Quick Peeks

Lisa Devaney

 Last’s week’s b.TWEEN  festival delivered as promised, with many from the digital community gathered in Manchester to seed, share and sell ideas. Among the two day gathering, there were some magic moments, including:

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Idea Incubation

Steve Taylor, Director of Innovation, for Aegis, kept a busy appointment schedule to counsel participants on their ideas. His valuable advice to entrepreneurs, creatives and people with the very beginnings of a potential idea, is fostering the start, and strengthening, of new things to come in the digital industry.

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China Insight

Keynote speaker Kaiser Kuo, Ogilvy & Mather Advertising (China) Group Director, Digital Strategy, who is based in Beijing, gave an inside look past what he described as being “the great firewall of China” in Censorship, Culture & Chinese Netizens, speech that the Manchester Evening New’s blog The Mancunian Way covered here. 

Read more about his thoughts about the future of digital marketing in China on his Digital Watch , as well as his own blog "Ich Bin Ein Beijinger".

Attendants loved the fact that he is also one of the founding members of China’s heavy metal band  Tang Dynasty -- which looks great in character: 春秋

Kaiser Kuo’s speech, and his rapport with attendants, earned him the title of being the The most inspirational person at b.TWEEN 08.

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The Navigators

Throughout b.TWEEN, expert navigators of the emerging media landscape mapped the way of the present, and gave insight to the future, with highlight sessions from, Carolyn Maze, Managing Director, Fluorescent Media, along with Double Fusion’s  David Miller and Kevin Bacon’s AWAL , and others.

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An All Ages Show

 Generational mentoring carried the show, as it was the younger generation meets the older generation throughout the two days, on stage and off, with both jellieellie and Bill Tidy presenting, and Channel 4’s Matt Locke giving the big picture view of how the broadcaster is empowering teenage audiences.

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The Seeds

Most inspiring were the connections and idea sharing happening between attendants. Idea swapping and support was plentiful and encouraging.

I attended b.TWEEN as a finalist in the Branding Talent competition, with a seed idea called Rare Fruits . The top prize was awarded to  Robin Cramp  for his Little Me concept for Littlewoods, a great fit for the brand.

Although the Rare Fruits seed idea did not win, what the experience did provide was some spot-on feedback from the mentors at b.TWEEN, including suggestions for possible next steps.

-Lisa