At a glittering function held on 22 August 2003 in Mumbai's Taj Land's End Hotel, Prasoon Joshi of McCann Erickson India walked away with the Grand EFFIE for the "Thanda Matlab Coca Cola campaign." The Grand EFFIE is awarded to a campaign that scored the highest marks in round II of the judging process.

Several agency and client representatives also walked away with citations and EFFIE award mementos for grabbing the EFFIE awards in three categories - consumer products, consumer durables and the services category.

Efficient account management skills that resulted in effective creative campaigns communicated through innovative media strategies; and those that eventually delivered superior results for brands took centre stage at the third EFFIE awards 2003 organised by The Advertising Club, Bombay.

Worldwide, an EFFIE is the most significant award in the advertising and marketing industry because it honours the one truly significant achievement in advertising: results.

Here we present a synopsis of the award winning case studies

Consumer Products category

EFFIE Gold - consumer products
"Thanda Matlab Coca Cola" for Coca Cola India - Vishal Mehta of McCann Erickson India

* The Coca Cola campaigns witnessed in the previous decade resulted in short term gains but failed to establish a meaningful relationship with Indian consumers
The agency conducted a fundamental inquiry into the existing cola advertising. Most of the advertising was make-believe, slick and presented a view of the western world. In India, refreshment was real, earthy and unaffected by global trends.
* The strategy used was a paradigm shift and the agency recommended a bold action. It was decided to speak to the rural masses as well as the lower socio economic classes as against the traditional target audience of urban teens. More importantly, the agency decided to speak to the consumers in their own language.
* The creative idea was rooted in mass sensibilities; had local lingo; and memorable characters that were never used before in Indian cola advertising.
* Post research campaign indicated that Coca Cola was perceived as a good friend by consumers; for the first time Coca Cola beat arch rival Pepsi; the consumption average increased to 28.1 per cent and the brand improved its stake in the key markets (Punjab, Delhi, UP). It became the most preferred brand.
* The key learning was "there is merit in looking at our own culture".

EFFIE Silver - consumer products

"Center Shock Hila ke rakh de (shakes you up)" for Perfetti Van Melle India - Abhijit Awasthi of O&M and Sameer Suneja of Perfetti stuck an instant chord with the assembled audience at the Effie presentations when they wore weird hairdos while making the presentations. Dressed in bright red T-shirts carrying the campaign's tag line (Hila ke rakh de), the duo used Bollywood visual snippets and minimal words (in their slides) to effectively make their point.

* Center Shock, the sour-bitter chewing gum, was an offbeat launch and required offbeat communication. The gum market in India had been shrinking rapidly since 1998; and in 2001 it was 60 per cent lower than what it was in 1998.
* The thinking had to be radical and unconventional. However, the communication had to be unique and make an instant impact. The key was to stay away from routine chewing gum advertising that was all about choice, aspirational and joy.
* The creative strategy was inspired by Bollywood songs of the 1970s - the clip shown was Shammi Kapoor-Asha Parekh starrer Teesri Manzil song sequence where the artistes shook their heads while dancing to the beat of the music.
* A radio ad even urged consumers to avoid using Center Shock in public urinals in order to keep them clean. The media innovations included using reality channel AXN's anchors who dared to eat several Center Shocks; and shattered cricket stumps (Hila ke rakh de) during tournaments. However, the TV spend was a meagre Rs 6 million.
* The brand grew 700 per cent and reversed the decline in the entire chewing gum market. The annualised sales volume grew from Rs 60 million to Rs 500 million. From virtually being a no-show, the brand climbed to the numero uno position in just six months. It had a 35 per cent market share.

EFFIE Silver - consumer products

"All taste no gyaan" for Sprite (Coca Cola India) - Sargam Bajaj of O&M and Nita Joshi from Coca Cola India.

The duo used a story telling format and used visuals from the animation film The Lion King to make their point. The story narrated the tale of a lion cub (Sprite) that grew made its mark in the jungle of cola brands.

* The team had set a target of growing by 12 per cent in a highly competitive market.
* The strategy followed from the brand's core premise (All taste and no gyaan) and it was decided to 'puncture pretenses'. The advertising stayed away from the clichés - colas promising a better life; colas making film stars act like cricketers and vice versa; colas helping guys woo gals amongst others
*There was a shift from niche channels to mainstream channels.
* The brand preference score increased from 6.1 to 10.8; the great tasting drink score increased from 6.46 to 11.34; the honest drink score increased from 6.32 to 8.59 and association with teens score increased from 3.7 to 11.
* The brand grew by a whopping 62 per cent as against the target of 12 per cent; and the market share improved from 3.7 per cent to 5.1 per cent.

