Celebrating Bold Decision Making at MAD//Fest London 2022

Last week, a crew of marketers, start-ups, disruptors, tech types and media folk came together at MAD//Fest London 2022. It was an energetic, refreshing and inspiring few days where over 180 speakers from major brands, challengers and agencies across five topic-themed stages shared insights, opinions and real stories from their experiences. 

This year’s theme was ‘No Guts, No Glory’. We were lucky to hear the approach of many successful speakers to taking calculated risks, transformation, bravery and building long-term growth. Here are some of the key takeaways we pulled from this year’s MAD//Fest: 

Creativity. With data, technology and also guts.

We attended a masterclass from the brilliant Rory Sutherland, Vice Chairman at Ogilvy UK, who inspired us with the “explorer bees” analogy  -  it is more important to share information and knowledge than to focus on the things we are able to measure numerically. He also talked about how we post-rationalise much more than we pre-rationalise the decisions we make and that the more we individualise risk, the less we take the risk to make bold decisions.

Yahoo’s session took a look at how immersive retail experiences engage consumers at every stage of the purchase journey, while RTB House’s session focused on a programmatic online approach without 3rd party cookies. The key take away here: data and technology is not that efficient or useful without the creative minds that innovate. 

Purpose. Don’t pretend, act now.

From the climate crisis to the pandemic’s impact on world economies and mental health, we can all acknowledge that the world we currently live in could be a much better place. 

From Gen-Z to their grandparents, everyone is trying to find meaning - in their relationships, in their work, and also the products they consume. One thing is certain, brands need to to avoid purpose-washing and play a more meaningful and authentic role in people’s lives. As Thomas Kolster (Founder, Goodvertising Agency) put it, “don't be a hero, turn people into heroes”. 

The takeaway? Give people incentives to do good for themselves, or the environment. Don’t give commitments, instead act now. We also saw inspiring sessions from what3words, Unilever, Diageo about their approaches to Brand Purpose and making a positive impact.

Authenticity. Be genuine, be real, be relevant.

We heard this several times and it couldn’t be more important.. Audiences have developed a keen sense for authenticity, especially millennials and Gen-Z. Whoever your audience, brands have to be relatable. Get rid of “fluffy” content and create real connections with your audience. Alamy’s Emily Shelley gave amazing examples of relatable content, what works and what doesn’t. “Be yourself” was also the main topic from Zoe Chowney’s session (Founder and CEO, bacano.io), where they shared their journey as a transgender technology entrepreneur. 

Programmatic digital out of home (DOOH) has earned its place in omnichannel strategy.

After the initial phase of the pandemic, marketers were searching for the right way to get back into the OOH space. According to OAAA’s report, programmatic DOOH is expected to grow 56% in 2022. In a session with JCDecaux and Mindshare, Luisa Lee from Marks and Spencer shared that  programmatic DOOH was just the ticket after the pandemic and explained how this medium has earned a permanent place in M&S’s omnichannel media strategy. Mindshare’s Ben Chadd gave some helpful advice to the audience: “Don’t try to do everything in one campaign, start simple and then test & learn.”

Bringing the pink to MAD//Fest.

Hivestack was proud to be an official partner of MAD//Fest 2022 for the second year in a row. Last year, we demonstrated the agility and the power of programmatic DOOH in action by activating a global creative campaign in real-time. 

This year, our VP Demand - UK & Emerging Markets at Hivestack, Lee Cutter, presented a keynote on the second day. In our session “Moments DOOH matter”, we highlighted creative ways of using data in the DOOHspace by leveraging programmatic technology.

We launched proprietary “Moment Targeting”, which enables advertisers to authentically connect in a more human, memorable and contextually relevant way with their audience. We showcased creative ways to activate customised messaging in real-time based on unique, pre-set ‘Moment’ triggers like “When a flight is delayed” or “When Harry Kane scores a goal in the England World Cup”. More triggers available across verticals include weather, traffic and travel, health & beauty, lifestyle, sports and social sentiment. Together with our partners at Flux, we have created this exclusive new opportunity to optimise the relevance of programmatic DOOH campaigns.