The third and final talk of the Effie Effectiveness 2009 Talk Series held on May 6 provided a round of insights from some of the best in the business. The talk series at the Cybertorium, Menara Star in Petaling Jaya is held to give insights on what makes up a winning entry.
The first speaker, Nichola Rastrick, Millward Brown Singapore managing director touches on ‘Ad Returns: The Long Term Investment Plan’. She highlighted the importance of setting campaign objectives at the onset of the creative in order to enhance effectiveness of a campaign. After objectives are set, the framework to measure the effectiveness has to be designed to provide readings against the goals. Finally, measurement has to follow to complete the process and map out the bigger picture. Rastrick, an expert in branding communications research explained that ad effectiveness also involved creativity and that brand equity matters. “It’s not all about transactional data. The connection between consumer and brands are much like dating. The deeper the connection is between consumers and brands, the more they will spend on the brand in the category because of the bond.
According to Rastrick, research has proven that ad returns is always a long term investment plan. “Effectiveness does not happen overnight because it involves changing behaviour and attitudes of people but consumers remember ads that have more impact,” she said, adding that continuous tracking will help in effectiveness. Next up was Henry Tan, COO Customer and Content of ASTRO TV who interestingly noted, “It is not advertising that makes the business go round. It is the business that makes advertising go round.” These were one of the many important points he stressed on during his talk, ‘Common Sense Effectiveness’ in which he gave the audience eight thoughts to chew on:
1
What are you really trying to achieve?
Objectives should be to increase the business and not solely focus on the brand.
2
Who are you trying to persuade?
Keeping in mind a specific target audience is important while keeping it relevant to all.
3
Are you asking the right questions?
Do not be derailed by the process or anxious to acquire information.
4
Quality vs Quantity
It is not how many you attract but how many are relevant.
5
Effectiveness vs Efficiency
It is not about how fast you are going but knowing your exact direction.
6
Awareness vs Affinity
Knowing the brand name is not as important as knowing what it stands for.
7
Consistency and Continuity
Portraying a constant image all year round is important compared to a one-hit-wonder campaign.
8
Priorities and Phasing
Phasing communication and activities will bring more effectiveness.
Finally Alan Fairnington, Chief Judge of Malaysia Effie Awards and Chief Executive of Batey (Pte) Ltd, Singapore talked on ‘How Sir Isaac Newton and Bishop Berkeley established the importance of the Effie’. Quoting Bishop William Berkeley, “To be is to be perceived” he explains that an advertisement which is never observed and acknowledged does not exist in our commercial world. This is why the Effie awards recognises communication creativity which has been proven to work in the real world. Referring to Newton’s third law “to every action there is an equal and opposite reaction”, he says that to every ad consumers have an equal and opposite reaction. This is due to their mindset or biasness thus advertisers need to find a way to gain acceptance in their minds. He also lists six ways to win an Effie which I will summarise in the following paragraph: Tell a compelling story specifying objectives and benchmarks for success, give a rich description of your target audience, reveal your creative strategy, explain your media strategy demonstrating a deep understanding of your audience mind set and behaviour, explain your creative work in the most pleasurable way to read and don’t be boring – make your submission logical, creative and entertaining. The Malaysia Effie Awards 2009 competition is open to any and all marketing communications efforts, whether full campaigns or unique efforts within a campaign. Campaigns that ran in Malaysia between 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009 are eligible for entry. Campaigns may have been introduced earlier but must have run during this period and have data relative to the qualifying time. Deadline for Entries to the 2009 competition is 10 July 2009. Late entries are given an extended deadline to 24 July 2009 and have to pay a higher entry fee.