Global News Post Fastest Global News Portal
Related Articles
At a New York show off previewing their best Cannes Lions contenders, DDB’s world leaders unveiled a slate of labor mixing emotion, fandom and experimentation.
As DDB gears up for Cannes Lions 2025, world CEO Alex Lubar and world CCO/president Chaka Sobhani are transparent on something: creativity isn’t simply evolving – it’s increasing. And in an international ruled via fragmented consideration, AI and cultural overload, DDB’s manner is refreshingly easy: make paintings that earns its position, lives in tradition, sparks pleasure, drives industry and every so often makes you cry.
“We’re not just talking at people any more,” says Sobhani. “Advertising now is about joining the conversation that’s already happening.”
Want to head deeper? Ask The Drum
What the Cannes paintings finds about the way forward for promoting
From a Coors Light activation that makes use of temperature-sensitive labels to create a multi-sensory beer revel in, to an AI-powered marketing campaign for Iams that turns puppy wishlists into Hollywood trailers, DDB’s paintings this 12 months spans channels, geographies and vibes. The commonplace thread? Relevance.
“About 80% of Cannes winners now sit outside of traditional media spaces,” notes Sobhani. “Experiential, activation, fan-first formats – these aren’t afterthoughts any more. They’re where the action is.”
Whether it’s turning a McDonald’s curry sauce right into a second of nationwide id right through the Olympics or launching Twix’s Super Bowl marketing campaign as a second-screen staring contest, DDB’s output is firmly embedded in what Lubar calls “the emotional advantage” – no longer simply being observed, however felt.
Fandoms, no longer demographics
One primary pattern? The upward thrust of fandom over conventional segmentation. “It’s no longer just about age or region,” says Sobhani. “It’s about shared passions – music, gaming, sport, food. If you can tap into that, you’re no longer advertising, you’re participating.”
Bad Bunny’s cultural tribute to Puerto Rico, Skittles’ legally binding Docusign comic story (you needed to signal together with your tongue to check out a brand new product) or even Heinz’s well timed nod to Kendrick Lamar right through a viral rap fight all proportion this DNA: they react, embed and really feel like they belong. “These aren’t ads,” says Sobhani. “They’re cultural moments.”
AI is already right here – and it’s emotional
While Omnicom is saving its giant AI announcement for Cannes week, you’ll be able to already see the tech’s fingerprints on DDB’s paintings. The Iams ‘U Want a Puppy/Kitten’ marketing campaign used Google’s state-of-the-art equipment to create deeply private, emotion-laden puppy trailers. “That kind of campaign doesn’t work without AI – and it definitely doesn’t work without emotional truth,” says Lubar.
Sobhani has the same opinion. “People keep talking about AI in terms of efficiency, but the real opportunity is growth, creativity, scale. It’s already part of our world and it should be exciting, not scary.”
She provides: “My kids use AI like it’s nothing. It’s part of their reality. We should be figuring out how to make it magic, not just marginally faster.”
The energy of IRL
Despite the virtual surge, DDB is bullish on real-world have an effect on. “The more digital our world gets, the more powerful physical experiences become,” Sobhani says. “We’re not bolting on activations any more. We’re building brands through them.”
That trust is observed in campaigns similar to ‘Clan Destinations,’ which reworked ex-drug airstrips in Colombia into faraway tourism gateways, and ‘Prize on a Bone’ for KFC Brazil, which engraved profitable messages without delay directly to hen bones the use of lasers. Absurd? Maybe. Memorable? Definitely.
Creativity that travels – and works
What’s placing about DDB’s 2025 slate isn’t simply its breadth, it’s the intensity. These aren’t simply one-off stunts. They’re constructed to scale, rooted in DDB’s rising world inventive councils and shared IP.
“Great ideas don’t care where they come from,” says Lubar. “We’ve got DDB shops in Colombia, Paris, Chicago, London, Auckland and our goal is to connect them better. Not through process, but through shared ambition.”
McDonald’s is a living proof. With 20+ DDB markets operating at the emblem, the community now actively stocks briefs, technique and execution throughout areas. “It’s not about efficiency,” Chaka says. “It’s about not wasting great ideas.”
Holding the road on creativity
With Cannes looming, DDB isn’t shy about its ambition. The company is shortlisted for the Glass Lion with a Paralympics marketing campaign geared toward erasing the phrase “participant” from Paralympian protection. It’s daring, sharp and constructed with athletes on the middle of all of it.
“If we’re not making work that people feel, we’re wasting our time,” says Lubar. “That emotional connection is still everything. Bill Bernbach [the agency’s legendary founder] was right – you don’t act unless you feel something. We live by that.”
The Drum alternatives: 5 standout DDB campaigns to observe at Cannes Lions 2025
Here are 5 campaigns that stood out for his or her daring concepts, cultural fluency and artistic craft.
1. Iams, ‘U Want a Puppy/Kitten Studios’
A suave use of AI that tugs on the heartstrings. Iams constructed a video generator that turns a child’s plea for a puppy right into a full-blown cinematic trailer – entire with Hollywood-style narration, dramatic tune, and customized imagery powered via Google’s newest AI fashion. It’s no longer simply adorable – it’s sensible. The device offers children the emotional firepower to win over their folks and showcases Iams as a emblem that understands trendy puppy love (and tech). No media greenbacks wanted – simply tears.
2. Skittles, ‘Help! There’s Crunch in My Skittles’
Skittles went complete Skittles for the release of its new freeze-dried sweet. Before the whole marketing campaign dropped, fanatics have been requested to signal a 10-page felony contract by means of DocuSign confirming they understood the product could be “crunchy, not chewy.” It used to be absurd, bureaucratic and weirdly good – precisely what you’d be expecting from a emblem constructed on twisted good judgment. It purchased time for the massive ATL release, whilst giving social one thing surely shareable.
3. ProfessionalColombia, ‘Clan Destinations’
Here’s the way you reclaim a story. Colombia’s nationwide tourism company and DDB grew to become 700+ deserted airstrips – as soon as utilized by drug cartels – into precise, bookable touchdown websites for eco-tourism and home commute. The marketing campaign repositioned narco historical past as nationwide doable, unlocking hidden portions of the rustic and inspiring Colombians and vacationers alike to rediscover its attractiveness. It’s uncommon to look a tourism concept with this a lot objective, energy and poetry.
4. KFC Brazil, ‘Prize on the Stick’
In a nostalgic nod to an iconic Brazilian ice-cream promo from the 1980s, KFC introduced again the ‘prize on a stick’ concept – however this time, on a hen bone. Yes, in point of fact. Using contactless laser engraving, KFC concealed free-prize messages on hen bones as a part of a marketing campaign to advertise its new dessert menu. It’s a great collision of cultural perception, tactile creativity and darkish humour – and it were given other people in point of fact speaking about bones. Weird, superb and really Brazilian.
5. Twix, ‘Stare to Win’
Instead of shopping for a conventional Super Bowl spot, Twix grew to become the second one display screen into its playground. During each and every business destroy, audience have been invited to stare – actually – at two gold bars on a microsite. The longer you stared, the easier your probability of profitable a forged gold prize value $170,000. It gamified boredom and rewarded dedication. Classic mischief with a suave media twist.
