Why Cannes Lions Is Becoming Coachella for B2B Influencers
Vin Matano at Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity
I just got back from Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity in the South of France.
And, I’m not kidding when I say that it is becoming Coachella for B2B Influencers.
But first, what the f*ck is Cannes Lions?
The Cannes Lions began in 1954 as the International Advertising Film Festival, inspired by the Cannes Film Festival. Historically, this prestigious event was dominated by the ad industry and its’ publishers.
But, there are two major trends that are completely changing the festival and the ad industry itself.
Cannes Lions is slowly becoming a tech conference - With tech platforms like Meta, LinkedIn, Snap, Pinterest, and TikTok essentially becoming ad businesses, they took up most of the beach front real estate at the festival.
Meta Beach Club
Cannes is slowly becoming an influencer event - with a majority of companies ad budgets moving towards influencer marketing, influencers had a HUGE presence at Cannes Lions this year.
In 2024, Cannes Lions released its’ LIONS Creators program, in partnership with Viral Nation. This program, running alongside the main festival, offers creators opportunities to learn, network, and showcase their work, with a focus on the growing importance of the creator economy in marketing.
This was only the second year creators were formally invited, and brands took full advantage of this.
Which is exactly how I ended up Cannes Lions.
The influencers Adobe invited
Adobe invited 7 creators (myself included) to hang with them in Cannes. And I got to spend time with some of my favorite creators, like Tejas Hullur, Chloe Shih, Adrien Per, and many more!
You could find Adobe activations all over Cannes.
From their ‘Boutique’ in Le Majestic Hotel, to their pop-up with Coca-cola, or to their Creator Studio they cohosted with LinkedIn at the famous Carlton Hotel.
All built with creators in mind.
Adobe’s Boutique
But, why is this becoming the ‘Coachella’ for B2B Influencers???
It seems like lifestyle influencers get invited to all the coolest events.
Coachella, Fashion Week, Art Basel, Stage Coach, red carpet premiers, or brand trips to Fiji.
But most B2B creators are stuck going to San Francisco for Dreamforce (no shade here).
But given the emergence of tech and influencers at Cannes Lions, it felt like B2B influencers finally got their event.
And it’s in the friggen South of France.
Are we finally the cools kids????
Brands are Becoming Creators. Creators are Becoming Brands 🤝
Colin & Samir’s session at Cannes Lions
Despite my busy schedule at Cannes Lions, I was able to slip out to attend a few sessions.
The one I was most impressed by? Colin & Samir.
I’m a huge fan of this duo, but the one thing that stood out to me most was when Samir said “brands are becoming creators & creators are becoming brands.”
Think about the biggest brands in the world. They no longer can sit on the sidelines. They have to start thinking like creators. They need to put their founder or employees into the spotlight. Basically, the best brands in the world are becoming their own media company.
But why?
Trust.
Trust shapes 83% of consumers’ purchasing decisions, and 76% of shoppers prefer brands they feel connected to over competitors.
And for Creators, they need to start thinking like brands in order to have longevity. Creators are now hiring their own internal editors, management, and staff. Creators are also creating IP, which gives creators the opportunity to exit.
One thing is for sure, creators are the future of business.
Content Corner: Cannes Recap
Interested in seeing more from Cannes Lions? I filmed a ton of BTS and uploaded it to my YouTube channel.
Thanks so much for reading!! I promise to stop making content from Cannes after this, but it was such a highlight for me and, honestly, very eye opening.
Hopefully, I’ll be there again next year!
au revoir 👋