Five seconds or less is all brands have to capture attention for 69% of customers viewing a promotional email, ad, or social media post, according to Adobe’s 2026 AI and Digital Trends consumer report.
One common way brands waste that window is by leading with internal features, terminology, and company priorities before considering what the customer will understand or care about.
In the latest DesignRush Podcast, I spoke with Updraft Brand Founder Mat Braddy about why this happens and how brands can make their marketing relevant, distinctive, and clear.
"In terms of marketing and branding, the main thing people get wrong in every sector is they develop what I call inside-out messaging. We want to say this, so they say it," Braddy tells DesignRush.
Across his work at Updraft and Just Eat, Braddy outlines three decisions that can determine whether marketing earns attention or gets ignored.
Watch the full episode now on YouTube or listen on Spotify.
Who Is Mat Baddy?
Mat Braddy is the former CMO of Just Eat, where he helped grow one of the U.K.’s best-known consumer brands through IPO.
At Updraft, he focuses on challenger strategy and brand growth.
1. Solving the Customer's Real Problem First
Updraft faced this issue early in the business.
Within its first 18 months, the team moved its focus from overdrafts to credit card debt after recognizing that credit card debt was the core problem for the customers it wanted to help.
Braddy applies the same customer test to marketing.
Teams can become absorbed in features, industry terminology, or product details without checking whether any of it gives the customer a reason to pay attention.
"They don't think about the consumer and the mindset the consumer is in, and how they're going to receive it, or whether they're going to care about what you're saying," he says.
For CEOs and CMOs, that creates a straightforward test before approving a campaign:
What problem does this solve? Why should the customer care? Can they understand the value quickly?
DesignRush’s brand strategy guide examines how customer needs connect to positioning and communication.
2. Why Authentic Brand Voice Starts in the Boardroom
Braddy’s experience at Just Eat shows how much CEOs and boards influence the creative work customers eventually see.
“The marketing team cannot be creative and be good storytellers unless they're enabled to do that by the CEO. And he's enabled to do that by a board.”
At Just Eat, Braddy describes an internal culture that was frank, rebellious, and comfortable with debate.
That personality eventually appeared in the company’s advertising and customer-facing language.
“That's when the company really took off towards its IPO; having that strong personality led story. And you can't fake that. It's got to come from within the business.”
Removing every unconventional idea during executive review can leave a brand sounding like everyone else in its category.
DesignRush’s brand voice guidelines offer practical steps for keeping a recognizable personality consistent across communications.
3. Using AI Output to Create a Human-Led Narrative
AI tools can produce large volumes of marketing content, but more output means little if the idea gives people nothing worth remembering.
"You can make more marketing, but you can't make better marketing that way," Braddy says.
Braddy also recommends looking outside your own industry when familiar category language starts sounding generic. Study brands you find interesting in unrelated sectors, then use those references to challenge familiar creative thinking.
A human still has to decide which story is worth telling.
DesignRush’s analysis of AI marketing risks examines where human oversight remains essential in AI-assisted marketing.
Key Takeaway for CEOs and CMO’s
Braddy’s experience across Updraft and Just Eat comes back to one practical question: Would a customer care about this if they did not work inside the company?
Technology can speed up production, but strategy still depends on choosing ideas worth pursuing and giving creative teams room to execute them well.
When brands have only seconds to capture attention, customer relevance has to come first.
