WARC: Siddhant Lahiri, Kawal Shoor, Amrita Randhawa part of Asian Strategy 2019

WARC, the international authority on advertising and media effectiveness, has launched its WARC Prize for Asian Strategy 2019, a search for the best strategic ideas from Asia’s marketing industry. 

This case study competition showcases Asia’s smartest marketing thinking, highlighting breakthrough ideas from across the region. Now in its ninth year, the Prize remains free to enter and is open to clients and agencies in any marketing discipline. The winners of the top award-winning papers share a US$10,000 prize fund. 

Lucy Aitken, Managing Editor, Case Studies, WARC, said, “The WARC Prize for Asian Strategy rewards strategic thinking that helps clients solve real-life problems and provides a base for future growth. We have an extremely high-calibre jury, including senior marketers from some of the world’s biggest brands as well as strategy experts, who will be selecting the best case studies forstrategic thinking that has driven business results in Asia.” 

Freddie Covington, Senior Vice President, Head of Marketing and Cross Border, Asia Pacific, Visa, has been appointed Jury Chair. Named the most influential CMO for Excellence in Branding and Marketing at the World Brand Congress, Covington leads Visa marketing in more than 40 Asian markets and manages all aspects of Visa’s regional marketing efforts. She also sits on the Asia Pacific Executive Leadership team. 

Commenting on the importance of strategy, Freddie Covington said, “In today’s hyper-competitive world where consumers are making new blueprints for their lives,strategy has never been more at a premium for differentiation anddriving breakthrough ideas from across the region.” 

Joining Covington is an eminent judging panel of client- and agency-side experts. The first to be named are: 

Ian Dolan – Head of Strategy and Planning, PHD China

Natalie Gruis – Head of Strategy, International, TBWA

Sharon Ho – Managing Director, Digitas

Siddhant Lahiri – Head of Strategic Planning, Rediffusion Y&R

Tuomas Peltoniemi – EVP, Managing Director APAC, R/GA

David Porter – Vice President Media, Unilever AAR (Asia, Africa, Middle East, Turkey and Russia)

Amrita Randhawa – CEO, Mindshare Asia Pacific and Executive Chair, Mindshare Greater China

Kawal Shoor – Planner and Founding Partner, The Womb

John Woodward – Chief Strategy Officer, McCann Worldgroup Japan

Kaori Yatsu – Head of Planning, BBDO Japan

More judges will be announced shortly. Entries can be submitted from now until July 10, 2019 deadline. The Grand Prix winner will receive $5,000 and five $1,000 prizes will be presented to the winners of the Special Awards recognising specific areas of excellence: 

The Category Disruptor Award for the best example of a brand that has successfully broken with category conventions.

The Early Adopter Award for the best example of a brand using a new innovation or emerging tech or platform.

The Customer Journey Award for the best example of a brand creating a compelling path to purchase.

The Local Hero Award for the best example of a challenger Asian brand using a smart marketing strategy to take on bigger competitors.

The Research Excellence Award for the best use of research in the development of strategic ideas.

The winning case studies will be published in the Asian Strategy Report, which will include an analysis of the region’s smartest thinking uncovering strategic trends and themes. The findings included in the report will be revealed at an event in Singapore later in the year.