Digital Day Out 2025: We Went, We Saw, We Learned (a Ton!)

So, the other week, a chunk of the Unbound crew – that’s me (Quentin), Jason, and Ben – ditched the desks for a day to dive headfirst into Digital Day Out 2025. This shindig, held at Auckland’s Cordis Hotel, is basically New Zealand’s biggest get-together for marketing pros, and let me tell you, it delivered!

It was awesome to soak up the latest and greatest in digital marketing, from mind-bending AI stuff to fresh takes on how consumers are behaving these days. We caught up with some familiar faces, made some cool new connections, and generally had some cracking chats about where marketing’s heading. The day was buzzing with insights, covering everything from making brands globally famous to nailing viral campaigns and the wild world of creator-led content. It got us thinking about how we can push the boundaries for our clients.

Session One

Speaker Spotlight: Caroline Rainsford, Google NZ

The Talk: Premier Sponsor Address

Caroline Rainsford kicked things off by immediately getting us thinking about how search has totally evolved beyond just typing words. It’s now all about voice, images, video, and even interactive experiences. She pointed out that younger users (that 18-24 crew) are seriously active, firing off more search queries than any other group, and they’re quickly adopting new features like “Circle to Search” for a whopping 25% of their searches. Plus, Google Lens searches have shot up a staggering 40% year-on-year. Pretty wild, right?

She then talked about AI Overviews, which Google launched earlier this year, giving us incredible summaries for complex searches. These are already massive, with 1.5 billion users every month in advanced markets like the US and India. The cool thing? They’re seeing user engagement soaring and AI Overviews are actually attracting younger audiences back to search – which is just incredible for marketers.

But the real showstopper was what’s coming next: AI Mode. Caroline teased that this is going to be an “even more intelligent,” “more agentic,” and “more personalized search” experience designed to help us “get stuff done”. She called it Google’s “most powerful AI search ever,” built with advanced reasoning and “multi-modality” to tackle the internet’s toughest questions.

The big shift here is that search is moving from just giving you information to providing actual intelligence. This means we’ll see agentic AI at work – systems that can not only make decisions but also take actions autonomously. Imagine being able to ask Google anything, and it generates a comprehensive response, pulling everything you need into one spot. It’ll show you better content, even creators you haven’t discovered, and give you useful business info like website content and reviews.

What got everyone buzzing, though, was the personalization aspect. Soon, if you opt-in and allow AI Mode to connect with your other Google apps, it will tailor responses to your specific context. Think about it: AI Mode could know your travel plans, suggest nearby restaurants with availability, and in the future, even make bookings for you autonomously! This means it’s not just helping consumers make purchase decisions, but literally making purchases for them.

Caroline shared some fantastic examples, like using Google Shopping with AI Mode to find a new rug. It serves up image mosaics, lets you ask follow-up questions, and even preemptively suggests your next move. The real mic-drop moment was the example of a consumer who wanted a dress but not at full price. AI Mode could autonomously buy that dress for them when it hits their desired price point. Crazy, right?

She wrapped up by emphasising that Google is bringing the power of Google Search together with Google Gemini to deliver this next-gen AI search. This isn’t just about cool tech; it will be “transformational” for ROI and business growth. Crucially, Google is building this by integrating it naturally into the apps users already love and trust, rather than forcing them to adopt new platforms. It’s an incredibly exciting time to be in marketing, and the Google team is here to help us navigate it.

Key Takeaways for Marketers:

• Search is a Whole New Ballgame: Forget just keywords. Visual search (Google Lens up 40% year-on-year ), voice, video, and interactive elements drive how people find things, especially younger audiences. Your content strategy needs to reflect this multi-modal reality.
• AI is the Engine of Future Search: AI Overviews are already changing how users consume information by providing comprehensive summaries. Get ready for “AI Mode,” which takes this to the next level with intelligent, personalised, and
  agentic capabilities.
• Hello, Agentic AI! This is perhaps the biggest mind-shift: AI will soon not only answer questions but also make decisions and take actions autonomously on behalf of users. This changes the entire customer journey and purchase funnel – your marketing needs to anticipate and adapt to AI assistants making decisions.
• Hyper-Personalisation is Coming (Opt-In): When users opt-in, AI Mode will leverage their personal context (e.g., travel plans, past purchases) to deliver incredibly personalised results and even execute tasks like bookings or purchases. How can your brand be present and valuable in these highly personalised, active moments?
• Content is King, but Discovery is Evolving: With AI Mode providing consolidated responses and showcasing creators you might not have found otherwise, your content needs to be not just good, but discoverable and compelling in these new AI-driven search environments. Think beyond traditional SEO.
• Embrace the ROI Opportunity: This isn’t just tech for tech’s sake. Caroline stressed that this transformation is designed to deliver significant ROI and growth for businesses. Marketers need to start thinking differently about their strategies to leverage these new capabilities.
• Google’s Strategy is Integration: Google isn’t forcing users onto new platforms. They’re embedding these powerful AI features into the search experience and apps that billions already know and trust, ensuring a natural transition. This means you need to optimise for Google’s ecosystem more than ever.

Next up, we had the digital wizard behind one of the biggest global phenomena to come out of Australia – Simon Clarke, Director of Digital for Bluey at BBC Studios! This was a real treat, especially with Simon tuning in late from the UK to chat with us. He gave us the lowdown on how Bluey conquered the digital world.

Speaker Spotlight: Simon Clarke, Director of Digital, Bluey at BBC Studios

The Talk: Building a Globally Beloved Brand

Simon kicked off by explaining that digital was baked into Bluey’s strategy right from the get-go in 2018. The magic ingredient? The incredible fandom and the content that the audience creates back – it’s been a massive joy and a goldmine for insights. They’ve got dedicated community managers across Brisbane, the UK, and the US, constantly monitoring social channels, responding to comments, and feeding that intel back into their content strategy.

