The Advertising Club has always said that its flagship Abby Awards is ‘’for the industry, by the industry and of the industry”. And this is what Ajay Kakar, Ajay Kakar, Chairperson of Awards Governing Council Abby Awards 2024 powered by One Show and Managing Committee Member The Advertising Club, told MxMIndia in a virtual chat with MxMindia on Thursday evening.
Like last year’s edition, the Abby Awards are powered by One Show and have received a total of 3506 entries as against 3301 last year. As many as 73 entrants for the Media Abby as against 63 last year. In Creative, there are 198 entrants as against 181 last year.
The total number of entries for Media Abby were 1258 this year (up from 1019 last year) and in the various categories under Creative, it’s been 2248 this year, as against 2282 last year. Digital, Mobile, and Technology, have collectively garnered 626 entries from 75 companies.
There were 23 jury chairs and 204 jurors across 23 categories. Of these there were 53 new, young, award-winning judges. There were 68 women amongst the judges (nine jury chairs are women).
So what’s new this year? Well, Lowe Lintas and McCann have entered in a bigger way, we are told. DDB Mudra and Famous Innovations are also there. Ogilvy continues to stay away.
A ‘Best Use of AI’ sub-category has been introduced as also Copywriting for web and digital craft has been added in still digital and digital verticals. A new vertical called Health has been added with sub-categories such as OTC Oral Medicines, OTC Products, Nutraceuticals among others. A new specialist agency award that has been introduced is Health Specialist of the Year for the best performance by a company in this vertical.
If you were wondering why we didn’t carry this report earlier, the answer is simple: yesterday, the focus couldn’t have not been on the Zee-Sony merger. Last Friday, The Advertising Club hosted the newest edition of the ‘Effie India Awards 2023’ Mondelez India was judged the EFFIE India Client of the Year, while McCann Worldgroup India was named Effie India Agency of the Year. The coveted Grand Effie was won by Enormous for Jaquar’s campaign ‘Unimaginable Brand Extensions.’
Grand EFFIE 2023
EFFIE India Client of the Year
Setting a new milestone, Effie India, informed the officebearers, garnered a record-breaking 1276 entries this year, the highest in its 23-year history, with participation from 79 agencies.
Said Prasoon Joshi, CEO & CCO at McCann Worldgroup India and Chairman, Asia Pacific: “I am extremely delighted and proud of McCann winning the Agency of the Year at the Effie India 2023 Awards. Today, In the world’s changing landscape where our industry faces extreme challenges in defining the approach to the future, McCann India is an organisation which holds ideas and thinking at the core of our business and propels our business and clients forward. Effectiveness comes from this culture of belief in creative excellence driven by strong consumer insights. This is McCann India’s hallmark supported by a robust our McCann Global’s culture of strong creative and strategic leadership What is remarkable is the the width and the diverse set of businesses we have won awards for Ujjivan Small Finance Bank, Nestle India, MasterCard, Reckitt, Dabur, Hero and many others.”
Speaking before the presentations started, Rana Barua, President, The Advertising Club, said: “The Effies stand as a testament to the power of impactful storytelling and strategic brilliance in our industry. My heartfelt gratitude to the advertising fraternity for their unwavering support, making these awards a celebration of creativity and effectiveness. Congratulations to all the winners for crafting campaigns that not only captivate but also leave a lasting impact on our audiences. Your creativity continues to shape the future of our industry. Here’s to another year of pushing boundaries and inspiring innovation in the world of advertising.”
Elaborating on the awards, Mitrajit Bhattacharya, Chairperson, Effie India, said: “Effie India continues to showcase its unwavering commitment to celebrating excellence in advertising, honouring both exceptional work and the talented individuals behind it. I’d like to extend my gratitude to the esteemed judges who dedicated their time and expertise to assess a remarkable 1276 entries, setting a new record. Their commitment is truly commendable. A heartfelt thank you also goes out to our sponsors, the entire Ad Club managing committee, the Effie committee, Effie New York, and The Ad Club secretariat for their tireless efforts in making it a resounding celebration of creativity and innovation in the advertising industry.”
Added Pradeep Dwivedi, Co-Chairperson, Effie India: “In yet another splendid year of the Effie India Awards, what stands out is how agencies and brands continue to put in their hard work. Their meticulous contributions in ideation, flawless execution, and the art of brand-building are truly commendable. Effie has always added and will continue to add a profound insight into the concept of advertising awards. A big congratulations to all the winners and the participants.”
