More brands, and now agencies, pulled Google spend, Google apologised, and Al Gore blamed Brexit on climate change: Advertising Week Europe is again over for another year. Outside of the headlines, ExchangeWire ask thought leaders what stood out for them during the event.

The importance of understanding audiences

“What a week! So much has been covered, but I have been heartened that ad land is reigniting the conversation around the value and importance of understanding audiences. This insight, combined with the expertise and authenticity of content creators, is why trusted media brands remain so influential and so relevant today, especially with conversations centering around fake news and ad placements. It is the incredibly powerful mix of science and art that ensures commercial partners can trust us to deliver their advertising with the most impactful content in the right context. For all our brands at Bauer, everything we do starts and ends with our audiences; and it’s important that our commercial partners can access this. For example, our portfolio reaches 57% of all UK millennials, so a key part of what we do revolves around knowing how this audience group ticks, how we react to them, and how they respond to content and advertising through both insight and editorial instinct.”

Abby Carvosso, Group MD, Advertising, Bauer Media

The authenticity of content marketing in a sea of fake news

“I’m sure the words 'fake news', 'trust', and 'transparency' appeared in nearly every session this week at AdWeek Europe. A clear takeaway, however, is the advantage that content marketing can bring to brands when it is laced with integrity, authenticity, and it is relevant in its context. Whether content is created by media owners, content agencies, media agencies, or by brands themselves, it is important that the content reflects the best way to bring that brand to life and gives the audience what they want, in a way they want to consume it. In an industry currently under threat with criticism regarding its honesty, credible and meaningful content can help to reassure your audiences’ faith in what you produce and say.”  

Clare Hill, MD, Content Marketing Association

The balance of data collection & utilisation

“At Ad Week Europe there was a lot of talk about data collection, usage, and controls. Data collection is fast becoming a valuable source of insight for planning, targeting, and measuring, as behavioural data sets are scaled and, in some cases, able to displace panel-based attitudinal tools. This is an exciting time for media planners and creatives to mould communications around the insights they unlock from high-quality datasets. But, we mustn’t forget the balance between context and user targeting. We should work hard to be mindful of how data is collected, what it means, and how it can, and will, be utilised. Consumers embrace relevance, as long as their data is being used well and in a respectful way. After this week, you may wonder if context wins over data-driven user targeting. In my view, it’s a balancing act between context and user control – the weighting being dependent on what job your communications are trying to achieve, whilst adhering to safety at all times. As long as we are clear on how we employ data, both context and what we know about a user can be used in powerful ways.”

Isabelle Baas, Managing Partner – Digital, Starcom 

Brand safety prevails for the wrong reasons

“It comes as no surprise that Google stole the show at this year’s Ad Week – unfortunately, this wasn’t in a positive light. In a busy week, we’ve heard that HSBC, Lloyds Bank, and the Royal Bank Scotland have all pulled their ads from the digital giant. And we are bound to see more follow suit. In my opinion, this bold move from the most established UK brands must be welcomed. By cutting their digital ad spend off from the source, they are immediately preventing people hosting the inappropriate content from cashing in on the ads. The industry must wake up and take note. And, if anything, this will force brands to look internally at their own processes and then externally review their partnerships (including ones within trading) to ensure that they too have adequate cover in place. Marketers must now ask the right questions of their agencies, publishers, and technology partners. Ultimately, everyone must take the responsibly of sharing the burden of fraud and do their part to fight against it.”

Julia Smith, Director of Communications EMEA, Impact Radius

The importance of creativity must shine through in a data-driven world

“It’s been a busy, but enjoyable, week at the Picturehouse this year. There was much debate about how a focus on data-driven advertising has perhaps negatively impacted the industry’s creativity. Creativity is something we value highly at Shutterstock and a topic we were keen to discuss. It’s vital that brands have a strong visual narrative that appeals to the consumers they’re trying to reach. A general need for reflection and mindfulness, in the midst of relentless tech advancements, was discussed at this year’s event. At Shutterstock, we’re observing this via a strong demand for both images that represent today’s tech-driven world, but also those that reflect more organic themes. In short, advertisers need to be sensitive to the fact that, although consumers may crave the latest tech, they also want to feel comfortable and at home in an ever-changing world. Natural themes are a way to achieve this. Creativity will always be central to the ad industry, so it’s vital that marketers stay abreast of the current design trends – whether that means using graphics to evoke nostalgia or employing more emojis to target millennials.”

Kashem Miah, Director Social Media & Content Marketing, Shutterstock