The Media Online’s weekly column delivering news of award wins, entries, competitions, dates to note and winners in the media industry.
Entries into Marketing Achievement Awards close at midnight tonight
The Marketing Achievement Awards, endorsed by the Marketing Association of South Africa, celebrates excellence in the science and art of strategic marketing. Setting a benchmark for excellence through the publication of winning case studies, the awards inspire marketers to prove marketing’s value to the bottom line.
Now in their third year, this year the awards have adopted a new positioning – ‘Celebrating marketing excellence in business’ – and a new theme – ‘Marketing that means business’ – to help drive marketing’s stature in business while at the same time shaping the industry and promoting it as an illustrious career choice.
Open to marketers throughout South Africa, the Marketing Achievement Awards invites entrants to enter work that has managed to generate significant impact within their businesses in one or more of 15 award categories across different marketing areas.
This includes the Marketer of the Year category which recognises the best marketer in the industry who has delivered innovative marketing, positively impacted business results and used their influence to drive the industry forward. Finalists in this category are nominated by their peers. The Marketer of the Year award will be co-presented by MASA and the MAA’s presenting partner, the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC).
Group Executive of Corporate Affairs and Marketing at the SABC, Gugu Ntuli, said the public broadcaster applauds marketers who use strategic marketing to connect with their customers and audiences. “As the SABC, we share the Marketing Achievement Awards’ commitment to developing the marketing profession in South Africa,” said Ntuli.
Following the deadline extension, final registrations to enter now close at midnight on the 15th February 2022 with the Gala Awards presentation taking place on 31 May 2022.
Full entry criteria and details can be found at //marketingawards.co.za/marketing-organisation-of-the-year/.
Ogilvy scoops top positions at Creative Circle Awards
Ogilvy South Africa was awarded two 1st place wins during the recent Creative Circle Awards, which took place last week. One for the advertising campaign ‘Let’s make new stories again’ for KFC and the second for Carling Black Label’s ‘Bride Armour’ campaign.
The KFC campaign marked the 50th anniversary of the brand in South Africa. In celebration of this milestone, the work encourages South Africans to shake off the lockdown blues, and to start doing the things they love again.
The spot titled “SHHH!” takes viewers on an emotional rollercoaster, starting with beautifully captured shots showing everyday South Africans who have been robbed of their stories by the pandemic. The sullen yet beautifully observational opening scenes are brilliantly juxtaposed by a sudden change in grade, camera language and energy midway through – bringing together a story which reminds us that soon, we’ll be able to make new stories again. And when we do, we’ll be sharing them just like we have been over the last 50 years.
The second first place award was for Carling Black Label’s ‘Bride Armour’. The continuation of the brand’s long-term stance on Gender Based Violence, under the banner of #NoExcuse. The campaign sheds light on the horrifying fact that women in our country increase their chances of being attacked violently after getting married. To highlight this reality, a unique wedding dress was designed by famed fashion designer, Suzaan Heyns. The design and materials of the dress are influenced directly from telephone conversations between GBV victims and Lifeline’s 24-hour emergency call centre. Using data from these violent attacks, the dress was designed from protective materials such as Kevlar, cast liquid and tulle, to form armour – underlining the statement that men need to put an end to this violence.
Top 20 Emerging filmmakers shortlisted for Netflix & UNESCO’s African Folktales, Reimagined Competition
Netflix and UNESCO have announced the 20 shortlisted candidates who will go forward in the exciting short film competition ‘African Folktales, Reimagined’. South Africans Ndiyathemba Modibedi and Gcobisa Yako are on the shortlist.
The quality of submissions received resulted in one extra candidate being added to the list, making it 21 filmmakers on the shortlist. The candidates were selected following a rigorous evaluation process by a wide-range of industry professionals from across the continent who assessed over 2080 applications from across the continent in multiple languages. The shortlist contains a dynamic group of African creatives from across 13 countries in the region.
The 21 emerging filmmakers will go on to the next phase of the competition where they will be required to pitch their stories to a judging panel comprising of the mentors Nigeria’s Femi Odugbemi, South Africa’s Bongiwe Selane, Leila Afua Djansi from Ghana, David Tosh Gitonga from Kenya, and Jean Luc Herbulot from Congo as well as representatives from Netflix and UNESCO who will act as guides in the process. The panel will select the final six filmmakers who will receive a production grant of US$75,000 (through a local production company) to develop, shoot and post-produce their films under the guidance of Netflix and industry mentors to ensure everyone involved in the production is fairly compensated. Each of the 6 winners will also receive $25,000.
