Written By Farhat Chowdhury
Held on the French Riviera for over 60 years, the Cannes Lions is the world’s leading creative festival. For one week every year, the key players of the global communications industry come together to celebrate the very best creative works of the marketing, entertainment, design and tech industries. The festival includes an exciting programme of talks, workshops, networking events and training sessions and ends with a glittering awards ceremony held at the Palais des Festivals. A cross-discipline event, the Cannes Lions encompasses every aspect of the communications industry from print and publishing to entertainment via design and digital media.
This year’s event was no different. With more than 16,000 attendees and near about 5000 brands exhibiting their creative flare in this gala, Cannes Lion possesses the same amount of extravagance and grandeur as the FIFA World Cup. Moreover, some interesting changes have been noticed as well. Several Lions categories have been eliminated including the Cyber, Integrated, Promo & Activation Lions. However, five new categories have been added to the competition including Creative eCommerce Lions, Social & Influencer Lions, Industry Craft Lions, Sustainable Development Goals Lions and Brand Experience & Activation Lions.
Wise Words at Cannes Lions 2018
With visionaries and luminaries of the Communication realm all coming to Cannes Lion, a lot of things related to marketing were brought to light. Starting from new technology to traditional issues, some of the most revered marketers and brand maestros from all across the globe took the center stage and expressed their opinions on some of the most pressing issues on marketing right now.
Unilever cuts ties with social media influencers
Unilever’s CMO Keith Weed kicked off Cannes with a big announcement: The company would make an effort not to work with influencers who had fake followers or used bots to grow their accounts. “You often seen scenarios where a brand is working with influencers who are less suitable but are paid more just because they have more followers,” he said, “as opposed to the traditional magazine idea of what is the suitable publication to work with? What is the right audience? What’s the message you want to put out there?” “The industry is putting follower numbers above all else,” he said. “It’s slightly ludicrous when there’s just so much more to it.”
For many influencers, Weed’s statement was cause for celebration, but also caution. Cathy Peshek, the creator of the fashion blog Poor Little It Girl, said she worries that the practice of buying followers is much more complicated than simply paying for bot accounts to follow your own. And if a brand isn’t putting in the effort to dig into an influencer’s following, it’s easy to skate by unnoticed.
P&G discusses gender equality
P&G Chief Brand Officer Marc Pritchard discussed why gender equality needs creative change agents to make real progress. “Only 32 percent of chief marketing officers are women, 33 percent of chief creative officers are women and a mere 10 percent of commercial directors are women. It is quite clear that we do not have gender equality in the creative pipeline.” he mentioned.
He went on to talk about all the progress and the hands-on initiatives that P&G, the world’s largest advertiser, has taken to ensure equal rights for women. The visionary leader has also mentioned that Madonna Badger is joining forces with Cannes Lions to curate a “Creative Showcase” at the #SheIsEqual Summit, co-hosted by Global Citizen and P&G during UN General Assembly Week in September. This will highlight and celebrate the best work from women creatives around the world and telling their backstories for inspiration.
Creativity vs Data – a 21st century saga
Furthermore, McKinsey released a study at Cannes that states a blend of data and creative thinking is likely to be what helps businesses get ahead: those that do so, grow their revenues at 10 percent a year, twice the average rate of S&P 500 firms.
Meanwhile, Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba had a stand in the Palais promoting its marketing platform Alimama. One of its products, AI Copy, can produce 20,000 versions of an ad per second, based on big data analysis.
The Celebrities at Cannes Lion 2018
This year, famous actors and musicians have descended onto Cannes to speak at the festival. Nicolaj Coster-Waldau, David Oyelowo, Queen Latifah, Thandie Newton, Kevin Costner, Ellen Pompeo, David Schwimmer, St Vincent, Paloma Faith, Jax Jones, Common and Afrojack are only some of them.
Well, that’s not it. Around the festival, there are dozens of smaller events sponsored by international brands attracting celebrities and businessmen from all over the world. The number of stars walking the streets of Cannes and sailing its waters on luxury yachts during the Cannes Lions is only second to the number of A-listers that can be seen in town when the Film Festival is on.
Kylie Jenner boarded a private jet in hometown LA together with 4-month old daughter Stormi and her baby’s daddy, Travis Scott, who was performing at the Spotify Party in Cannes. Naomi Campbell, who was among the speakers at the festival, also came to the French city to discuss fashion and its cultural influence with broadcaster Tania Bryer.
