Ogilvy, BBDO, DDB lead the pack in Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival shortlist

In the final round of judging today, jury president James Thompson from Diageo is locking heads with client-side titans such as Stephanie Bell from L’Oreal Thailand, Mathilde Delhoume-Debreu from Procter & Gamble Switzerland, David Glass from Wrigley Hong Kong, Paul Hu from Land Rover China, Julie Lyle from Prudential Corporation Asia, Anthony Lau from Bank of Communications China, Paolo Mercado from Nestle Greater China, Joanna Mobley from Fonterra New Zealand, Tracy Ren from Standard Chartered Bank China, Haiyan Wang from Kraft Foods China and James Wong from Unilever Taiwan.

Preliminary comments from the mixture of agency and client judges reveal that the best campaigns have layered executions with a fusion of media platforms mixed with social aspects and creative concepts.

On the shortlist, Ogilvy & Mather leads the 4A agency pack with 34 finalist entries, followed by BBDO agencies, which show up 28 times, and DDB, which appears 15 times.

The tension between creativity and effectiveness will be eased during the awards ceremony for the Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival held on the evening of 27 April.

Thompson said, "Nobody in the marketing field can escape the ever-pressing need for effectiveness and return on investment. My conviction is that effectiveness at the bottom-line is often the result of creativity and marketing flair – marketing with a soul. What we will be showcasing will be a demonstration of the economic power of genius, where dreams and dollars come together".

Campaign Asia-Pacific will be bringing you daily coverage of the Asian Marketing Effectiveness Festival here. For further information and to register to attend, please visit www.ame.asia.