With over 20 years’ experience in PR and marketing between us, we’ve been fortunate enough to attend our fair share of industry events – but there’s one that stands out from the crowd each year.
Recognised as the biggest and boldest marketing, advertising and disruption festival in the UK, MAD//Fest was firmly on our list of summer events to pop in the calendar. This year, organisers hosted over 15,000 brands, agencies and experts at the Old Truman Brewery in London for a jam-packed three-day festival.
With 10 stages to choose from, we found ourselves running from one end of the festival site to the other to catch inspiring talks, panel discussions and brand pitches that covered everything from AI and emerging tech to brand storytelling, leadership and discussions around mental health in the industry.
With ‘Fortune Favours The Bold’ as this year’s festival tagline, we heard from creative industry leaders that have been brave enough to step up, take calculated risks and champion truly innovative work.
Here are our top three takeaways:
Embrace AI as an enabler
It’s no secret that machines can outperform us in terms of efficiency, accuracy and speed. But, they can’t replace the qualities that make us human (yet). Empathy, creativity, emotional intelligence, and community continue to be at the heart of Pier’s most successful campaigns, and we’re confident they will for many years to come. We attended several talks about AI during our time at MAD//Fest and were steered away from robot takeover narratives and asked to consider the benefits of humans and machines working together to create even more powerful experiences.
We were invited to view AI as a tool that can enhance, rather than replace, our contribution to the world and consider using it to tackle manual tasks, data processing and campaign optimisations, giving human brains more time and space to do what they do best. With ethical challenges around privacy, transparency, copyright and accountability to consider, we’re all still at the beginning of our AI journey, but replacing fear with curiosity is the key to embracing change.
Never underestimate the power of storytelling
Tell your story, and tell it bravely. This was the resounding message from so many speakers at MAD//Fest. Storytelling is an age-old art; we grow up listening to tales, sharing them, and creating our own. There’s no doubt that a compelling brand story is key to building meaningful connections with your audience, fostering trust and nurturing long-term brand loyalty.
When it comes to making buying decisions, the statistics are clear: people prioritise feelings over facts. If buying something makes you feel good, you’re much more likely to purchase it. A powerful storytelling example and festival highlight for us was Mattel’s talk; ‘How Mattel and Barbie create fans, not customers’. Over the years, the brand has reached millions of people on an emotional level, drawing them into Barbie’s history and values, and reaching far beyond the toy aisle to create lifelong enthusiasts.
People’s ideas are better when they are well
In today’s fast-paced media landscape, the pressure to be adaptable to continuous change is on. One of the most exciting parts of working in a communications environment is the opportunity to deliver innovative campaigns and achieve ambitious targets for a huge variety of brands, businesses, and organisations. However, the rise of digital media, the demand for real-time responses and the requirement to stay ahead of trends at every corner, can be challenging. A refreshing talk from NABS (the National Advertising Benevolent Society), acknowledged that one of the most valuable contributions from a communications professional is their creative ideas. And that people’s ideas are better when they are well.
As a UK-based charity dedicated to supporting the mental health and wellbeing of professionals in the advertising and media industries, NABS’ work provides a valuable blueprint for addressing mental health challenges within the broader marketing and communications sectors. Tackling the stigma surrounded by mental health upfront, the panel of speakers at MAD//Fest actively encouraged colleagues, and especially senior team members, to step forward and speak openly about their lived experiences.
The key takeaway? Mental health is not a luxury – it’s a necessity. It’s important to make self-care a non-negotiable part of your routine and prioritise wellbeing in a way that works for you; whether that looks like meditation and mindfulness or simply being outside in the fresh air. Whatever industry you work in, seeking professional services and reaching out for help is a sign of strength, not weakness.