Experiential booths by the Tech Titans
Apart from the thought provoking and stimulating discussions by the industry veterans, Cannes Lions was also rejuvenated by the auspicious presence of the world’s most dynamic social media companies. Each played on their own forte and designed unique experiences for their consumers; so that they can connect with their platforms like never before.
Instagram “Storyscape”
For Instagram, there was a similar vibe as the Facebook-owned platform turned to artist and designer Es Devlin for an installation exploring the “power of community and storytelling” on its platform. Guests sat down in a pitch-black room to look at light projections around them to learn about the history of storytelling.
Pinterest “Tasteshop”
For its fourth year in Cannes, this was the brand’s biggest presence yet, apart from talks and experiences around beauty, sessions with a sommelier to find the perfect rose, fashion styling, and travel survival tips. Outside the Palais there was also an installation with a selection of images users have posted onto Pinterest for things to do in and around Cannes.
Snap “Sound stories”
In a partnership with artist Christian Marclay, Snap created an exhibition around the sounds users create through its platform. Marclay used the snaps in numerous ways, such as two large flat screens facing one another to play Tinsel, a score he created in 2005. Though this was performed using a series of raw Snapchat videos.
Spotify “Beach house”
The Killers, DJ Z-Trip, Travis Scott and CHVRCHES were the top names that Spotify pulled in for some of the best parties of the week. The music streaming platform worked with brand experience agency Lively to create a chilled beach house atmosphere. Lively also created a VR experience for the Campaign party, featuring a hologram of Cannes Lion and taking guests through the history of the title’s 50 years.
Some Grand Prix Winners from Cannes Lions 2018
While there were 30 Grand Prix winners at this year’s Cannes Lions, the ones mentioned below were captivating and had to be talked about in details.
Brand Experience and Activation
Apple, “Today at Apple”
Country: USA
Brand Experience & Activation awards celebrate creative, comprehensive brand building through the next level use of experience design, activation, immersive, retail and 360° customer engagement. ‘Today at Apple’ was first previewed in 2016 when Apple opened their new store at San Francisco’s Union Square. The program replaced older Apple workshops, and introduced new sessions that focused on connecting the community through live art, music, and engaging photo and sketch walks.
Creative Effectiveness
ITC, “Savlon Healthy Hands Chalk Sticks”
Agency: Ogilvy Mumbai
Country: India
The campaign, which was created by Ogilvy Mumbai, used chalk sticks infused with powdered soap to ensure that schoolchildren cleaned their hands properly before eating. When the kids went to rinse the chalk dust of their hands after playing, it turned instantly into lather. The Healthy Hands Chalk Sticks were introduced to 100 schools in 22 Indian cities. And the campaign generated a reach of 4.3 million on Twitter and 3.2 million on Facebook in just four days. It has also led to a partnership between Savlon and Akshaya Patra, India’s biggest provider of children’s school lunches, to distribute the chalks to over 1 million schoolchildren across the country every day.
Design
LADbible and Plastic Oceans Foundation, “Trash Isles”
Agency: AMV BBDO
Country: U.K.
In the North Pacific, an area of plastic trash the size of France has formed. Governments have simply ignored it so the Plastic Oceans Foundation and LadBible submitted an application to the UN to recognize The Trash Isles as an official country. If granted, this would compel other nations to clean it up. As a result, 200,000 people became citizens and the campaign reached half a billion people.
The social responsibility campaign aims to raise awareness that an area of accumulative plastic trash the size of France is polluting the Pacific Ocean and is so dense that it has begun creating landmasses in some parts. Its goal was to empower young people to lobby the United Nations to acknowledge the plastic in oceans. To meet this end, the agency created the “Trash Isles” concept. It launched with an official flag, currency called Debris, and passports created from recycled materials.
Glass Lion
Essity/Bodyform/Libresse, “#BloodNormal”
Agencies: AMV BBDO, Somesuch, Trim editing, 750mph, The Mill, Framestore
Country: U.K.
Bodyform and Libresse, feminine care brands of global hygiene and health company Essity, continue their mission to break taboos around periods with their latest campaign, #bloodnormal, in which period blood is shown realistically for the first time. They have also finally banished the blue liquid convention and replaced it with a realistic red. After all, women bleed blood.