EFFIE Silver - consumer products

"Unusually Cool" for Mint O, ITC Foods - Ritu Bhandari of FCB Ulka and Nilanjan Sarkar of ITC Foods

*A lozenges-mint brand Mint O lagged behind Polo that dominated the market. In fact, Polo had 10 times more recall and preference over Mint O. In terms of volumes, Polo was 150 million tonnes whereas Mint O was 10 million tonnes. Polo was closely identified with mints and had acquired cult status. Mint O was a wannabe and its stronger mint taste was seen as a negative.
* The strategy was to convert the disadvantage - mint taste - into an advantage; and to layer the physical experience and effectively leverage it amongst "cool dudes". * The agency's research showed that the term "cool" was akin to "being unfazed in a socially testing situation."
* The media strategy was to have a higher impact, greater reach and induce more involvement. The budgets were miniscule and just 55 per cent of what Polo spent.
Post campaign studies showed that the brand's share grew from 5 per cent to 41 per cent. The trials doubled and sales were 40 per cent of the category sales.

EFFIE Bronze - consumer products

"Butterfly" campaign for Lifebuoy, Hindustan Lever Limited - T Krishna of Lowe India.

* Repositioning of age-old brands makes them immortal; keeps them youthful and fresh.
* Every decade since 1986, Lifebuoy volumes used to increase by 100,000 tonnes but in 2002, the brand sales fell to 82,000 tonnes.
* Research indicated that several women were making decisions for the males in their households. The females preferred to buy cost effective discount beauty soap brands.
* Research also indicated that womenfolk were concerned about their children getting infections or bruises that refuse to heal. Every time, a child fell ill, the women was left wondering how it happened despite taking several precautions.
* The agency decided to change the positioning and targeted the entire family rather than males. The communication featured a doctor for the first time in its decades old advertising. The doctor used Lifebuoy as an effective tool to fight germs.
* The score for "protecting from germs" was 52 per cent more; that for "recommended by health experts was 100 per cent more; that for "suitable for family" was 57 per cent more. The brand grew from 15.5 per cent to 17 per cent and the growth continues in the first quarter of this financial year - 31.2 per cent.

EFFIE Bronze - consumer products

"Chauka dene wali safedi (surprising whiteness)" for Tide, Procter & Gamble Home Products - Leo Burnett's Srikanth Sarati.

* Tide was a new brand - just 18 months old - and was priced at a hefty premium (Rs 85 per kilogramme). It was positioned on the generic "whiteness" platform in a market where the leaders were fighting a declining trend.
* Research indicated that women didn't want to be identified only with "washing clothes". They wanted the brands to communicate with them on level terms; wanted entertainment, impactful and interesting communication.
* The communication strategy was to introduce the "surprising whiteness" element when least expected. The agency used ads that were derived from popular soals (Kyunki Saas Bhi..) and shows (CID) to surprise audiences.
* The brand's share grew from 1.3 to 1.8 in 2002. It also showed a positive growth even as others (such as Surf Excel, Ariel) declined.

Consumer durables

EFFIE Silver - consumer durables
"Scorpio launch - the car you walk into" for Mahindra & Mahindra's Scorpio - Interface Communications' Kamal Ozha and M&M's Vijay Nakra.

* M&M was launching its new SUV (sports utility vehicle), Scorpio, in an extremely competitive market. The image association with a M&M was not favourable as consumers' perceptions of M&M was strongly linked to rural imagery, rough-n-tough so on and so forth.
* The brief was to raise demand to 200 units per month that was nearly five times more than what the other brands sold. The budget given was a meagre Rs 100 million.
The agency decided to create a totally new category of "Car SUV". All communication referred to Scorpio as a car - not an SUV!
* Nearly 25 per cent of the budget was spent in five days during the launch phase. This spend included media innovations such as double-spreads in The Times of India; a seven page maglet in the India Today; a live cavalcade in Mumbai city using FM radio station Go 92.5 FM.
*Scorpio sold six times and the monthly sales were pegged at 1,600 vehicles - that has increased to 2,000 at present.
Popular auto magazines referred to the Scorpio as a car and it won several "car of the year" awards from reputed publications (Business Standard Motoring) and TV channels (BBC, CNBC).
* Celebrities who feature on page three and society pages of magazines and newspapers made a beeline for Scorpio. The car scored high in parameters such as recall and awareness.
*It was the only automobile brand in India that pulled up/ gave a fillip to the imagery/association of the parent brand.

