Our team immersed itself in the latest insights on marketing, branding and consumer behaviour at Mad//Fest Up North last week. While the event reinforced many of the strategies we already champion at ICG, it was a great opportunity to share industry thinking about how to engage with audiences, build communities and stay ahead of the curve.
Here are our top takeaways:
Young People Value Trusted News Sources
It's easy to assume that Gen Z and younger audiences are disengaged from traditional news, but the reality is far from it. Research shared by Newsworks highlighted that while teenagers and young adults enjoy soft news (celebrity gossip, entertainment), they are equally interested in hard news, provided it comes from authentic, trusted sources.
The takeaway; Authenticity is non-negotiable, and younger audiences are increasingly adept at filtering out clickbait and misinformation.
Pain Points: Think Bigger Than Your Audience
Solving customer pain points is Marketing 101 but what about the pain points of the wider market? Angela Cameron of Mars Petcare gave the Whiskas Meowzer campaign as a example. Instead of simply targeting existing cat owners, Whiskas capitalised on the rising search demand for low-maintenance dogs and cleverly reframed cats as an alternative. The result? More cat adoptions, increased brand loyalty and a boost in cat food sales.
The takeaway: Expand your thinking. Instead of just addressing your customers' needs, consider adjacent audiences, cultural shifts, and unexpected opportunities.
Building a Community is a Long-Term Play
A successful brand community isn't built overnight. It requires constant nurturing, much like feeding a sourdough starter (a brilliant analogy shared by Melanie Goldsmith of Project 30 Ventures). Brands must continue engaging their core audience while strategically expanding to new ones.
A thriving brand community is more than just a fanbase; it's a valuable research tool. Your audience can provide real, unfiltered feedback, both on social media and offline. Organisations that foster this sense of belonging by listening, responding, and involving their community in decision-making create advocates, not just customers.
The takeaway: Nurture your core audience, but always be looking for ways to bring new people in.
Social Influence: The Pull' Factor
In a world of constant brand messaging, the most credible marketing doesn't come from brands, it comes from people. Eloquently put by Tom Ridges, CEO of Herdify, this isn't about paid influencers it's about creating real-world social influence that makes your brand naturally desirable, talked about and shared.
Think about how Prime Hydration went from an unknown product to a phenomenon. Yes, the Logan Paul and KSI connection helped, but beyond that, the real-world pull' factor limited availability, peer-to-peer hype, and word-of-mouth drove demand. When people see something being talked about and sought after in their circles, FOMO kicks in.
The takeaway For brands, the challenge is to create products, campaigns, and experiences that are so compelling and shareable that they don't need to be forced into conversations they naturally become part of them.
Psychographics Over Demographics
Kenyatte Nelson, Chief Membership & Customer Officer at Co-op, put it best: I'm more of an anthropologist than a marketer. While demographics (age, gender, location) still have their place, the real power lies in psychographics understanding people's values, motivations, and behaviours.
It's not about targeting a 25-34-year-old female it's about understanding why she buys certain products, what influences her decisions and how she interacts with brands.
The takeaway: Brands that understand their customers on a human level will always have a competitive advantage.
AI Can't Predict the Future
AI is powerful, but it's important to remember that it only knows what has happened before, not what will work in the future. While AI is brilliant for automation, data analysis, and predicting trends based on historical data, it lacks the intuition, creativity, and cultural awareness that human marketers bring to the table.
The takeaway AI should be embraced as a tool, but the real magic in marketing still comes from human insight, gut instinct, and creative risk-taking.
Stay True to Your Brand, But Adapt to New Markets
One of the most interesting insights from Mad//Fest was how brands are successfully evolving while staying true to their identity.
Lorraine Rothwell, Head of Brand at Weetabix shared how Weetabix pivoted from engaging with new audiences with inventive use of its iconic product, back to the hero' serving suggestion at the core of its latest marketing campaign, using inclusive humorous and culturally relevant situations.
Adam Zavalis, Vice President Marketing at Asda recently doubled down on Rollback pricing, northern family-based partnerships (Joe Wicks), and its nostalgic Leeds' brand voice (Jodie Whittaker) reconnecting with its core audience while remaining relevant today.
The takeaway: Brands need to evolve, but never at the cost of losing what makes them unique. Change what needs to change, but hold on to your brand's authentic voice and core DNA.
Hope you've enjoyed these insights. If you're looking to take your brand marketing, trade marketing, or digital strategy to the next level, get in touch -we'd love to help!
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
02/03/2026
NBC Sports selected Imaginary Forces to create the main title sequence for the M...
02/03/2026
The NFL announces the launch of the NFL Draft Innovation Challenge, a new crowds...
02/03/2026
The World Teleport Association (WTA) has named Skyline Communications' DataMiner SatOps solution as a finalist for the 2026 Teleport Technology of the Year ...
02/03/2026
Ventum Tech announces a strategic partnership with Pixotope, a real-time graphic...
02/03/2026
Victory , a free, ad-supported sports streaming service, announces the launch of...
02/03/2026
Global powerhouse Delta Goodrem to represent Australia at this year's Eurovi...
