The Northern Marketing Festival 2025 drew to a close in Manchester today, capping off a three-city tour with a powerful programme of practical insight, provocative ideas and proper Northern pride.
Hosted at the iconic Victoria Warehouse in Manchester, the final day drew the festival’s largest crowd of marketers for a fast-paced series of talks on future-proofing media strategies, exploring search beyond Google, reviving tactile print, building bold brands, and navigating a rapidly changing world.
Kicking off the final day, host David Prior hailed an ‘extraordinary week’ of events and told the audience: “Today, we are bringing this festival home to Manchester with sessions that will arm you with practical takeaways you can implement immediately.
“It’s our hope that you leave here with some genuine insight that will transform your work, and connections that can support your journey long after today.”
In the opening session of the day, Callum Leonard of Embryo and Stephen Davis of Roland DG tackled how to future-proof your paid media strategy. Their talk offered a toolkit for marketers aiming to stay ahead in an ever-evolving digital landscape using Roland DG as a case study. As Stephen put it: “You can’t rely on the power of organic to work alone.”
The complexities of operating across global markets were a key focus, with the pair describing it as a “never-ending story.” While AI and translation tools have revolutionised international marketing, they also present new challenges.
“AI can’t do it the whole way,” Callum explained, sharing an example where AI was used to translate content into Polish. While the translation was technically accurate, it lacked the cultural nuance and everyday phrasing needed to resonate with real people – a critical factor in building trust and performing well in search. That’s where native Polish speakers in both teams added real value, ensuring the final content struck the right tone and connected authentically with its audience.
Stephen’s key takeaway was that no matter where your audience is, the goal remains the same – to create genuine emotional connections. “As marketers, we need to focus on personality, humour, and building emotional resonance with our audiences,” he said.
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Claire Elsworth and Nick Handley from Impression explored why Google is no longer – and arguably never has been – enough when it comes to search. They highlighted how discovery has become a sprawling ecosystem reshaping how people search and find information. “Search has never been enough,” Nick said. “It’s about search behaviours.”
The pair shared actionable insights on how to grow your search presence beyond Google, stay competitive in the evolving landscape of 2025.
Crucially, Claire emphasised the importance of finding a brand’s “talkability.” “We need to become as cognisant of how talkable a brand is as we are of the traditional metrics we all hold so dear,” she said.
If marketers and brands can do that, the fragmentation of search doesn’t have to feel like another ‘existential crisis’ – but it does require a ‘reset’ in mindset.
“We are not facing the death of search,” Nick reassured the room. “But we are seeing changing consumer behaviour, and we have to adapt to that.”
Ultimately, it’s still about ensuring brands are relevant, credible and trustworthy – but now with an added focus on perception and talkability in an increasingly decentralised search world, especially in search.
Later, Tall’s Andy Beckwith drilled into the delicate balancing act between brand and performance. His talk, The Digital Difference, walked through how brands can craft experiences that convert without sacrificing creative integrity.
Before lunch, Jamie Peate and Holly Harper from McCann revisited themes from their earlier session in Leeds. Jamie, McCann’s Global Head of Effectiveness and Retail Strategy, inspired the room to embrace the power of “unblocked thought.” Quoting Picasso’s idea that it takes a lifetime to unlearn the rules, he encouraged marketers to rediscover their creativity beyond conventional constraints. He shared how playful thinking unlocked £40m in incremental revenue for Aldi, while Holly demonstrated how the agency boosted Ladbrokes’ social performance – despite tight compliance restrictions – by leaning into the power of controversy.
After the break, Prolific North Managing Director Alexandra Balazs hosted a panel on integrating SEO, content, and creativity for maximum impact. She was joined by Nick Boyle, SEO Director at Tal Agency; Rachael Hand, Head of Strategy and Performance at Pixelbuilders; and Richard George from Wavemaker.
For Rachael, the key to holistic growth lies in winning both hearts and minds – but that doesn’t mean being everywhere at once. “If your customers are on TikTok, then great,” she said. “But if they’re not, it doesn’t matter. Holistic growth isn’t about using everything – it’s about using what works and working together.”
She encouraged marketers to “leverage the power of what if” to spark curiosity and to remember the value of human creativity in a world increasingly influenced by AI. Richard added a practical takeaway to break down silos and collaborate, especially in today’s fragmented digital ecosystem.
In the next session, Fiona Robinson and Cadie Mayor from Print.com challenged the digital-first mindset by championing print as a powerful brand anchor in an ephemeral world. From playful packaging to sensory campaigns, they showcased how physical media can create emotional impact. “Print doesn’t have to be boring and old-fashioned,” Cadie said. “Used well, it makes brands harder to forget.”
They cited Coca-Cola’s personalised bottle campaign, which is set to return this year, as a masterclass in how print turned a simple label into a brand phenomenon, driving Coke’s first growth in a decade.
The conversation then turned local, celebrating the value of Northern grit, straight-talking creativity, and a rebellious spirit in branding. Josh Wheeler of Be Broadcast, in conversation with Kriss Herbert of Gaydio, urged attendees to embrace their Northern identity and think “bolder and braver.”
“We’ve got to stop waiting for people to invite us in,” Josh said. “Our Northern grit is the polish on top of the great work already being done—and the future is bright.”
That spirit carried into the final panel of the day, focused on marketing in tumultuous times. Against a backdrop of global disruption, Laura Perry (Tangerine PR), Marianne Morgan (ICO), and Rachel Cochrane (LadBible) urged marketers to remain authentic, understand shifting cultural dynamics, and never lose sight of the human behind the data.
As the talks wrapped up and attendees spilled into the drinks reception, Prolific North Managing Director Alexandra Balazs summed up the mood: “It’s been an incredible few days – the energy, insight and creativity we’ve seen across Liverpool, Leeds and now Manchester has been truly inspiring.
“Manchester was the perfect place to bring everything together. With such a strong line-up today and so many meaningful conversations throughout the festival, we’re ending on a real high – and with plenty to take forward.”
The Northern Marketing Festival 2025 is powered by headline sponsors SBS, Automated Analytics and Embryo, alongside regional partners Royal Liver Suite, Growth Platform and Poke Marketing, and a host of industry supporters including Hub, Pathway, ICG, Vision One, Canny Creative, Made Brave, Buy Media, Lucid Link, Print.com, Tal Agency, Wolfenden, Colony, McCann, Be Broadcast, Impression Digital, Sun Branding and Tall.
