Creative thinking is on the rise in B2B creativity & marketing, and the Cannes Lions international festival, a renowned celebration of creativity, now includes the B2B Lions category, introduced just a couple of years ago.
This inclusion at the festival reflects the growing importance of creativity in the B2B space (And that's based on research!)
But, let's take a closer look. It's important to note a common practice in the advertising industry: Many winning projects at these creative festivals are often explicitly designed to win awards. B2B creative agencies collaborate with real clients, pouring in time and resources to create campaigns with high chances of victory.
These projects must be live and real, so they are typically run for a short duration in a limited region to meet eligibility requirements.
This context is crucial to understanding what is going on, and hopefully, it will help you understand why specific projects win and others don't (not always, of course).
Cannes Lions is all about creativity, not just meeting KPIs or showcasing ROI—it's about pushing the boundaries of what's possible. While effectiveness is crucial in B2B marketing, Cannes Lions emphasizes the power of creative storytelling and innovative ideas.
But here's the catch: does celebrating creativity at the expense of effectiveness make sense for B2B?
Take the Moldy Whopper campaign, for instance. Sure, it's not a B2B campaign, but it's a prime example of bold, unconventional thinking that wins at Cannes. But how many B2B companies can afford to take such risks?
The key takeaway is that the Moldy Whopper was just a small part of a massive marketing ecosystem. BK could take that risk because it ran multiple worldwide brand and sales campaigns simultaneously. In B2B, we rarely get that luxury.
That boldness paid off in huge organic reach and a bump in awareness, but it was not the only campaign. Check out WARC's take here.
"Meet Marina Prieto," the Grand Prix winner, wasn't just about selling ad space; it was about showing the transformative power of creative advertising. JCDecaux, a media company, highlighted the effectiveness of out-of-home advertising in a declining market. Why? To boost sales of their billboard spaces, of course! The campaign's creative approach to solving a genuine business problem makes it a worthy winner.
And to be honest, it's one of the few with a clear B2B objective and B2B target audience.
The "Thanks for Coke-Creating" campaign showcased creativity by turning unbranded, local renditions of the Coca-Cola logo into a global campaign. This effort highlighted the brand's willingness to embrace local creativity and turn it into a marketing asset. However, it felt more like a B2C campaign masquerading as B2B.
On paper, it's speaking to small show owners... but I don't know. Don't get me wrong, I love the creativity, but I fail to see how that's a B2B campaign, especially after watching the case study video.
Heineken's Pub Museums campaign turned old pubs in Ireland into museums to prevent their closure. This creative approach to supporting small businesses showcased Heineken's commitment to community and heritage. The focus on preserving cultural landmarks and supporting local businesses was commendable.
Yet, it still felt more like a CSR initiative than a pure B2B marketing effort. CSR campaigns are one of the most frequent projects created specifically for creative award shows, so your guess is as good as mine.
The "Move to Minus 15" campaign by DP World aimed to reduce emissions by lowering the transport freezing temperature of produce. This campaign highlighted a significant environmental and cost-saving initiative. However, it felt more like a PR stunt and CSR award-designed campaign than a traditional B2B campaign.
While it addressed an important issue, we've yet to see the outcome. As a B2B brand awareness campaign, it does make sense, though.
Mastercard's "Room for Everyone" campaign, which helped Ukrainian businesses set up shop next to Polish businesses, won in multiple categories. "WhereToStart" supports this entrepreneurial surge, guiding new businesses to ideal locations using anonymized Mastercard spending trends and data on street traffic and noise levels—all for free.
Previously exclusive to large companies, this information is now accessible to all.
While commendable and undoubtedly creative, yet another award-winning campaign blurs the lines between B2B marketing and CSR.
Spotify's "Spread Beats" campaign targeted media planners and agencies by creating animated music videos within Excel spreadsheets. This campaign cleverly utilized the software commonly used by its target audience, showcasing creativity and understanding of the client's needs. It stood out as a strong example of B2B creativity, effectively blending innovation with strategic goals.
So let's see what we have :
Many of the awarded B2B campaigns at Cannes leaned heavily on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and public relations (PR) angles. While these campaigns are undoubtedly creative, there needs to be more debate about whether they genuinely address B2B marketing challenges.
Should CSR and PR campaigns compete in the same category as B2B marketing efforts? Maybe just create a CSR category on its own and kick it out of B2B? What do you think?
Now, this can be my SaaS brain talking, but... where are the tech companies? Where are those billion-dollar B2B enterprises and their campaigns? Where are the SaaS brands? Are they really that un-creative and bland? Or maybe they don't have to be? Makes you think, no?
So, where do we go from here? As B2B marketers, it's our time to shine. We must continue to push the boundaries of creativity, blending strategic goals with innovative ideas. But let's not forget the core of B2B marketing—effectiveness and tangible results...creative idea is not enough.
But please remember that B2B creative marketing campaign doesn't mean just sales. Brand awareness, likability, brand equity etc., profoundly impact the numbers and can be effectively measured. So... go wild!
Ready to hop on the B2B creativity success train? Get in touch with us today! We'll show you how to make successful creative b2b marketing campaigns.
Want to stay ahead of the curve? Check out our other insightful articles on video marketing and business storytelling and beyond!
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