14 expert tips on writing an effie-winning submission

What is the ONE Advice you would give to someone writing his/her 2015 Effie submission? The Unofficial

Compilation

1. T

ell m

e an

inte

rest

ing

stor

y.

Basically, do the hairdresser / tea lady test. If it’s a story they won’t find special, no judge will either. No matter how you pad the results with pretty graphs. Lau Su Lin Head of Marketing Services Maxis Berhad

Don’t try to create a good story out of good results. An effie-worthy case is always always always a case whose story is universally compelling. It’s a brand that needs to re-romance the customer, or a small David against a Goliath, or with a Robert Downey Jr-esque need to recover a fallen reputation. An insurmountable obstacle resolved by a powerful marketing insight or marketing innovation.

Look deeper for a truly compelling insight, dream bigger for a behaviour-shifting creative idea and go wider for a barrier-breaking communications and execution plan. Andrew Yeoh Head of Planning NagaDDB

Get someone who is not involved to read through your submission and see if it tells a clear story, with the relevant data. Janet Lee Director & Trainer The 95% Advertising Academy

As submitted by members of the jury, Effie Malaysia 2014

The unofficial “ONE Advice” Effie Awards compilation was made possible by the generous contribution of the 13 industry veterans listed here. A personal project by Alex Goh (https://www.linkedin.com/in/aboutalexgoh).

2. A

ll st

orie

s ar

e m

ade

of th

ese:

a

begi

nnin

g, a

mid

dle

& a

n en

d.

I advise all case writers to make sure that the challenge stated in the case must link with the business objectives. Pi Wo Chia Head Of Planning Ogilvy Group

Ensure the results match the objectives. It is a very simple advice but one not properly followed through in many entries. Bala Pomaleh CEO Carat Malaysia

Submission needs to be coherent. More often than not, submissions seem disjointed. The idea needs to solve the strategic challenge. The creative execution needs to communicate the idea. And the results need to match the campaign period. Cheryl Goh Regional Marketing Head MyTeksi/GrabTaxi

The Unofficial Compilation


What is the ONE Advice you would give to someone writing his/her 2015 Effie submission?


3. S

hort

sto

ries

go …

.....

far. Imagine submitting an entry that was only 3 pages long:

succinct yet telling. Less is more! Harmandar Singh Director Product of the Year Asia/ Sledgehammer Communications

Don't 'overtell' your case! Keep it simple, short and sweet because we are not Shakespearean juries and will appreciate the simplicity of problem-solution writing because it gives a lot more clarity to what you've achieved. Sue-Anne Lim Integrated Marketing & Planning Director Dentsu Utama

Keep it short, keep it sharp, keep it sweet. The best submissions we had were great because it showed results in simplicity. Chris Wee Head Of Strategy Rev Asia



Be mindful of 3 numbers when you write your cases – 841. •  8 mins. That’s how much time the jury will spend to read

your case. Or shorter. (without accounting for the many, necessary coffee breaks).

•  4 story peaks. The strategic challenge, the idea, the execution and the results. Link these well.

•  1 business outcome. The clear winners make the best case of the contribution of communications, to a business outcome.

Alex Goh Associate Strategic Planning Director M&C Saatchi



4. H

ones

t-to-

good

ness

sto

ry. Be humble about your strategy & creatives, open about

your dates & data and honest about other external factors that were happening parallel to the work. Chris Greenough Head of Strategy, Asia Next Digital

Work done for submission is never done in a vaccum but for some purpose. So please submit some business results or if unavailable at least some KPIs which clearly indicated that the work done has managed to build brand equity. Jason Chin CEO IACT College




Stay true to the insight and don’t story tell too far away. Lots of the submissions I see, the team tends to over romanticize the ‘creative propositions’ and the work, that they lose the core business reasons of it. Some of the best cases don’t over romanticize (and they are not sexy, just accurate) and stick to their core story angle. And try to find the most meaningful results, because judges are not easily impressed by quantity. Chan May Ling Head of Marketing Services DiGi Telecommunications


5. B

ON

US:

No

sob

stor

ies.

So your budget is small, got slashed, wasn’t as big as competitors. Boo Hoo you. About 7 in 10 EFFIE Malaysia entries I read always mention this every year. Assume no judge cares. Because, the truth is ….they don’t. Lau Su Lin Head of Marketing Services Maxis Berhad



