Strategic marketing means business. This is not rhetoric, but a potent statement of intent that speaks to the potential of strategic marketing as a critical tool for business success. It also underscores the theme, ‘Marketing that means business’, of the highly anticipated 2021/2 Marketing Achievement Awards (MAAs), which are now open for entries (www.marketingawards.co.za).
Promoting analytical and creative marketing that impacts business, the MAAs unite South Africa’s iconic organisations, revered industry leaders and respected agencies in one annual celebration of marketing as a strategic discipline.
Ivan Moroke, CEO of Kantar’s Insight Division, South Africa; Lead Inclusion and Diversity Kantar EMEA; and current chairperson of the MAAs, says the awards provide a proof point to the remarkable potential of strategic marketing to catalyse business growth.
“The MAAs are an opportunity to prove, with empirical evidence, the positive impact of marketing and brand building as a critical commercial tool of growth, not to mention the discipline of marketing as an excellent career option for those who thrive on the art and the science of business growth. I am so honoured, privileged and excited to chair these awards, and look forward to continuing the great momentum of critical industry recognition that they have built over the last two years,” Moroke says.
The MAAs are proudly presented by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) and endorsed by the Marketing Association of South Africa (MASA).
Gugu Ntuli, Group Executive, Corporate Affairs and Marketing at the SABC, says there is a natural synergy between the awards and the public broadcaster, which prompted its sponsorship of the event.
“Both the MAAs and the SABC share a great passion for, and commitment to the development of, the marketing profession in South Africa. The country stands to benefit immensely from marketers who willingly embrace new technologies and innovation in communicating with consumers. As the public broadcaster committed to fulfilling our mandate, we are proud to be the leading platform on which businesses are making that connection with their customers, especially in such a busy marketplace. We applaud marketers who constantly employ strategic marketing to do so,” Ntuli explains.
The awards are anchored in business strategy, and have come to be respected as an influential platform showcasing South African marketing efforts as crucial contributors to business success.
This year is no different – the awards will once again celebrate marketing’s demonstrable business results in an effort to inspire the future of the industry, but from the place of a new positioning that speaks to the power of strategic marketing.
“Strategic marketing connects organisations to customers, provides actionable insights, unlocks growth opportunities and builds equity on the balance sheet. The updated MAA brand identity and visual language being introduced this year reflects this as well as the event’s transition into a more deliberate B2B position that highlights marketing’s role in business. The visual language talks to a new sophistication in the brand, fit for the accelerated business emphasis being placed on marketing as a discipline,” explains Dr Sean McCoy, founder and executive of HKLM, the agency responsible for the MAA refresh, and an MAA council member.
This new positioning supports the MAA brand purpose to champion the impact of strategic marketing in business; the MAA tagline ‘Celebrating marketing excellence in business’; and this year’s MAA theme ‘Marketing that means business’, creating a holistic brand experience, as expressed through the awards themselves.
Ultimately, the vision of the MAAs is to build marketing’s stature in business, help shape the industry and showcase marketing as an illustrious career choice.
To this end, this year’s awards will once again look for those talented individuals and their teams whose marketing skills have managed to generate a significant impact within their businesses. The awards are open to marketers from across South Africa, known and unknown, who are invited to enter their best work to be measured against, and recognised by, their peers.
Entries close on the 29th November 2021. Full entry details can be found at www.marketingawards.co.za
Thanks to the partners and patrons who make these awards possible:
SABC – Presenting Partner
Accenture Interactive – Experience Partner
Primedia Outdoor – Out of Home Partner
Marketing Association of South Africa – Endorsing Partner
HKLM – Patron
Google – Patron
Absa Bank – Patron
Kantar – Patron
Nando’s – Patron
For further information contact:
info@marketingawards.co.za or 066 3000 842
