Where Agencies Are Going Wrong with Brand Experiences with Declan Massicott

Declan Massicott is an experiential creative designer based in the Jack Morton London office, focused on creating immersive experiences that envelop audiences through applied creative storytelling. His work brings together strong conceptual thinking and thoughtful design to transform brand narratives into memorable, multi-sensory moments.

Declan spoke with LBB about how brand experiences can improve by reflecting the emotional, economic and cultural climate audiences are living in.

LBB> In one sentence, what’s the issue on your mind right now?

Declan> Brand experiences, whether B2B or B2C, are falling short when they prioritise impressive and bombastic experiences and activities without designing for meaningful connection and true conversion.

As an industry, we’ve become very good at creating work that looks impressive with big visuals, beautiful craft and shareable moments but sometimes that comes at the expense of not understanding what the client needs the audience to do.

There’s often a gap between creative spectacle and creative strategy, and without the right cadence or behavioural insight, experiences risk feeling hollow rather than effective.

LBB> Why does it matter to you?

Declan> Because experiential has the potential to shift behaviour, not just deliver applause. If we don’t anchor our creativity in audience understanding and brand intention, we undervalue what experiential can achieve and reduce it to decoration rather than impact. I want the work to live up to its possibilities and not become a flash in the pan.

LBB> Why does it matter enough to the wider industry?

Declan> Clients will always want their experiences to outperform the competition, but rarely, rightly or wrongly, have budgets that match those ambitions. That means we need to turn our gaze to what truly makes an experience matter: a deep, cultural understanding of the audience. Of course, not at the expense of creating something aesthetically brilliant. When we get that right, connection and conversion become a natural outcome, not an afterthought.

LBB> Why does it remain an issue?

Declan> Because the industry still rewards visibility over value, “Did it look amazing?” becomes more important than “Did it work?” Without real cultural insight, we default to aesthetics instead of purpose. And without understanding the audience’s mood, motivations, and cultural context, our industry designs experiences that impress but don’t resonate. From a business perspective, clients will run the risk of not seeing a true return on investment with customers or peers not really connecting with the work/intention of clients with their time or money, which could harm how brand experiences are conducted in the future.

LBB> What should we be doing about it?

Declan> We need to demonstrate to clients not just tell them that we understand the varying cultural barometers that matter to them: how audiences are feeling, what they’re craving, what they’re fatigued by, and how they’re expressing identity.

Experiences should reflect the emotional, economic and cultural climate people are living in. When we bring that level of insight to the table and pitches, the work naturally becomes more strategic and effective and creatively considered.

LBB> And what are the first steps?

Declan> Re-centre the audience in every brief. Not as a demographic, but as emotional, cultural humans.

Build conversion goals into the experience from the start, not retrofit them later.

Shift internal conversations away from ‘What will look iconic?’ toward ‘What will feel relevant?’

Use cultural and behavioural insights to justify creative choices, not just aesthetic ones.

LBB> Are there any people or businesses leading the way?

Declan> Yes, Lauren Harewood is someone who I follow. There was an activation she worked on with Oatly x Giggs and she spoke about the importance of cultural references, she and her team essentially turned what could have been a simple brand activation in a café to an experience that felt human, community based and had humour.

Oatly × Giggs was a South London activation that grew from Giggs’ genuine love of Oatly custard, resulting in a limited-edition collaboration and a Peckham bakery takeover that used cultural credibility to spotlight dairy-free accessibility. The activation wasn’t a one-and-done experience where you go and that’s it; it was so much more.

I think recent examples from Nike, Gucci, Heineken and GAP show that brands have started to tap into more strategic audience identification, and it’s evident in their latest experiences, activations and campaigns. As creative brand experience agencies, we need to get with the programme: really interrogate our briefs, ask the clarifying questions, and not be afraid to “study history” as it were, but also avoid getting stuck in looking back instead of moving things forward.

LBB> Any parting thoughts?

Declan> I draw on / paraphrase Vogue editor Lynn Yaeger’s ethos: “If you wish to know about fashion, study everything but fashion,” as a guiding principle for this work. Experiential is at its strongest when it becomes a conversation with culture, not a performance outside of it.

The more we understand the cultural barometers, the more we can create experiences that not only capture attention but shift behaviour, and that’s where genuine connection happens, and conversion truly begins. But also, don’t be too stringent in trying to dictate what happens. I think the more impactful work happens when the experience is facilitated and you allow the audience to explore and enjoy.