Jessica White.
Independent SOUP has appointed Jessica White general manager as it responds to growing client demand for marketing spend tied directly to revenue and profitability rather than volume metrics.
White joins from DEPT's APAC business, where she was VP of creative and media. She has judged the Effie Awards Asia Pacific and spoken at SXSW.
SOUP said the appointment reflects a shift it is seeing across its client base, away from volume-driven performance activity and toward more deliberate, commercially focused decision-making.
Agency founder and managing director Katya Vakulenko said brands are arriving with campaigns optimised against marketing metrics but not aligned to financial outcomes.
"A lot of marketing today is optimised around what is visible, not what is valuable — and that's where a lot of budget gets lost,” Vakulenko said.
“The most important work now happens before campaigns even go live. Deciding where to focus, what to stop, and what actually deserves investment."
White said the industry is entering a more disciplined phase.
“For a long time, performance has been driven by scale - more campaigns, more channels, more output,” she said.
“That created growth, but it also introduced a lot of inefficiency. What we’re seeing now is a shift toward understanding what actually drives commercial impact, not just activity.”
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