Brand, Performance and Creativity

The Cannes Essentials - Brand Perspectives on Performance, Creativity and Change

Last week, a small delegation of Essentials descended on the Cannes Lions festival for a week of creativity and inspiration.

Here we share the best of the talks that we had the pleasure of participating in.
Brand Perspectives on Performance, Creativity and Change.

This session explored the changing nature of the relationship between brand, performance and creativity.

We heard from Bayer and Discover about the evolution of performance and its place in their marketing mix.

Eric Gregoire SVP, Global Head – Growth Marketing and Digital Strategy at Bayer, said that the barrier between brand and performance needs to be eradicated, a journey Bayer was already on.

Amy Adams, VP Media, Discover, said the approach was now about how do you think about brand, consideration and acquisition conversation throughout the funnel.

Both comments highlight the expanding nature of performance, which has gone from brand search to a much broader spectrum of opportunity.

Amy said integrating the message and embedding collaborative ways of working is key. The strategic approach is to grow brand sales and create a learning and effectiveness agenda to show the benefits of an integrated strategy.

Speaking about the transformation at Bayer, Eric said the transformation started three years ago with a goal of raising the bar on creativity and creating data-driven mindsets.

The challenge he outlined was to get the pace right. That means capabilities and partnerships along with the right technology, connecting the pipes and skill sets. You need at least one year on the bottom of the iceberg, he suggested.

For Amy, the ambition for the next 12 months is full funnel measurement, and for Eric the goal is building a competitive advantage, always being ahead.