EFFIE Silver - consumer durable

"Time-Proof beauty" for Asian Paints Exterior Emulsions - O&M's Vivek Sharma

* Consumers (males 25-50, SEC AB) remember exterior emulsions once in five years. Regular advertising for the product fails to register with the target audience; it is difficult to get noticed or act upon the advertising. It is a low knowledge category and there is tremendous inertia.
* Research also indicated that consumers are more concerned about interiors than exteriors. They consider their homes to be a symbol of pride, prestige and self expression. However, they forget that 90 per cent of people merely get a chance to see the exteriors of the house and just 10 per cent are invited inside the house.
* The strategy was to link exteriors with emotion (surprise, admiration) and beauty; compare the ever-lasting beauty of the exteriors with the fading beauty of the other prized possessions.
* The "Wah Sunil babu - Badhiya Hai" campaign resulted in volume growth of 40 per cent; the category grew by 12 per cent and the emulsions category grew by 16 per cent.

EFFIE Bronze - consumer durables

"Complete silence" for Daikin Acs - Rediffusion DY&R's K Subramaniam and Adrian Mendonca.

The presentation had an interesting video clip showing Daikin Shriram Air Conditioning general manager Rajnish Ohri espousing the value of silence and effectively talking about the commendable performance of the brand strategy. Mercifully, he used very little of sign language but the assembled audience at the Effie presentation was thrilled.

* The Rs 20 billion airconditioning market had more than 20 heavyweight brands in addition to the unorganised sector that had a 25 per cent market share.
* The client wanted a 15 per cent market share in the first year although the product was priced at a 25 per cent premium. The budget given by the client was Rs 35 million as compared to LG Electronics (120 million) and the category spend of Rs 750 million.
* The agency decided to target the mature end of the market - "bullshit haters". The proposition was "complete silence" as the signifier of cutting edge technology.
Daikin was placed second to the leader LG in volume and ranked No 1 in terms of value. The brand captured 22 per cent of the premium spilt market.

EFFIE Bronze - consumer durables

"LG Golden Eye" campaign for LG Electronics - Lowe's Santosh Sood refused to cower down by the jibes taken at LG Electronics by the Rediffusion DY&R team.

Sood recited a couplet that insisted that "maal bechne ke liye galat faimiyaan jaroori hai" (Misconceptions and perceptions are important to sell wares).

* LG Electronics was searching for a plank to position itself even as competitors spoke about different versions of quality "picture and sound'.
* LG had managed to make inroads into the market; was perceived as a differentiator; but not as a market leader thanks to its Golden Eye technology. LG's Golden Eye technology empowered viewers to reduce eyestrain; and adjust to the changing light conditions.
* Research indicated that LG wasn't competing with other brands but against perceptions of concerned parents that TV viewing was bad for their children's eyes. The agency strove to communicate that this misconception about eye strain was misplaced and faulty.
* Also, the agency leveraged the 'social quotient' plank by equated TV viewing as being 'intrinsic to awareness and information'. It capitalised on the psychology that parents don't want to be seen obstructing their child's development. * It communicated the fact that children were forced to either 'lie' or 'lag behind' whenever parents stopped them from watching TV.
* The communication positioned LG as the only television that enabled children to watch television without straining their eyes.
* Post campaign research indicated that unaided research increased from 34 per cent to 67 per cent; ad recall increased from 17 per cent to 41 per cent; brand preference increased from 11 per cent to 18 per cent; LG became the first company to cross the 1.1 million units mark in 2002.

EFFIE Bronze - consumer durables

"Spoil yourself" campaign for Tata Indigo, Tata Motors - FCB Ulka's Kulvinder Ahluwalia.

* In sync with Tata Motors chairman Ratan Tata's words, the challenge was to overcome attitudes and mindsets. The automobile industry in India had nine manufacturers with more than 50 models - both foreign as well as local. The Indian consumer preferred to believe that 'foreign is better'. * The client wanted to attain ambitious sales of 1,500 per month - much more than what Indica attained during its launch.
* The agency devised a strategy that revolved around capitalising on "transportation of the ego" and "self indulgence". Research also showed that buying decisions were linked to self-admiration, peer approval amongst others.
* Research indicated that the existing sedans had limited interior space whereas Tata Indigo had enhanced comfort that would pamper consumers and force them to indulge.
* The agency came up with a metaphor of armchair that was media neutral (and could be extended across various media vehicles). The tag line of "Spoil yourself was conceived.
* The awareness of the newly launched brand increased within three months.

Services category

EFFIE Silver - services

"Retire from work, not life" campaign for ICICI Prudential Life Insurance - Ashish Malhotra from ICICI Pru Life and Kanika Singh from Lowe.

