. On one side, we had the view that marketing ultimately exists to support sales. That if it’s not contributing to pipeline and revenue, it’s missing the point. “Marketing is a support function to sales. If it’s not ultimately contributing to profitable revenue, we’re measuring the wrong thing.” -Nick Chubb 

On the other, we had a strong argument for brand being the foundation. That in a complex B2B industry like maritime, where only a small percentage of buyers are ever “in-market”, visibility and familiarity are what make performance possible in the first place. 

And both are right, and our panellists stood their ground.  In maritime: 

• Buying cycles are long 
• Decisions involve multiple stakeholders 
• Trust carries huge weight 
• And many of your future customers aren’t even looking yet 

That changes how you need to think about marketing. You’re not just competing for leads, you’re competing for memory. You need to win the hearts and minds of your audience! “Brand is important, but without performance, without pipeline and sales, you don’t have a business. That has to sit at the top of the hierarchy." -Nick Chubb 

 One idea that came up again and again and brought up first by Sam and reinforced by Adel, was, most of your buyers aren’t ready to buy. 

So if all your activity is focused on capturing demand, you’re ignoring the majority of your market. This is where brand comes in. “Only a small percentage of your buyers are ever in-market. If your brand isn’t visible the rest of the time, you simply won’t be considered.” -Adel Raslan 

It's not about getting your crayons out or making pretty logos. It's about being remembered. 

When the moment does come to buy, people don’t start from zero. They shortlist based on what they already know, what they’ve seen, and who they trust. If you’re not there at that point, performance marketing (and sales) can only do so much. 

“Before anyone speaks to your sales team, they’ve already researched you. Your brand and content are doing that job long before you get a chance to.” -Adel Raslan 

But performance still matters, a lot. “Performance of what? It’s performance of your brand. If the brand isn’t right, nothing else works.” -Namrata Nadkarni 

Equally, there was a still a clear reality check. You can build the strongest brand in the world, but if it doesn’t connect to revenue, you will be challenged. And rightly so, Marketing cannot sit in isolation. It has to: 

• Feed pipeline 
• Support sales conversations 
• Help deals progress, not just start 

One of the most practical takeaways here was this: Marketing shouldn’t just generate leads. It should make sales easier. 

That means: 

• Creating assets sales teams actually use 
• Reflecting real customer objections and pain points 
• Supporting the full journey, not just the first touch 

Ever considered this? (I loved this part) 

The biggest missed opportunity? Sales insight. What on earth are we talking aobut here?! 

Most marketing teams are constantly trying to create better content, better campaigns, better messaging. 

But at the same time, they’re sitting on the single most valuable dataset in the business: sales conversations! Actual client feedback.  

• Objections 
• Buying triggers 
• Language customers use 
• What wins deals vs what stalls them 

If you’re not systematically feeding that back into your marketing, you’re guessing. 

And in an industry like maritime, guessing is expensive. “One of the most underused datasets in any organisation is sales conversations. Everything you need for marketing is already there, you just need to use it.” -Sam Rasdall  

So what should you actually track? 

We asked the panel to keep it simple, and the answers aligned more than you might expect. 

Across brand and performance, a few themes stood out: 

• Sales activity – are the right conversations happening more often? 
• Conversion through the funnel – where are things breaking down? 
• Cost efficiency over time – is it getting easier (and cheaper) to win business? 
• Market presence – are more people engaging, recognising, and opening doors? 

Not every impact is perfectly measurable. But if nothing is moving, there’s a problem. 

 So what does this mean for maritime marketers? If I had to summarise one thing from the session, it’s that teamwork, really is the most crucial ingredient to success. Because whether we like it or not, the pressure on marketing to justify spend isn’t going away. “Brand is your long game. Performance is your short game. You need both working together, otherwise you hit a ceiling.” -Sam  

If you were in the session… 

You’ll know this only scratches the surface. The discussion itself went much deeper (and more opinionated). 

 You don’t win in maritime by being the loudest. You win by being remembered and trusted, and by making it easy for people to buy when they’re ready. 

 We’ll be sharing more of those insights, clips, and follow-ups inside the MiM community. 

And if you weren’t there, this is exactly what the #MiMCrowd is about. Honest conversations, practical thinking, raising the standard of marketing in maritime and last but not least ENJOYING your wonderful job with industry peers that get it 😊  

We’ll see you at the next one, keep an eye on your inbox and the events page for updates.