All set for Asian marketing effectiveness 2012

THE 2012 Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival (AME), the region’s learning platform and awards for effectiveness, will take place on April 26 and 27 in Shanghai, China.

Cannes Lions, which together with Haymarket are joint organisers of the AME, says in a statement that entries can now be submitted at [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

“Attended by senior marketers, heads of agencies, brand pioneers, consumer and customer insight professionals and media owners, the event offers a series of thought-provoking seminars presented by leading industry figures and a showcase of the best marketing effectiveness work produced in the region,” it says.

Now in its 10th year, the awards, which are designed to celebrate the outstanding collaborative efforts of client marketers and agencies, have come to be recognised as the region’s most rigorous effectiveness competition.

Chairing the 2012 awards, James Thompson, Asia-Pacific chief marketing officer of Diageo, will lead a jury comprising of top international and regional industry experts from both client and agency backgrounds.

Thompson, who is based in Singapore, has worked for Diageo since 1994 in various roles including president of Guinness Canada. Prior to joining Diageo he worked for Unilever for 10 years in the United Kingdom, the United States and Europe-based roles.

Commenting on his chairing role, Thompson says: “At the heart of our industry is our passion for creativity and Asia proudly presents some of the greatest marketing minds. It’s sure to be a tough contest but one that I am hugely looking forward to. The Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival helps to put Asia’s creative brand building on the global map and I am honoured to be part of that and this year’s jury president.”

Terry Savage, festival chairman of Cannes Lions, says: “The continuous growth of these awards highlight how uniting innovative and creative ideas with effectiveness achieve great results in a growing region.”

In 2011, more than 850 submissions from 19 countries were entered into the AME awards, making it the largest regional marketing effectiveness competition in the region.

In a separate announcement, Cannes Lions says Mobile has been added as a new awards section at its International Festival of Creativity to be held in June next year.

Mobile Lions will reward the best work which lives on or is activated by a mobile device, app or mobile web.

Tom Eslinger, digital creative director of Saatchi & Saatchi Worldwide, will preside over the Mobile Lions jury in its inaugural year.

The judging criteria will be based on creativity and the idea, execution (usability, user experience, craft and design), relevance to the mobile platform and results (level of user engagement and any quantifiable outcomes).

The categories for the new Mobile Lions will include Creative Use of Technology, Mobile Websites and Web Apps, Mobile Apps, Tablet Apps, Games, Rich Media Mobile Advertising and Integrated Campaigns led by Mobile.