We were proud to see that the presence of influencers and the rise of the Creator Economy at Cannes Lions this year was immense.
Influencers have been present at Cannes Lions for the past few years, however, the 2024 festival included a huge increase in influencers and creators, along with the agencies supporting this growing marketing channel, which attracted even more attention on stage, at activations, and at the prestigious Cannes Lions Awards ceremony and in intimate lunch and dinners.
In April, Cannes Lions introduced Lions Creators, a new event from June 18-20, featuring networking, forums, and roundtables on challenges involving platforms, brands, creators, and agencies. For the first time, this year there was a Creator track on the conference agenda, with huge macro creators including Madeline Argy, Munya Chawawa, and Alex Cooper taking the stage.
The Social and Influencer award category received 1764 entries this year. 56 Social and Influencer Lions were awarded: one Grand Prix, nine Gold, 18 Silver, and 28 Bronze. Let’s take a look at some of the highlights…
Taking home the Grand Prix in the Social and Influencer category was CeraVe’s multi-platform social campaign featuring Michael Cera. The humorous and surprising campaign saw actor Michael Cera claim to be the developer behind the skincare brand.
The skincare company centered their advertisement on a Reddit discussion from seven years ago, which speculated about any connection between Michael Cera and their brand. Additionally, CeraVe teamed up with several content creators to amplify the campaign during the 2024 Super Bowl.
Italian Charity CoorDown proved that you don’t need to include major celebrities in your campaigns for them to make an impact, as they were awarded in the Social and Influence category for their ‘Assume I Can’ campaign. They took home Gold for Co-Creator and User Generated Content and Silver for Social Film.
‘Assume I Can’ launched in time for World Down Syndrome Day on March 21st. It is an awareness campaign that calls for an end to the biases and stereotypes inflicted upon people with Down syndrome and invites others to support their full potential.
In CoorDown’s hero film, a young woman with Down syndrome defies others' assumptions, transforming their perceptions. At first, people doubt her abilities – thinking she can't drink a cocktail, study Shakespeare, box, excel at work, or play sports. By the end of the film, she challenges society to believe she can do all those things. Suddenly, she drinks a cocktail, studies Shakespeare, learns to box, and more because others believe in her abilities.
The campaign generated a huge buzz on social media when it was released, highlighting the growing desire of consumers to engage in content with a purpose, educate themselves, and show their support for diverse communities.
Edelman London and LePub Milan won a Bronze for Heineken's ‘The Social Swap,’ addressing gender bias in football.
Sports pundits Jill Scott and Gary Neville switched social media accounts for five days, revealing Jill's account, managed by Gary, received five times more sexist comments than Gary's, managed by Jill.
This campaign, highlighted during the UEFA finals in May 2023, showcased the sexism female pundits face and aligned with Heineken's commitment to inclusivity in football. Heineken also supported the cause by providing 5,000 licenses for the AI moderation tool Arwen to help fans filter out abusive comments – a great example of how AI can be used for good on social media.
The award win mirrors a notable improvement in the celebration of women in successful positions throughout Cannes Lions as a whole, signifying the creative industry's commitment to gender inclusion.
Our brilliant client, DoorDash, won eight Lions at the festival for their "DoorDash All the Ads" campaign in partnership with advertising agency Wieden+Kennedy. These included the prestigious Titanium Grand Prix, along with two golds, four silvers, and a bronze across categories like Brand Experience & Activation, Direct, PR, and Social & Influencer.
DoorDash’s Super Bowl campaign featured a unique offer to deliver every product advertised during the game to one lucky winner. This innovative approach achieved 11.9 billion earned impressions, making it one of the most talked-about ads of the Super Bowl. The brand's strategy included partnerships with numerous other Super Bowl advertisers, successfully navigating legal and NFL restrictions to bring the campaign to life.
DoorDash also earned a Bronze award for Use of Humor in the Social and Influencer category for their ‘Bouquets for Living Men’ campaign. This Valentine's Day, DoorDash teamed up with creative agency GUT Los Angeles to challenge the tradition that only women receive flowers. The campaign, titled ‘Flowers are for Every Valentine,’ humorously addresses the idea that most men don’t receive flowers until their funeral.
The ad campaign was supported by our influencer collaborations on TikTok and Instagram. Brand and campaign-aligned influencers captured the sincere reactions of the partners who wouldn’t typically expect to receive flowers, showcasing how easy it is to order flowers directly to your door at the click of a button with DoorDash.
By supporting the campaign with influencer content, the message was able to reach wider audiences, sparking joy and engagement surrounding the brand.
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