Adweek July 2023

Holding companies are taking a strategic approach to using generative artificial intelligence internally and with clients—which has already led to winning business and forging enterprise partnerships. Ogilvy Paris won two clients in the past month thanks to its AI Lab, an internal committee dedicated to driving AI expertise so brands can create more impactful campaigns. In June, Ogilvy introduced the AI Accountability Act to enforce transparency in AI-enhanced influencer content with the hashtag #poweredbyAI. Omnicom’s AI policy led to its partnership with Microsoft, integrating OpenAI’s GPT models with the Omni Assist tool, a virtual assistant helping with tasks like audience insight and campaign planning. Employees aren’t permitted to present work solely produced by generative AI to clients, unless it’s a direct partnership on specific AI initiatives. At Havas, its Play, Don’t…

There was a new holding company on the Cannes beach this year: Stagwell and its more than 70 agencies. Given the massive growth of sports and influencer marketing, Stagwell saw an opportunity to stand out with its activation, Sport Beach, that became the festival’s hot ticket. Between discussions on marketing, measurement and creativity with industry experts as well as star athletes like Carmelo Anthony, attendees played pickleball, basketball and flag football, with sponsors including Gatorade and NBCUniversal.…

Chief marketers have gained a lot of ground in being recognized as growth leaders within their organizations, but there’s still work to do. To address this gap, we are introducing Marketing Vanguard by Adweek, a platform expressly built to respond to the realities that C-level marketing leaders experience every day, spanning specialized content, a podcast series and the new Marketing Vanguard Awards. In an era marked by technological and societal upheaval, companies need the creativity, innovation, adaptability, empathy and storytelling capabilities that often only CMOs can bring. We will go deeper in supporting that unique cohort to help them continually redefine marketing practice and leadership, guide them in their current efforts, and assist the next generation of leaders.…

In 2012, at the start of the DTC boom, Katya Constantine founded DigiShopGirl Media. The digital agency used two relatively new technologies at the time—digital media and programmatic advertising—to turn startups into household names. Some of her star clients have included luggage brand Away, Rent the Runway, skin care firm Starface and weight-loss program Noom. DigiShopGirl currently serves more than 150 clients and manages more than $100 million in ad spend. However, getting there was much easier said than done. The benefit of startups Constantine didn’t come to advertising from the agency world. Instead, she got her start as a consultant at Accenture and held roles starting customer loyalty programs and digital marketing initiatives at Expedia and Amazon. But from her perch among big corporations, she got drawn into the array…

It’s no secret that we are very fond of awards here at Adweek. And while they are each important and impactful in their own way, one clearly stands above them all: our Brand Genius awards, which highlight 11 marketing leaders at the very top of their game who are finding innovative ways to connect with consumers in even the most challenging of times. For this year’s Brand Genius class, we decided to shake things up a bit and raise the bar for excellence by spotlighting marketers who have demonstrated proven success over the past several years, not just the last 12 months. (We also partnered with Brand Finance, which provided additional data about how our honorees have enhanced their respective companies’ bottom lines.) Also new this year, we included our…

As linear television viewership continues to decline, advertisers’ appetite for reaching live audiences has only grown in proportion. To capitalize on this opportunity and tap into lucrative video budgets, publishers including Condé Nast, Penske Media Corp. (PMC) and Overtime have all recently launched or expanded their livestream video capabilities. The uptick of interest in the technology—by no means a new medium—comes as the boundaries between linear, digital and social video continue to blur, and the ecosystem grows more fragmented. As a result, scaled, live viewership has become increasingly rare. Livestreams offer advertisers access to live audiences, for only a fraction of the cost of traditional and connected television inventory. According to Borivoj Ivanovic, the director of marketing at video monetization platform Brid.TV, livestream ads bought via open exchange typically fetch…