One of the world’s leading voices on marketing effectiveness, Andrew Tindall lands at Digital Day Out 2026 with a challenge: have we optimised ourselves into irrelevance? 

Co-author of The Creative Dividend (praised by Mark Ritson as some of the most important advertising thinking in years), Tindall argues that efficiency has become a “comfort blanket”- and it’s costing brands growth. Drawing on world-leading research with Effie, IPA and Google (including new, unreleased findings), he’ll expose why cheap impressions are often worthless, why most digital ads are ignored, and why “the more people feel, the more they buy.” 

Expect bold, punchy thinking on why good enough creative is the most expensive choice, why we’re confusing measurement with value - and how to fix it. 

Key takeaways:

• Why efficiency ≠ effectiveness (and how the industry got it wrong)

• Attention is the new battleground - and most ads are losing

• Emotion, creativity & the “Creative Dividend” as growth multipliers

• Why performance marketing is creating bland, forgettable brands

• How to rebalance toward long-term impact using System1’s proven frameworks 

About Andrew

Hannah Fillis, Head of Digital Marketing & Media at MECCA, shares how Australia’s most adored beauty retailer built a cult-like online following. Known for its fiercely loyal community and standout social presence, MECCA has transformed from a 1997 retail pioneer into a digital-first beauty authority. Hannah reveals how the brand uses content, creators and cultural moments to drive engagement, capture data and stay relevant across platforms. 

What you’ll learn:

• How to build a loyal, engaged social community

• Scaling to 1M+ followers with strategy, not luck

• Turning content into authority and influence

• Evolving a legacy brand into a social-first leader 

About Hannah

“The marketers who win long-term aren't the ones winning with today's ‘GEO tactics’. They're the ones who know how to build, test, and iterate workflows themselves.”

AI is the new interface between brands and buyers - rewriting search, reshaping strategy, and executing marketing itself. Britney Muller, Founder of Orange Lab (USA) and a global leader in AI and emerging tech, brings a rare operator’s lens to what’s next as the landscape continues to shift.

Britney opens with the honest state of AI search visibility (what we know, what we don't, and what's worth paying attention to), before moving into the execution framework and three live, steal-able AI workflows marketers can deploy right away.

You’ll learn:

• What we know increases a brand's odds of showing up in AI-driven search

• What signals and patterns seem to matter right now

• How to ‘fish’ with AI to adapt no matter what comes down the pipeline

• How to replace fragmented experimentation with scalable, repeatable systems

• Should AI ever run end-to-end marketing workflows? Pros and cons

• What would an agent-led world mean for brands and businesses?

About Britney

Britney Muller, Founder of Orange Labs and a seasoned Marketing and Machine Learning (ML) Consultant, has carved out a unique niche in the industry with roles such as Marketing Manager at Hugging Face and Senior SEO Scientist at Moz. Her deep passion for ML and artificial intelligence fuels her work, particularly her talent for breaking down complex tech concepts into understandable terms for non-technical people. With her blend of expertise, industry experience, and knack for communication, Britney is a compelling speaker, offering actionable insights on the intersection of marketing and technology.

John Mescall, Global Creative Leader at Dentsu Creative and one of the most awarded creatives in the world, closes Digital Day Out 2026 with a masterclass in modern creativity and the role of innovation.

John explores how the most powerful ideas sit at the intersection of emotional storytelling, technology and cultural truth. Expect sharp insights and witty anecdotes, as he picks his favourites from an astounding back catalogue of 100+ Cannes Lions winning campaigns that shaped global culture.

You’ll also hear how Dentsu Lab continues to create groundbreaking digital innovations that shows how tech can be both functional and human. From AI and innovative tech to iconic brand platforms, this is a call to innovate and create work that truly matters.

What you’ll learn:

• Blending emotional intelligence with emerging tech (including AI)
• Innovation and fearless creativity - latest examples from Dentsu Lab
• Creating culturally impactful, globally recognised ideas
• Why local insight beats global sameness

About John

A native Australian based in New York City since 2014, John is currently Global Chief Creative Partner at Dentsu Creative, a role he commenced in September 2025. In this role, John collaborates closely with creative leaders in markets, serving as a trusted advisor to elevate their strategies, while also uniting and inspiring dentsu’s global creative community. Ensuring alignment on purpose, amplifying creative excellence, and unlocking the full potential of the networks’ talent.

Prior to this,, John was President of McCann Worldgroup’s Global Creative Council. In this role, he provides creative leadership across global brands, and worked closely with creative leads across all markets.

Under John's leadership, McCann Worldgroup enjoyed the most successful creative period in its history, including its first-ever Cannes Network of the Year, and multiple Effies global network of the year honors.

Before moving to the United States, John was Chief Creative Officer of McCann Australia, responsible for the Melbourne and Sydney offices. Under John’s leadership, McCann Melbourne became the No.1 creatively ranked agency in the world.

The decade before joining McCann Australia saw John, together with two partners, build an independent agency, SMART, into one of Australia's most successful independent networks.

In addition to his achievements in senior leadership roles, as both a writer and a creative director, John has won over 100 Cannes lions including 8 Cannes Grand Prix, Black and Yellow Pencils at D&AD, One Show Best of Show, and multiple Clio, Spikes, LIA and Webby awards.

