Are marketers impressed by agencies winning metals?
As the Cannes excitement simmers down, leading advertisers share their take on awards, its impact on business & the role awards play in narrowing down on comm partners

As advertisers and their agencies return from the much touted Mecca of advertising, Cannes Festival of Creativity 2013, one wonders whether all the hype and monies spent convert to positive impact on a brand’s business. After all, the Festival did receive a record 35,765 entries from 92 countries this year.
Closer home, we have the EMVIES, ABBYs and the EFFIES – not counting numerous other smaller awards – all consuming precious time and effort.
While agencies who participate and agencies who don’t participate maintain distinctly different views on the importance of awards, as do agencies who have won awards this year versus agencies who didn’t, it all boils down to the big monies that are being invested in this business.
“Awards don't drive business results, insightful innovation backed by strategic and creatively effective marketing does. However, an effective ad can and should win awards too,” shared Shireesh Joshi, COO, Strategic Marketing Group at Godrej.
So what do awards mean from the client’s perspective? Have they just turned into a big celebration for the advertising agencies? Anil Jayaraj, CMO, Pidilite Industries is optimistic when he said, “There are awards and then there are awards. I would prefer creative effectiveness awards and rate them as fairly important. Creative awards are also important as they are noticed by people for craftsmanship. But awards should work towards making the brand effective, which is why creative effectiveness awards in my book are far more important.”
If India’s performance at Cannes this year in the creative effectiveness category is anything to go by, there needs to be a renewed focus on driving effectiveness.
“Good advertising executions are always appreciated. I, however, do believe that there is much more to advertising than mere good execution. The strategy behind the execution is equally important. I wish there were more awards that focused on strategy rather than the creative output,” said Harish Bijoor Brand Expert and CEO, Harish Bijoor Consults.
Driving brand solutions to winning awards
The most important factor for a brand remains its business, so does the fact that an agency has come back victorious after bagging a slew of awards important to a brand and business owner when deciding a communication partner?
“Yes, awards are important but they are not the only criteria; brand understanding plays an important role as well. If I had to allocate a percentage to how much importance I give to an agency winning awards, it would not be more than 10 percent. Maybe, I have would have given awards more importance earlier, but scam ads have shaken my belief in genuine advertising. The primary reason for advertising is to drive business. Advertising which is not used to drive effectiveness and impact of the business will not drive results as well, said Mayank Shah, Group Product Manager, Parle Products.
Scam ads seem to have marred honest advertising. Advertisers and a number of leading marketers like Shah feel that celebrating of creative genius is great, but increasingly efforts are being put only to win awards as the main objective. The focus shift from building brands to just winning awards has obviously taken its toll on the credibility attached to awards as well. Shah added, “The criteria of judging awards are not upto the mark anymore. The norms are not in place to measure effectiveness outcome.”
While the philosophy and intent of encouraging and motivating creative thinking is right, an over dose of scam ads this year saw awards fast losing this original intent. The shift from providing solutions to an expression of creativity is not deeming well for the fraternity as a whole.
“We need an agency that can ensure consumers understand our brands and products correctly and effectively. They need to be masters in their crafts as we (clients) need to be in ours. Awards (especially those given by peer associations) should be looked at only as a part of evaluating what an agency's capability is. Performance in pitches, credentials, past experience with agency and individuals, all play a role in that decision,” opined Joshi, on his perspective of appointing an agency.
Awards definitely do their job in winning recognition for the agency and motivating upcoming talent, and giving the much needed encouragement and boost. It is all upto the creative fraternity how they make awards matter, and drive effectiveness and impact through their craft.
“The true-blue award that is cherished by a client is one that is not for his advertising, but one that goes straight to his topline and bottomline. Sales, repeat sales, more sales and more and more sales is it! It is the ultimate reward for good advertising,” concluded Bijoor.
Amen to that.
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E4M Our strategy is to target younger audiences through Sports: Rajiv Dubey, Dabur
The Head of Media at Dabur India spoke exclusively to exchange4media on the World Cup, associating with Indian Idol, the company’s digital spending and much more
With quirky campaigns, memes and moment marketing, timed with the ongoing World Cup and particularly the India-Pakistan matches, Dabur India has got considerable consumer attention for its popular brands – Red Paste, Cool King Hair Oil, Chyawanprash, Dabur Vita and the recently launched Bae Fresh Gel toothpaste.
The 140-year-old company is going big on key sporting events, World Television Premiere (WTP) movies and reality shows. It is now gearing up to become the title sponsor of popular talent show ‘Indian Idol’ on Sony TV for the first time, shared Rajiv Dubey, who leads the media strategy at Dabur.
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Swapan Seth's new book 'COOL' is out
The book is a reflection of the author's 'eclectic taste across categories'
Advertising professional and art collector Swapan Seth has announced the launch of his new book COOL. The book is described as "a ready reckoner to the hip and the happening, of the known and the very unknown."
