Selina Smyllie – Art Director

I’m always in awe when I see creativity being used for good. So, I particularly enjoyed a talk by Group Innovation Director Alex Hamilton at Dentsu Labs. It was about how they combined tech and creative problem solving to give people struggling with ALS (a neurodegenerative disorder, that leads to loss of motor control and essentially the inability to move), the ability to keep expressing their creativity.

Dentsu Labs recognised that having a disability doesn’t inhibit creativity, and that it’s a power people should still be able to express. The project Alex shared showed how they helped Masa, who suffers from ALS, to get back to doing what he loves most, DJing. With eye tracking technology and electromyography (a tech that captures electrical signals produced by muscle movements), they got him DJing with his eyes and dancing in real time to his music through the metaverse, for a real life set and crowd.

Leah Groom – Head of Marketing

Amongst the themes I picked out this year, was ‘meaning more to your tribe’ - brands seem to be embracing ‘human-centricity’ and the need for real connection.

To do this, brands need to know which communities they’re relevant in, and where those communities are. SharkNinja spoke about the power of harnessing social to find and tap into communities – saying they’re social-first in everything they do.

JustEat also spoke about respecting and understanding the communities you’re talking to – I loved how they identified the real truth of ‘food made with love and passion really hits differently’, and consequentially put the focus on hyper-local food heroes.

Sometimes, to mean more to your tribe, you might need to go against category norms – like Asics. They rejected the ‘no pain no gain’ mentality of most sports brands, in favour of celebrating the mental wellbeing exercise can bring and the gains of everyday people - like finishing the London marathon last – but importantly, still finishing it!

To tell these stories successfully, ‘brand’ needs to take a backseat and of course, the content needs to be authentic (a word which I heard uttered upwards of 50 times over the course of MAD//Fest!).

Jemma Darbandi – Senior Media Manager

The battle for attention is a hot topic amongst our clients, so I spent a lot of time at the Attention stage this year.

The main takeout for me was research from Playground xyz which will be helpful to inform future media planning. It found that optimal attention, rather than maximal attention, is the key to unlocking the full potential of brand outcomes. Therefore, focusing on attention time rather than the largest possible placement (which can be costly) is key.

Attention time has proven to have a strong influence on upper funnel outcomes, but we also learnt that lift is possible early in the viewing of an ad. So, from a creative perspective, it’s important that content clearly presents the brand early in the ad, to drive changes in consumer behaviour.

Issy Howard – Art Director

One reoccurring theme that I noticed, centred around strategies to create ads that stand out from the crowd and capture attention.

That could be getting savvy with media placement, guerilla advertising tactics or tapping into real human behaviours.

The lightbulb moment for me came from Benazir Barlet-Batada, former Senior Marketing Director at Mondelez International. She presented that the key to capturing attention is through people’s hearts, creating childlike wonder through storytelling and imagination.

Her point of view served as a reminder that creativity is the most powerful tool we have. Whether it’s a drumming gorilla, dancing eyebrows or trading a unicorn for Cadburys - the most iconic and memorable adverts are born from thinking outside the box and having fun with it.

Louis Jerome – Business Development Manager

A standout talk for me was hearing Rory McEntee, Brand & Marketing Director at Gymbox, have his say on asking for forgiveness not for permission. A topic mantra I and many others at IMA try to live by in our day-to-day, to push the boundaries of what we can achieve.

Littered with humour and anecdotes about how the Gymbox team operate, it was great to hear such a genuine take on how to make the most out of minimal budgets and the importance of being topical (and adaptable when it's looking like the proverbial might hit the fan) - real creativity at its absolute finest. I genuinely left with a smile on my face - "it's better to feel something than be beige".

Ben Cunningham – Media Director

Each year I enjoy MAD//Fest, not only for the nice lunch options, but because it really helps me get a feel for what’s trending in our industry. I remember going to the first MADFest, pre covid, where it was a more modest event with a few speakers across three stages, with lots of Connected TV chat.

This year, talks seemed hugely driven by the digital ad tech businesses. Of course, it’s safe to say AI was getting a lot airtime too! It was interesting to hear speakers go beyond the usual AI hype or doomsaying, instead talking about how the tech can help brands make real connections with people.