C2 Montreal – Commerce meets Creativity and truly anything BUT business as usual. I was, once again, very honoured to speak at this year’s C2 Montreal conference. This was the sixth annual round for the Sid Lee founded, otherworldly Cirque du Soleil marketing extravaganza – a creativity-meets-commerce conference that is about as far from most run-of-the-mill conferences as it gets. A virtual candy store of big thinking in the marketing world, it’s punctuated by Cirque’s signature big top and flavoured with their unique character wielding panache – almost as if Davos got together with SXSW. As you might imagine, C2 is quite the sight to behold – it brings together 6000 innovators, global visionaries, executives, creatives, entrepreneurs, social scions and a transcendent mix of thought provocateurs hailing from 50 countries. One campaign described it this way: “Multiple dimensions, virtual realities, endless opportunities, and ideas: as renowned futurist Arthur C. Clarke once said: Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”
This year’s C2 journey into creativity and commerce explored the complex networks and interconnected systems we are part of, examining the trends and transformations that are having a mounting impact on business and our hyperconnected world. The C2 theme perfectly matched up with our Print in a Digital World Trend Report, as we are in an information revolution, powered by the intersection of two of the most powerful knowledge transfer mechanisms of our time – the Gutenberg Press and the Internet. We see that the period in which we now live is unique and magical in its own right, as we benefit from the mixing and mingling of print and digital. To flourish in our networked world – where we are in constant pursuit of clicks, likes, subs and retweets – successful Marketers need to look past solely digital content to develop fully-integrated storytelling models that create engaging, full-sensory experiences for consumers.
So if you haven’t consumed it yet, check out our newest Print in a Digital World 2017 trend report, and let us help you navigate through this ever-changing multidimensional world – demonstrating how great storytellers merge marketing, content, and technology in bold and exciting ways. Who knows, maybe you’ll find some out-of-the-usual, boundary-pushing idea to create a little bit of magic of your own.
The topic of our CMO Michael Chase’s presentation with Canada Post at last week’s International C2 Conference in Montreal, brands are continuing to find exciting ways to mix, match and marry the worlds of print and digital. If you haven’t already given it a read, here is the link to the third installment of our Print in a Digital World series that showcases 65 global examples.
Michael
Michael Chase, CMO
St. Joseph Communications