Celebrity Cricket League was Associate Sponsor of the event while Craving Digital was Imagination Partner, Diageo India being Celebration Partner, and Heineken Silver Beer was Beverage Sponsor.
McCann Worldgroup India has won the coveted advertising and marketing communications mandate for Air India, the Tata group promoted global airline, following an extensive multi-agency pitch, which we learn including longstanding agency Wunderman Thompson, FCB and DDB Mudra.. The agency will develop a new brand platform and develop a comprehensive range of multi-channel marketing communication. And we presume the Maharaja, the mascot that has greeted passengers since 1946, will be retained.
The selection process for this partnership entailed a rigorous evaluation as part of an exhaustive multi-agency pitch.
Nipun Aggarwal
Said Nipun Aggarwal, Chief Commercial and Transformation Officer, Air India: “We are building Air India as a ‘Global Airline with an Indian Heart’. This is a brand that is close to the heart of flyers around the world, and the new Air India will be a manifestation of the aspirations of the global Indian. With McCann Worldgroup as a partner, we expect to transform the brand into one of the most admired and trusted brands in India and overseas.”
Prasoon Joshi, CEO and CCO at McCann Worldgroup India and Chairman, Asia Pacific, led the pitch alongside a dedicated team of local and global partners.
Prasoon Joshi
Delighted about the win, Joshi said: “Air India is a brand that inspires us, and we are excited to partner with them as they chart a new course. Our McCann Global CEO, Daryl Lee, has genuinely supported and guided us. Also, support and input came in from Harjot Singh ( Global CSO) and John Wright who were an integral part of the pitch along with the stellar senior management colleagues Jitender Dabas, Alok Lall, Ashish Chakravarty, and their teams,” adding: “We look forward to collaborating with Air India and offering the best-in-class strategic and creative services that build on and take the brand to newer heights.”
The news is as big as, say, an Aamir Khan returning to accept film awards. And it’s set to sizzle adland in the run-up to Goafest 2023, scheduled to be held from May 24 to 26. Yes, the Mullen Lowe Lintas Group is participating in the Creative Abby.
Lowe Lintas, or the Mullen Lowe Lintas Group, is entering the Abby Awards or the Abby One Show, as they are called.
The news is confirmed, and we couldn’t hold on from breaking it even as we’ve been watching the endless analyses of the Karnataka Assembly Elections.
Lintas, as the agency has been known for eons, has stayed away from the Advertising Club awards for over two decades. Several attempts have been made through the years with the various captains the agency has had, but the response has been a ‘no’. It may be noted that the agency does participate in the Effie Awards, and has also been the top agency there (not always, but has been over years), and has gone to town about that accolade.
So it’s not that the folks at Lowe hate awards or the Ad Club, it’s just that there has been an allergy towards creative awards. And even an overdoes of Allegra hasn’t worked.
But things have changed at Lowe Lintas. There is a new A-team there, and the folks at the Advertising Club could get them to see reason.
The number of entries may not be too many, but the news is already being welcomed by a cross-section of the advertising fraternity MxMIndia disturbed on a Saturday mid-morning.
According to unconfirmed information we have, Ogilvy has continued to stay away from Abby but some others like Wunderman Thompson and McCann are back.
Famous Innovations has announced the appointment of Sharon Varghese as the Head of Business, Bengaluru. Varghese joins the company holding 18 years of experience in the fields of advertising and public relations. Prior to this, Varghese worked at McCann Worldgroup for 5 years as Group Business Director, handling clients like Britannia, Flipkart, Qualcomm, and several others.
Mithila Saraf, CEO, Famous Innovations said: “Sharon’s diverse and unique background means that she brings a very unique perspective and balance of business, brand and creative thinking. While her fundamentals of marketing are strong, she’s also ahead of our constantly changing industry and is keenly interested in driving that change, for our agency and our brands. We’re excited about this next chapter for Famous Bangalore.”
GreenCell Mobility (GreenCell), an e-mobility company, announced the appointment of McCann Worldgroup to manage the brand design and communication duties for its yet to be launched B2C brand. McCann Worldgroup will manage the business from its Mumbai office.
The company recently announced its plans for an initial roll-out of 750 premium AC e-buses across key intercity routes in Southern, Northern and Western India as part of its B2C business foray.
Ashok Agarwal
Speaking on this occasion, Ashok Agarwal, MD & CEO, GreenCell Mobility, said: “India is at the cusp of e-Mobility revolution, and we are collaborating with all stakeholders not only to incubate the ecosystem but to redefine the future of shared mobility in our country. We are happy to partner with McCann Worldgroup on this ambitious mission and very confident of their insight-led creative thinking based on a deep understanding of customer behaviour. With this association, we are looking to build a truly admired and valued Shared e-mobility services brand.”
