The New Gen Trends in Marketing and Tech Conference is hosted by ‘The New Generation Awards’ and is proudly sponsored by Blue Robot Group. Taking place Tuesday, 26 May at The Venue in Melrose Arch, the conference will feature nine leading influencers from the corporate and agency sectors, including recipients of last year’s New Generation Awards, who collectively earned over 40 accolades. Modern Marketing is the official media partner.
You’ll get practical strategies from each keynote as speakers share insights, success stories, and the tools, technologies, and approaches behind the most impactful campaigns of 2025.
Real Content That Delivers Real Results
Stephen Paxton, Founder of the event, commented: ‘The marketing landscape is shifting rapidly in 2026 into a maturity era, centred on retention, lifetime value, and AI-driven, data-informed systems. To stay competitive, this event will help marketers adopt agile strategies, use AI tools to improve efficiency, and prioritise authentic, high-quality content. This evolution requires combining human intelligence and technology to drive culturally relevant and innovative marketing. We are ready to realise AI’s potential this year and to discuss the progress, strategies, and transformative results achieved through its effective use.’
‘This event will equip marketers with a wealth of resources and the confidence to refine their go-to-market strategies for 2026,’ concluded Paxton.
Come join us and be inspired. Registration is from 07:30 to 08:30, and the event ends 17:00.
Speaker Line-Up:
Emilio Warmberg, Regional Sales Manager, Blue Robot Group, Main Event Sponsor
Topic: Moving from Passive Exposure to Active Engagement: In this keynote, we’ll explore the growing body of research showing why active attention is becoming the most valuable currency in digital marketing, what brands actually lose when they optimise purely for reach, and the hidden cost of campaigns built around passive exposure.
Tamryn Taylor, Head of Marketing: Demand Generation: Beauty Well-Being and Personal Care, Unilever South Africa
Topic: The Earned Economy: Why Culture-Powered Communities Are the Growth Engine of 2026. How brands can pioneer new paths to growth by embedding themselves in culture through socially designed ideas powered by human intelligence and technology.
Darren Morris, CEO, Lucky Hustle. (Former South African World Boxing Champion, Ludumo Lamati, will join Morris on stage)
Topic: Using Creativity Superpowers to Change South Africa. This talk challenges the industry to stop waiting for permission and briefs, and start using our creative superpowers to actively change South Africa.
Mondre Bremner, Senior Manager: Digital Channels Strategy | Integrated Marketing and Experience, Nedbank
Topic: Why Editorial Content Matters… Or Is It Really That Deep? How advancements in AI have challenged editorial content delivery and the priorities reshaping the brand and marketing landscape.
Carni Wilkens, Chief Growth Officer, Dentsu SSA
Topic: We are human after all: The Transparency Gap. As our technology world shifts from co-pilots to decision-makers, performance depends on how transparent we are with machines.
Ryan McFadyen, Co-Founder, HYH Group and Head of Strategy
Topic: Growth After the Algorithm Breaks: As AI floods feeds with infinite content, people are switching off, tuning out ads, muting brands, and moving back to what they trust.
Joint Session: Olivia Matterson, Head of Innovation, and Sydney Rheeder, Creative Innovation Lead, TBWA\ SA, part of Omnicom Advertising Group (OAG)
Topic: CES 2026: Key Shifts from the Vegas Consumer Electronics Show: CES offers key signals on how brands are navigating emerging technologies, and how consumer behaviours and expectations are shifting as a result.
Clare Trafankowska, Executive Head of Media and Digital Marketing, FNB
Topic: From Personalisation to Permission: The Next Era of Customer Relevance. Rethinking relevance in an AI-powered world, shifting the focus from accuracy to authenticity, from optimisation to earned trust.
For full event details and ticket fees, click here. To book your seats, email stephen@newgenawards.co.za
Key Takeaways
– Actionable strategies: Brands must boldly engage with culture and cultivate communities in meaningful and impactful ways.
– Functionality: The advent of AI and technology is not just changing the game; it’s redefining how we share content and setting new benchmarks for customer expectations.
– Personalisation to permission: the next era of customer relevance.
– Human-first: Key learnings to translate radical transparency into practical, human-first ways.
– Effective impact: The fusion of human intelligence and technology is vital for driving transformative and culturally relevant change.
– Growth marketing: data is the lifeblood of effective growth, enabling brands to maximise customer acquisition, activation, retention, and relevance.
– Credibility in question: The future of growth lies in forging authentic credibility, sparking genuine conversations, and nurturing robust communities, moving beyond a reliance on mere automation.
– Metrics: Marketers must meticulously evaluate the success of culture-driven community initiatives compared to traditional campaigns to truly understand their impact.
– Context: Key learnings that can be applied to scaling impact without losing your craft.
– Research: Why active attention is becoming the most valuable currency in digital marketing, what brands actually lose when they optimise purely for reach, and the hidden cost of campaigns built around passive exposure.
– Actionability: Creativity must courageously tackle pressing societal issues, transcending the confines of superficial brand campaigns.
– Humanising content: Brands have a unique opportunity to blend AI with human creativity, enhancing their content, deepening community connections, and ensuring greater relevance.
– Case studies: The success stories of brands embracing these innovative strategies reveal invaluable insights that cannot be ignored.
Who Should Attend?
– Agency and Corporate Marketing Leadership: CMOs, Marketing Directors, and Brand Managers looking to integrate innovative technology into organisational goals.
– Digital and performance marketers: Specialists in digital, mobile, and social media marketing focused on increasing ROI, lead generation, and engagement.
– Marketing Technology (MarTech) Leaders: Professionals focused on automation, AI, and MarTech systems.
– Content Creators and Strategists: Experts looking to leverage AI and data-driven, personalised storytelling.
– Creatives: Designers wanting to explore new tools to enhance their visual designs.
– Data Analysts and AI Specialists: Professionals using analytics and behavioural science to influence consumer behaviour.
– Business Leaders and Entrepreneurs: Owners looking to build brand loyalty and adopt new technology tools.
– Students and lecturers.
Main Event Sponsor
Official Media Partner
NEW GEN TRENDS CONFERENCE
www.newgenawards.co.za/pages/marketing-conference
