We’re back again with more pharma and healthcare news and insights after a busy second day at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.
This is Day 2 of our series, "The Daily Dose." To read Day 1, click here.
And check back tomorrow for more updates on the latest trends and highlights from the festival.
The Health & Wellness Lion awards were handed out on Monday night, but judges did a deep dive session on the best ones the next day. More than 1,250 entries resulted in 38 winners with the top Grand Prix going to motion sickness brand Dramamine and its “Last Barf Bag” campaign. The humorous idea to celebrate the end of airsick bags, thanks to the OTC medicine, included a 14-minute documentary and a museum experience in New York.
Using humor to connect was a top trend among the health entries, the judges said, along with the creating experiences and the ongoing rise of non-health brand moving into the space.
VML drove this the message home with a standing room only session with actor, producer, comedian and SNL cast member Kenan Thompson; Hellmann’s Christopher Symmes; and VML’s Debbi Vandeven. Moderated by our Global CEO Jon Cook they talked about how brands can harness humour to not only capture market share, but also shape cultural discourse and drive connections. Christopher Symmes, Head of Marketing, Dressings and Condiments North America for Hellman’s sums it up – “Humor allows us to invite consumers into conversations without judgement..
Takeaway: Don’t be afraid to let your pharma brands be funny or simply light-hearted. People love to laugh and when someone is ill or dealing with a health condition, the gift of a smile, even from a brand, can build strong connections.
Obesity or chronic weight management drugs are big news in the pharma industry right now with dozens of companies working on solutions, but Novo Nordisk was first. And it was also first with campaign – with rapper and actress Queen Latifah – to push back on the stigma around the condition. They found out through “It’s Bigger Than Me” campaign though that it wasn’t just people’s misconceptions, but also physicians holding onto myths about weight.
Novo Nordisk crafted the educational second half of the campaign for both people living with obesity and healthcare providers who often had their own biases. They even created a symbol of obesity care for doctors to let patients know they will be welcomed, and not shamed, at that healthcare providers.
Takeaway: Stigma is a common problem across many disease states and conditions, not just obesity. And doctors are people too, as the saying goes, and they sometimes have the same health misconceptions. Consider whether both audiences could benefit from creative communications, like Novo’s inclusive obesity care badge, to help bridge doctor-patient gaps.
It’s no surprise that more consumers are tuning into women’s sports – think of the rise of the women’s national soccer team and the 2024 record-setting women’s NCAA – but two women athletes and one well-known US soccer club owner say there’s more to the story.
“The attention that matters is not necessarily where the game is played,” said Alexis Ohanian, the co-founder of Reddit and owner of Angel City Football Club (and the husband of tennis phenom Serena Williams). “It’s all the attention and connection that you can build between athletes and their fans – and they’re doing it themselves. Building an audience of millions who care so much about their stories, not just what they’re doing on the pitch or on the court.”
NCAA star at LSU Flau'jae Johnson and US women’s team forward Midge Purce are proof of that and they want brands to know it too. Johnson, who’s also a rapper, said it gets old when brands, in her case for college name, image and likeness or NIL deals, want her to pose in the studio or dribbling a ball. “Can we please do something different? Let’s really get into it, let’s be authentic and really create a story,” she said.
Takeway: Women’s sports matter, and pharma companies should be planning media buys on women’s events just like the do on NFL football or men’s March Madness. Also consider the potential power of women athletes for brand collabs and marketing. As Ohanian said, “People investing in (women’s sports and athletes) right now have a window of a couple of years to look brilliant at your job. Ten years from now you’ll say I was there before everyone else realized it was so obvious.”
Marc Pritchard is a marketing legend with more than 40 years at P&G and his regular Cannes talks are studies in consumer packaged goods sagacity. This year he focused on “Everyday Creativity” mirroring P&G’s upcoming “Everyday Champions” campaign for the 2024 Paris Olympics across 30 brands.
“It’s safe to say that diapers, laundry soap, toothpaste, body wash and toilet paper are not the first products that come to mind when it comes to creativity. But actually, they offer huge opportunities because everyday moments are rich with creative potential,” he said. Couldn’t the same thing could be said about “everyday” medicines?