One of the coolest takeaways was how they manage content across over 30 different languages globally. Simon stressed that what flies in the US might totally flop in Japan, so they lean heavily on local experts who get both the show and the market. It means they have to be super flexible and understand that humour doesn’t always translate.

On the content creation side, he warned against just resizing and repurposing. Instead, they “look at different angles”. A brilliant example was making “behind the scenes” videos for their stop-motion content, which sometimes even outperform the main campaigns. They also encourage creators to put their own spin on things, giving them a treasure trove of diverse content. And yes, they keep all the source files – you never know when you’ll need them again!

Simon shared some unexpected viral hits, like a Bluey audio clip on TikTok blowing up with 180,000 uses in just a few weeks. Dance content is huge (their US dance tour got over 350 million views!) , and even food content (think Bluey-themed cakes!) has taken off, prompting them to create more.

When it comes to collaborations, Bluey has done some epic stuff. Remember the Airbnb house that looked just like Bluey’s? Or turning Bunnings stores into “Hammerbarns” straight out of an episode? For bigger partnerships like Lego or Moose Toys, they jump in super early (two years out for Lego!) to create cool content that goes hand-in-hand with the products. His key advice for collaborations? “Open doors,” keep trying different things, and, crucially, “Invite creators into the world” to make content with and for you.

Simon highlighted that they’re really smart about platform-specific content. YouTube is their safe space for kids, with extended episodes. But their social channels (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok) are geared towards parents, adults, and even university students and teenagers. TikTok, in particular, was a huge, unexpected win, showing rapid growth and becoming a fantastic source of user-generated content.

On the business side, they use a mix of organic and paid content. Paid is mostly for launching Bluey in new markets or for specific product launches to get that initial wide reach. But for ongoing growth, it’s all about that slow-burn organic engagement. They also have a serious brand protection team at BBC Studios that constantly monitors for unauthorised uses, especially with AI, and takes action when needed.

Simon’s favourite part of working on Bluey? The insane level of engagement – he’s never seen anything like it in his 17+ years at the BBC. Seeing fans create content back is the “biggest joy”. His advice to his team is simple: have fun, create brilliant content, and know your audience inside out by watching the show together.

Key Takeaways for Marketers:

• Fandom Fuels Growth: Bluey’s success isn’t just about the show; it’s about empowering and engaging the fan community. The content your audience creates
  for you is incredibly valuable and drives insight.
• Listen, Learn, and Adapt: Implement strong community management and feedback loops. Use social listening tools (like Dash Social and Tubular ) but also trust your human community managers to spot trends daily. This intel should directly inform your content strategy.
• Content is King, Context is Queen: Don’t just repurpose. Create bespoke content for
  each platform, understanding its unique audience and what performs best there. For example, YouTube for kids, social for adults. Think different angles, like “behind the scenes”.
• Embrace Creator Collaborations: Actively seek out and invite content creators into your brand’s world. Keep briefs light, allow them creative freedom, and build long-term relationships. Their authentic style can open new doors to different audiences.
• Localisation is Non-Negotiable for Global Brands: A global brand isn’t just about translation. Work closely with local experts who understand cultural nuances and market specifics, even if it means flexing your brand guidelines.
• Organic Growth Takes Time (But It’s Worth It): While paid promotion has its place (especially for launches), true, sustainable social growth often comes organically. Invest in consistent, high-quality content that resonates, and trust the process.
• Protect Your Brand (Especially with AI): As user-generated content and AI become more prevalent, brand protection is critical. Have a dedicated team that actively monitors for unauthorised use and is prepared to take action.

Okay, round two with Caroline Rainsford from Google, this time joined by Julian King, Partner and Director of AI & Machine Learning for BCGX – a seriously smart fella who’s seen it all when it comes to businesses trying to crack AI globally. Their tag-team talk was all about how AI is reshaping the marketing playbook and tackling those new “4S Consumer Behaviours.”

Speaker Spotlight: Caroline Rainsford (Google NZ) & Julian King (Boston Consulting Group)

The Talk: AI Pathways and the 4S Consumer Behaviours

Caroline kicked things off with a super relatable anecdote about her personal quest for a new air fryer. Her journey of discovery – from a review site, to a YouTube video, then a Google Shopping ad for click & collect – perfectly illustrated the death of the old, linear marketing funnel. As she put it, the “traditional marketing funnel that we all learned about at University… simply does not exist anymore”. Consumers are zipping between channels like Google Search and YouTube, discovering and deciding in incredibly non-linear ways.

This chaotic (but exciting!) new landscape is defined by the “4 S’s”: Streaming, Scrolling, Shopping, and Searching.

• Streaming: We’re all binging YouTube, but it’s evolving.
• Scrolling: It’s not just social media anymore – people are endlessly scrolling through Google Discover, Google Maps, YouTube, and Google Shopping, looking for that frictionless experience.
• Shopping: There are over a billion shopping moments across Google platforms every single day!
• Searching: Still the bedrock, with 5 trillion searches a day, it offers “vast reach, deep consumer trust, and understands consumers… better than anybody else”. Here’s the kicker: even after discovering a product on social media, 17% of people still use search for their final decision, and 65% actually start with Google Search or YouTube before even hitting social. So yeah, search has to be in your mix.

Caroline highlighted that AI is here to “turbo charge your ROI”, especially with AI Overviews soon featuring ads. The big challenge for marketers is navigating this “missing middle” and figuring out how to “unlock the power of AI to make sure that those four S’s are truly interconnected”.

