Cannes Briefing: Media and marketing’s return to the Croisette is ‘a marathon, not a sprint’

By Kristina Monllos

After two years of waiting with bated breath (through N95 masks, of course), the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity returns to the Riviera.

Marketers and advertisers can expect to find much of the usual wheeling and dealing when they descend upon the south of France for this year’s festival. But a two-year pandemic hiatus has meant changes in the marketplace may overshadow a bit of the celebration and jubilee.

“2022 will likely have two vibes happening,” Leslie Sims, U.S. chief creative officer at Deloitte Digital, told Digiday, “celebration since it is the first time back in-person in two years, and yet also a more reserved tone given the complicated issues the world is facing.”

As per usual, the biggest names in marketing, media and advertising will be present. Festival goers can expect sessions with WPP CEO Mark Read, and The New York Times CMO David Rubin. (Find the festival program here.) Albeit, that presence may be scaled back some, given the war in Ukraine, pending economic recession and spiking Covid-19 cases. The festival is looking to return to celebrate while also recognizing the state of the world, per Cannes CEO Simon Cook. The Captify Pool Party won’t be back in full this year and it may be a few more years until festival goers see another ferris wheel.

Call it a sign of the times. “There are better ways to spend €40,000 this year than on a round table sold by a trade publication,” a marketing director for an ad tech vendor told Digiday.

That’s not to say the dollars (or the rosé) have completely dried up. Companies that have the money have planned some pretty big initiatives, reminiscent of pre-pandemic Cannes. Adjacent from the Palais, PwC, Smartly.io and iHeartMedia will have yachts lined up on the water. Along the beach, expect star-studded talent at night as Spotify too has returned with its signature concerts. This year, acts feature big name talent like Kendrick Lamar and Post Malone.

The creative festival will also see some newcomers and new experiences. Amazon will finally have a beach presence à la Amazon Port with two days worth of programming. Meanwhile Roku and Adform will host spots on Cabana row. TikTok too will have its own Creator Cabana, fresh off the heels of partnering with the Cannes Film Festival last month. And Apple will be there too, but they’re mysteriously not saying where.

This year, there seems to be a focus on the burgeoning creator economy. Especially as TikTok has been gobbling up user attention (and thus, ad dollars), proving itself a viable contender to social media titans like Facebook and Instagram.

In addition to its Creator Cabana, the short-form video app has four days worth of creator-focused programming alongside TikTok creators available to help with content creation in real time. Not to be outdone, Meta beach boasts Reels SuperStudio, where users can create their own Reel, and programming around the metaverse. Pinterest too will be back at the …read more

Source:: Digiday