Why LinkedIn brought B2B marketing influencers to Cannes

The Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity saw its largest turnout of creators this year. While traditional influencers garnered much of the attention on the Croisette, LinkedIn brought prominent business-to-business influencers into the equation. For the first time, LinkedIn covered the flights and lodging for B2B influencers to attend the festival, including independent marketing consultant and fractional CMO Jason Widup and Betsy Hindman, founder of PR agency Hindman Co. Hootsuite Chief Marketing Officer Elina Vilk and VML Chief Creative Officer of Innovation Walter T Geer III also worked with LinkedIn during Cannes; their expenses were not covered by the social platform because they had already booked their accommodations by the time LinkedIn reached out. Throughout the week, all of the ad professionals collaborated with LinkedIn to create videos and shared content on their own accounts on the platform. This effort is part of a continuing push of getting people to think of LinkedIn as more than a jobs network. Also read: LinkedIn is becoming a hot spot for influencer marketing “At LinkedIn, we fundamentally believe we are a knowledge marketplace. It’s a place for you and I as professionals to share information,” said Tusar Barik, senior director of marketing solutions at LinkedIn. “The difference in my mind, from B2C to B2B influencers is that B2C to some degree is like having a product or talking about a product. Whereas to be a credible B2B influencer, you are actually just teaching.” Barik said the goal was to “democratize Cannes,” given that it’s expensive to attend the festival. A Cannes pass, not including flights and hotels, cost about $4,456 this year. LinkedIn does not define an influencer by a particular number of followers or connections; rather it looks at the type of educational content someone posts and the reach that they have, according to Barik. LinkedIn also had a significant presence this year at the Carlton hotel rooftop, where it hosted panels and activations. On Monday, the company also premiered its short film, “Everybody’s Business,” which explores the history of B2B marketing. The film was directed by two-time Oscar-winning director Ben Proudfoot, was done alongside Breakwater Studios. In 2022, LinkedIn worked with Cannes Lions to launch the first Creative B2B Lion award. ~ ~ ~CLARIFICATION: After this story was published, LinkedIn clarified that only two of the four influencers had their flights and lodging expenses covered by the platform.

Why LinkedIn brought B2B marketing influencers to Cannes

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