What does it take to create marketing that connects with real people?
That was the challenge at the heart of Marketing Influence Culture (MIC) held in Johannesburg on 25 June 2025. Co-created by dentsu X South Africa and Hype & Happening, MIC isn’t your standard industry event. It’s a cultural reset. A platform built to hand over the playbook, not gatekeep it.
“MIC is personal,” said Roxana Ravjee, CEO of dentsu South Africa. “It’s built on the belief that marketing can be more than just metrics. It can shift culture, influence progress, and open doors. We created MIC to stand for something bigger than us. A platform rooted in purpose, one that challenges the status quo, amplifies diverse voices, and builds bridges between brands, creatives, and communities.”
And it delivered. Across the day, speakers from Spotify, TBWA, and KJ Productions (with experience across brands like Coca-Cola, Unilever and Diageo) shared powerful takes on marketing’s role in driving change.
A consistent theme emerged: real work lives and breathes well past the brief.
“We say we put the consumer first, but often we center on ourselves,” said Mokhethi Siganunu, Strategy Director at Dentsu Creative South Africa. “We’re ... creating for people. That demands empathy, relevance, and the courage to challenge our own assumptions.”
MIC founder Deshnie Govender summed it up, “We’re not chasing big stages, we’re creating big shifts: in thinking, in storytelling, and in who gets to shape the narrative.”
In a space where local talent, honest conversation, and cultural insight all come together, MIC is proving that inclusive, meaningful marketing isn’t just possible; it’s already happening.
Want to see the energy for yourself? Watch the recap video below and experience MIC in action.