Julian then took the stage to unpack how to actually do that. He introduced BCG’s “influence map” – a reimagining of the linear funnel that focuses on customisation at every touchpoint. Your influence here boils down to three things: a consumer’s attention in the moment, the relevance of your interaction to them, and their trust in your platform. AI is the superpower enabling this, driving “hyper-personalisation” and “real-time decision making”.

The not-so-great news? Julian’s research (a massive global survey of 2,000+ marketers) shows an “execution gap”. While 90% are dabbling with AI, most (over 80% globally, and largely in NZ) are stuck in the “Essentials” or “Scaling” phases, using off-the-shelf solutions and experimenting in patches. Hardly anyone is truly “Transforming” their marketing with AI. This is a huge missed opportunity, as mature AI adopters see 84% higher revenue growth and are twice as fast to adapt.

He laid out four clear AI pathways to marketing excellence for capability development:

1. Essentials: Get your data foundations solid.
2. Scaling: Start piloting AI use cases and capture early value.
3. Leading: Integrate AI across all your products, markets, and channels.
4. Transforming: Embrace an “AI-first mentality” across everything you do.

For those wanting to leap into the “Leading” stage, Julian identified six success factors: an integrated customer view (breaking down data and people silos) , rapid testing and experimentation , dynamic budget allocation , personalized messages , AI-developed content , and a pervasive AI culture.

A big win for New Zealand businesses, especially lean teams, is the “democratisation of AI”. Julian noted that generative AI tools make it “much more accessible now to kiwis” without needing a specialist data scientist on staff. For smaller teams, the immediate biggest opportunity is content prototyping – AI helps you quickly test ideas and “get to good, much faster”.

His final, crucial advice for getting started:

• Know Your Starting Point: Figure out where you are on their capability axes.
• Find Real Value: Identify 2-3 areas in your workflow where AI can genuinely add value, whether it’s tackling “toil” (the boring stuff like writing emails) or boosting “joy” (the creative, high-impact work).
• Focus Deeply: Pick those few things and go deep for the next quarter. Don’t try to do “a thousand flowers blooming”.
• Build the Right Team: Make sure it’s a motivated, cross-functional team, because you can’t tackle this in silos.

The most common mistake Julian sees? “Not doing it”. Many companies are just “spectating and sitting on the sidelines”, waiting for the tech to mature. But this is a revolution, and you need to lean into it with curiosity and active engagement. Leaders need to embed AI as a fundamental part of their strategy.

Key Takeaways for Marketers:

• The Funnel is Dead, Embrace the 4Ss: Consumers aren’t linear anymore. Your strategy
  must account for seamless engagement across Streaming, Scrolling, Shopping, and Searching. Google and YouTube are central to all of them, even for social media users.
• AI is Your Growth Engine (Not Just a Buzzword): AI is essential for ROI and future growth. AI Overviews with ads are a concrete opportunity coming soon.
• Close the “Execution Gap”: Most marketers know AI is important, but aren’t deeply integrating it. Don’t just experiment; move beyond “Essentials” by investing in data foundations and strategic piloting.
• Think AI-First Leadership: AI adoption needs to come from the top. Leaders must actively champion AI as a core strategic imperative, not just a team project.
• Leverage AI for Lean Teams: For NZ businesses with smaller teams, AI is a massive productivity booster. Start with “content prototyping” to quickly test and generate ideas, cutting down cycle times.
• Break Down Silos (Data & People): To get that coveted “integrated customer view,” you need to connect your data and foster cross-functional collaboration within your teams.
• Start Small, Go Deep, Be Brave: Don’t try to do everything at once. Pick 2-3 high-value AI applications, focus deeply for a quarter, and build a motivated, cross-functional team. The biggest mistake is “not doing it” – so get curious and jump in!.

Morning Tea

After all that brain-food, it was definitely time for a break! We grabbed some much-needed coffee and, as always, the conversations were flowing. It was great to catch up with old friends, make some new connections, bumped into old Unbound Alumni, Rounaq Pinto (Employee number 2 at Unbound), now working at AA NZ. Nothing beats those hallway chats for really cementing what you’ve learned and sparking new ideas!

Session Two

Whew, after a quick refuel, we jumped straight into one of the most anticipated discussions of the day: the Expert Panel on Unpacking the Biggest Shifts in Digital Marketing! Moderated by the ever-insightful Adnan Khan from Stitch, we had a powerhouse lineup: Kat Warboys (HubSpot), Sophie Neate (ABB), Richard Conway (Pure SEO), and Santosh Pandey (Ridiculous Digital). This was a no-holds-barred chat about how AI, new platforms, and tech breakthroughs are literally shaking the ground beneath our marketing feet.

Panel Discussion: Unpacking the Biggest Shifts in Digital Marketing

The big takeaway from the get-go? The traditional, linear marketing funnel is officially dead and buried. The panelists unanimously agreed that consumers are now on incredibly non-linear journeys, moving fluidly between channels. So, if you’re still planning your campaigns funnel-first, it’s time to rethink!

Here’s a breakdown of what the panel served up:

Kat Warboys (HubSpot) jumped right into the heart of it: AI disruption is fundamentally changing search. She pointed out that LLMs and AI Overviews are already intercepting a significant chunk (20-70%) of search traffic. This means we need to ditch traditional SEO and move towards AEO – Answer Engine Optimisation. Instead of just “answer-based” content (like “top 10 hacks”), we need “solution-based” content, ideally co-created with external thought leaders who can offer those personal anecdotes and unique perspectives that AI can’t easily replicate.

