E097: Creative Strategists Are Dead, Here’s What Replaced Them With Dara Denney

Performance creative consultant Dara Denney joins the show to break down how modern brands are approaching creative strategy in 2026. The conversation opens with the shifting role of content creators versus strategists, and why creative velocity, operations, and in-house production are increasingly shaping how brands scale.

From there, they dig into how AI is actually being used inside creative workflows - where it speeds up research and briefing, and where human judgment still matters, especially around roadmapping and idea selection. The group also explores the growing convergence of organic and paid, including how organic performance signals influence paid creative, why upper-funnel content belongs in performance accounts, and when “organic-first” ideas can still drive results.

The episode wraps with a candid discussion on performance measurement beyond short-term ROAS, touching on creative diversity, upper-funnel impact, and how operators think about long-term growth when building scalable content systems.

Chapters:

00:00:00 Introduction to Dara Denney

00:06:48 What Is Creative Strategy, Really?

00:27:46 Leveraging AI Tools in Creative

00:41:57 Merging Organic & Paid Social Teams

00:52:06 Organic Algorithms for Paid Success

01:07:53 Hi-Fi vs. Lo-Fi Content in Marketing

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