South Africa’s most admired agencies announced by MarkLives
Marklives.com has begun releasing the results of its 2021 #AgencyLeaders Most Admired poll and, for the first time since 2018, King James Group has topped the most admired agency in SA category. Also announced have been SA’s most admired creative and agency leaders, as well as the most admired brand in SA.
Annually since 2012, MarkLives has been polling the leaders of SA’s top adland-related agencies — including creative, media, digital, marketing, strategy and other specialist agencies — to find out what they think of their competitors, whom they see as effective managers and great creatives, and where they believe their future competition is likely to come from, among other questions.
Last year, King James Group signed an acquisition deal with Accenture that has seen it join the ranks of other top-notch agencies bought up by the consulting giant, including Droga5, Karmarama and The Monkeys. The deal also resulted in the group being crowned MarkLives’ 2021 newsmaker of the year, along with Accenture Interactive.
Joe Public United, which won the most admired agency title in both 2020 and 2019, was named runner-up in an incredibly tight poll. Its revenue grew by 21%, based on a combination of a 100% retention rate of its top-tier clients and several key accounts wins.
The Odd Number and TBWA\ South Africa were both named contenders in this unusually competitive category that saw the poll dominance of King James/Joe Public threatened for the first time since 2015. For TBWA\ South Africa, year-on-year revenue growth between 2020 and 2021 came in at 19%, while The Odd Number kept punching above its weight creatively.
Peter Khoury of TBWA\ Hunt Lascaris has been voted the most admired creative leader in SA, with Xolisa Dyeshana of Joe Public United and Alistair King of King James Group as joint runners-up.
James Barty of King James Group was voted the most admired ad agency leader in SA, making it four years in a row this time around, with Mike Abel of M&C Saatchi Group South Africa as runner-up.
Chicken Licken was named by SA’s top advertising executives as their most admired brand in the country.
Hippo.co.za wins Feefo Trusted Service Award
South African-based comparison site Hippo.co.za has been awarded the Trusted Service Award by reviews company Feefo.com in recognition of its “outstanding achievement in delivering consistently excellent customer service”.
An independent, UK-based customer service site, Feefo annually rewards businesses that deliver exceptional experiences, with the Trusted Service Award being a globally recognised accolade that helps customers click with confidence. Feefo’s Trusted Service Award winners are chosen based on customer ratings, making the award a recognition of outstanding service from real people who experience it first-hand.
“We are honoured to again accept this Feefo Trusted Service Award,” said Hippo.co.za CEO Bradley Du Chenne. “We thank Feefo.com for this wonderful acknowledgement, but most of all, we thank consumers for sharing their ratings and reviews! Hippo.co.za’s users are at the heart of everything we do, and their satisfaction is the real reward. Customer experience is one of the most important components of our strategy, and we are dedicated to continuing to help South Africans find the best deals on everything from insurance to financial services offerings, to cellphone deals and more.”
Continuing Hippo.co.za’s winning start to the year, the business also saw its Regret Monsters campaign commercial listed among the top 10 ads that South Africans chose to watch on YouTube in 2021. The advert, which forms part of their innovative, humorous and highly popular Regrets Monster campaign, landed at number six on the annual leaderboard.
The advertisement, produced by award-winning agency FoxP2, plays out like a mini action movie, shining a light on bad decisions that lead to regrets, and providing a solution for avoiding them in the future: the Hippo.
Coca-Cola Peninsula Beverages recognised as Top Employer for 12th consecutive year
Coca-Cola Peninsula Beverages (CCPB) has been recognised as a top employer by the Top Employers Institute Africa for 2022 for the 12th consecutive year.
The award acknowledges CCPB’s exceptional HR and people management practices among 24 organisations from 31 African countries in the 2022 cohort. Certifications are based on companies’ approach to people strategy, work environment, talent acquisition, learning, well-being, diversity, and inclusion.
“People are at the heart of what we do, and our priority is to consistently ensure our staff complement is not only always safe but satisfied,” said Bryn Morse, culture and people development director at CCPB.
Morse’s philosophy is that companies cannot thrive without empowered employees. By creating an enabling environment, CCPB employees are given opportunities to grow and reach their full potential.
“Our values and purpose are the main factors that drive a working culture of professional satisfaction and development at CCPB. When we grow and engage our employee, it mobilises and unites team members. Ultimately, we are able to help our employees feel valued and motivated across all levels in the organisation.”
Euromoney Award affirms Nedbank’s world-class generational wealth management leadership
Nedbank Private Wealth has once again been confirmed as a leader in this vital area of holistic wealth creation and management, taking top honours in South Africa for the Family Governance and Succession Planning category of the 2022 Euromoney Private Banking and Wealth Management Survey.
The annual survey is a benchmark of global quality in the private banking sector, providing invaluable insight for high-net-worth individuals into the best providers of the professional wealth management services they require. The awards are based on peer nominations and reviews from experts at competing private banks and wealth managers.
