Tiffany Guarnaccia is CEO of Kite Hill PR.
This 12 months’s Cannes Lions Worldwide Pageant of Creativity showcased the facility of good concepts, the will for IRL connections and actually partaking experiences. After being canceled for 2 years, 2023 is the 12 months that the Lions got here roaring again to the Croisette. Tens of 1000’s of attendees from the promoting, media, advertising and marketing and communications world got here collectively to spotlight key tendencies, share insights and get offers completed.
A few of the key tendencies that have been mentioned on the convention could possibly be pinpointed even earlier than the periods began on Monday simply by wanting up on the billboards surrounding the Palais des festivals, which featured adverts for sustainability, advertising and marketing and adtech options. Insiders estimated that 80% of attendees have been from the adtech trade this 12 months. Double clicking on the adtech discussions, one of many greatest speaking factors on the present mustn’t come as a shock – AI! Executives debated the impacts of AI in efficiency advertising and marketing and programmatic promoting.
Whereas there have been a couple of occasions geared in direction of PR execs and alternatives to satisfy with leaders from GWPR and ICCO, media and tech manufacturers drew probably the most consideration. Pinterest introduced extra influencers to the present with their Manifestival, which included activations that confirmed what it was prefer to step into the patron journey on the platform. Attendees may get a tattoo, attempt a meals development or make customized merchandise. It was a well-produced and interesting expertise that introduced a various vary of influencers to the present, a lot of whom have been in attendance for the primary time. In addition they hosted a journalist meetup with MuckRack which drew some consideration and served as a welcomed pause in jam-packed schedules.
Stagwell’s vertical strategy was effectively acquired. Their “Sports activities Seaside” with Axios had a number of the greatest attended periods total. It was a fantastic instance of the facility of aligning to goal and keenness. Athletes and stars graced their stage, together with a session with Spike Lee who was named as Cannes Lions’ first Artistic Maker of the Yr. The Stagwell workforce tapped into passions however introduced it again to the enterprise at hand together with the touting of their advertising and marketing cloud options that features a PR tech layer.
CEOs at an intimate Kite Hill PR-hosted roundtable shared that the convention served as a possibility to debate broader tendencies however was reminder about why we have been all there – to showcase our ardour for the work and the good concepts that energy campaigns.
The great thing about Cannes is that it isn’t one occasion however many who give attendees the possibility to attach in quite a lot of settings conducive to candid conversations and real connections. All in all, the attendance was up. The thrill was tangible. Let’s see if Cannes Lions 2024 roars as loudly.
