Last week, Advertising Week Europe (AWE) took place in London for the fourth year, bringing together the biggest and brightest of creative minds from across the EU. AWE's blend of experts from the world of advertising, media, technology and entertainment helped to unpack how creativity is set to change as we accelerate towards our mobile future. An era where people are accessing videos, images and news digitally, from any location, at any time.
According to Ofcom's latest Communications Market Report, two thirds of people in the UK own a smart phone and it has overtaken the laptop as the nation's primary and most-used device for the first time.
Despite this, we are still seeing that mobile is often not used to its full creative potential; a view that was put forward in the 'Getting Creative in Mobile' panel session in which our very own Monica Bloom, VP of Global Integrated Marketing was a participant. So where is mobile creativity going, and are there any pre-requisites?
On average people check their mobiles around 70 times a day, but rarely have time to read articles or digest large volumes of information. Research shows that we process images 60,000 times faster than text - which means that visuals are set to have a much larger role to play. However, the type of imagery used needs to be right for mobile, which has its own emerging visual language.
Mobile has given impetus to the rising aesthetic of 'point of view' imagery, whether that be stills or video. Many of us will have already attached go-pros to our cycling, canoeing or skiing headwear, but smart phones too are increasingly being used in this way - and of course we enjoy sharing that imagery through social media.
The familiarisation with this content increases our expectations in terms of what we visually expect from brands. We want immersive imagery and the more raw, authentic and inclusive the better.
Our desire to be amazed - to be transported from the everyday via imagery - emerged in our own research last year, which we have identified as "wonderlust." This involves people travelling vicariously through image sites like Pinterest and Instagram. Through these platforms, as viewers, we're also researching, collecting and sharing information about our travels and experiences. Brands like Airbnb are also doing this with its 'Belong Anywhere' campaign. The brand's global Instagram account showcases unique and awe-inspiring places around the world - inside and out - transporting us into different worlds.
Facebook recently announced that it plans to launch "chatbots" through its messenger platform and now artificial intelligence (AI) is speculated as the next step in mobile as people look for convenience and more intuitive ways to obtain what they need. Here at Getty Images we are already exploring the potential of AI, partnering with Skype to make a chatbot that can find imagery when users search for it. For example, you might ask the chatbot on Skype, 'show me the London skyline' and it will retrieve and share relevant and beautiful imagery from the collections, or alternatively you can upload your own imagery and it will match this to the search.
The importance and influence of the mobile platform is only going to continue to grow. Brands looking to use the mobile platform need to understand what works well visually, play to its strengths, and not simply repurpose advertising from elsewhere.