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By: Brandon Dixon, Director, Communications 

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The success of “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” at the end-of-2022 box office sparked a question at Stagwell: “When is Black Futures Month?” Brands flocked to the marketing table for the Black Panther sequel, and for good reason: in a 2020 study from National Research Group 52% of Black Americans selected the original film as the “best example of representation and inclusion” in American entertainment. But, marketers still rely too much on Black History Month as the main chance to elevate Black stories.

The success of “Wakanda Forever” shows we should focus on Black futures, not just history, in our marketing efforts. As brands and entertainment converge, how can we drive complex representation for Black consumers and tap into growth opportunities? 

Multi-Dimensional Blackness 

Despite an increase in Black characters and stories in mainstream media, authentic and complex representation is still lacking. 91% of Black Americans still see negative stereotypes as a top pain point. Brands can challenge these narratives through speculative storytelling and Afrofuturism, offering new contexts for Black characters. 

Investing in sci-fi, fantasy, or superhero genres can be a potential goldmine for brands. The 2020 National Research Group study shows Black Americans praised “Black Panther” and “Black Lightning” as the best examples of authentic Black representation in American media. These two shows showcase the potential growth in futuristic, fantastical genres that bring Blackness to the masses. The study also found that 77% of American consumers and 85% of Black Americans find Black content in a futuristic setting appealing. 

Future-Forward Creativity  

Brand creativity that only mines the past for visions of Blackness may dwell on traumatic storylines. Joy exists in the past, but clumsy brand storytelling often leads to the platforming of the same recurring stories about Black oppression. If brands can build Future narratives in concert with Black creatives and think expansively about the potential forms Blackness might take in the future, we’ll see more stories of Black joy and transcendence enter the mainstream.

Potential for Transformation

Ninety-one percent of consumers are confident in the ability of media to influence society, per the 2020 National Research Group study cited above. As brands blur the line between Hollywood and Madison Avenue with branded entertainment, future-leaning visions are the way forward to connect meaningfully with Black consumers.

Let’s use Black Futures Month to challenge our brands to think about what’s next.  

What kind of Black Future can your brand imagine, and help create? 

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As we look to the future of marketing, one thing is certain: Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) will play a major role in shaping the industry. From generative A.I. revolutionizing the way we approach creativity to predictive A.I. providing unprecedented insights and analytics, the potential of A.I. in marketing is vast and exciting.  

But what exactly does the next decade hold for this rapidly evolving field? We asked some of the top minds across Stagwell, including leaders from the Stagwell Marketing Cloud, PRophet, Code and Theory, Colle McVoy, Yamamoto, Concentric Health Experience, and Vitro, to share their predictions and insights on the future of A.I. in marketing.  

A.I. Won’t Eat the World – But it Will Give Consumers Time and Brands Opportunity

Mansoor Basha, Chief Technology Officer, Stagwell Marketing Cloud

“AI and ML are at the forefront of driving digital transformation across industries and will undoubtedly continue to do so. In a 2011 op-ed, Marc Andreessen observed an environment in which software was increasingly becoming king, famously stating that ‘software is eating the world.’ His observation came about a decade after the peak of the 1990s dot-com bubble as companies like Facebook and Skype were booming. Looking to the next decade, I believe that AI and ML will be eating the world, changing the way we work, live, and interact with brands. 

I predict that as AI technology changes everything around us—with things like driverless cars and more efficient, sustainable systems—consumers will have more time on their hands. This will give brands the opportunity to leverage more pointed channels to reach audiences that have more free time to participate. AI will find brands’ ideal audiences and reach consumers in the right place at the right time, especially as AR and VR go mainstream. 

And as the hype around ChatGPT and generative AI simmers down, marketing teams will become more comfortable adopting a wide range of AI tools that help them build powerful workflows that drive innovation, aid in decision making, and create new business models. ChatGPT will be an entry point for many marketing teams as they look for relevant ways to use new technologies in their day-to-day work.”
 

Enhance, Not Replace

Aaron Kwittken, Founder and CEO, PRophet

“Generative AI, while not perfect, is the needle that pierced the veil of doubt and fear amongst marketers when it comes to adopting AI technology. The current limitations are only encumbered by the lack of data needed to make it more performative. 

When paired with the right inputs, this technology will make marketers more efficient by enabling them to create base content faster and better, freeing them up for higher value tasks like editing and strategy deployment. In addition to content creation for press releases, social posts, pitches, marketing collateral, blogs, and more, I see this technology as a huge aid when it comes to legal and compliance issues, especially when working with third parties like influencers and celebrity spokespeople.

Make no mistake, though, the downsides will need to be managed. 

