Highlights of the afternoon program

In the afternoon sessions, we delved into the vital topic of sustainability with Eva Bodecker Thunborg, Chief Executive Officer at Mediaplus Nordic, Sweden, and Sophie Hochstraate, Head of Global Client Development, Mediaplus Group, Germany, during their session titled 'Sustainability – let’s walk the talk!' They emphasized the importance of preserving our planet at every stage of the communication process. Every small step can make a significant difference. That's why collaboration with individuals from the advertising industry, clients, and even competitors is essential to create a better future.

Ashwini Deshpande, Co-Founder Director of Elephant Design from India, provided inspiration with her insightful talk on the 'Plurality of Design in India.' She told us all about adapting to people's habits and reviving traditional handicrafts as key strategies to achieving success.

Daniela Iebba, the Director of Communications for the Global Heineken Brand, and Mihnea Gheorghiu, the Chief Creative Officer of Le Pub Global, unveiled the secrets of Heineken's success in their illuminating talk titled '150 Years On – Navigating the Future of Socialising.' They emphasized recognizing and combating social barriers and how to successfully overcome them with a strong partnership within the creative proces, trust and proactivity.

Next, we turned our attention to Dániel Kabai, Head of Creative Strategy at Netflix, EMEA, who  discussed how to simplify the task of choosing what to watch on Netflix for their members. The covers of their content play a crucial role in this process, conveying information quickly and effectively through images, often more effectively than a synopsis. To catch users' attention, dozens of tailored images are created for each piece of content, specifically targeting individual users.

Our program culminated with Barney Worfolk-Smith, Managing Director of DAIVID, EMEA, delving into the realm of emotions in advertising during his thought-provoking talk titled 'Emotionally Charged: Understanding Emotion in Ads with AI to Drive Effectiveness.' Barney told us that in order to achieve success, brands must immerse the audience with the right emotions. And they can now achieve that with the help of AI.

The daily program was skillfully hosted by Klemen Slakonja. We're excited for him to take us to the Awards Show, powered by Mastercard.