day 2
The LEGO Group | Can In-house Agencies and Creative Agencies Ever Play Nice?
Given my Lego collection, I could not miss this talk. The SVP and Head of Agency at The LEGO Group Nic Taylor and the Chief Creative Officer at Droga5 Dublin Jen Speirs shared tips on how they bring two teams together to create great work. A few lucky people in the audience (unfortunately not me) had a pack of 6 bricks hidden under their seat to build a duck. Taylor and Speirs later revealed that there’s 915 ways to build a duck with just 6 bricks. They did this activity to show us the possibilities are endless when there’s different minds working on the same thing. They shared 5 tips to facilitate this process:
Leave your EGOS at the door - Everyone shares the idea! Once you let go wanting to be the owner credited of the idea or not wanting to adopt someone else’s, it becomes easier to like it. And when you like the idea, the work comes naturally.
BLUR the lines - Merge teams! To be collaborative, people from both sides should be working with each other. It should feel like one group, not two.
Agree what GREAT looks like - When both sides are on the same page and share a common goal, there’s less of a clash of creative visions and more building off of each other’s ideas.
Herd the CATS - Include project directors and managers! They’re the ones who help get the project up and running, and can provide another perspective on the work.
Play Play PLAY - When you play, you learn! Respond first emotionally to work in a lighthearted way.
Marcus Collins and e.l.f | Is the Brand Era Really Dead?
The best at dupes! Professor-in-Residence at TikTok Marcus Collins and CMO at e.l.f Kory Marchisotto explained what it means to be a brand today. Collins defined a brand as “an identifiable signifier that conjures up thoughts and feelings about a company, product, or person.” A vessel of meaning. Brands are marks, literally when translated. When he pointed this out, I felt so seen! As a Spanglish speaker, sometimes I’ve said “mark” instead of “brand” because in Spanish it’s “marca.” Collins reassured that the era of marks and meaning is not over. If anything, it has evolved. As most products are parity, brands need to transcend value propositions and be more distinctive than ever before. They can become stronger and more identity based with an ideology. People are interested in what a brand stands for and if it aligns with their values, and brands connect with people who share the same ideology. Marchisotto added how e.l.f, for example, is for, by, and with the people. Their So Many Dicks campaign calls out the lack of diversity on corporate boards. e.l.f spoke up for the people who make their brand what it is, and stood by their ideology, deepening that connection with their consumers. If there were three things that Marchisotto wanted us to take away from this, it’s these:
Pay attention to who makes up the Board of Directors at brands you follow!
Wear sunscreen!
e.l.f the rules!
Amazon | Encore! Embracing the new entertainment era
I was pleasantly surprised to find that Gwyneth Paltrow was at this talk. Her and VP of U.S. Ad Sales at Amazon Ads talked about making television that has universal appeal, that everyone can connect to. It’s easier to know what viewers want to see thanks to today’s media landscape. Amazon has successfully come out with shows for a niche fanbases, from The Boys for superhero fans to Fallout for gamers. You have to go where the consumer is and connect with them. Paltrow teased at the idea of a goop hotel, which apparently is something that fans of the brand would like to see happen.
P&G | Finding Creativity in the Everyday
This talk was one of the most memorable for me, and I think it’s because of how beautifully simple it was. Chief Brand Officer at P&G Marc Pritchard showed examples of ads from their brands found across the globe, and how they successfully tap into a consumer truth from their country. It’s all about finding what matters:
Find those EVERYDAY moments that matter
Find how your BRAND matters
Find the MAGIC to make moments matter more
Everyday moments are rich with creative potential. There’s interesting ways to dramatize problems, and unique ways to solve them. Safeguard understood how “Wash Hands and Eat” is a special phrase in Chinese households, and showed how it brings families together to enjoy a meal for Lunar New Year. Ariel showed the load that women have in the workplace and at home, and tackled gender roles in India by having a man #ShareTheLoad. Head & Shoulders flipped the narrative and detailed how when you use their product, you technically DON’T have dandruff. Native showed off the power of their deodorant by hilariously exaggerating it’s strength. Pritchard also revealed what P&G has planned for the Olympics this year. Their Everyday Champions campaign celebrates the little and big wins, and The Other Games centers the competition around their brands. I personally didn’t like this idea that much, as it feels like paid product placement. But other than that, I really enjoyed everything else that was shown. They kept the idea simple — which is the biggest thing I’ve learned.
Meeting with GUT ECD Katherine O’Brien
I think this was the most I’ve ever asked questions. I was eager to hear everything Katherine had to say. From her initial interest being in sports to being shy and reserved when she first started, by the end I realized I saw a lot of myself in her. She likes to see determination and a good work ethic in young creatives, both of which I have. I learned to go for the least wanted brief, as you could discover something special there that no one else saw.