With AI handling the easy questions, demand is shifting. Kat stressed the need to diversify channels towards community-led and influencer-led platforms like YouTube, Reddit, and podcasts. Interestingly, she noted that while traffic volume might decrease, the quality of transactional traffic to websites is much higher – these buyers are more educated and ready to purchase. Her advice? Don’t be afraid to skip traditional MQL (Marketing Qualified Lead) processes and focus on getting people directly to sales-qualified moments, because “80 percent [of buyers] have already made their decision” before they even reach out. She shared a neat trick: using traditionally top-of-funnel leadership content to drive registrations for product demonstration webinars, leading to sales in as little as 30 days.

Sophie Neate (ABB), representing a massive global enterprise, gave us some super practical insights into how they’re literally re-engineering their website for Google AI. This means making “formal sacrifices in design”, ditching interactive drop-downs that AI doesn’t recognise, and pushing “point power information” instead of long paragraphs. The real tech-nerd joy here was hearing about their commitment to technical markups (schema.org) on every page – product, FAQ, blog – to ensure Google AI can properly understand and surface their content. Sophie also shared how ABB is rolling out internal “Abbies” – AI assistants trained on their branding guidelines and messaging to handle routine tasks like writing announcements or job descriptions, freeing up human staff. Her big rallying cry: digital marketing isn’t just for marketers; it’s for everyone, and you need cross-functional buy-in to make it work.

Richard Conway (Pure SEO) reassured us that SEO isn’t dying, it’s evolving. He reiterated that search is shifting from “information to intelligence” and becoming “multimodal” (visual, voice, video). Google search volume is still growing (5 trillion searches last year!) , and YouTube is a massive search engine in itself. Richard highlighted that AI models are getting smarter and more visual, so our content needs to follow the consumer’s evolving behaviour.

He dropped some gold on leveraging Reddit for SEO: AI can scour Reddit for common themes, questions, and even identify “Maven influencers”. You can use this to generate content ideas and then engage those influencers for seeding, but always be transparent. On the paid search side, Richard urged us to ditch “exact match” keywords and manual bidding. Instead, embrace broad match strategies and “smart bidding” that use “fan out query” tech to capture all those long-tail, undiscovered conversions. The future of SEO and paid search is about “keywords to vectors” – adding a “whole heap of context” around a search to understand the user’s full intent. This also means smaller players can now “dislodge the incumbent” by optimising for AI Overviews which surface content from pages 2, 3, or beyond.

Finally, Santosh Pandey (Ridiculous Digital) identified the biggest shift as the huge gap between bleeding-edge martech and actual adoption by businesses, even well-established ones. His solution? AI agents. These bad boys are filling “technical gaps” for marketers, automating tasks that would normally require a developer. He gave a real-world example of an event that used AI agents to answer over 100 questions with a 91% resolution rate. Santosh believes agents can speed up internal processes (e.g., getting client info without asking an account manager) and are fantastic for quickly building detailed customer personas. He dropped a cutting-edge term:

Multi-Task Protocols (MTP), an “open language” that connects AI agents and LLMs to your marketing tech platforms – essentially the future of interconnected tech stacks.

The panel stressed that the “most common mistake” is simply “not doing it” – sitting on the sidelines waiting for AI to mature. This revolution requires active engagement and curiosity.

Key Takeaways for Marketers:

• Rethink Your Content for AEO: AI Overviews are stealing clicks, so shift from SEO to Answer Engine Optimisation (AEO) by creating solution-based content, often with external experts and personal stories.
• Quality Over Quantity in Traffic: Don’t panic about declining informational traffic. Focus on attracting higher-quality, transactional visitors who are ready to buy. Be prepared to skip traditional MQLs.
• Website Optimisation is Crucial: Use technical markups (schema.org), structure content in concise, digestible points, and adjust design elements to be AI-friendly. AI won’t read your fancy interactive drop-downs!.
• Embrace AI Agents to Automate “Toil”: These are not just buzzwords. AI agents can fill technical gaps, automate workflows (e.g., answering event FAQs, managing client data, building personas), and free up your team for higher-value, creative work.
• Beyond Keywords: Think “Vectors” for Search: Ditch manual bidding and exact match keywords for broad match and “smart bidding”. Start thinking in “search vectors” – the full context and intent behind a user’s query – to capture more conversions and even challenge established incumbents.
• Diversify Channels & Leverage Communities: With AI intercepting basic search, grow demand through community-led platforms like Reddit and influencer partnerships. Use AI to analyse these communities for content ideas, but always be transparent.
• Break Down Silos (Data & People): An integrated customer view and effective AI adoption require connecting your data across systems and fostering deep cross-functional collaboration within your team.
• Start Small, Go Deep, and Don’t Wait: The biggest mistake is “not doing it”. Identify 2-3 high-value AI applications, focus deeply on them, and build a motivated, cross-functional team. AI literacy, especially in prompting, is key for your team’s future-proofing.

Okay, so after all that intense panel talk, we eased into a sponsored table conversation, courtesy of No Ugly – big shoutout to them for keeping the energy high! They hooked us up with a deck of cards, kind of like a marketing-themed ‘Cards Against Humanity’ game, to spark some lively discussions. Our table was buzzing with Pooja from Ebbetts, James from Les Mills and the awesome marketing crew from Enterprise Motor Group.

The topics were wild and wonderful, covering everything from the pros and cons of hot-desking (definitely some strong opinions there!), the rise of zero-alcohol wines (no one was a fan), the fascinating world of OnlyFans (we moved on quick from this one), the future of self-driving cars, and even the merits of matcha! And yes, we even delved into the classic euphemism of “dipping your pen in the company ink” – let’s just say, the conversation certainly got… spirited! It was a fantastic way to connect with other marketers and hear some truly diverse perspectives on everything from workplace culture to emerging trends.