* The company's proposition was to offer new age solutions for old age - retirement solutions. India didn't have a social security system; life expectancy ratio was increasing; and so was inflation. Nearly 90 per cent of the working classes didn't give priority to retirement planning.
* The company wanted to target people in the 30-40 age group. This target audience associated retirement planning with old age, loss of independence and way down in their priority list. The company wanted to grab 10 per cent market share and sales of Rs 400 million.
* The agency realised that there was no competition from any other brand. The only hurdle was mindsets of the target audience. The communication positioned retirement as the beginning of all good things in life. It mirrored a feel good message that one can be forever young.
* Television was used to tackle the emotional barrier whereas other media vehicles were used to provide additional details of the schemes.
* The market share of the company increased to 23 per cent (overall) and 73 per cent in the private insurers segment. Nearly 59 per cent more policies were sold to people with an average age of 38.5 years. The company posted sales of Rs 740 million as against the target of Rs 400 million.
* Retirement planning solutions contributed 37 per cent (up from 20 per cent) to the company's overall mix.

EFFIE Silver - services

"Balbir Paasha AIDS" campaign for Population Services International (PSI) - Gautam from PSI

* There were 4.5 million AIDS cases in India and Mumbai city was the epicentre of AIDS. Projections indicated that the number of cases would increase to 35 million within the next five years.
* The target audience was males in the 18-35 years bracket. The challenge was to increase awareness; get people to discuss AIDS, motivate them to call on the helpline nos.
* Research showed that the risk group believed that "AIDS won't happen to them" because they "visited regular or healthy looking sex workers".
* The key was to put doubts in their mind by creating a third person alter ego named Balbir Paasha.
* Post campaign studies by research agency TNS Mode showed that 54 per cent people recalled the ad campaign; 56 per cent of people realised that visiting regulars or healthy-looking sex workers could be risky; calls to the Helpline nos increased by 250 per cent.

EFFIE Silver - services

"Deewana bana de" campaign for MAX channel, Sony Entertainment Television - Euro RSCG's Suman Srivastava and MAX business head Rajat Jain.

* MAX, the movies and events channel, had acquired the rights to showcase the Champion's Trophy cricket tournament. The channel wanted to grab revenues of Rs 400 million as compared to Rs 140 million earned by a sports channel during the previous edition of the cricket tournament. The channel wanted to rope in new advertisers.
* The channel had committed to the ICC (International Cricket Council) that it would make the tournament bigger and better. Moreover, terrestrial channel Doordarshan would conduct a simulcast of the tourney.
* Research indicated that awareness that MAX would showcase cricket was pretty low. Communication was difficult because the brand was the medium as well as the communication platform.
* The team decided to make cricket on MAX different than that on the sports channels. It wanted to entice casual viewers as well as female audiences. The channel conceived a wrap around programming that focused on tourism, celebrities, cuisine, tarot reading amongst others. It also conducted ground events such as Gully Cricket with Kapil Dev and interactive contests such as Predikta. The channel earned Rs 490 million - 123 per cent above the target and 350 per cent more than competition.
* The female viewership for Champion's Trophy cricket on MAX increased by 273 per cent over that of the rival sports channel.

EFFIE Silver - services

"Pulse Polio Immunisation programme" for UNICEF - O&M's Pallavi Mishra

* The number of polio cases in 2002 increased to 1,600 as compared to a few hundreds in the previous year. It was 85 per cent up in Uttar Pradesh (UP).
* Research indicated that people in the UP lacked an understanding of the polio immunisation programme; and suffered from inertia.
* The agency decided to use Bollywood superstar and icon Amitabh Bachchan in a never-before way to cut through the clutter. The agency decided to leverage the superstar's 'angry man' image. This was a major shift because social advertising avoided negative emotions such as 'anger'. The key was to ensure a sense of balance.
* In January 2002, 2.8 million people in the UP visited the Pulse Polio National Immunisation programme and an additional 6 million people did so in the month of February. Around 19 districts of UP reported 50 per cent more coverage.

EFFIE Bronze - services

"Aap hi ka paisa hai -(It's your money)" campaign for Prudential ICICI Mutual Fund and AMC - O&M's Laxmi Goel and Prudential ICICI AMC's S Anand presented by using an innovative conversational discussion format.

* The company wanted to touch the Rs 100 billion asset mark; aimed for a 20 per cent increase on the net base; and aspired for 20 per cent increase in penetration and saliency.
Indian investors had a lot of misconceptions about mutual funds. Their perceptions of financial services was blurred - because mutual funds faced severe competition from banks that offered savings and promised security; insurance companies offered protection and returns.
* The agency came up with a strategy to drive home the value of a consumer's hard earned money. The company positioned itself as one that realised that every penny of this hard earned money should get what it deserves and something more.
* The company did an entire 360 degree spin around the theme of "It's your money" and showed daily mundane instances wherein savings could be obtained to stretch buck.
* Post campaign research indicated that business increased by 33 per cent; the top of mind recall increased by 120 per cent; and loyalty index rose by 21 per cent. The company managed to forge a strong bond with the consumer in terms of performance, loyalty, presence and awareness.

Also read:

McCann Erickson wins solitary EFFIE 2003 Gold, Grand EFFIE