Generative AI may reduce the need for junior staff; could be used as an accelerant to create and spread mis and disinformation; and could make professionals more complacent, less creative, and more transactional. This is where it will be on marketers to get creative about how they use this tool to enhance their current activities, not replace them.” 

The Key Word with A.I.? Enablement

Dan Gardner, Code and Theory Co-Founder and Executive Chairman

“At the moment, where we will see AI transformation is in how we conduct business. While traditional creative shops may be focused on stunts and activations, I believe the key word here is ‘enablement,’ and how the technology allows businesses to do what they haven’t been able to do before.

Where the technology is built into systems that yield long-term results. What this looks like exactly, we still do not know for certain, but I do know that technology at its best is when it has the power to drive meaningful change in people’s lives.” 

Watch Out for A.I.’s “WordPress” Era

Yamamoto Digital Team

In the end it’s not the technology that sells, it’s the story it tells.”  

Welcome to AI as shiny new toy, with machine learning, natural language processing and open access combining to create a sandbox for early adopters. Expect showy, public activations (e.g. Ryan Reynolds reading an AI-generated script for Mint Mobile) as well as backstage experimentation. We marketers will find it hard to pass on an instant first draft of everything we do.  

Then AI enters its WordPress phase. Smaller players will benefit from “good enough” templates that auto-generate content. Meanwhile experts will game AI’s limitations to circumvent the inevitable commoditization.  

There are also threats. To brand safety. To copyright laws. To beliefs about creativity. We’ll have hard conversations about everything from unconscious bias to criminal misuse. Then, in ten years, full impact. We imagine a golden age of hyper-targeted, account-based marketing. We also predict AI depreciating the value of individual assets a la Napster killing the compact disc. Expect real people to respond with bespoke, humanistic, artisan campaigns.   

Finally, a confession. That tasty quote at the top? ChatGPT wrote it. The prompt: Crystalize the future of AI in the haunted, optimistic voice of Don Draper. How’d we do?  

“Make it More Human” 

Ben Majoy, Creative Director, Observatory

We’re in the industry of threading the needle of perfection, constantly trying to find new ways to get as close as possible to what sometimes feels like an impossible vision. Artificial Intelligence is now creating a superficial answer to that question, but we’ll soon see that creating something narratively resonant means a lot more than a “vision” coming to life.

In the same way that a perfect cheeseburger just doesn’t taste as good as a sloppy one (or any other curated vs. bespoke experience example you want to use), we’re going to see that no matter how accurate the A.I. responds to our prompt, it will never FEEL as good as the human-made. There’s humanity in what we do.

Until Artificial Intelligence can replicate nostalgia, trauma, and emotions like seeing someone you haven’t seen in ten years and picking up right where you left off, we will also feel like something is missing. We’re about to enter the era of “make it more human,” taking the place of the “I’ll know it when I see it” feedback loop.

Sturgeon’s Law

Tom Sullivan, CEO, Vitro

RESPONSE TO YOUR PROMPT, FROM CHAT GPT (195 words) 

AI is already revolutionizing marketing…and this continue over the next decade. A big step will be through the use of machine learning algorithms to analyze consumer data and make more targeted, personalized recommendations. This will likely include personalized email campaigns, targeted social media ads, and customized product recommendations on e-commerce sites.

Or course…there are chatbots and virtual assistants. These tools allow companies to interact with customers in real-time, providing immediate support and assistance. They will also be able to handle routine tasks, freeing up human customer service reps to handle more complex inquiries. As time marches on these will continue to get better (and seem even more human). 

AI will also have a major impact on content marketing, as machine learning algorithms will be able to analyze consumer data and create more effective content. This could include personalized blog posts, videos, and other types of content that are more likely to engage and convert consumers. 

Overall, the use of AI in marketing is likely to increase efficiency, reduce costs, and improve the customer experience. Whilst there may be some initial disruptions as companies adopt these new technologies, the long-term benefits are likely to be significant. 

RESPONSE TO YOUR PROMPT, FROM TOM (195 words) 

See above. It’s so generative. It’s Sturgeon’s Law (90% of everything is crap). My guess is…AI will generate at least 50% of marketing assets/thinking. It’ll probably all be pretty smart…pretty good. But when it gets to emotional storytelling, powerful creative…it’ll be just like people, generating a lot of “crap”. AI is digital. Digital is binary. Zeroes and Ones. Blacks and whites. Much of creativity comes from the muted tones, the instincts and intuitions…the random brain synapses that live in the grays. I’ve spent a lot of time playing with AI in several arts (music, writing, imagery). Some of it really interesting, and maybe even gives bits of inspiration…but so much of it is just a mashup of elements we’ve seen before. Usually…you can tell AI was the ghost in the machine, right away.  