After our lively “Cards Against Humanity” (marketing edition) interlude, it was time for a deep dive into something genuinely groundbreaking: #NZ Reno Tok! This session was fronted by Brooke Howard-Smith (CEO, WeAreTENZING) (who i actually meet at the end of the day and was still full of energy), alongside the marketing powerhouses who backed the project: Gab Davenport (Head of Marketing, Panasonic New Zealand) and Rob Bowring (Head of Brand & Trade Marketing, Mitre 10 NZ). They spilled the beans on how they created a world-first TikTok Live renovation competition that absolutely smashed it.

Speaker Spotlight: Brooke Howard-Smith (WeAreTENZING), Gab Davenport (Panasonic NZ) & Rob Bowring (Mitre 10 NZ)

The Talk: #NZ Reno Tok: 8 Creators. 6 Weeks. 16M Views. Here’s How!

Brooke kicked things off by talking about ditching the old, clunky, and wildly expensive traditional reality TV model (think The Block or The Ridges back in the day, costing $350k an hour to make!) and totally reimagining it for the TikTok generation. This isn’t just a pivot; it’s tapping into the rapidly growing Creator Economy – a parallel universe where creators build their own audiences, sell direct, and develop products, all without needing traditional media gatekeepers.

So, why TikTok for a massive renovation show? Brooke laid out the reasons: TikTok Shop is coming and already dominating in places like the UK, the platform is “aging up” (21% of NZ users are over 30! ), and its algorithm is uncannily good at serving up exactly what you want. Plus, TikTok Live has some seriously advanced functionality they decided to “abuse” as their “digital theatre piece”.

The big hurdle? Brands are often “terrified” to jump on TikTok, worried they’ll embarrass themselves. WeAreTENZING built a framework that basically took a Block-like concept, but made it entirely creator-driven with no camera crews allowed. They worked with four teams of experienced creators who directly collaborated with sponsors (Panasonic, Mitre 10, Stanley, Resene) via campaign managers. Each week, creators tackled a challenge in their own homes, churning out six pieces of “fully brand-spotted content” , which were then edited into a 3-minute highlight reel for a live TikTok reveal show on Sundays.

The results were insane! Over six weeks, they generated 428 pieces of content, racked up 714,000+ engagements (a 4.3% engagement rate! ), and a staggering 24.6 million views. The content was so good it was still getting half a million views eight weeks later, and an incredible 87% of views were from New Zealand, showing TikTok’s focus on local content. Sentiment? “Entirely positive”.

So, why did it work? Because Kiwis love renovation shows, but more importantly, it delivered on Kat Warboys’ earlier point: solution-based content. Building “complex how-to’s with third-party advocates” felt authentic. Brooke powerfully stated that “real human beings are attached to a real experience”, cutting through the “synthetic opinions coming from AI”. This was raw, real, and incredibly engaging, proving that “millennials, agencies, and probably all of us are way too safe”.

Gab Davenport (Panasonic NZ) shared their brand’s motivation: Panasonic is a “heritage brand” but struggled to connect with younger audiences. #NZRenoTok was a unique chance to launch something amazing and reach that segment. The challenge was balancing product specs with keeping the content “fun and exciting”. The creators, like “The Current Place” guys, were brilliant at this, even coming up with a parody that subtly showcased features. Gab emphasised building relationships, even doing 1-on-1 training with the creators. For Panasonic, TikTok is now their “more flexible side of social media” for building personality and local content.

Rob Bowring (Mitre 10 NZ), already running NZ’s #1 brand YouTube channel, saw TikTok as a huge opportunity to connect with a younger audience. He admitted being less sold on the live component initially, but they “jumped in, making shit up as we were still going along”. Rob bravely shared the learning curve, including the first live show actually failing to go live due to tech issues – but thankfully, “it didn’t really matter” because it was a new format and they hadn’t set a rigid precedent. Their overall TikTok engagement shot up 280%, successfully driving brand engagement and laying the groundwork for future sales. He confirmed that TikTok Shop is definitely “on the horizon”.

Key Takeaways for Marketers:

• Embrace Creator-Led Content: Forget expensive, traditional reality TV. The Creator Economy offers a powerful, authentic, and cost-effective way to engage audiences.
• TikTok is a Powerhouse (and it’s Aging Up): Don’t be scared! TikTok’s algorithm is incredibly effective at delivering relevant content, even for older demographics interested in specific niches like renovations.
• Authenticity Over Polish: Audiences crave real human experiences, especially in a world increasingly filled with AI-generated content. Raw, honest content resonates deeply.
• Flexibility is Key for First-to-Market Projects: Things will go wrong! Being prepared for the unexpected and having an open mind allows you to learn and adapt, as Mitre 10 experienced.
• Collaborate Deeply with Creators: Trust your creators’ expertise. They know their audience and can find innovative ways to integrate your brand organically, even turning product features into compelling, entertaining content. Build relationships with them.
• Solution-Based Content Wins: Create content that genuinely helps or inspires, like “how-to” guides, which builds real connection and trust.
• Brand Awareness Paves the Way for Sales: While direct sales on platforms like TikTok can be tricky to measure immediately, driving massive brand engagement and awareness lays a crucial foundation for future conversions.
• Prepare for TikTok Shop: It’s coming, and brands need to be ready to integrate commerce directly into their TikTok strategy.

Lunch

After all that incredible insight into the digital world, it was time for a proper refuel with some lunch! While grabbing some kai, I actually bumped into the legend himself, John Miles, CEO of the Marketing Association. We had a great chat, and I’m stoked to announce we managed to twist his arm to come down to the Waikato later in the year to talk about “50 years of iconic NZ advertising” – so definitely “watch this space” for more on that! It’s going to be a cracker.