At the heart of the campaign is a film created by AMV BBDO and directed by Daniel Wolfe, with cinematography by Monika Lenczewska. It shows young women in real life scenarios dealing with their periods. The campaign is informed by the widespread omission of periods in mainstream culture and research demonstrating that 9 out of 10 women attempt to hide their periods – a clear demonstration of the stigma still attached to periods. Aside from Bodyform’s 20 second film, globally Libresse has released a longer #bloodnormal film. The different cuts reflect the different regulatory issues faced by different markets, but they all come from a single global #bloodnormal campaign with multiple activations to help provide positive periods images. These include a graphic story by renowned illustrator Victo Ngai, beautifully designed period underwear by French lingerie company Dessu, period jokes by twelve year old stand-up comedian Saffron Herndon, and commissioned a range of pad-shaped lilo’s. They have also worked with well-known influencers like former model and activist Victoire Dauxerre and Swedish fashion blogger Julian Hernandez.
Google wins Creative Marketer of the Year 2018
This is in no way less than an underdog story. Google co-founder Larry Page once told the company’s then director of brand and marketing, Douglas Edwards, that if it “had to use marketing, then we’ve failed”. But, just as Google has evolved far beyond its pure search-engine roots, so, too, has its attitude towards marketing – to the extent that it has won 127 Lions since 2007, seven of which have been Grands Prix and 31 awarded to Google itself, not to an agency. In this year, the award bagged by Google went up a notch.
This year, Google is recognized for embracing creativity across their brand marketing, the application of new technology to creating effective campaigns, and inclusive storytelling. The award honors brands that distinguish themselves through consistently outstanding creative storytelling. Being the successors to brands like Burger King, Samsung, and Coca Cola, Google has to fill in big shoes indeed.
However, Google, being the dynamic company it is, decided to create a stir with this prestigious award. To celebrate the award and ensure the future of the marketing industry is one which is driven by a variety of backgrounds, perspectives and experiences, the company launched the Google Creative Campus at the 2018 Cannes Lions.
Google Creative Campus focuses on driving greater gender, ethnicity and socio-demographic diversity in the creative industries. Operating in partnership with the Roger Hatchuel Academy, the combined programme educated 45 students in Cannes, at least 50% of which came from groups that are historically underrepresented in advertising and marketing. Students were selected by Cannes Lions representatives, from advertising, communications, and related marketing disciplines and additionally, ten of the chosen students received bursaries from Google.
“This isn’t about ‘multicultural marketing’; it’s marketing in a multicultural world. Without this diversity, there is no creativity,” commented Lorraine Twohill, Google’s Chief Marketing Officer about the initiative.
Key takeaways from Cannes Lions 2018
While many of the brands have talked about widely-known issues, some of the things discussed were radically new.
Blockchain is moving into the marketing spotlight: Blockchain is not going away and it is going to change how people do business. Now, it’s about timeframes and first iterations. IBM is clearly pushing to lead that conversation, with its new blockchain pilot with Unilever, Kimberly-Clark Corp., Pfizer, and Kellogg. The clock started ticking toward a new phase for blockchain in marketing. We can probably expect to see initial offerings — ones vying for digital media and payments— to gain traction as early as 2019. One of the most promising use cases will be around protecting and preserving consumer privacy; blockchain is going to give us another way to ensure the responsible and ethical use of consumer data.
Audio marketing is evolving: One Pandora VP referred to the rise of audio in the user experience as the “death of the screen.” The prediction might sound greatly exaggerated to many though. That being said, voice and audio are absolutely competing for digital-ad spend: ad revenue in digital audio increased 42 percent in 1H 2017 (and it capped 2016 at $1.1 billion). Companies like Pandora and Spotify are only going to push that envelope harder, bringing more ad dollars to their side of the room.
The next generation of video campaigns is being born: Cannes Lions was YouTube’s stage to debut The Creative Suite, which will put video-ad tools in the hands of brands and agencies. This is part of a new wave of in-video approaches that the big players are rolling out — in line with Facebook’s polling and gamification moves in its Live offering, for example.
The grand event finally came to an end after a huge congregation of discussions, keynote sessions and of course, the presentation of some of the most surreal, dynamic brands on the face of the planet. While the countdown for the next year’s Cannes Lions begins, we can all sit back and expect another year of mind-boggling, spine-tickling, adrenaline-infused content from brands form all across the globe. For that’s what makes brands so interesting – made by humans, for humans – with a slight touch magic in between!
