When most people hear you are headed to the French Riviera for Cannes Lions, the response is “That’s amazing!” And when you return, back to the life of the drab peasant, they assume that it was all beaches and rosé (which are for sure represented).
But most people in the industry have asked one valid question upon my return: “Was it worth going?”
From a location standpoint, maybe. But from a business standpoint, I’m not so sure.
As we wrap up our steady stream of Cannes Lions content, and now that the rosé has (mostly) drained from my bloodstream, I’ve finally had some time to process the week in its entirety and recap the highlights and lowlights. Now bear in mind, there is no way I came close to hearing every session, attending every party or meeting 10% of the people in attendance. But I did make a valiant effort to keep moving.
The Good
You’re in the South of France
This is a given, right? Surrounded by the ocean, sunshine and all the bread and cheese in the world, you’re probably hanging out on a yacht and asking yourself, “is this real life?” at some point. If you are in Cannes, your life could be worse.
The sessions
I attended some genuinely great, innovative seminars. Where else can you see Al Gore speak about pollution, learn how Korean agencies are challenging the status quo of working from 9-6 (AM) and hear Natalie Imbruglia sing her 90’s hit Torn following a brokered PR deal? I saw a session featuring the creators of Serial, attended a Japanese creativity workshop and learned about advocacy marketing from a panel made up of some of the world’s biggest brands. Our CEO Ken Cho attended a session where a robot was so lifelike he thought it was a person. The conversation was about the monetization of robots bearing influencer likeness.
We are living in the future.
Networking
This is probably the year’s top networking spot amongst ad industry execs—there was no large agency that was unrepresented.
The Bad
The buzz words
Hey guys. The words “mobile,” “optimize,” “disrupt” and “innovative” are not cool. These are all words and trends we have heard of before. And they don’t deserve a round of applause after a blanket statement like, “To stay on top of our industry, we have to be innovative!” .
The celebrities
Look, I watch Bravo and I read the occasional tabloid. I am not above getting excited over a celebrity (so mad I missed Kim). But some of their talks were so irrelevant to the creative/advertising industry that it was hard to understand why they tried to pretend they weren’t there for the free vacation.
The sessions
Yes, this is a positive and negative. Without naming names, I sat through a lot of presentations that were just…boring.
The Ugly
It’s hot. You’ll walk a lot.
Trite. But the days are long and hot and chances are you won’t want to wear your slightly damp clothes to an industry party later in the evening. My feet could have been used as floatation devices by the end of the trip; choosing to wear anything but the most supportive sandal or tennis shoe is a risky little game. This isn’t a question about whether it’s worth going from a business perspective but it did affect me to the point that it was hard to be “on” at the end of the week.
Don’t be that guy
You hear about the legendary Cannes parties before you step foot on a plane, but you think to yourself, no way will I be the one staying up till dawn.
You probably will.
Just try not to be the guy who winds up clothes-less in the lobby, somehow makes his way to someone else’s room and gets kicked out of the hotel the next day (true story). At an event based on making impressions, this is one you don’t want to make.
The Final Word
If you are shortlisted for a Lion, work with a lot of agencies, or have agency acquaintances you are looking to deepen your relationship with, then by all means this is the event for you.
If you are going to blindly network, I would say be strategic and reach out to as many people, and register for as many parties as possible. Beforehand. Outside of the sessions is where the real relationships are formed. Most people aren’t spending all day, every day sitting in the Palais.
If you are looking to be creatively inspired, have realistic expectations. Some of the presenters and winners created awe-inspiring work. Some, not as much.
In general, was Cannes Lions worth it? I would say yes…but my feet might suggest otherwise.
Recent Comments