Session Three

Okay, after lunch, when everyone’s bellies were full and eyes were starting to glaze over, Sam Stuchbury, Executive Creative Director of Motion Sickness, took the stage and absolutely livened up the room! He shared the incredible story behind “The Viral Campaign That Turned Herpes into a Source of National Pride” – a bold, unignorable campaign that truly lived up to Motion Sickness’s reputation.

Speaker Spotlight: Sam Stuchbury, Executive Creative Director, Motion Sickness

The Talk: The Viral Campaign That Turned Herpes into a Source of National Pride

Sam kicked things off by talking about the enormous, yet often unspoken, problem: the severe social stigma around herpes. He revealed that an estimated 4.1 billion people globally have some form of the virus, and in New Zealand, a shocking 30% of diagnosed individuals experience depressive thoughts so severe that the Herpes Foundation had to set up a helpline. This was an “impossible brief” that had been floating around for a decade.

Motion Sickness’s approach was nothing short of genius. The core idea sprang from a simple, audacious URL: “thebestplaceintheworldtohaveherpes.com”. The thought was, if New Zealand became the best place to have herpes, it meant there was no stigma. This was ingeniously linked to a prevailing sense of diminished national pride in NZ (after some rugby woes and failed reality TV shows). The campaign became a “Trojan Horse”: no one would share tips on herpes, but everyone would rally around national pride. By embracing humour and a nostalgic, desexualised “100% Pure” tourism aesthetic, they made a taboo topic accessible and engaging.

The execution was brilliant. They created “the world’s first herpes de-stigmatisation course” – essentially hiding crucial education within entertaining content. The biggest coup was enlisting

Sir Graham Henry, who, despite initial difficulties securing talent, jumped on board, with his authentic, slightly awkward delivery adding to the comedy. Other iconic Kiwis like Angela Dravid, David Tua, Ashley Bloomfield, and Buck Shelford also joined, with scripts tailored to their unique personalities.

At the heart of the campaign was a central website featuring a live global leaderboard. This custom algorithm measured “herpes stigma” based on course completions, video views, and social listening across platforms. This gamified element, especially the “fight” with Australia, created immense engagement and social proof.

The results were astonishing: after eight weeks, New Zealand became #1 in the world for destigmatising herpes. They achieved over 10,000 hours of herpes lessons completed, 22 million PR impressions, and even impacted Google Trend data for herpes. Most powerfully, 86% of course completers said they could now openly discuss herpes, and 75% would help others diagnosed. Sam revealed that the campaign’s funding came from a bequest by someone who tragically committed suicide due to a herpes diagnosis, making the profound impact on people’s lives even more meaningful.

Key Takeaways for Marketers:

• Be Bold and Unignorable: Don’t shy away from “awkward” topics; sometimes, that’s exactly what will cut through the noise and grab attention.
• Ideas Over Ads: Advertising formats should support a big idea, not be the idea. Think bigger than just a poster or a media buy.
• Find Your Trojan Horse: For sensitive topics, find a relatable, engaging “Trojan Horse” (like national pride) to get people to engage without direct personal admission.
• Humour and Authenticity Win: Humour can provide distance and permission to engage with difficult subjects. Real, human stories and personalities resonate far more than overly polished, inauthentic content or AI-generated average.
• Gamify for Engagement: A live, competitive element (like the global leaderboard) can create immense motivation, social proof, and ongoing engagement.
• Craft is Crucial (Especially with AI): While AI can scale “average” design, high-quality craft and original ideas are what truly stand out in a crowded market.
• Seamless User Experience: Don’t just make a great ad; ensure the entire user journey, from initial engagement to website experience, is tight and rewarding.
• Impact is the Ultimate Metric: Beyond impressions and views, focus on how your campaign genuinely changes attitudes, behaviors, or provides real-world support.

Next up was a big one from across the ditch: Robin O’Connell, Senior Content Solutions Consultant at LinkedIn Australia! Robin was here to help us “Break Free from Boring: Video Content, Storytelling, and Personality on LinkedIn,” and let me tell you, he delivered.

Speaker Spotlight: Robin O’Connell, Senior Content Solutions Consultant at LinkedIn Australia!

The Talk: Break Free from Boring: Video Content, Storytelling, and Personality on LinkedIn

He started by asking us the biggest problem facing content marketers, and the overwhelming answer (hands shot up across the room!) was winning audience attention. Robin swiftly debunked the tired “goldfish attention span” myth, arguing that people do have attention to give – we’re just not always good at capturing it, with 81% of B2B ads failing to grab enough eyeballs.

The hero of the hour?

Video on LinkedIn! Robin revealed the platform is booming, with 154 billion video views globally per year (up 36% year-over-year!). New Zealand is actually leading the charge, with even higher growth rates. Why does video work so well? It captures more attention, is five times more likely to drive engagement, boasts a 95% message retention rate (compared to 15% for text/images), and crucially, “buyers hit play before they pay”.

Robin then shared four key trends for brands looking to leverage video on LinkedIn:

1. LinkedIn Native Creativity: Don’t just repurpose content from other platforms. Design specifically for LinkedIn using large, vertical videos and embrace a “Lo-Fi” production style. The secret sauce is handing “creative control” to your employees, showing behind-the-scenes glimpses. People want authentic, human content – in fact, selfie-style videos often generate more clicks and engagement.
2. Blockbuster Moments: Think big! For those key moments in your marketing calendar, build an entire content ecosystem around a hero video, just like a movie premiere. This doesn’t mean huge budgets; it’s about smart, creative storytelling, like NZ Police showcasing roles from a single car.
3. Character-Driven Storytelling: Bring characters into your content! This could be a return to memorable brand mascots (they get six times more attention!) or even celebrities, but the key is to build equity in these characters over time.
4. Leveraging Your People (Your “Cast of Characters”): Human content consistently outperforms brand-led content. Get your executives active on the platform (their posts get huge engagement), empower employees as influencers (“people trust people”), and activate your entire network, including partners.