Himanshu Saxena
Added Himanshu Saxena, Executive VP & Head of Integration at McCann Worldgroup, Mumbai: “E-Mobility is already beginning to transform our lives, and GreenCell’s introduction of large-scale mass transport solutions in this space will completely redefine the idea of road travel in India. We are extremely proud to be part of this journey of building this brand from its roots and are looking forward to creating a new benchmark of brand-building in this exciting new space.”
If you don’t see the customary photograph of the winning agency folk in jubilation on stage, it’s because this is an awards event being held in the pandemic.
Although the restrictions on holding events has eased, the Effie Awards is different. In normal years, one needs to visit an ENT specialist on the day after. Given all the hullabaloo that happens. Heck, are we getting confused with the Emvies. Perhaps yes. It’s been a while since the Advertising Club has had one of its top draw award shows, and although the International Advertising Assoication conducted three awards in Mumbai in the last month-odd, the Ad Club Effies are decidedly the most coveted.
The reason is simple: It measure efficiency of the creative. And it’s a part of a global network of awards. So the scores here add up to the global rankings and which are exceedingly critical for worldwide client pitches.
Under normal circumstances, an MxM report wouldn’t have highlighted the sponsors of the event, but given the times we live in, every sponsorship needs to be recognised. So: Colors was presenting sponsor. The event was powered by MX Player and Aditya Birla Capital was Category Sponsor.
So you’ve read the headline, but here’s it again: Hindustan Unilever and McCann Worldgroup India bagged the Client and the Agency of the Year titles respectively while The Ogilvy Group and Mondelez India were awarded the Grand Effie for Cadbury Dairy Milk’s campaign “Melting Power Distance”.
Effie Awards 2021 were held virtually this year, so it was minus all the hooting and cheer, and minus Brian Tellis as the sponsor. The only bright spot was that the event started on time ended way before most people have consumed their third.
The good news is that the Ad Club received a record 950 entries and saw participation from 51 agencies.
Speaking about the participants and winners at the coveted Effies, Partha Sinha, President of The Advertising Club said:“Looking at the cases that have won here today, you will know for a fact that this is the highest level of award in this country. Effie India today is the most definitive award in the country – and is revered by both the client and the agency. I want to thank every single member of the jury, the participating agencies and the sponsors. You know that this award has reached the level thanks to all of you. Let the celebrations continue but more importantly let the effectiveness culture continue. As I had mentioned before we are going to hold Effie effectiveness workshops in Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru. Watch this space for more details.”
Elaborating on the awards, Mitrajit Bhattacharya, Chairperson, Effie India said: “It gives me great pleasure to deliver the first virtual awards presentation of Effie India. It has been a long and tough journey over the past one and half years to bring this to life. To judge 950 entries over two rounds of judging by 520 judges, with minimal physical meetings has been quite a task. I thank each participating agency and client for their support. And a big thank you to our sponsors, the Ad Club managing committee, Effie committee and the Ad Club secretariat to make this possible.”
Moov, tpain relief creahe m brand, launched its new campaign- ‘Zindagi Ke Beech Dard Na Aaye.’ The two films for the two brand variants – Moov and Moov Strong aim to inspire women across ages to pursue their dreams and aspirations where body pain will not be a deterrent in any way.
Said Dilen Gandhi, Regional Marketing Director, South Asia – Health & Nutrition, Reckitt: “Since its launch, Moov ads have been focused on women who would stop at nothing, no matter what challenges or pain they encounter in their path to reach and fulfil their ambitions. This campaign yet again is a celebration of women and families who stand by each other and come back ‘Strong’er despite any hurdles that they may face. While our products can be effectively used by any individual experiencing pain, our ads in a small way pay a tribute to all those women who constantly do that extra bit to make their own dreams and the dreams of their loved ones come true.”
Added Kapil Batra, Creative Head, Delhi, McCann Worldgroup: “Moov has always believed that pain should never come in the way of our pursuits. Continuing with this thought, our new campaign is an ode to today’s woman, who would like to chase goals come what may. The two stories capture this and shows how Moov enables our women protagonists to live their life just the way they want to, i.e. being unstoppable.”
Wavemaker has named Shipra Roy as its new Global Chief People, Inclusion and Culture Officer alongside Helen Price as Global Chief Investment Officer. Both will be based in London and join CEO Toby Jenner’s global leadership team.
