EFFIE Awards held

Mumbai: The notable feature about the EFFIE Awards — which had 16 finalists all put together in the consumer products, consumer durables and services categories — was that each one of the participants got an award.

But the biggest of them all, the Golden EFFIE, and the only golden EFFIE went to Coca-Cola — agency: McCann Erickson, client: Coca-Cola. In the consumer products categories two bronzes were given to Tide (agency: Leo Burnett, client: P&G) and Lifebuouy (agency: Lowe, client: HLL). Three joint silvers went to Minto (agency: FCB Ulka, client: ITC Foods), Sprite (agency: O&M, client: Coca-Cola India) and Center Shock (agency: O&M, client: Perfetti).

In the consumer durables category three bronze and two silver EFFIEs were awarded. The winners included Tata Indigo (agency: FCB Ulka, client: Tata Motors), LG Golden Eye (agency: Lowe India, client: LG Electronics), Daikin (agency: Rediffusion DY&R, client: Daikin Shriram), Asian Paint Exterior Emulsions (agency: Ogilvy & Mather, client: Asian Paints) and Scorpio (agency: Interface Communications, client: Mahindra & Mahindra).

In the services category five EFFIEs were awarded which included four silvers and one bronze. The bronze went to Prudential ICICI Mutual Fund (agency: Ogilvy & Mather, client: Prudential ICICI Asset Management Company). The silver EFFIE awardees included MAX (agency: Euro RSCG, client: Sony Entertainment Television), Pulse Polio Immunisation (agency: O&M, client: UNICEF), Balbir Pashsa (agency: Lowe India, client: Population Services International), and last but not the least, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance (agency: Lowe India, client: ICICI Prudential Life Insurance).

In sum McCann Erickson: 1 Gold, O&M: 4 silver and 1 bronze, Lowe India: 2 silver and 2 bronze, FCB Ulka: 1 silver and 1 bronze, Euro RSCG: 1 silver, Interface Communications: 1 silver Leo Burnett: 1 bronze and Rediffusion: 1 bronze.

The stars of the evening were without doubt McCann Erickson and O&M, followed by Lowe and FCB-Ulka to a lesser extent. These four agencies claimed 14 of the 18 awards distributed, accounting for seven of the nine silver Effies given away. McCann's achievement was all the more notable as it had only one entry, Coca-Cola, in this year's finals, which in retrospect was enough.

The 'Thanda matlab Coca-Cola' campaign which is said to have revived Coke's declining fortunes in India raced ahead in the consumer products category cold and won the only gold EFFIE to be awarded this year. Further, the campaign also got the much-coveted Grand EFFIE (the Best of Show), making it one of the most-awarded Indian campaigns in recent advertising history.

O&M, the other creative stalwart, achieved the distinction of winning six EFFIEs — comprising four silver and two bronze with silver each going to Sprite, Center Shock (consumer products) Asian Paints Exterior Emulsions (in Consumer Durables) and Pulse Polio Immunisation Programme (in Services), and one bronze EFFIE to Prudential ICICI Mutual Fund (also in Services). O&M also won the popular award — the People's Choice Trophy — for its brilliant presentation of the Center Shock case study.

EFFIE Awards 2003: Case studies presentations
The case studies presented in a span of four hours prior to the EFFIE Awards function succeeded in providing a rare insight into the working of creative minds. Perhaps the most straightforward presentation was that of McCann Erickson for Coca-Cola, category: consumer products, client: Coca-Cola India.

McCann Erickson's presentation focused on the manner the agency succeeded in changing the image of cola from an elite and western world product to that of a refreshment with a more earthy and unaffected feel. The by-now legendary Aamir Khan ads, all of which were woven around regional stereotypes, succeeded in driving home the point that Coca-Cola was a product for the man on the street. The proof the success of the campaign, the agency said, was that Coke managed to become 'the most preferred cola brand' from being an also ran.

The brilliant Center Shock presentation by O&M client: Perfetti Van Malle, category: consumer products cued itself into the Indian film clichés to prove how the brand became the leader in the chewing gum market — with 35-per cent market share — in just six months. Presenters Abhijit Avasthi (of O&M) and Sameer Suneja (of Perfetti Van Melle India) sporting Centre Shock hairdos, stressed on how the campaign succeeded in creating the required excitement and buzz around the brand enabling the brand to achieve 700-per cent growth in five years.

The Sprite presentation also by O&M (which got for it a silver EFFIE) was woven around the no nonsense brand image of Sprite, 'no gyan only taste' enabling the brand to achieve a 62 per cent growth in the last year.

Lowe after O&M was another agency to pick up a large number of EFFIEs, four to be precise and evenly split between silver and bronze. Lowe's campaigns for Balbir Pasha Ko Aids Hoga Kya and ICICI Prudential Life Insurance gave it silver EFFIEs (both in the services category), while its campaigns for Lifebuoy (in consumer products) and LG Golden Eye (in consumer durables) won bronze EFFIEs.

The Balbir Pasha campaign, category: services, client: Population Services International was a study in the importance of listening to the consumer. The agency said interviews with its target audience provided it with a rare insight into the mind of the high-risk sexual behaviour consumer, which enabled the agency to come up with the extremely innovative Balbir Pasha campaign. Result was increased awareness of Aids among target group.

The Lifebuoy campaign for client Hindustan Lever Ltd focused on the repositioning of the Lifebuoy brand from a masculine choice to one preferred by the women of the house. Result was that brand actually grew by 5 per cent from a former declining sales positioning.

FCB-Ulka's EFFIEs, included a silver for Mint-O (in consumer products) and a bronze for Tata Indigo (in consumer durables) for which the agency claimed that Mint-O's market share jumped 5 per cent to 41 per cent in a year while the Tata Indigo had become a leading car in its segment.

All in all the presentations were a creative mix of talent and the innovation. Most importantly the presenters succeeded in putting forth the case that their creative endeavours actually resulted in achieving the litmus test of advertising and that is increased sales growth for the brands in question.