His work has also been housed in London's Design Museum. John has served as a jury member or jury president at all the major shows, including Cannes, D&AD, One Show, Clios and Global Effies. A regular keynote speaker and panelist, John has been featured in the Creativity 50: AdWeek’s annual listing of the world’s 50 most influential creative thinkers and doers, and Business Insider ranked him the 8th most creative person in advertising worldwide.

At One NZ, AI is not just a tool for efficiency. It is part of how the business works, how decisions get made, and how the brand shows up in the world.

In this session, Georgia Mahaffie, GM Brand & Marketing and her team shares how One NZ is driving AI adoption across the organisation to help build a more connected, consistent and distinctive brand world. Because in a modern business, brand is not just what you say. It's how you operate.

Expect a candid look at shifting mindset, capability and culture at scale, and turning AI into a competitive advantage.

Key takeaways: 

• Turning AI from pilots into impact
• Embedding AI into how the business works every day
• Removing the barriers that slow adoption
• Making brand part of the operating system
• Creating a more connected brand world through AI

About Georgia

Before One NZ Georgia worked for a decade at VCCP helping the likes of T-Mobile, O2, easyJet, Google, Sonos, and Transport for London challenge the category or themselves.  She is a passionate and proud kiwi, who feels incredibly lucky to work with an awesome team every single day.

About Jennifer

Jennifer Michtavy is a creative technologist and systems and workflow architect, specialising in the practical application of AI in business and creative environments. She works with organisations internationally across business operations and creative output, and is leading the charge on reimagining how an agency operates at The Optimisers. She teaches Hyper-Personalisation in Practice for the Marketing Association.

At HyperCinema, Jennifer was apart of the team that built the enterprise-grade creative agentic system behind the world's first live, hyper-personalised AI experience at the College Football Hall of Fame, which has engaged over 170,000 visitors and produced more than 3 million AI-generated assets. She later co-presented the project on Microsoft's AI Edge podcast, discussing hyper-personalised storytelling and emerging directions in creative technology. Earlier, in 2022, Jennifer designed an AI-driven video editing workflow for Emeritus, the global EdTech unicorn, combining AI tools and editing techniques to save them USD $30,000 in a single month.

Jennifer holds a Master's in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry from Wesleyan University, with academic publications in the Journal of Bacteriology. Her AI art has been published in Prompt Magazine, distributed digitally worldwide and printed across 12 countries. She was a 2025 panel speaker at Auckland Design Week's Designing Futures: Women Shaping Innovation Through Technology.

Co-presenting with Richard Conway, CEO, The Optimisers

Reddit is one of the internet’s most influential - and misunderstood - platforms for brands. In this candid “Ask Me Anything” session, Richard Conway (The Optimisers) and Sophie Neate (ABB) unpack what actually works on Reddit in 2026 and answers all your questions.

From launching a bold D2C pharma brand into the US market to piloting Reddit within a global organisation, they’ll share real-world experiments, wins, missteps, and measurable outcomes.

Expect practical guidance on navigating Reddit’s unique culture, creating content that resonates, and linking community engagement to LLM visibility and commercial impact - all delivered with honesty, humour, and actionable takeaways.

About Sophie

Sophie is a senior marketing leader with over 17 years of experience across the full spectrum of the marketing lifecycle. Throughout her career, Sophie has excelled in senior leadership roles at prestigious blue-chip companies, overseeing global teams and driving transformative marketing strategies on an international scale. Currently Sophie is the Global Head of Digital Marketing and Content for ABB’s Electrification Service division, a $100 billion USD technology company based in over 100 countries, headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland.

A seasoned expert in building and leading high-performing marketing teams, Sophie has consistently established and optimized key marketing functions. Her leadership has been instrumental in launching initiatives that have resulted in substantial commercial success. With a deep well of expertise and a strategic vision, Sophie adeptly harnesses marketing insights to fuel business growth, elevate brand presence, and drive innovation.

Co-presenting with Sophie Neate, Global Head of Digital Marketing & Content

Reddit is one of the internet’s most influential - and misunderstood - platforms for brands. In this candid “Ask Me Anything” session, Richard Conway (The Optimisers) and Sophie Neate (ABB) unpack what actually works on Reddit in 2026 and answers all your questions.

From launching a bold D2C pharma brand into the US market to piloting Reddit within a global organisation, they’ll share real-world experiments, wins, missteps, and measurable outcomes.

Expect practical guidance on navigating Reddit’s unique culture, creating content that resonates, and linking community engagement to LLM visibility and commercial impact - all delivered with honesty, humour, and actionable takeaways.

About Richard

Richard is the founder of Pure SEO, New Zealand’s most awarded search agency. Richard was a finalist in the 2019 EY Entrepreneur of the Year and is a columnist for M2 Magazine, M2W Magazine, and New Zealand Business magazine.

Richard is a guest lecturer of Digital Marketing and search marketing for the University of Auckland (MBA programme), Unitec, and The NZ Marketing Association. In 2019 Richard wrote the book ‘How to Get to The Top of Google Search, a Practical Guide’ (Penguin Random House).

Richard is an active investor and mentor to a number of high tech businesses and has sat on the board of Entrepreneurs Organisation (New Zealand) and The Well Foundation.