Maya, the Neovism Champ – 1
I asked Claude to write a story about Maya, a marketer who introduces and champions Neovism in her organisation.
Monday Morning, Marketing Team Meeting
Maya walks into the monthly marketing review meeting with determination. As Head of Marketing at a leading D2C brand, she’s been troubled by their rising customer acquisition costs and declining retention rates. The room is filled with her key team members: Rahul (Digital Acquisition), Priya (Customer Engagement), Amit (Analytics), and their CMO, Karan.
“Team, before we dive into our usual metrics, I want to share something that could transform how we approach marketing,” Maya begins. “Last month, our CAC increased by 35%, and we’re seeing that 65% of our Google and Meta spend is actually going toward reaching customers already in our database. We’re suffering from a disease called AdWaste – hemorrhaging money by paying premium prices to reach our own customers. But I’ve found an antidote – a new approach called NeoVisM that could transform how we do marketing.”
Rahul interjects, “But Maya, we need that ad spend to hit our growth targets.”
“That’s exactly what we need to challenge,” Maya responds. “We are paying premium prices to reach our own customers. Last year, we spent ₹100 crores on digital advertising. Our analysis shows that nearly ₹70 crores went to reacquisition.”
The room falls silent.
“Neovism is a framework to break free from this expensive acquisition addiction. It’s built on a simple truth: we should acquire customers only once, then focus all our energy on keeping them.”
Karan, the CMO, leans forward. “Go on. What exactly are you proposing?”
Maya pulls up her presentation. “NeoVisM implementation has four layers that build on each other. Let me walk you through them and then we can discuss a phased rollout plan…”
The NeoVisM Explanation
Maya pulls up a pyramid diagram showing the four layers. “Think of this as building a house. We start with the foundation, then add each layer methodically.”
“Foundation Layer comes first,” Maya explains. “We need three things: unified customer data across all touchpoints, an integrated martech stack, and most importantly, a mindset shift from acquisition to retention.”
Amit, the Analytics head, nods. “Our data is currently scattered across five different systems. Every time we want to understand customer behavior, it takes weeks of reconciliation.”
“Exactly,” Maya responds. “Our first priority is implementing a proper Customer Data Platform. This isn’t just another tech project – it’s about creating a single source of truth about our customers.”
Priya raises her hand. “What about all our existing martech tools?”
“We don’t replace them – we unify them. Think Unistack and Unichannel – all our channels working together seamlessly. But before we get to tech, we need to restructure our teams and metrics. Why are our acquisition and retention teams separate? Why do we celebrate new customer acquisition but not improved retention rates?”
The Team’s Concerns
Rahul looks worried. “But our quarterly targets… we need to show growth. The board expects it.”
“That’s where the Intelligence Layer comes in,” Maya continues. “Using AI, we can be much smarter about how we grow. The system uses three types of AI working together – AI Twins to understand customers deeply, Agentic AI to handle specific tasks, and the AI Co-Marketer to orchestrate everything. Think of it as having a team of AI experts working 24/7 to understand and engage our customers. Instead of blasting campaigns to everyone, we use this AI trinity to understand individual customers and predict their needs.”
“The Engagement Layer is where this gets exciting,” Maya continues. “We create daily touchpoints with customers – not to sell, but to deliver value. Think 15-second interactions that keep us top of mind. NeoMails with daily micro-content, gamified experiences, real value delivery.”
Priya’s eyes light up. “Like building genuine relationships instead of just transactions?”
“Exactly! And this leads to the Monetisation Layer – where marketing becomes a profit engine. We reduce acquisition costs through referrals, maximize customer lifetime value, and even create new revenue streams by monetizing attention through partnerships.”
The Implementation Plan
Karan, who has been quietly listening, speaks up. “This sounds transformative, but also complex. How do we start?”
Maya reveals her 90-day plan:
“Month 1: Foundation
- Audit current data and tech infrastructure
- Begin CDP implementation
- Restructure teams around customer lifecycle
- Launch new retention-focused KPIs
Month 2: Intelligence
- Deploy AI Co-Marketer pilot
- Begin AI Twins implementation for key customer segments
- Start MyTwin testing with high-value customers
- Launch predictive analytics
- Train teams on new tools and approaches
Month 3: Engagement
- Launch daily micro-content program
- Test new engagement formats
- Begin measuring Earned Growth Rate
The Monetisation Layer will evolve naturally as we build these capabilities.”
The First Steps
“But we start today,” Maya emphasizes. “Amit, I need a complete data audit by Friday. Priya, map out our current customer touchpoints and identify gaps. Rahul, analyze our reacquisition spending – exactly how much we’re paying to reach existing customers.”
She turns to Karan. “And we need your help changing the narrative with the board. We’ll show them how reducing AdWaste and focusing on retention will actually accelerate growth.”
Karan nods. “Send me the full presentation. I’ll set up a board discussion next week. But Maya, you’ll need to own this transformation.”
“Absolutely,” Maya responds. “This isn’t just another initiative – it’s our path to sustainable profitable growth. We’re going to build something remarkable: a marketing operation that grows through relationships, not just transactions.”
The team leaves energized, with clear next steps. Maya has successfully planted the seeds of transformation. Now the real work begins.
Week 1: The Reality Check
Data Audit Revelations
Amit’s data audit delivers the first shock. “Maya, it’s worse than we thought. Our customer data is scattered across seven systems, not five. Our email, mobile, and web teams each maintain separate customer profiles. We can’t even tell when we’re targeting the same customer across channels.”
Maya calls an emergency team meeting. “This is exactly why we need Neovism. Let’s map out exactly what we’re dealing with.”
The team creates their “Current State” assessment:
- 70% of digital ad spend going to existing customer retargeting
- Five different definitions of “active customer” across teams
- Customer service data completely disconnected from marketing
- No way to track cross-channel customer journeys
- retention metrics buried in acquisition reports
Week 2: The Mindset Shift
The Board Presentation
Karan and Maya present to the board. The numbers are compelling:
- ₹70 crores annual AdWaste
- 65% one-and-done customers
- Rising CAC across all channels
- Declining retention rates
Maya presents the Neovism framework as the solution. “We’re not asking to reduce growth targets. We’re proposing a more efficient path to growth – through retention and referrals rather than endless paid acquisition.”
The board approves the transformation with one condition: show measurable results within 90 days.
