At a time when it has never been harder for changemakers to create change, Creative Equals’ flagship RISE conference explored how marketing leaders can embrace inclusion for growth.

The conference underlined that inclusion is a core driver of growth, innovation and impactful partnerships. Here are the top trends from RISE 2026.

1. Diverse audiences are not niche audiences 

Unlike diversity, equity and inclusion, ‘growth’ is a word that is never weaponised against marketing leaders. Yet, while diversity has become something of a political football in this polarising era, RISE underlined that inclusion is in fact the growth engine of modern brands. Put simply, brands that are not connecting with diverse audiences are leaving money on the table. 

2. Do one thing at a time

While the conversations on stage focused on the brands winning through inclusion, the chaos of 2026 was at the top of the agenda off-stage. Burnout has rightly risen up the marketing agenda and ongoing economic pressure and a constant cycle of disruption have led many marketing leaders to feel their tanks are running on empty.

It is a state of play which makes the shared learning and collaboration sparked by the conversations at RISE increasingly vital. But equally recognising the importance of not endlessly adding to your to-do list is key to success. As Finola McDonnell, Chief Communications and Marketing Officer at the Financial Times (FT), explained: “The key to making progress in anything is to make one change, do one thing at a time.” 

Do less but better: an infinitely more creatively fulfilling goal than the endless drive to deliver more for less.

3. Growth is the cure for purpose fatigue

Playing the long game has arguably never been harder in marketing. Yet as Nurofen’s five-year commitment to closing the gender pain gap underlines, it is a strategy which can pay dividends. The campaign was named as the Effie UK Awards Grand Winner: an accolade which means it is the overall most effective entry in any category.  

4. AI does not have to be built for bias 

In a refreshing break from the alarmist headlines that AI will kill creativity, Sara Denby, Director of the Oxford Future of Marketing Initiative at the Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford, shared her lens on a more hopeful and inclusive future. One in which AI agents become the new brand activists.

Denby shared her perspective on the inclusive opportunity. “My agent knows that inclusion drives income,” she explained, adding: “When my AI agent goes hunting for me, it doesn’t just accept a brand’s claims, it does the research.”

5. Creators are the bridge to your next audience 

If creativity is a team sport, then brands have been guilty of leaving creators on the bench. Yet as Helen O’Donnell, Vice President of Content and Creator at BBC Studios and Creators Starr Kiely and Tara Thorpe, underlined, seeing your audiences as more than a data point is fundamental to driving growth. Placing creators in the driving seat and forging partnerships not just rooted in reach, but in realising new creative pathways open up both new audiences and new creative opportunities for brands. 

6. Inclusion drives earned media

Mattel’s ambition to ensure that Barbie is the world’s most diverse doll range is not just good for society, it is driving growth. In a world where every brand wants to be a challenger and gain the exposure of earned media, the story of Autistic Barbie underlines that inclusion is the ultimate challenger move. As Amarilis Whitty, PR Director at Mattel, explained: “Barbie was an astronaut before men landed on the moon.”

7. Debate is good for creativity

Words like creativity and culture are liberally sprinkled across the creative industries. Yet the truth is, if creativity is a muscle, many of us aren’t making it to the gym. Debating what makes work great and setting out a framework for what great looks like is not a nice-to-have, it's vital for creativity to thrive. As speakers from Cannes Lions, Creative Equals and Effies underlined, if you don’t have a bar, how can you possibly hope to raise it? 

8. Consumers still care about doing the right thing

“People want you to do the right thing for them, their community and connecting what people care about with what your brand cares about is good for business.” Lifting the lid on ‘The Edge Brands are Missing’ research, Eleanor Thornton-Firkin, Head of Creative Excellence, UK at Ipsos, made a powerful case for the enduring power of purpose. 

9. Accept the lows in athlete partnerships 

“A lot of the time brands want to see a medal, but you have to accept there are more lows than highs.” When it comes to the future of athlete partnerships, the words of Gymnast Becky Downie underline that there is still a way to go for brands.

In an insightful and uplifting conversation with Richard Robinson, Executive Director of Ingenuity+, Downie lifted the lid on what brands should know about forging strong partnerships with athletes. 

While marketing leaders from Rexona, Diageo and Tony’s Chocolonely underlined that the future of marketing partnership is so much more than a simple badging exercise. 

10. What action are you going to take?

Sophie Devonshire, CEO of The Marketing Society, asked the RISE audience the most important question of all: ‘What action are you going to take in your business?’ 

While the sparks of the next generation of inclusive marketing campaigns may have been ignited by RISE, the danger is that those ideas remain unrealised. The tough truth is that a brilliant idea that doesn’t see the light of day is less impactful than a mediocre piece of work that makes its way into the world.

If the unforgiving political and economic climate of 2026 has taught us anything, it is that execution is the most underrated skill in marketing. RISE not only created the opportunity to learn from some of the most impactful inclusive campaigns but also considered the bigger questions. How many brilliant ideas never even make it out of a marketing leader's head?

Devonshire shared what she loves most about RISE: the number of people in the room who want to do something as a result of the insights they have heard. 

We hope this report helps fuel your imagination, sparking not just an idea, but the fire to make that idea a reality. 

Photo credit: Bronac McNeill Photography

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