Robin offered some seriously practical tips:

• Lo-Fi Guidelines: Provide clear, simple guidelines for employees creating content – think authenticity over perfection, less script, more natural moments.
• Algorithm Favours Engagement: The LinkedIn algorithm prioritises content that sparks “meaningful discussion” and gets people spending time on it. Don’t just chase likes; aim for comments and genuine connections.
• Consistency is Key: Aim for at least one post per week, ideally between 1-5 times, to build momentum.
• Optimise for Sound Off: 70-80% of videos are watched with sound off, so subtitles are a must (make them large and mobile-friendly!) and consider an “opening card” with your key message.
• Be Yourself: For personal branding, authenticity trumps forced professionalism.
• Video Length Varies by Goal: For driving direct action (e.g., downloads), keep it short (5-10 seconds). For brand building and long-term impact, aim for 15-30 seconds.

Key Takeaways for Marketers:

• Video is the Engagement Driver on LinkedIn: It’s booming, especially in NZ, and is proven to capture attention, boost engagement, and aid buyer decisions. Don’t just dabble; commit to video.
• Embrace Lo-Fi & Native Creativity: Ditch the ultra-polished, expensive productions for everyday content. Design specifically for LinkedIn’s vertical format and empower your employees to create authentic, behind-the-scenes content.
• Make Your People the Stars: Human content performs best. Get executives active, empower employees as influencers, and leverage your entire network. People connect with people.
• Characters Cut Through: Consider introducing brand mascots or recurring characters into your storytelling for memorability and higher attention.
• Optimise for Silent Consumption: Always use large, mobile-friendly subtitles, as most LinkedIn video is watched without sound.
• Measure Meaningful Engagement: Look beyond impressions and likes. Focus on meaningful comments and genuine connections to gauge success.
• Content Length is Strategic: Short videos (5-10 seconds) for direct calls to action, longer (15-30 seconds) for brand building.

Afternoon Tea

Another quick break, which of course meant hitting up the lolly station for a sugar boost! I then made a beeline for the expert corner and had a great chat with Peter Mangin and Steve Ballantyne about the future of AI. Peter dished out some really insightful tips on how to build authority specifically on YouTube and Reddit, which was super valuable. It was also great catching up with Nat from Hot Mustard, sharing some industry goss and talking programmatic ads. 

Session Four

To start the last session of the day, we were privileged to hear from Jordan-lee Ikitule, Founder & Chief Executive of ASD Dads. His talk, “How a Single Social Post Started a Global Movement,” was a powerful testament to the impact of authenticity and purpose.

Speaker Spotlight: Jordan-lee Ikitule, Founder & Chief Executive, ASD Dads

The Talk: ASD Dads – How a Single Social Post Started a Global Movement

Jordan-lee opened by sharing his incredibly raw and personal “why.” Growing up in South Auckland in state housing, surrounded by violence, and even spending time in a youth detention centre, he was determined to break cycles and be a different kind of father. His deep passion comes from his son, who has autism, and the challenges he’s faced. This vulnerable, honest sharing immediately connected with the room.

The genesis of ASD Dads was incredibly organic: 18 months ago, feeling isolated as a parent of an autistic child and wondering if others felt the same, he simply put out a “very organic video” on social media after work, with “not really any edits”. What happened next was completely unexpected: the post “blew up”.

In just a year and a half, what started as a local idea for dads catapulted into a global movement. ASD Dads has been featured on major news outlets (News Hub, TVNZ, ZB), grown to over “a thousand mums” joining the original dads’ group, and has launched in Brisbane and is expanding to Sydney. They’ve successfully run “Run for Autism” charity events in four countries (Japan, Utah, Sydney, and Auckland), all without major sponsors so far!

Jordan-lee also shared his journey into social enterprise with Ausim Kids, a clothing brand designed to raise autism awareness and provide safety. He explained that because autism is a “non-physical disability,” his son often faces judgment in public for behaviours that are misunderstood. The clothing aims to signal autism, fostering understanding and empathy. The brand launched last August, quickly gaining interest from eight countries, despite Jordan-lee having no prior clothing business experience.

A standout innovation is Ausim Reconnect is a QR code integrated into the clothing (and bracelets) to address the serious issue of autistic children “running” and becoming separated. When scanned, the QR code provides instant access to emergency contacts and support information. A video demonstrating this feature garnered an incredible 600,000 organic views on Facebook alone, and has sparked interest from police, organisations, and sports clubs globally. They’ve even adapted the concept for dementia patients with “Who Found You”.

Jordan-lee humbly admitted he’s not a marketing expert but is “smart enough” to know he needs to “bring in the right people” to help scale. His core philosophy revolves around sharing anything “personal,” “that might help other families,” or just anything “cool”. He emphasised that awareness and empathy are paramount when it comes to autism. While growth has been challenging to maintain, he’s keen for support from the marketing community to continue expanding their vital work.