These are relatively early days, and they are super exciting…but here are three watchouts that come to mind:  racial biases and presenting incorrect information as true fact. And…look at the “open” in Open AI. It seems to be claiming that everything is open source. So I wonder; will I will end up being a windfall for intellectual property attorneys? Time will tell.   

The InkWell is Half Full for Copywriters

John Neerland, VP, Group Creative Director, Colle McVoy

Over the past month, ChatGPT has hit the world, the industry and advertising copywriters in particular, like a ton of virtual bricks.  

The reaction from writers I’ve talked to has ranged from cautious pessimism to downright dread. Gallows humor abounds. One writer quipped that it might finally be time to get HVAC certified.  

But I’m choosing, for now, to see the inkwell as half full. Just like Photoshop didn’t eliminate art directors and designers, ChatGPT won’t make copywriters obsolete.   

Out of the gate, ChatGPT is only as good as the inputs it receives. And even then, ask it to write headlines for a specific product or brand and you get a list that feels more like 50s newspaper retail ads than the One Show.   

So, if it isn’t pumping out pencil-worthy lines just yet, how can copywriters harness ChatGPT (and not be trampled by it)? Some initial ways include using it to get over blank page syndrome, getting unstuck from one idea or approach, exploring new tones and styles, making copy more search friendly and speeding up the more mundane writing tasks to free up time for more interesting ones.   

Over the next decade, my hope is that copywriters find ways to leverage AI not only as a technological aid to make their work easier and more efficient, but a tool to help make their ideas bigger and their writing better than they’ve ever imagined. Or maybe that’s just what the bots want us to believe. 

A Foundational 21st Century Development

Allison+Partners Digital team

Generative AI is about to change our world.  The capability of AI to generate original and useful creative work at scale is both amazing and terrifying, yet it will be one of the foundational technologies of the 21st century.  There’s no question it will change how we – as communicators and consumers – live, work, learn and even think.   

Tools like ChatGPT make it easier to quickly create targeted content, both written and visual. What’s more, it will help expedite what was once a very manual (and tedious) process by customizing and personalizing content for journalists, analysts and customers. In turn, there’s every chance that many of these pitches will be received by AIs with subsequent stories likely written by them as well. (In fact, some already are – controversially.)

Yes, AI may help everyone create content, just like calculators and spreadsheets help us generate numbers. But AI cannot imagine. It cannot bring years of client experience and strategy to the table. And it cannot replace passion, empathy or excitement for our clients and their offerings. AI is just one tool, plain and simple. We can and should use it to reinforce our best, most human qualities in the many years ahead. However, it will still need you – your humanity, your personality, your perspective and your soul.  

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This piece is part of Stagwell’s Marketing Frontiers content series on Artificial Intelligence. Visit this page to view other perspectives and work from Stagwell’s global teams on A.I.

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TECH RISING = DATA RISING

While the tech at CES is dazzling in its own right, the data it unlocks for brands is the true thought-provoker as we leave Vegas. Every tech advancement is generating fresh ways to capture first-party data from consumers. It’s on marketers to scope these technologies with a healthy mix of skepticism about privacy implications and eagerness about the ability to (more) seamlessly connect consumers to brands.  

Watch this Space: Pinterest announced a new data clean room collaboration with LiveRamp and Albertsons as the latter seeks to build a retail media network. 

Get Smart on Impact: Do Consumers Understand the Bargain of Digital Data?

THE THREE C’S

Whether it was ever-more integrated home devices, new content partnerships, or gifting modern travelers with free wifi, the power of truly connected brands to drive performance is clear. In the year ahead, marketers need to prioritize linking content, commerce, and community in order to effectively serve consumers and boost brand efforts. Tech companies learned “built it and they will come” is a bad way to engage consumers; marketers, too, need to focus on delivering the content consumers want, when they want it, and engage digital and IRl communities to power better experiences.

Watch this Space: Delta announces Delta Sync, a new chapter of connected travel.

Get Smart on Impact: How Warner Music Group is Preparing for Connected Consumers in 2023

TECH IS ABOUT TO HAVE A POLITICAL YEAR

TECH IS ABOUT TO HAVE A POLITICAL YEAR  – The subtext on the convention floor this year was that tech is about to face increased scrutiny and possibly even regulatory action from governments around the world in the year ahead amid growing concerns that products and services are veering us closer to “1984” than 2023. Expect the industry’s practices around data privacy, competition, and content moderation to come under close examination and consider the reputational risks of marketing certain products or services if they are perceived as “bad tech.”  

