Creative Lessons From Cannes Lions for Small Businesses

What do Iceland’s energy drink, Orka, the French Women’s Football team and Taylor Swift have in common? They all share a spotlight at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, an annual event in Cannes, France, renowned for its prestigious advertising awards. While major ad agencies, branding studios, and in-house creatives typically dominate the submissions from big brands, here are three creative principles that small businesses can successfully apply.

1. Differentiation is still king.

Differentiation can be challenging due to the number of competitors in any given category in today’s marketplace. In Iceland, a “macho” stance drives the energy drink category. However, in rebranding Orka, agency Brandenburg / Reykjavik and their client Olgerdin / Reykjavik took an “AntiMacho” approach.

Their rebrand “expresses a fluid direction, ambigram, where you maintain the readability regardless of how the can or brand is oriented. A seamless blend of art and identity, suggesting that Orka is not just a product, but a platform for expression.” Orka just won a bronze prize at the Cannes Lions Awards for its rebranding. This design sends a powerful message.

2. Show don’t tell.

I spoke with Gaëtan du Peloux, Chief Creative Officer and Co-Chief Executive Officer of Marcel Paris. Along with Les Artisans du Film Paris and Prodigious Paris, Marcel created the short film “WoMen’s Football” for French telco Orange for last year’s Women’s World Cup. The film secured a total of 10 Lions awards, including the Grand Prix in Sport and Film categories, alongside three golds, two silvers, and three bronzes across Entertainment, Film, PR, Social and Influencer, and Sport.

The video starts as a highlight reel featuring French football stars such as Kylian Mbappé and Antoine Griezmann showcasing their skills and scoring spectacular goals. Midway through, the ad surprises viewers by revealing the true athletes behind these incredible moments: players from the French women’s team. The film went viral worldwide.

Their goal was to highlight the greatness of women’s soccer in a way that would truly capture people’s attention. Peloux explained that their inspiration came from the constant sharing of highlight compilations by football fans on social media. They crafted an illusion with the aid of special effects: viewers believed they were watching the impressive moves of the men’s team, only to be surprised at the end when they discovered it was actually the French women’s team showcasing their skills.

Russian playwright and short story writer Anton Chekhov once advised his brother Alexander on good writing with a simple yet profound principle: “Don’t tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.”

Writers have since popularized Chekhov’s literary injunction as, “show, don’t tell.” Telling merely states, requiring the audience to take your word for it. Showing, on the other hand, illustrates and thereby proves. This principle is spot on for advertising as well.

3. Move at the speed of culture.

Heinz, along with ad agency Rethink / Toronto, won a Direct Gold Lion for their limited-edition bottle of “ketchup and seemingly ranch.” This clever campaign tapped into the buzz surrounding Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce, referencing a tweet showing a photo of Swift at a Chiefs game at Arrowhead Stadium with the caption, “Taylor Swift was eating a piece of chicken with ketchup and seemingly ranch!” The photo featured Swift with a plate holding a single chicken finger, a dollop of ketchup, and a white condiment, which social media users speculated was ranch.

Heinz quickly seized the moment, renaming its existing bottles of “Kranch” to “Ketchup and Seemingly Ranch.”

While small businesses might not have the capital to execute a campaign like Heinz did, they can still seize cultural moments that align with their values and their target audience’s interests to win hearts and minds.

The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity serves not only as a celebration of groundbreaking advertising but also as a compass for navigating the competitive landscape of business today. As showcased by Orka, Orange, and Heinz the keys to success lie in differentiation, impactful storytelling, and agility in seizing cultural opportunities. By applying these principles, small businesses can forge meaningful connections with their audiences and carve out their own spotlight in the ever-evolving marketplace. Cannes Lions not only honors creativity but also inspires it, urging businesses of all sizes to embrace innovation and redefine what it means to stand out.