02/03/2026
SBS brings together prominent voices to discuss rising social division and seek ...
02/03/2026
NITV Unveils Wednesday Night Sport Night
Media releases
A Midweek Hub for Blak Sport
Flagship NRL program Over The Black Dot moves to Wednesdays at 9:30pm
...
02/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz demonstrates FR1-FR3 carrier aggregation, advancing 6G readiness Rohde & Schwarz and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. have reached another pivotal ...
02/03/2026
MELBOURNE, Fla., March 2, 2026 - L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) today announc...
02/03/2026
Harvey Norman tops New Zealand's biggest ad spenders as retail leads and telcos and beverages sure Auckland March 3, 2026 - Nielsen's New Zealand'...
02/03/2026
aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, and Arqit Quantum Inc. (Nasdaq: ARQQ, A...
02/03/2026
Advanced Systems Group, LLC (ASG), a technology and services provider for media creatives and content owners, has appointed Jody Boatwright as Chief Strategy Of...
02/03/2026
Lightware, an industry leader in signal management, is reinforcing its commitment to simplifying complex AV environments with the continued evolution of its TPN...
02/03/2026
ZEISS Cinema opens its doors to an exclusive screening, filmmakers Q&A and hands-on showcase of the new ZEISS Aatma lens family on Tuesday, March 10, 6:00-9:00 ...
02/03/2026
To expand the creative potential of the compact Astera QuikBeam, DoPchoice introduces the SNAPBAG Round. The new light-shaping accessory transforms the powerfu...
02/03/2026
Douglas Dubler
On a rooftop in New York City, veteran photographer Douglas Dubler watched the sun's angle shift across the urban landscape, his internal cl...
02/03/2026
ZEISS is expanding its Otus ML lens family with the introduction of the new ZEISS Otus ML 1.4/35. This manual-focus lens is designed for photographers who live ...
02/03/2026
Matthews Studio Equipment now offers the new Dinkum Systems White FlexiMount and Phone Mount Kit, a compact, highly adaptable setup for mobile content creation...
02/03/2026
Luxembourg, February 26, 2026 - SES and Africa Mobile Network (AMN) have expande...
02/03/2026
02 03 2026 - Media release Ausfilm and Screen Australia launch joint UK market initiative
Ausfilm and Screen Australia have announced Partner with Australia (...
02/03/2026
Monday 2 March 2026
Saturday Night Live UK announces writing team
L-R: Jonno Johnson; Charlie Skelton; Celya AB; Omar Badawy; Gr inne Maguire; Laura Claxton; ...
02/03/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils the Trailer for 53 Sundays, the New Film by Cesc Gay
Entertainment
02 March 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Dis...
28/02/2026
With two features seen in Formula 1 coverage, the broadcaster aims to bring view...
28/02/2026
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth addresses a crowd of approximately 1,500 L3Harris employees in Camden, Arkansas, as part of his Arsenal of Freedom tour....
28/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/02/2026
Berklee Presents Mambo Mania: Eguie Castrillo and the Berklee All-Stars Big Band...
28/02/2026
Berklee Announces Two New Summer Programs in Los Angeles The Berklee Music Business Program and Electronic Music Production and Sound Design Workshop bring imme...
28/02/2026
AI-RAN is moving from lab to field, showing that a software-defined approach is ...
28/02/2026
Autonomous networks - intelligent, self-managing telecommunications operations -...
28/02/2026
Back to All News
Final Trailer for BEASTARS Final Season Part 2' Roars Tow...
28/02/2026
New way to intentionally discover molecular glues could expand drug discovery Scripps Research scientists and colleagues show how drugs that eliminate certain d...
27/02/2026
The E.W. Scripps Company names Oliver Gray as Vice President, Network Sports and...
27/02/2026
The Gotham Sports App, the exclusive direct-to-consumer streaming home of MSG Networks and the YES Network, is now available for purchase through Prime Video fo...
27/02/2026
ESPN and the Horizon League announce a new multi-year, multi-platform media rights agreement, continuing a 38-year collaboration that began with the 1988 Midwes...
27/02/2026
At the 2026 NAB Show in Las Vegas, NETGEAR will highlight its new switch models and major updates to its Engage Controller software. The company's network d...
27/02/2026
Riedel Communications announces that Fondazione Teatro alla Scala has deployed a...
27/02/2026
Lyuno specializes in media localization, including translation, dubbing, subtitling, and voice-over services for a wide array of entertainment content. The comp...
27/02/2026
Chyron Weather 2.3, the latest edition of Chyron's weather visualization suite for broadcasters and meteorologists, recently launched.
The release includes...
27/02/2026
Telestream, which concentrates in media workflow technologies, announces expanded practical AI enhancements across its Vantage, Vantage Cloud, EDC, Stanza, and ...
Our team immersed itself in the latest insights on marketing, branding and consumer behaviour at Mad//Fest Up North last week. While the event reinforced many of the strategies we already champion at ICG, it was a great opportunity to share industry thinking about how to engage with audiences, build communities and stay ahead of the curve. 