Watch this Space: How TikTok Became a Diplomatic Crisis

Get Smart on Impact: Mark Penn in Forbes on Twitter, TikTok, and the Year Ahead  

🤖 Category Transformations

Check out the announcements from the past week we predict will drive the biggest vertical transformations in the year ahead. 

• Automotive: Sony and Honda Afeela – a collaboration with Qualcomm that illustrates the future of in-car entertainment. 
• Travel & Hospitality: Richtech Robotic’s ADAM is a boba-making robot that delighted attendees; Richtech’s robots are already deployed across restaurants and hotels.   
• Media & Entertainment: TikTok and Vevo launch a new weekly show curating music videos from the top-trending songs on TikTok
• Luxury and Fashion: Paula Abdul’s IdolEyes Fashion Audio Glasses protect the eyes, let users take calls, and use the best in modern sonic tech to enhance music and content. 
• Healthcare: Vivoo showcased its at-home urine test kit/app using machine learning to analyze test strips and serve up ‘wellness’ insights to users. 

Live from the Stagwell Content Studio @ CES 2023

Stagwell’s Content Studio returned at CES, delivering behind-the-scenes interviews with C-Suite execs at the world’s most ambitious brands on the trends and transformations they’re tracking at CES.

In this episode, Qualcomm CMO Don McGuire and Stagwell Chairman and CEO Mark Penn share why artificial intelligence and augmented reality are the two trends to bet on in 2023.

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Sarah Arvizo
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pr@stagwellglobal.com 

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ADS HERE, DATA EVERYWHERE

GENERATIVE A.I. IS THE DARLING OF THE SHOW 

EXITING OUR “TECH AS ENTERTAINMENT” ERA

🤖 Category Transformations

We’re watching these sessions for vertical-transforming announcements at CES. Check back with us in a week for our POVs on their news:

• Automotive: Connected Mobility and the New Automotive Customer Experience
• Travel & Hospitality: Top Trends in Travel
• Media & Entertainment: Advertising’s New Normal: Unifying Streaming, Retail, and Identity in 2023
• Retail: AR and VR Go Shopping
• Healthcare: Data in the Age of Public Health Emergencies 

Coming Soon: CES Content Studio

As thousands descend on Las Vegas for CES, Stagwell’s Content Studio returns to deliver behind-the-scenes interviews with business leaders across electronics, food and drink, luxury goods, media, sports, tourism and more. Hear from them on the trends and transformations they’re tracking at CES. Follow our LinkedIn and YouTube to keep up with the series as it publishes during CES.

 Reach out at ces2023@stagwellglobal.com if you are an executive that would like an interview.

Originally Released On

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CONTACT:

Sarah Arvizo
Stagwell
pr@stagwellglobal.com 

Celebrates GALE as part of AOY Shortlist

Stagwell – just 1% of the market – is 20% of the AOY list

Observatory Included on the Small AOY Shortlist

NEW YORK – Dec. 12, 2022 – Stagwell (NASDAQ: STGW), the challenger network built to transform marketing, celebrates its strategic and creative agency Anomaly which has been named U.S. Agency of the Year by Adweek, the American trade publication covering the advertising, marketing, and media industries.

Adweek editors applauded Anomaly’s ‘monster’ year of new business wins, which included 16 accounts ranging from Dunkin’, Vans, and the ‘pitch of the year’: Bud Light U.S. Additionally, Adweek said “the agency’s Super Bowl spot for Meta Quest tugged on our heartstrings.”

Business agency GALE – which continued its trajectory of triple-digit growth in 2022 – was also shortlisted by Adweek as U.S. Agency of the Year, one of only 10 agencies recognized. GALE’s notable 2022 new business wins include H&R Block and Dropbox, and it was earlier named to Adweek’s list of Fastest Growing Agencies for 2022.  

“Our challenger network – just 1% of the market – boasts 20% of Adweek’s prestigious list. We’re proud to celebrate Anomaly as Adweek’s 2022 Agency of the Year. Led by Carl Johnson, Karina Wilsher and great office leaders in New York and Los Angeles, Anomaly lodged a remarkable year of new business growth and creative innovation. I am also excited to see GALE shortlisted for Agency of the Year and proud of Brad Simms and the fast-growing team there,” said Mark Penn, chairman and CEO, Stagwell. “I also want to congratulate Brendan Shields-Shimizu and the Observatory team on their recognition on the Small Agency of the Year short list for continuing to innovate for clients in a variety of formats.”