According to Tracy Muller, Head of Fiduciary Advice, at Nedbank Private Wealth, the fact that the survey is conducted among private banks and wealth managers around the world lends significant credibility to the results and means that clients can be confident that when they partner with Euromoney category winners, they are being served by the best in the business.
She points to Nedbank Private Wealth’s globally integrated advice-led approach as being key to its success, and it’s recognition by its global peers. “At Nedbank Private Wealth, we don’t view estate planning in isolation from the provision of comprehensive wealth management advice, so we take a holistic approach to helping our clients connect their financial decisions to their life goals and aspirations thereby creating the legacy they want to leave,” Muller explains, ‘one that combines a range of interconnected services and solutions, including private banking and structured lending, risk planning, investment management, estate planning and philanthropy.
Voting open for Canon’s People Choice winner for Moments That Matter competition
Canon Central and North Africa, the official printing and imaging provider of Expo 2020 Dubai, opened its doors to the general public to vote and select a ‘People’s Choice Winner’ for ‘Moments that Matter’ competition, in an announcement today.
In alignment with Canon’s future of the planet pillar, Canon had launched its sustainability themed ‘Moments that Matter’ competition last year, aimed at engaging people and influencing sustainable development through visual storytelling at Expo 2020 Dubai
Thirty shortlisted entries from the competition are now on display for the general public to view and vote in order to select one lucky winner who’ll take home the company’s newly launched and highly-rated R5 camera along with the lens. Viewers can vote for their favourite photograph from 8 February 28 February 2022, shortlisted entries are currently being exhibited at Expo 2020’s sustainability pavilion and are also available to view at Canon’s official Facebook page here.
The competition is part of Expo’s series of interactive events and programmes to promote the power of imagery to capture, preserve and share with the world some of the most inspiring transformative ideas showcased at the exhibition. The overall competition entries have been judged by an esteemed international panel of experts, including Fiona Shields, head of photography at Guardian News and Media Group; Kathy Moran, the deputy director of photography for National Geographic magazine; Aïda Muluneh, Canon ambassador and founder and director of Addis Foto Fest; Brent Stirton, Canon ambassador and senior photographer at Getty Images, and Muhammed Muheisen, Canon ambassador, National Geographic photographer, Pulitzer prize winner and founder of Everyday Refugees.
Telco service provider Phase3 Telecom, bags multiple prestigious technology awards
The Nigerian technology giant was awarded the ‘Best Fibre Optic Infrastructure Service Provider’ and the ‘Broadband Service Provider of The Year’ at the Cyber Africa Awards and Nigeria Technology Awards (NiTA), respectively.
The Nigeria Technology Awards (NiTA) is an award ceremony organised to recognise, celebrate and reward Technology Entrepreneurs, Innovators, Academicians, Inventors and policymakers (Government) in Nigeria through online voting. The Awards aims to build a large scale and internationally recognised Technology Awards in Nigeria. The award ceremony is organised by Technology AVENUE, a leading Technology, Media, Events & Entertainment Management Company with an unparalleled and unique approach to service delivery.
Campari scores with Campari Cask Tales
Campari has found success in the Speciality Spirits Masters for its Campari Cask Tales. The award recognises and rewards outstanding products and is a stamp of approval that guarantees the highest quality of bitters. With a competitive number of entries in the Bitters/Amaro category, Campari Cask Tales took the Gold Medal with judges commenting on their enjoyment of the “bitter herbal notes” complemented by a “lovely moderately sweet background, and some citrus”.
Campari Cask Tales is a unique modern expression of the classic Campari. Finished in bourbon barrels, to smooth bitter notes with fruity, sweet, and creamy notes, the liquid provides delicate oaky smokiness to the legendary bitter Campari. Especially crafted to inspire bartenders to experiment within the world of mixology and create their own masterpieces, Campari Cask Tales is truly multi-dimensional.
New Southern Energy wins Business Excellence Award for off-grid systems
One of South Africa’s leading solar energy companies, New Southern Energy has scooped the international Company of the Year, Busines Excellence Award for Off-Grid Systems. The prestigious award was presented at the Africa Rooftop Solar Congress Awards, hosted by First View and Solar Quarter, attended by role players, stakeholders and thought leaders across the industry from various countries last week.
When the award was announced, it was explained that the leading renewable energy solutions provider has shown its ability to work with multiple battery and battery inverter technologies, has the expertise to work with extremely unstable voltages, and has proven its expertise to ensure grid reliability in the systems they develop. New Southern Energy first made headlines when they built South Africa’s first floating solar plant at the Marlenique Estate in the Western Cape.
