The awards – to be held annually to set a new benchmark for the industry – celebrate the best of the best in South African marketing and aims to future-proof the sector and raise the bar for local marketers.
A panel of judges, who are all seasoned and highly respected marketing professionals, carefully considered the self-nominated entries based on well-considered criteria, and the following brands were shortlisted for specific campaigns and categories.
| Brand | Agency |
| AB InBev for Castle Lager #SmashTheLabel | Ogilvy SA |
| AB InBev for Carling Black Label #NoExcuses Soccer Song For Change | Ogilvy SA |
| Agrinet for Beyond Agriculture | |
| Anglo American for Makarapa City | Ogilvy SA |
| Audi for Audi Proteas | Levergy |
| Aurecon for Aurecon Visual Contracts | |
| AVBOB for The AVBOB Poetry Project | BRAND et al |
| Cadbury for Remarkable Regift | Ogilvy SA |
| Edcon for JET #JETLOVEYOURSELF | Joe Public |
| Edcon for JET Manny | Joe Public |
| FNB for It Takes a Bank that Does More to Help your Family | BrandTruth |
| FNB for Springboks from Grassroots to Greatness | BrandTruth |
| Innovative Solutions Group for Innovative Staffing Solutions | PR Worx |
| Investec for The Art of Investec | Ogilvy SA |
| Kimberly-Clark South Africa for Huggies - The World’s Most Innovative Product Demo | Ogilvy SA |
| MARS for Royco - Let’s Eat with Siphokazi | MediaCom |
| MINI for Creative Club | John Brown |
| Nando's for #rightmyname | M&C Saatchi Abel |
| Nando's for PERi-Farms | Sunshinegun |
| Nando’s for 30th Birthday Bash | Sunshinegun |
| Nando’s for Grillers’ Challenge | Sunshinegun |
| New Balance for New Balance Proteas | Levergy |
| P&G for Ariel, making the impossible, possible. | MediaCom |
| P&G for Gillette Venus #MovesLikeNoOther | MediaCom |
| Pernod Ricard for Sun Met presented by G.H. Mumm | Playmakers |
| Pick n Pay for Fresh Content | John Brown |
| Pick n Pay for Glass Act Series | John Brown |
| Road Accident Fund #AlwaysRemember | Flow Communications |
| Sasol for #Limitless | Levergy |
| Suzuki Motor Corporation for Suzuki Inbound | Penquin |
| The Merck Group for Merck Consumer Health Neorobion | Ogilvy SA |
| Toyota for Toyota Rush - Live That Rush Life | FCB Johannesburg |
| Volkswagen SA for The People’s Car | Ogilvy SA |
| Yoco for Yoco: For the Sales |
The finalists for the Marketer of the Year category, in which marketers are to be nominated by their industry peers, are yet to be announced.
“We were very impressed with the calibre of entries and the judges had a tough job selecting these finalists,” says MAA council chairperson Yvonne Johnston. “Selecting the winners will prove even more challenging as we are determined to follow a rigorous and methodologically robust adjudication process to ensure that we showcase South Africa’s finest talent.
“We have in our midst world-class marketers and campaigns that are competitive in terms of innovation and effectiveness on a global level. It is time that we start celebrating the brilliant minds behind these campaigns.”
She adds that strategy lies at the core of successful marketing. “The planning that comes before the creative process is an art and a science – getting this right is essential for a campaign to achieve business results.
“These awards are by marketers and for marketers, but we recognise that executing a winning campaign involves a collaborative process with the right partners. The awards event is, therefore, open to the wider marketing industry and agencies.”
The celebrations will kick off at Sun City with a networking welcome cocktail party on the evening of 26 June, followed by the Marketing Achievement Summit on 27 June before the much-awaited ceremony in the evening.
The Marketing Achievement Summit, with the theme “Future-proofing marketing” will explore marketing strategy, key issues and imperatives.
Some of the questions being asked at the summit include:
- Is the strategic importance and contribution of marketing to business performance eroding over time?
- What are the “new rules of engagement” for future marketing and communications
- How do you build a brand across Africa’s diverse countries?
- Are South African companies innovating, or are they going to be disrupted?
- Can marketing reshape our nation’s destiny?
Don’t miss the opportunity to join the conversation and make history at the country’s premier networking event for marketers, where you and your team will rub shoulders with some of the country’s leading industry professionals. Click here to reserve your spot and to download the programme.
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