Cannes Lions Report 2024

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Cannes Lions Report 2024

Cannes is the first stop, not the last destination.

We went to Cannes and saw an expanding festival, but a shrinking of conventional categories. We debated purpose vs. playfulness and hacking the marketing & comms toolbox. Most importantly, we went to Cannes to distill a week’s worth of sessions and creative best practice down to actionable insights and trends that push the industry forward.

Here is a glimpse of this year’s trending talks and winning work.

is increasingly a business imperative

MORE MORE MORE MORE

brand delegates than ever organized activities investors and venture capital deals struck

“

In effect, paid media is the tax you pay for being boring.”

Jon Evans, Chief Customer Officer at System1

The price of predictability framed the creative effectiveness discussion this year.

+£10 million THE EXTRA MEDIA SPEND DULL (RATIONAL) CAMPAIGNS NEED TO ACHIEVE THE SAME BUSINESS EFFECTS AS INTERESTING (EMOTIONAL) CAMPAIGNS

(The) Work To know the winning work isn’t enough, we must understand why it sets the bar.

Let’s start by addressing the elephant in the room: AI AI was present, but pivotal insights weren’t. The industry discussion and application of AI is still centered downstream, top-down. But take our word for it – that’s not where the untapped potential of AI lies. Exceptions include brilliant work such as “WoMen’s Football” by Orange and Marcel.

Fan culture People aren’t ruled by brands – they rule with them. Fan culture is starting to heavily influence brands and business models, many thanks to GenAI weaponizing them with Hollywood-grade production tools to make spin-offs, co-labs and bespoke products. Understanding how to leverage fandom for your brand is paramount.

IP The rise of GenAI blurs the lines between the original and the derivative. The legacy mindset has protected brand assets at all costs, but challenger brands are increasingly open sourcing the brand book for co-creation with communities. Playing around with the trademark was the winning mechanic behind some highly coveted Lions.

Meme:ification We’ve witnessed a shift in tone and voice in the industry driven by the social-commerce tsunami and creators shaping how brands communicate. But marketing is still largely divorced from the conversation and humor native to new-age audiences. Winning Grand Prix work broke new ground by leaning into coming-of-age surrealism and absurdism.

Entertainment Are we seeing the final collapse between culture and commerce?

Brands are starting studios to compete with the level of quality content that captures audiences’ attention. Treating marketing as a product worth paying for demands leading with entertainment value.

The full Cannes Lions Report deep dives into pivotal strategies and trends. Book a session with us at inside@webershandwick.com.