If you work with advertising, Cannes is your place to do business. Brands, agencies, martechs and more – the upper echelon of the digital media ecosystem is at Cannes in June.
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity is the ‘crème de la crème’ of the advertising world. That’s why I say and repeat – if you’re part of this industry, you should try and make it next year. It’s a great opportunity to network and get your foot in the door for potential new partnerships.
This year, we sent five MindgruveMacarta employees to the event. Here’s our recap of why this festival is worth the trip.
WHY DO YOU HAVE TO BE THERE NEXT YEAR?
1 – LEARN TO DEAL WITH FOMO AT EVENTS
During the Cannes Lions Festival there are a lot of things to see and do at all times, so it is important to deal with FOMO (fear of missing out) to be able to make the most of it without guilt. With so many events and programs happening every day, it’s vital to pre-establish your agenda and interests before arriving at the festival. This will help keep you from getting lost in the whirlwind of events and help you maintain focus on the events and meetings that make the most sense for you and your business, thus optimizing your time in Cannes.
Of course, everything can always change, but the goal is to have a plan and if better things emerge, the routes can be realigned. Having a detailed plan of everything that was happening in Cannes on each day, morning, afternoon and night, helped our team to have visibility into what events were most important for each person to participate in, and prioritize each day of the event week.
Speaking of FOMO, invited by Mercado Ads, we had the opportunity to have dinner with Patrick J. McGinnis, creator of the FOMO concept.
Mercado Ads Special Dinner at La Vila Archange by Bruno Oger.
In partnership with Mercado Livre (number 1 marketplace in Latin America and also winner of the Cannes Lions 2024 Grand Prix in the Media category), Patrick also created the concept of FOMA – fear of missing audience.
2 – STRENGTHEN RELATIONSHIPS WITH CUSTOMERS AND PARTNERS
Far beyond structured meetings, in Cannes you have the opportunity to spend time having fun with your best partners and clients. The chance to interact without the restrictions of corporate formalities lets you form a personal bond, which can strengthen business relationships and fortify them for the future.
MindgruveMacarta Dinner with our partners Imagine Retail from Netherlands
Another positive point is that you can bring together partners from different countries in one place, greatly enhancing this exchange of ideas and facilitating communications that on a day-to-day basis can get stuck across time zones and agendas.
Mercado Ads Special Dinner
3 – EXPAND YOUR NETWORKING
During the Cannes Lions Festival, the advertising carnival, everyone is open to talking and interacting. This is very valuable, as it opens doors for us to meet and connect with many interesting people in our market. Many of these people are potential new partners and customers and some will have absolutely nothing to do with our industry, but connections – whether with a direct impact on our business or not – are always important.
For a partnership to really work, you have to approach it with an egalitarian mindset, where both parties have something to gain. If you portray yourself and your business and true partners, actively working to help each other, you will open more doors for lasting relationships.
MindgruveMacarta Breakfast with Topsort Team from Europe, LATAM and US.
4 – STAY UPDATED WITH THE MOST RELEVANT MARKET TREND TOPICS
The festival is known for its lavish parties and entertainment, but don’t underestimate the value of the panels and lectures that go on during the day. In addition to the festival itself, there are several activations spread around the famous La Croisette. The beach is taken over by activations from big techs like Amazon, Meta, TikTok, Spotify and on the shore, all the hotels also have many activations from different companies happening simultaneously.
Gupe and Ana at Meta Beach in Cannes
As mentioned in point 1, this is where it is important to plan ahead and prioritize which events you’d like to participate in. Take some time to select the topics you want to delve into and/or decide which activations will get you in front of the people and potential partners you’d like to chat with.
One of our favorite activations was A’Maison: The House of Amazon at Amazon Port. With several interactive spaces and a very complete agenda, we were lucky to participate in some really cool, exclusive events. A highlight of the Amazon AdTech event was when Marcus Startzel, Amazon Ads Global AdTech Director, discussed the importance of first-party data to plan, activate, and measure in a privacy-centric world. The MindgruveMacarta team loves engaging in these types of discussions, as it has been a core part of our solutions-based strategy for a long time. We were able to sail through the Côte d’Azur with our partners at Amazon and enjoy relevant, future-forward conversations.
Cannes Maritime Experience at Amazon Catamaran
Another activation that’s worth sharing is the EQUALITY LOUNGE® by The Female Quotient, where the focus was on discussions to close the gender gap. In several panels, great female leaders spoke about what they faced as women in their work environments and the challenges they had in growing up in their careers, many of them explaining they had to work a thousand times harder than their male peers for the same growth. When I see these kinds of conversations (more often than I would like), I feel very lucky and grateful for having always been in healthy work environments that prioritize gender equality. I’m proud that a big part of our leadership at MindgruveMacarta is made up of incredible women.
5 – PARTICIPATE IN AN ADVERTISING PUB CRAWL
As mentioned above, the city was taken over by several activations, and practically all of them end the day with a happy hour washed down with rosé. It’s common to see the Cannes pub crawl happening and people jumping from activation to activation and enjoying everything each one has to offer.
Gupe’s Wristbands Collection
Martinez late nights
An important point that needs to be highlighted: The night isn’t over until everyone meets at the Martinez.
Martinez is a traditional hotel in Cannes, located on the famous La Croisette. Each night, all dinners and parties end up at the Martinez. The street is full of people and packed until the early hours of the morning every single day – not just on the weekends. Don’t feel pressured to imbibe more than you’re comfortable with, but do spend a little time in the “after-hours” locations. This is where some of the best networking happens. After all, businesses are run by people, and people like to let loose occasionally.
CONCLUSION
Going to Cannes may be a costly investment, but it pays back in dividends. There’s ample opportunities for networking, learning, and growing your business.
Want to ask a question or learn more? Get in touch with us today.
