Unilever’s Killer Recipe campaign takes out Best of Show award at 2021 SMARTIES APAC Awards
MMA, the industry organisation dedicated to architecting the future of marketing across the Asia Pacific region, last Friday announced the winners of the 2021 SMARTIES APAC Awards. This year’s SMARTIES welcomed more than 2,200 entries – the highest number of submissions MMA APAC has received – from across the region, covering more than 20 categories.
Currently in its ninth edition, the SMARTIES APAC is the only global mobile marketing awards programme that recognises leaders, brands, agencies and tech providers who use technology to pioneer new approaches in modern marketing. The awards honour outstanding innovation and creativity of marketers and brands that result in significant business impact for firms across Asia Pacific.
All submissions were evaluated by a 70-member pre-screening council that determined the shortlisted entries. The award winners were then selected by an independent jury of 26 senior marketing and industry professionals led by jury chairs David Porter, Vice President of Global Media, APAC & Africa, Unilever, and Michelle Yip, Executive Director of Group Strategic Marketing & Communications, DBS Bank. MMA also welcomed Aske Østergård, Co-founder and CEO, and Huynh Bao Thach, Associate, from Decision Lab as jury observers for the first time.
“My heartiest congratulations to all the SMARTIES winners, whose innovative and exceptional work stood out in a truly competitive field of talented candidates,” said Rohit Dadwal, Managing Director and Board of Director, MMA APAC. “The modern marketing landscape is quickly evolving in this age of digitalisation, particularly as new technologies continue to make waves across Asia. There are massive opportunities for growth, and I am excited to see how marketers will continue to break boundaries and create impactful campaigns to elevate brands and the industry as a whole.”
The 126 shortlisted entries were judged based on strategy, creativity, execution and business impact. Business impact accounts for 40 percent of the entrant’s overall score, while creativity, strategy and execution make up 20 percent each.
“The outstanding quality of submissions we received this year is testament to the resilience of marketers in producing excellent work in the face of probably the biggest challenge in their lifetime,” said David Porter, SMARTIES APAC jury chair. “In this year’s entries, we saw much more rigorous use of data, digitalisation and a more evolved approach to brand purpose, with growing emphasis on authenticity. I look forward to seeing how marketers continue to create memorable campaigns that resonate with consumers and shape the future of modern marketing.”
SMARTIES APAC jury chair Michelle Yip, said: “It was great fun going through all the entries – they were spectacular in their own ways, and the jury enjoyed coming together to learn from some of the best marketing ideas. I was delighted to see increased sophistication in the use of data and technology in this year’s submissions, either to better target audiences, drive meaningful experiences, deepen personalisation, or deliver sales results. It was truly inspiring to see the innovative campaigns and strategic use of new technologies to deliver purposeful marketing for consumers in the digital age. A big congratulations to all the winners.”
The SMARTIES APAC “Celebration of Talent” awards presentation was held virtually on Friday, 19 November. The online celebration was attended by SMARTIES winners from around the region, members of the MMA Board of Directors, MMA APAC, the SMARTIES APAC jury and pre-screening council, as well as members of the public.
The Winners’ Gallery and full list of winners are available here.
The winners of the 2021 SMARTIES APAC Awards are:
INDUSTRY AWARDS
Best in Show
Winner: UFS’ Killer Recipe 2021
Brand of the Year
Winner: Lifebuoy
Winner: UltraTech Cement
Marketer of the Year
Winner: Unilever
Media Agency of the Year
Winner: Mindshare China
Creative Agency of the Year
Winner: Carnival
Network Agency of the Year
Winner: Mindshare
Technology Enabling Company of the Year
Winner: Facebook
Publisher of the Year
Winner: Grab
GOLD AWARD WINNERS
Data / Insights
Ford Everest | Mindshare Vietnam (An Everest Adventure with AI)
Video Advertising
Antibio Pro | Carnival, Mediacom (Antibio Pro – Claymation Superheroes)
Best Use of Branded Content
UltraTech Cement | Mindshare India (Baat Ghar Ki – The Wikipedia of Home Building)
Programmatic and Machine Learning
Samsung Family Hub | Toaster, Starcom (Beautifully Smart)
Consumer Promotions
Lifebuoy | Mindshare Vietnam, BizEyes, Creative Hunts (Every Prayer Starts with a Clean Pair of Hands)
XR Technology (AR/VR/MR)
Heineken | Leo Burnett Vietnam, Digitas, MSL, Prodigious, Metub, Galaxy Communications (Heineken Sleek Music In A Can)
QQ Star Milk | Mindshare China, Neo China (QQ Star Milk x Discovery’s Kenyan Safari)
Cross Mobile Integration
UltraTech Cement | Mindshare India (How UltraTech leveraged multiple mobile channels to establish itself as a Home Building Companion)
Mobile Audio / Voice
KangShiFu Ice Tea | Mindshare China (KangShiFu’s Chinese New Year Karaoke Reunion)
Gaming / Gamification & E-Sports
KFC | Mindshare China (KFC: The Growth of Colonel KI)
Brand Awareness / Experience
L’Oréal Paris | TBWA\ Group Vietnam, Starcom (L’Oréal Paris – Chính Nữ Campaign)
Innovation
Netflix India | Wavemaker India (Matchmaker)
Most Engaging Mobile Creative
Coca-Cola | Starcom Indonesia (Mobile Augmented Reality Dials Up Brand Love for Coca-Cola)
Location Targeting
Cadbury Celebrations | Wavemaker India, Ogilvy India (Not Just A Cadbury Ad)
Best Data Driven Display Creative
Oreo | Leo Burnett Indonesia, Spark Foundry (Oreo Interests Hack)
Product / Service Launch
Redoxon | Carnival, MediaCom (Redoxon – Turn Your Guilty Pleasure Into Healthy Pleasure)
Social Media Marketing
Swift Foods Philippines | NuWorks Interactive Labs, Inc. (SUKI TO SOUK-E)
Social Impact / Not-For-Profit
Burger King | Mediacom Indonesia (Sunyi Bersuara-Voice of the Silent Campaign)
Product / Service Launch
The Coffee House | The Purpose Group, Children Of, LUCIDigital, Moving Pixels Studio (The Mysterious Adventure To Save The Moon)
Consumer Promotions
Unilever Food Solutions (UFS) | Mindshare China, UNITE China, Dentsu McGarryBowen China (UFS’ Killer Recipe 2021)
Lead Generation
Unilever Food Solutions (UFS) | Mindshare China, UNITE China, Dentsu McGarryBowen China (UFS’ Killer Recipe 2021)
Cross Mobile Integration
Vo Lam Truyen Ky 1 Mobile | Innity Vietnam (Vo Lam Truyen Ky 1 Mobile Conquering the Mobile World)
Connected Devices / The Internet of Things
Yili | Mindshare China, UNITE China, Dentsu McGarryBowen China (Yili x Xiaomi’s Smart Vending Machine)