Key Takeaways for Marketers:

• Purpose is the Ultimate Driver: A strong, authentic “why” can be the most powerful foundation for a brand or movement, driving organic engagement and deep connection far beyond traditional marketing.
• The Power of Organic Social: A single, heartfelt, unedited social post, born from a genuine problem, can organically ignite a global movement. Authenticity and vulnerability are incredibly powerful.
• Solve Real Problems: Jordan-lee’s ventures (ASD Dads, Ausim Kids, Ausim Reconnect) all directly address profound challenges faced by his community. Marketing that genuinely solves problems resonates deeply.
• Community First: Build a community around a shared need or experience. Organic growth often comes from creating a space where people feel understood and supported.
• Innovation for Impact: Even simple technological solutions (like a QR code) can create massive real-world impact and drive awareness when applied to a critical problem.
• Embrace Humility & Collaboration: You don’t need to be a marketing guru to start a movement. Knowing your limitations and actively seeking expertise from others in the community is a powerful growth strategy.
• Awareness Drives Empathy: For non-physical issues or those with stigma, creative solutions that foster public awareness and empathy can be truly transformative.

To wrap up an absolutely packed day at Digital Day Out, we welcomed our closing international keynote speaker, Tara Lordsmith, Co-Founder & CEO of The Accelerants. Coming from a serious background as former CMO of Myer and other big brands, Tara’s perspective was refreshingly practical, focusing on how to take Agentic AI from hype to hands-on reality for marketers.

Closing International Keynote: Tara Lordsmith, Co-Founder & CEO, The Accelerants

The Talk: The Agentic Marketer – Your Next Teammate Won’t Be a Human

Tara kicked off by reminding us that AI adoption is happening at an “exponential” rate, faster than any other technology we’ve seen. While the internet gave us access to content and products, AI is now giving us access to intelligence. She stressed that marketers have a choice: be “AI diverse, or you can be AI last”. Being last won’t get you fired, but it definitely won’t get you ahead in your career.

She broke down the “flavours” of AI, building up to the big one: Agentic AI. Unlike foundational, predictive, prescriptive, or even generative AI (like ChatGPT), Agentic AI doesn’t wait to be asked. “It reasons, it decides and acts” on your behalf. The key difference from mere automation is that agents plan and decide, they don’t just execute pre-set rules. Tara gave a clear example: if you ask for book recommendations, an AI agent wouldn’t just list them; it would also buy them for your Kindle and confirm they’ve downloaded. This is all about speed, not just efficiency.

Tara shared some mind-blowing examples of Agentic AI in action:

• Walmart uses an agent called “Sparky” on its website for personalised ads, dynamic pricing, and real-time creative content, boosting digital effectiveness by 30%.
• Unilever and L’Oreal are deploying AI content studios that generate ad variants and social content on the fly, dramatically reducing content creation time from months to mere moments.
• Even big agencies like WPP are embracing it, with WPP utilising 28,000 agents in their operations.
• Closer to home, NZ companies like Vopo AI (customer service), Urban Rest (accommodation), and Yellow (research agents for digital twins) are already leveraging this.

The implications for marketing are massive. Tara noted that by the end of 2027, 30-50% of marketing workloads could be augmented or handled by AI. This isn’t about job loss, but “job evolution”. Marketers, being at the forefront of customer understanding, need to embrace this tech faster than other departments. The goal is to do the same work “twice as fast” without more budget or people, gaining a significant competitive advantage.

Tara introduced four new P’s of marketing for the AI era:

1. Prompting: Mastering how you instruct AI.
2. Productivity: Leveraging AI for speed and output.
3. People: Building AI literacy and skillsets within your team.
4. Performance: Measuring the real impact of AI.

Her advice for getting started with Agentic AI: embrace an AI-first approach , deeply research use cases within your workflow, ensure you provide good data and context , commit to continuous learning, and leverage the many open-source tools available. For smaller organizations, “choose one use case and use as simple as possible AI” to begin. Ultimately, marketers need to take ownership of AI’s impact on their brand’s visibility and consumer interaction, rather than deferring to IT.

Key Takeaways for Marketers:

• Agentic AI is the Next Big Leap: Beyond generative AI, agents can autonomously reason, decide, and act on your behalf, fundamentally reshaping marketing workflows for speed and scale.
• Embrace AI-First Thinking: Don’t wait on the sidelines. Proactively lean into AI to accelerate your impact and gain a competitive edge. It’s about job evolution, not job loss.
• Automate “Toil” to Unlock “Joy”: Use AI agents for repetitive, low-level tasks, freeing up your team for high-impact strategic and creative work.
• Invest in Data & Prompting: AI agents are data-hungry. Ensure your data sources are good and your team is skilled in prompting to provide the right context for effective AI output.
• Strategic Overhaul, Not Just Tools: Rethink campaign planning, content creation, and customer engagement with agents at the core. Marketers must become orchestrators of these new digital teammates.
• Start Small, Scale Smart: For smaller teams, pick one high-value use case and start with a simple AI application. Continuous learning and leveraging open tools are key to scaling effectively.
• Own the AI Narrative: Marketers must take responsibility for how AI impacts their brand’s presence and consumer interactions, leading the charge internally rather than deferring to other departments.

As the sun began to set (metaphorically, inside the Cordis!), we stuck around for the post-event drinks, soaking up the last bits of energy and continuing those brilliant conversations. Running into my old mate Brendon Moses from Te Wananga was awesome – always a good yarn with him! And, fittingly, I even caught Brad Guthrie from the Digital Marketing Special Interest Group at the after-event drinks, giving a final nod to the incredible community.

Looking back, Digital Day Out 2025 was truly amazing. Huge thanks have to go out to the entire team at the Marketing Association and the Digital Marketing Special Interest Group for pulling off such a fantastic event. Seriously, it was so well run, and we wanted for nothing all day – the perfect environment to just focus on learning and connecting. The calibre of speakers was top-notch, delivering inspiring, practical, and often hilarious insights that will definitely shape how we approach marketing at Unbound.

We’re already buzzing for next year! See you there!