So last week Britt and I went to Ad Week in NYC. (Brittany is our Account Manager, my right hand woman and a ninja multitasker for those who don’t know).
It was my 4th year at Ad Week and it’s worth every dollar fun coupon.
Ad Week is an annual gathering of the best-in-class marketing and advertising professionals. There are 200+ seminars where industry leaders come together to discuss new trends, innovations and share insights on the state of the industry.
They have the conference in about 4/5 territories around the world annually but I usually go to the one in New York and use it as an excuse to visit my favourite city, and my friends that live there 🙂
Highlight video by Ad week – https://youtu.be/3-egXrwi20s
So what are the benefits of attending such a conference you may ask?
- Learning, duh!
It’s hard to put a price tag on the knowledge gained from participating in these conferences- Keeps us one step ahead. So how it’s set up is they use a bunch of the theatres in Times Square and they have sessions happening simultaneously from about 8am – 6pm. So pretty much we run around Times Square like headless chickens all day from theatre to theatre… but it’s SO. WORTH. IT. It’s so refreshing to be around like-minded people all so energetic and passionate about the same things. So we just soaked it all in.
- Networking
I’m talking a room full of tech entrepreneurs and executives from Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, Google, International Ad agencies such as Edelman, Publicis and International News Organizations such as NBC, celebrity entrepreneurs like Sarah Jessica Parker and Jimmy Buffet, retail giants like Walmart, the creative genius behind the #GotMilk campaign (!!!) … Me and SJP are practically on first name basis after the conference (I wish). But seriously if you go there with a game plan of people you want to connect with it’s an invaluable opportunity to rub shoulders with the industry’s big boys.
- Application
What happens after these conferences is just as important. We get to bring back all we’ve learned, share it with our team and apply it to our client’s businesses.
Unfortunately we tend to be behind in this region when it comes to new social media trends because of economic and technological restraints, but it gives us a headstart to prepare and think out how we can bring more value to our clients and consumers at large.
Actual footage of me and Britty taking notes during the seminars:
My top 3 panels from Ad week:
1) A cringeworthy debate between the CMO of Unilever (World’s second largest advertiser) and the President of the Americas at Google
Coming out of the major controversy where a long list of global marketers pulled their ad campaigns from Google’s ad platform due to Ad fraud.
Although Unilever has committed to staying with Google and working through the issues together, It was like watching a couple fight in public… #Awkward, but interesting lol.
*grabs popcorn*
They discussed the importance of stakeholders (brands, agencies and media) in the industry working collectively, being transparent and taking accountability to combat this issue.
After all, Google’s where the eyeballs are at, so it’s kind of a necessary evil in this day and age.
2) A politically charged debate between a panel of industry giants including Richard Edelman- Founder and CEO of Edelman (!!!!)
talking about Brand USA and how it’s global image has been damaged dramatically because of you know who…
Lemme give you a clue.. His name rhymes with “Ronald Clump”
3) Fireside chat between Jessica Alba and CEO of Warby Parker, Neil Blumenthal
talking about how they built their businesses in a mobile-first world. Was really cool hearing their stories along with the challenges they faced along the way. Jessica is the full package I tell ya… Beauty and Brains #Obsessed
Major themes of the conference that kept coming up (in my opinion)
- The need for marketers to regain trust from consumers. Being authentic and bringing value to the consumers and putting them at the core of decisions.
- VOICE – In a world where our time is our most precious asset… Voice is emerging as the next major trend. #Alexa
- Evolution of video content and how people consumer video on the internet
- Influencer Marketing – People trust their peers WAY MORE than brands and marketers.
See ya next year!
