Watch what happens at the Cannes Lions festival
Yahoo Finance takes you inside the 2023 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. Held annually, the event draws thousands of professionals from the global ad business, and they have one mission in mind: how best to target you. We’ll be there interviewing the movers and shakers in the world of marketing, advertising, sports, and media. This year’s event comes at a pivotal point in the advertising business. Economic pressures have forced companies to make deep cost cuts with many of those hitting marketing and advertising budgets.
Some of the big themes we’re covering include how companies are generating demand during a discretionary spending downturn. We’ll also explore how companies are trying to strike the right tone in hopes of broadening their brand appeal. Some companies looking to expand their customer base have suffered backlash amid a polarized society. Bud Light, Miller Light, and Target - all under fire this year.
Among our special guests, actor and comedian Kevin Hart, recording artist will.i.am, and top executives at leading consumer giants from Coca-Cola to Mastercard. We’ll tackle a variety of hot topics including the latest pulse on the health of the broader economy, recent controversies surrounding advertising and influencer campaigns by major brands, and how new technology, especially AI, is being used to market to you.
Our coverage will be led by Yahoo Finance's Executive Editor Brian Sozzi and Anchor Brad Smith. Please join us all week June 20th to the 23rd live from Cannes, France.
Key video moments
00:00:15 - What happens at Cannes Lions festival 2023
00:00:55 - big challenges for the biggest brands
00:01:05 - managing a marketing backlash
Video Transcript
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Cannes, a destination frequented by the uber-wealthy located on the French Riviera, is famous for its annual star-studded film festival, but the city also hosts the biggest business gathering from marketing and advertising, Cannes Lions.
Heavyweights from Amazon and Delta Airlines to Walmart and PepsiCo strategize, wheel, and deal to get their message to you, the consumer. And just like the film festival, they hand out annual awards for the best in advertising. This year's event comes at a pivotal point in the advertising business. Economic pressures have forced companies to make deep cost cuts with many of those hitting marketing and advertising budgets.
So how are they managing through the downturn? We will explore that with a lineup of CEOs and chief marketing officers look to nail the four P's-- price, promotion, product, and place. Another challenge for the world's biggest brands, striking the right tone in hopes of broadening their brand appeal. Some companies looking to expand their customer base have suffered backlash amid a polarized society. Bud Light, Miller Lite, Target, all under fire this year.
Companies finding that corporate activism may come with a price on Main Street. But in the spirit of an infamous Nike campaign that positioned that brand for its next leg of growth. Are newly vocal companies willing to stand for something, even if it means sacrificing everything?
But it's not just viral backlash companies are trying to avoid. They are dealing with a new wave of disruption-- the latest technology, privacy laws, AI, and the metaverse. They are transforming how companies connect with us, and how we engage with them. We'll ask industry experts what this means for the future. These are just some of the themes Yahoo Finance will explore at Cannes Lions 2023.
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