Cannes Lions Juror Joyce Kigathi unveils the secrets behind the award-winning creative strategy that propelled Renault’s innovative electric vehicle campaign to the forefront. Discover how a simple yet revolutionary idea transformed charging stations into Airbnb-like destinations, addressing global challenges with local solutions. Join us as Joyce delves into the significance of diversity and inclusivity in advertising, the shift towards regional problem-solving, and the broader implications for brands worldwide. This interview offers an exclusive glimpse into the dynamic world of creative strategy and its power to drive meaningful change.
So Joyce, how was Cannes for you this year?
It was amazing to get to know how our industry is changing, but not only changing within itself, but how it's also impacting the world. So it's been really interesting.
And for those who aren't familiar with Cannes Lions, how would you kind of describe it for everyone?
I would say it's the Oscars of the advertising world.
One of the things I've loved hearing you speak about, at Cannes Lions, is the importance of diversity and inclusivity. Tell me, from your perspective, why that's so impactful in the creative community.
It's a matter of the more diverse the voices, the more our industry grows. The more diversity we see in the work, the more we build a better society. In the past, advertising was a mirror of society, what society was. Now, advertising is creating the change we want to see, and that's why diversity is so important.
I'll speak to my experience in the jury room. When you have work coming from all parts of the world, jurors see so much work, they don't have time to [understand each diverse] background. For example, you [might] have someone from the developed world who [does] not understand developing market issues. Or, [you could have] someone from the developing markets who doesn't understand the developed markets, what issues they're facing and the cultural context. [By] having diversity, you have voices from both and you can start to see work from those other parts of the world starting to come up, starting to win as well. Ten years ago, what used to happen is you'd see a lot of work from very specific markets. You had a lot of work from the United States, you had a lot of work from the UK, some work from Europe. But a lot of the rest of the world was not represented. But that is really, really changing. So I would say that the Lions team is doing a really great job in terms of diversity, and they have actually started that from their team itself, which has become very diverse. Change starts from within, then you can expand to the rest of the world.
Could you speak a little bit about why that's so important, specifically in Africa and also for all of everyone to think about when they're considering reaching their audience. The importance of niche?
What I've seen in the last couple of years is a lot of interest with global issues, climate change, different other issues, but global. What happened [during] covid and afterwards was a global economic crisis. People [who] are not able to afford a lot of things. You've seen the mental health challenges. So, to be very honest, it feels like the world is in a bit of crisis. Not everybody might feel that, but that's what I feel, that the world is in a bit of crisis, and you have to sort out any personal issue before caring about global issues. You have to understand that perspective from the consumer. I do think as the world gets into a more stable position, we will start seeing a lot more focus on global issues. But right now, it's more about localization.
Do you think that played a big role in the Cannes Lions Jury room? Did you feel like a lot of the submissions that were more successful really spoke about that?
It's more of a general trend. I wouldn't say it played a part [in the decision making], because when you're looking at the work, you're not really looking at it from that perspective. You're looking at it from a strategic point of view. And the definition of what we're doing is, “how has that work impacted the business? Has it grown the business? Has it changed culture and society? Has it also revolutionized and brought in maybe a new phase of the business, or changed it, or transformed it in any way?” So, it was not really a factor. It was more of a general trend. When we did our first judging, we saw more [submissions about] tech revolution. How people are using different channels, with a focus now more on Gen Z's, and how can we adequately reach them with the notion that Gen Z's don't like ads, you know? So there was that very specific, general trend. But when we shortlisted, we got narrower. It was more the idea behind the idea, which is now what strategy is really built on.
The Renault advertisement that won Cannes Lions Award for Creative Strategy.
Interesting.
Any juror will tell you, when you get to the point where you have your goals and you're choosing your Grand Prix, it's a pretty heated – the conversations – and it takes quite a bit of time until you can get to that decision. I like the fact that they added the Creative Strategy Effectiveness Lions because we celebrate nice, creative ideas. We never really think about – and I keep saying this – what does it mean for the brand? [How does it] change that brand? How is it a commercially viable strategy? There's a part [in the juror decision making] where you have to write your outcome and your results and all that. But strategy is really about these things: How does it change your brand? How does it change culture? How does it redefine who you are, and reinvent your business as well. So with [our winner, Renault] it was such a simple idea. Many people [said] “I would have thought of that. I would have actually implemented that.” That's the brilliance of it. The known electric, the EV brands [aren’t] doing this. So Renault is a challenger brand that is really redefining its business by coming up with a solution that it can be able to scale, not just in one country. The solution can be skilled into 50 different countries a month. So that’ s why it actually worked: the mere impact of the idea.
I agree with you completely. I got excited watching the ad. It brings you in. It makes you feel like you're a part of this movement, and that you're rooting for Renault to scale. I think there's a trend going on where people want to to root for sound business ideas. It makes them feel like they're powerful themselves when they can be a part of a really great emerging business trend.
Exactly. But, you know, it's not even just as a business trend – it's a solution that enables something that is also good for the world. The whole idea is rooted in purpose. It's [about] giving something back to consumers as well, because you get paid if someone uses your charger. And we've also seen this whole trend with tokenization for consumers. So for me, I just define purpose as brands doing good, being a force for good, looking at consumers and and what they're going through, and trying to make a difference, trying to make it a bit easier, really sorting out the issues and the problems that they are going through.
Yes, yes, and that's so it's so great because it’s about individual ways that you can contribute. Where people say “I already have an electric charger. This is a little thing I can do. It has a great benefit. And then it becomes a viral sensation. I thought the storytelling, the message, and the strategy, as you're saying, was really, really excellent.
If you ask me today, I would still rally behind it. I thought it was an obvious winner.
And a great idea. I'm excited for this to roll out, you know, here in Venice Beach, that'll be pretty amazing.
And, you know, it's honestly global, because those are the same issues we're having in Africa as well. We're trying to roll out EVs, but the fact that we can’t find the charging stations is the same issue we have here. So it resonates across the world, and it's huge. It makes it totally more viable to have an electric car, to be able to have this charging solution. Because it is hard. We struggle to with going on road trips, and it's just difficult. So this is amazing.
Joyce, thank you so much for being with us today. It was really great to get a little bit of what it's like to be a Cannes Lions Juror, and hear your perspective on creative strategy. Thank you so much.
Thank you for having me. Honestly, it's been a great experience. It's really changed my mind in terms of how I see strategy, but also how I approach brands. So, thank you, honestly.