For years, brand growth was largely driven by how well a company could communicate the benefits of its products—and how broadly it could distribute that message.
But that approach is becoming less reliable.
Today’s consumers don’t just evaluate brands based on what they sell. They evaluate brands based on how they show up in their lives. And increasingly, growth depends on whether a brand offers meaningful ways to engage beyond the transaction.
In my work advising brands on ecosystem-led growth, I’ve seen firsthand how companies that expand how customers engage—rather than simply pushing harder on promotion—are better positioned to build trust, relevance, and long-term growth.
That shift is at the heart of my recent conversation with Vicky Lozano, Chief Marketing Officer at Crayola—and it’s why Crayola’s Creativity Week offers such a powerful lesson for modern brand leaders.
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Why This Conversation Matters Right Now
Many brands sense that something about their growth strategy isn’t working the way it used to.
They’re producing more content, running more campaigns, and expanding their channel mix—yet results feel harder to sustain. Engagement spikes, then fades. Awareness grows, but loyalty lags.
What’s often missing isn’t effort. It’s cohesion.
In my conversation with Lozano, one idea came up repeatedly: growth today isn’t driven by a single campaign or channel. It’s driven by ecosystems—interconnected ways for consumers to interact with a brand across products, content, and experiences.
Crayola’s Creativity Week is a clear example of that shift in action.
Crayola’s Creativity Week, Explained
Crayola is preparing to launch its fifth annual Creativity Week, a global initiative that will engage more than 17 million children across 120+ countries—a dramatic increase from roughly two million participants in its first year.
The program offers:
- Free, standards-aligned creative activities
- Daily videos and creative challenges across literacy, STEAM, and social-emotional learning
- Materials translated into eight languages
- Access for classrooms, after-school programs, libraries, and families
Creators and collaborators range from musicians and entertainers to illustrators, educators, and even NASA astronauts.
On the surface, Creativity Week could be mistaken for a large-scale brand activation. In practice, it plays a far more strategic role.
The Ecosystem Lens That Changes Everything
Rather than viewing growth through products alone, Lozano encourages leaders to look at brands through three interconnected pillars: products, content, and experiences.
“When you think about the brand through all three,” she explained, “you create a much more robust ecosystem—one where you can have a relationship or touchpoint with the consumer in multiple ways.”
Creativity Week sits at the center of that ecosystem.
It isn’t designed to sell crayons. It’s designed to reinforce the role Crayola plays in people’s lives—as a creative partner, an educational resource, and a brand that supports self-expression.
That distinction is subtle, but powerful.
What Is a Brand Ecosystem?
A brand ecosystem is a connected system of products, content, and experiences designed to give customers multiple ways to engage with a brand beyond the transaction. When aligned, these touchpoints reinforce one another, deepen relationships, and support sustained brand growth over time.
This is where many growth strategies begin to diverge.
Why Ecosystems Outperform Campaigns
Many brands technically have products, content, and experiences—but they often operate in silos.
- Content exists to fuel social channels
- Experiences exist as one-off moments
- Products exist to drive transactions
What’s rare is alignment.
Crayola’s Creativity Week works because all three pillars converge around a shared purpose: helping children—and the adults who support them—unlock creativity.
The effort doesn’t feel fragmented or promotional. It feels cohesive.
That cohesion is what turns engagement into trust—and trust into sustained growth.
The Role of “Helpfulness” in Brand Growth
One of the most resonant parts of my conversation with Lozano centered on the idea of true help.
She emphasized the importance of asking:
- What does genuine help look like in this context?
- How can the brand add value without expecting anything in return?
- Where can the brand reduce friction or create opportunity for others?
When brands lead with those questions, growth becomes a byproduct rather than the primary objective.
Consumers feel the difference. They’re more likely to engage, return, and advocate for brands that support them in meaningful ways. Over time, those interactions compound into stronger relationships and greater lifetime value.
What Leaders Can Apply From This Episode
Crayola’s scale is impressive—but the lesson here isn’t about size or budget. It’s about mindset.
If you’re evaluating your own brand’s growth strategy, this episode invites a few practical reflections:
1. How many ways can customers engage with you today?
Beyond buying, where can people interact with your brand in ways that feel useful or enriching?
2. Do your products, content, and experiences reinforce one another?
Or do they compete for attention instead of building connection?
3. Where could your brand be more genuinely helpful?
Not in a promotional sense—but in ways that make customers’ lives easier, better, or more meaningful.
4. What role should your brand play in people’s lives?
Not just what you sell—but what you enable, support, or inspire.
These aren’t marketing questions alone. They’re growth questions.
Why This Matters for the Future of Brand Growth
As consumer expectations continue to rise, brands won’t grow by saying more. They’ll grow by meaning more.
Ecosystems like Crayola’s Creativity Week show what’s possible when brands stop chasing attention and start building relevance—when engagement is designed, not forced, and growth is rooted in relationships rather than reach.
That’s the future this conversation points to—and one leaders can’t afford to ignore.
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