The book is a reflection of the author's "eclectic taste across categories: from boltholes to exotic hideaways."
COOL has been published by Simon & Schuster India and is available on Amazon.
Seth is an ad veteran with a long and illustrious career in the industry. He became the youngest-ever Creative Director at Clarion at age 24. He was VP at 26 at Trikaya Grey. Two years later, he started his agency Equus.
He writes for publications such as The Economic Times, Hindustan Times and India Today. This is his second book and he has previously published THIS IS ALL I HAVE TO SAY.
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Disney Star signs 9 sponsors for Asia Cup PAK
Charged by Thums Up, Nerolac Paint+, Amazon Pay, Jindal Panther, My11Circle, MRF, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5, Wild Stone and Thums Up come on board
e4m Staff Disney Star has signed nine broadcast and digital streaming sponsors for the upcoming Asia Cup.
Charged by Thums Up, Nerolac Paint+, Amazon Pay, Jindal Panther, My11Circle, MRF, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5, Wild Stone and Thums Up have come on board for the upcoming tournament.
As reported earlier by exchange4media, Disney Star has sought Rs 26 crore for the co-presenting sponsorship on TV and Rs 30 crore for Disney+ Hotstar.
According to industry sources, the associate sponsorship on Star Sports has been priced at Rs 19.66 crore, whereas for the ‘powered by’ sponsorship on Disney+ Hotstar, the broadcaster is seeking Rs 18 crore.
As per the information available with exchange4media, Disney+ Hotstar has three sponsorship tiers-- co-presenting (Rs 30 crore), powered by (Rs 18 crore) and associate sponsorship (Rs 12 crore). The broadcaster is offering an estimated reach of 120-140 million for co-presenting sponsors, 90-100 million for powered by and 60-70 million for associate sponsorship.
A spot buy for 10 seconds has been priced at Rs 25 lakh for the India vs Pakistan matches, while for the non-India matches, the ad rate for 10 second is Rs 2.3 lakh. The India matches plus the final for ODIs has been priced at Rs 17 lakh per 10 seconds.
Asia Cup is scheduled to be held from 30 August, 2023, to September 17, 2023.
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Sorted 360 wins creative & social media mandate of Reliance Mall
The agency will manage offline and online campaigns for Reliance Mall
Sorted 360, an integrated creative and social media agency, has won the mandate to providing brand solutions for Reliance Malls across India.
“Sorted 360 is set to enhance Reliance Malls' market presence with their unparalleled creative prowess and strategic thinking,” read a press release.
“Sorted 360's commitment to pushing the boundaries of creative communication aligns perfectly with Reliance Malls' ethos. With a pan-India presence spanning across 19 cities and growing, Reliance Malls has consistently captivated customers by offering an array of Reliance brands and third-party fashion & lifestyle brands. The mall has established an unparalleled connection with its patrons through superior quality, a remarkable value proposition, and an unmatched shopping experience,” it read further.
"We are thrilled to welcome Sorted 360 as our trusted partner in advancing our brand presence across the nation," said the Head of Marketing at Relaice Malls. "Their proven expertise in retail, shopping center management, and innovative creative strategies make them the perfect fit for our vision."
"Partnering with Reliance Malls is a testament to our commitment to shaping extraordinary brand experiences," remarked Prerana Anatharam, Co-founder of Sorted 360. "We are excited to leverage our strategic and creative acumen to further elevate Reliance Malls as the epitome of convenience, choice, and excellence."
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KlugKlug onboards Hemang Mehta as Country Manager for Indias
Mehta was most recently Head of Agency Relationships at Network 18 Media & Investments
KlugKlug has appointed Hemang Mehta as its Country Manager for India.
Mehta will play a pivotal role in driving KlugKlug's growth and expansion within the Indian market and be responsible for Sales & GTM Strategy
Prior to that, he has also represented organisations like Exponential (now VDX.tv), India Today Digital and Rediff.com. His expertise spans various domains including digital media sales, mobile marketing, media planning, and buying, social media marketing, and more.
Hemang Mehta expressed his enthusiasm about joining KlugKlug, saying, "I am thrilled to be a part of KlugKlug, a forward-thinking platform that is reshaping the influencer marketing landscape. As much as I look forward to collaborating with the exuberant team at KlugKlug, I am super excited to interact with the brands to deliver powerful data-backed Influencer solutions that will guarantee business outcomes."
Commenting on the appointment, Kalyan Kumar, Co-Founder and CEO of KlugKlug, stated, "We are excited to welcome Hemang Mehta to our team as the Country Manager for India. His extensive experience in digital media sales and marketing will be instrumental in driving our efforts to provide influencer marketing solutions to our clients. We believe Hemang's leadership will be key in scaling our operations and expanding our reach within the Indian market."
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