Attention agency Connect shines at the Mark Awards 2026

There is a practical reason advertising agencies are using more AI. Clients want work to be done faster while budgets are under pressure. The volume keeps growing, and agencies are being asked to do more with less. Automation is an obvious response to trying to find efficiencies.

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The Up&Up Group is opening applications for its 2027 LevelUp Graduate Programme, a 12-month, full-time programme created to give emerging talent meaningful, hands-on experience across the advertising, marketing and communications industry.

Marvin Kgasoane, Chief Client Officer at Connect, discusses how hybrid planners are shaping the future.

Back from Cannes Lions 2026, Jacques Burger offers his view on the experience after appearing on stage to unpack how Africans do creativity.

Jason Harrison, COO of The Up&Up Group, joins TechCentral’s TCS+ to discuss the hidden costs of enterprise AI adoption, from governance and integration to legal risk, cloud spend and environmental impact. He argues that businesses should move beyond hype-driven investment and adopt a practical test-and-learn approach to building AI systems that are useful, responsible and scalable.

Connect, part of The Up&Up Group, has secured the exclusive African rights to AttentionAI, Amplified’s new predictive attention product. The partnership gives African brands and agencies access to AI-powered attention data that can predict how audiences are likely to engage with creative before campaigns go live.

Connect COO Scott Reinders will join Dr Karen Nelson-Field, Google’s Carl Wåreus and host Alex Brownsell on the WARC Podcast at Cannes Lions to discuss how attention is becoming a strategic planning input for marketers. The conversation will explore how attention-led planning can strengthen memory, brand authority and future visibility in AI-driven discovery environments.

For decades, marketing was seen as the primary driver of business growth and influence. That made sense in a world where brands could define themselves through campaigns and buy attention at scale through a limited number of channels.

Why the Real AI Advantage Isn’t Efficiency, It’s Effectiveness.

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The Up&Up Group is excited and honoured to be represented on the official agenda at this year’s Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.

In the pursuit of certainty, we’ve engineered out emotion — and with it, a significant part of effectiveness.

We’ve taken an approach to AI by not losing focus of what makes The Up&Up Group successful, but by finding real, tangible ways this new tech can complement what we do.

Take a moment to imagine this scenario: A prominent South African CEO starts each day the same way, by dropping her children off at school and then stopping to grab a coffee on her way to the office. She chooses to have her coffee the same way every morning: No sugar, almond milk, says Kathryn McKay, Chief Creative Officer at Black & White, part of The Up&Up Group.

We’re spending more than ever to win attention - and getting less in return. Mike Abel argues that the real crisis in modern media isn’t reach, data, or technology, but a growing disconnect from the humans on the other side of the impression. In this talk, he challenges the obsession with volume and optimisation, exposes why attention without resonance is a waste, and makes the case for creativity as the last true differentiator. Drawing on lived leadership experience and real-world work, Mike calls for a shift from renting short term attention to earning connection - with the courage to say something worth hearing.

Africa's gaming market reached the $1 billion mark in 2024. This positive reception has allowed more streamers and gamers on the continent to continue to create and develop in this emerging industry.

Content marketing agency 2Stories has been named Best Medium-Sized Agency of the Year at the 2025 International Content Marketing Awards (ICMAs) in London, earning international recognition in its first year entering the global awards programme.

Robin Scher, content director at Razor PR on the incentives shaping today’s platforms and how they are quietly rewriting the rules of trust

As we look forward to a new year filled with opportunity, we look back at the marketing and media industry highlights for the year that was, and our guests discuss industry expectations for 2026.

The strongest defence against AI or any other tech, has never been production or process. It’s relationships.

From credit upgrades to stable governance, early signs of lasting recovery show South Africa finally moving in the right direction.

As Black Friday nears, digital spaces are bracing for a surge of deals and promos. But amid the frenzy, most of this content risks becoming digital waste — clutter that drains budgets, attention, and brand value without creating real impact.

Leaders who invest in original thinking today will gain more of tomorrow’s markets

Women's influence in marketing cannot go unnoticed as more and more women take up leadership positions in the marketing and advertising industry.  In addition, women are the majority decision makers and influencers when it comes to household purchases. We explore the depth of this influence.

An increasingly challenging and competitive business environment demands a fresh B2B marketing perspective.

The campaign, created with M+C Saatchi Abel, aims to inspire South Africans to intentionally find time for moments of togetherness that matter

Life Healthcare, one of South Africa's private hospital groups, has appointed 2Stories to lead their integrated, patient-first communications strategy. The scope of work spans content-led initiatives, community building, stakeholder engagement, internal communications and proactive media relations across the Life Healthcare Group.

Picture the scene: It is late in the evening on 11 March 2000. Food in abundance and a buzz in the living room boils to a crescendo as Vuyani Bungu is about to face off against the extreme “Prince” Naseem Hamed in London. It’s hushed tones as the South African enters the ring, followed by cheering and shadow boxing, urging the local hero to make the country proud.

Agencies should accept chaos as normal, and should design strategies to deal with it and make them stronger and resilient.

The Up&Up Group has announced the launch of its 2026 LevelUp Grad Programme.

85% of digital marketing spend is wasted, according to world-renowned media scientist Dr Karen Nelson-Field.

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This report reveals exactly what has, and hasn’t, changed in the lives of consumers since the pandemic.

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SA's first human data study

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Let’s embrace the ethos of sharing and collaboration

South Africans need to dig deep, plant wisely and nurture carefully

PR is no longer just about professional PR, it is about a deeply embedded and strategic communications function that both promotes and protects brands and reputations - exactly what Razor PR set out to do when it opened its doors in 2020.

Brands would do well to fundamentally reconstruct their engagement strategies from ‘demographic targeting’ to understanding and engaging with passion communities

Levergy has achieved the distinction for the second consecutive year after winning the Adaptability Award in 2021

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There’s never been a better time to invest in SA

The Up&Up Group has acquired a strategic stake in content marketing agency 2Stories.

M&C Saatchi Abel doubles down on parent The Up&Up Group’s Africa strategy

It is now called The Up&Up Group