Roy, who comes to Wavemaker from a position as Chief People Officer for McCann UK and Europe, will oversee all aspects of the people function to ensure that Wavemaker continues to attract the best talent and creates great careers regardless of level, role or geography. Price joins Wavemaker from IPG Mediabrands where she was Head of Global Accountability and Investment. At Wavemaker her focus will be on creating value for clients and commercial opportunities for the agency.
Said Jenner: “Even in the face of a global pandemic, Wavemaker has had an incredibly strong year and, as our growth journey continues, I’m pleased to welcome Helen and Shipra to the team. They are both tremendous resources in their fields, and I look forward to working closely with them to help us deliver positively provoking, innovative and commercially sound solutions for both our clients and our people.”
Bajaj Electricals Ltd has launched ‘Kaam Ka LED, Kamaal Ka LED, Bajaj LED’ campaign for its range of LED lights.
Speaking about the campaign, Krishna Raman, Business Head- Consumer Products, Bajaj Electricals Ltd said: “The ‘Kaam Ka LED, Kamaal Ka LED’, Bajaj LED’s campaign focusses on the most promising LED products available in the market. We have always believed in enhancing the quality of life and spreading joy with sustainability which has helped us become consumer’s original choice. With this range of Bajaj Ivora LEDs we have tried to go beyond the basic utility of a light bulb and incorporated more features in a way that translates into providing solutions for day-to-day activities. At the same time, we have made sure that these new sets of technology are available for all at ease and convenience. As one of the pioneers in the Indoor & Outdoor lighting, we consistently try to ideate and develop newer, more functional products.”
The campaign has been conceptualised by Bajaj Electricals’ and its creative agency McCann.
Times Network has announced its foray with its Hindi News Channel, Times Now Navbharat in HD on August 1, 2021. As announced earlier, Navika Kumar will be Editor-in-Chief and air seven primetime shows hosted by anchors including Sushant Sinha, Padmaja Joshi, Ankit Tyagi and Meenakshi Kandwal. These include Rashtravad at 5pm, Log Tantra at 6pm, Dhakad Exclusive at 7pm, Sawal Public Ka at 8pm, News Ki PaathShala at 9pm and Opinion India at 10 pm.
MK Anand
Commenting on the launch, MK Anand, MD & CEO, Times Network said: “We have dominated the English news category with our flagship brand, Times Now, ever since we came into the space. We are now thrilled to mark our debut into Indian language News with our maiden Hindi news channel. We believe News has the power to transform and create impact for a better society. With Times Now Navbharat, we are pioneering disruption with a powerful proposition centred on the core promise of bringing news that will drive change, where we follow a Content philosophy that puts Social Impact and not Ratings at the centre. I am confident Times Now Navbharat will contribute to further improve the Hindi News broadcast space which is already served by some of the best Media brands.”
The the network has planned a marketing campaign across Hindi Speaking Markets. Conceptualised by McCann Worldgroup India, the channel will unveil its brand film with the brand manifesto written by awardwinning lyricist and McCann CEO & CCO Prasoon Joshi. The network’s outdoor promotion spans over 400 sites across 19 cities including Mumbai, Delhi, Lucknow, Patna, Jaipur, Dehradun, Indore, Punjab, Raipur and Varanasi. The network also plans to splash its print ads across leading Hindi and English dailies of the country.
Meanwhile, the channel has announced the roping in of leading advertisers like Kent RO System, Century Ply, Radico Khaitan, Vedanta, Medibuddy, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Darwin Platform Group of Companies, Mylab Discovery Solutions, Meghdoot Herbal, Kirloskar Brothers amongst others.
Wild Stone Code, the premium male grooming-personal care brand from the house of McNroe Consumer Products has launched its TVC with the tagline- ‘Enjoy The Start’.
The ad films were conceptualised by McCann
Said Ankit Daga, Head – Business Development, McNroe Consumers Products: “Wild Stone Code is our premium offering and has built its set of loyalists. The current communication has been developed to highlight the mood transformation one feels while indulging with a fine fragrance. We hope the communication helps to build the association of Code with a premium deodorant experience, distinct from rest of the offerings in the market”.
Added Samrat Ghosh, General Manager Marketing: “Code communication has been developed to build the brand as the best in class offering, appealing to the evolved metrosexual man. We have built on sensorial experience leading to a dreamland kind of transportation and restaged the brand sign off to enjoy the start to drive product benefit and sensorial”.
