The 2025 Lagos Advertising & Ideas Festival (LAIF) Creative Conference has brought together leading voices in Nigeria’s creative industry to discuss the evolving landscape of the advertising industry, resilience, and the discipline required to produce world-class ideas.
With a strong presence of young creatives in the audience, this year’s conference placed heavy emphasis on the values that sustain long-term success in advertising, storytelling, and brand innovation.
President, Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN), Lanre Adisa, explained that young creatives must adopt a mindset of craftsmanship, one that recognizes that every groundbreaking idea requires energy, sweat, and an unwavering commitment to improvement.
Adisa noted that despite advancements in technology and idea-generation tools, the fundamental principles of hard work and determination still define the quality of output.
“So, especially to the young guys in the audience, it still requires a lot of hard work. It is about doing good work for the Lord, working hard, and, as I always tell my team, some of us earn our money the old-fashioned way. We sweat for it. So you have to find yourself sweating to try and get the excellent idea, the very best of ideas, out. So let’s not give up, and sometimes there will be bumps on the road. Just take it for what it is and just keep on working,” he said.
In his remarks, Chairman, Lagos Advertising and Ideas Festival Management Board, Jay Chukwuemeka, described creativity as a demanding craft that rewards those who are willing to push beyond their comfort zones, cultivate their skills, and remain dedicated to producing work that stands out in both quality and purpose.
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Chukwuemeka encouraged participants to adopt a mindset that embraces challenges as stepping stones toward exceptional creative output.
Speaking during a panel session titled” The Anatomy of Genius: Unpacking the Human Truths and The Craft Behind Award-winning work”, CEO, X3M Ideas, Steve Babaeko stressed that creatives must be able to go above and beyond to deliver their craft to get the clients convinced, especially when they are under immense pressure.
According to Babaeko, it is the responsibility of creatives to understand the psychology of clients while pushing their ideas, stressing that many clients are driven by key metrics such as volume, profit, or bonus.
Another panelist who spoke during the session, Creative Director, Dentsu South Africa, TJ Njozela, stated that a creative person must find a balance in delivering award-winning work and work that is responsible and of best practice, regardless of mounting opposition from the client.
In her remarks, Chief Visionary Officer, Event Architects Limited, Funmi Victor-Okigbo, explained that a creative person must be interested in the fine details to deliver great works.
Victor-Okigbo emphasized the need for agencies to place the client at the forefront of their work, noting that their enthusiasm and excitement should be the measure of success.
In another panel session titled “Future of AI in Communications”, Marketing Director, Visa West Africa, Seun Adaramola, stated that AI remains the most potent tool to make communication more effective, urging both agencies and clients to embrace it.
Adaramola urged agencies to leverage AI while also ensuring that they deploy creativity to infuse emotion into their work.
Also speaking, Founder, Naija AI Film Festival, Obinna Okerekeocha, said AI is crucial to bringing creatives’ imaginations to life faster, adding that the future of African storytelling lies at the intersection of art and technology.
Okerekeocha stated that his organization is committed to rewarding individuals who can effectively utilize an AI tool by generating innovative ideas.
Making her position known, Founder, SAY Visionaries, Susan Younis, explained that agencies must leverage AI to tell the story the way they want it.
Speaking during another panel session titled’ Power of Collaboration Across Disciplines”, the Chief Executive Officer, Q21 Solutions, Eunice Adeyemi, noted that agencies must earn the trust of their clients to enable them to create experience that infuses technology at will.
In her submission, Tolulope Medebem, President of the Experiential Marketers Association of Nigeria, corroborated the earlier position, stating that clients must be willing to co-create with agencies to deliver an unforgettable experience on every project.
Speaking during the session, Segun Ogunleye, Head of Marketing at Diageo, stated that brands, agencies, and other partners needed to have a collaborative mindset to achieve their objectives.
Also speaking, the Founder, Lagos Street Art Festival, Osa Seven, explained that delegating responsibility or building a team in the creative space contributes a great deal in helping to scale bigger and fine-tune one’s craft into a global standard.
Also speaking, Chief Executive Officer, Accelerate Media Group, who moderated a session on a topic titled “Authenticity in African storytelling,” explained that creative professionals must ground their work in values that inspire integrity, authenticity, and continuous improvement, qualities that remain relevant despite evolving industry trends.
The other remaining panel session, titled ”Women in Advertising,” focused on challenges faced by women in the profession and how employers should help female employees achieve work-life balance without necessarily hindering their career growth.