“If you define and fully commit to what you believe; identify what must remain and must change, what you’re prepared to do, and more importantly not do, then you can make significant progress in a turbulent, unpredictable world. We do and we did,” noted Anomaly co-founder Carl Johnson.

Observatory, based in Los Angeles, was also included on the shortlist in the U.S. Small Agency of the Year category, recognized for selling a variety of work including an action figure of Martha Stewart, two docuseries, a podcast, a film, and a concert. It also received nods for developing 15 sports films for clients as well as creating a sequel to an iconic Chipotle ad.

About Stagwell

Stagwell is the challenger holding company built to transform marketing. We deliver scaled creative performance for the world’s most ambitious brands, connecting culture-moving creativity with leading-edge technology to harmonize the art and science of marketing.  Led by entrepreneurs, our 13,000+ specialists in 34+ countries are unified under a single purpose: to drive effectiveness and improve business results for their clients. Join us at www.stagwellglobal.com.

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Sarah Arvizo
Stagwell
pr@stagwellglobal.com 

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By

Sean Miller
Campaigns & Elections

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Originally Released On

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Sarah Arvizo
Stagwell
pr@stagwellglobal.com 

Stagwell’s fastest-growing network transforms for the convergence of creative, media, and commerce.

NEW YORK, Oct. 6, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Stagwell (NASDAQ: STGW), the challenger network built to transform marketing, has expanded and rebranded the Stagwell Media Network to the Brand Performance Network, closing a crucial gap in the industry to produce and deliver connected solutions that perform across creative, media and commerce.

“‘Creative + Media + Commerce’ – the new equation for modern marketing – is simple, but executing against it is complex. Brands need truly integrated partners to navigate this convergence,” said Mark Penn, chairman and CEO, Stagwell. “The Stagwell Media Network has clearly resonated well with clients; look at its breakout performance and recent substantial client wins. Now, with this expansion, we’ve fully integrated creative and media, and are scaling our growing expertise in e-commerce solutions, creating a group able to activate the full equation of modern brand performance.”

The proximity of Creative X Media X Commerce is core to the Brand Performance Network’s evolved offering. Now, the network is home to more than 6,000 experts across 60 locations in 20 countries worldwide, representing award-winning creative and managing close to $5 billion in media and commerce. 

In August 2022, Stagwell integrated iconic creative agencies Crispin Porter Bogusky, Forsman & Bodenfors, Observatory and Vitro into the Brand Performance Network; Stagwell at the time also reported the Media Network posted 33% net revenue growth in the second quarter of 2022, making it Stagwell’s fastest-growing integrated network.  

“We launched the network a year ago in response to the needs of the modern marketer, to be omnichannel, data and tech-enabled, and global,” said James Townsend, global CEO of Assembly and the Brand Performance Network. “Today, we’re evolving again to reflect the drive we’ve seen from blue-chip global brands rightly demanding truly connected creative, media, and commerce solutions to unlock transformation and growth for their businesses. This will offer our people more opportunity and our clients even more value.”

“Today’s announcement is a great moment to welcome the new creative agencies and their leadership teams to the network,” said Brad Simms, president and CEO, GALE, and global chief product officer of the Brand Performance Network. “Their compelling and impactful work perfectly complements strategic media execution and personifies our focus on brand performance.” 

All agencies within the network will continue to operate under their individual brands, consistent with Stagwell’s fundamental belief in collaboration between complementary groups over agency consolidation. Brands within the network will retain their cultures and unique capability sets, while scaling through more integrated work.

The new identity is being designed by business agency GALE. 

About Stagwell
Stagwell is the challenger network built to transform marketing. We deliver scaled creative performance for the world’s most ambitious brands, connecting culture-moving creativity with leading-edge technology to harmonize the art and science of marketing. Led by entrepreneurs, our 13,000+ specialists in 34+ countries are unified under a single purpose: to drive effectiveness and improve business results for their clients. Join us at www.stagwellglobal.com.

About the Brand Performance Network
Stagwell’s Brand Performance Network is a group of leading creative, media, and commerce agencies home to more than 6,000 experts with an expansive global footprint across 60 offices in 20 countries, managing $5 billion in media. The network includes creative agencies GALE, Forsman & Bodenfors, Crispin Porter Bogusky, Vitro, and Observatory, media agencies Assembly, MMI Agency, Goodstuff and Grason, B2B specialists Multiview, multi-lingual content agency Locaria, travel and media experts Ink, and commerce experts Brand New Galaxy. The network offers marketers a more dynamic partner for global B2B and B2C connected solutions spanning data, technology, media, and creativity aimed at accelerating business growth for brands worldwide.

Contact: 
Beth Sidhu
pr@stagwellglobal.com