Inaugural SSA MMA Smarties' winners announced, the TFG named Brand of the Year
In total 51 Awards were announced at the inaugural SSA MMA Smarties Awards with 19 Gold, 19 Silver and 13 Bronze Awards were announced.
TFG’s Precision Marketing (Marketing Impact), PEP Mini Netball (purpose-driven Marketing) and Standard Bank’s Achieva Exchange (purpose-driven marketing) received a Gold Award for their campaigns.
Fiona Ronnie, head of customer & loyalty, at The Foschini Group (TFG) says the 2023 festive season campaign engaged 30 million customers, in a highly targeted and personal way.
“We made the customer the centre of the campaign, using new tech like AI and data-led strategies, precision marketing and personalisation to engage with them 1 to 1.
“The purpose was not just to run a campaign, but to create meaningful and long-lasting relationships with our customers.
“We did this by syncing the physical with the digital and gave customers a chance to win a R100,000 golden NFT to use at any store throughout 2024. To enter customers had to swipe, play a game and post their experience on social media.”
All the winners
| Brand Purpose / Activism | ||
| Award | Agency | Title |
| SILVER | EchoHouse Ghana Limited / Unilever Ghana | The Pepsodent School Tour Project |
| Social Impact Marketing | ||
| GOLD | PEP | Playmakers | PEP Mini Netball |
| SILVER | VML / Standard Bank | Standard Bank BeatTheScam |
| SILVER | Standard Bank | M&C Saatchi Abel | Achieva Exchange |
| BRONZE | Tiger Brands | Freshive Digital Agency | Jolly Jus |
| BRONZE | Unilever | Charterhouse Ghana Limited | Geisha Mother's Day Activation |
| Diversity & Inclusion | ||
| GOLD | PEP | Playmakers | PEP Mini Netball |
| SILVER | Unilever | Naked Brain Communications (Pty) Ltd | Qina Ndoda Campaign |
| Brand Experience | ||
| GOLD | The Coca-Cola Company | Maurice Publicité Ogilvy | Coca-Cola Food Festival |
| SILVER | Unilever | Fresh AF (Pty) Ltd | AXE Fresh Neighbours - Road to Hey Neighbour |
| Customer Journey Marketing - Lead Generation / CRM | ||
| GOLD | TFG | TFG Precision Marketing |
| BRONZE | Heineken Beverages | Dentsu Redstar | Introduction to Heineken Silver |
| Product and / or Service Launch | ||
| BRONZE | Suzuki Auto South Africa | Penquin | Suzuki Jimny Vehicle Launch |
| SILVER | Suzuki South Africa | Penquin | Suzuki Fronx Vehicle Launch |
| Real Time Marketing | ||
| GOLD | Flow Communications | Carspa AI CRM |
| GOLD | Standard Bank | LookSee by Standard Bank: Flip the switch to solar |
| Small Budget Big Impact | ||
| GOLD | PEP | Ogilvy | #PEPfinds |
| GOLD | Vodacom | 365 Digital | VodaPay Summer Hydra |
| SILVER | Geewiz | 365 Digital | Geewiz Commerce Growth |
| BRONZE | John Deere Financial | Lumico (Pty) Ltd | Empowering Farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa |
| BRONZE | Standard Bank | Instant Money Mondays |
| Omnichannel Marketing | ||
| GOLD | TFG | TFG Coinquest |
| SILVER | Tiger Brands | Freshive Digital Agency | Benny |
| SILVER | Standard Bank | LookSee by Standard Bank: Flip the switch to solar |
| BRONZE | Suzuki South Africa | Penquin | Suzuki Fronx Vehicle Launch |
| BRONZE | Upstream | Transforming Telco Adver with Upstream's Martech |
| Cross Digital Media Marketing | ||
| GOLD | Xbox | Penquin | Xbox Festive Campaign 2023 |
| SILVER | Heineken Beverages | Dentsu Redstar | Introduction to Heineken Silver |
| BRONZE | Suzuki South Africa | Penquin | Suzuki Retail Campaign - Make The Right Choice |
| Social Media Marketing | ||
| GOLD | TFG | TFG Coinquest |
| SILVER | PEP | Ogilvy | #PEPfinds |
| BRONZE | Standard Bank | VML | Savings month |
| BRONZE | Standard Bank | VML | Standard Bank BeatTheScam |
| Creator / Influencer / Celebrity Marketing | ||
| GOLD | The Coca-Cola Company | Essencemediacom | Coca-Cola Creations Wozzaah |
| SILVER | Unilever | Naked Brain Communications (Pty) Ltd | Qina Ndoda Campaign |
| SILVER | PEP | Ogilvy | #PEPFinds |
| BRONZE | Unilever | Fresh AF (Pty) Ltd | AXE Fresh Neighbours - Road to Hey Neighbour |
| Gaming Gamification & E-Sports | ||
| GOLD | TFG | TFG Coinquest |
| GOLD | Xbox | Penquin | Xbox Festive Campaign 2023 |
| SILVER | Standard Bank | Instant Money Mondays |
| Data Insights / Contextual Marketing | ||
| GOLD | TFG | TFG Precision Marketing |
| SILVER | Standard Bank | Rainmaker Media | Data Clean Room |
| Programmatic | ||
| GOLD | Geewiz | 365 Digital | Geewiz Commerce Growth |
| GOLD | Vodacom | 365 Digital | VodaPay Summer Hydra |
| SILVER | Xbox | Penquin | Xbox Festive Campaign 2023 |
| Short or Long Form Video | ||
| GOLD | Tiger Brands | Freshive Digital Agency | Benny |
| SILVER | Suzuki South Africa | Penquin | Suzuki - Chasing The Fun |
| Personalization | ||
| SILVER | Standard Bank | Gold Insights, Gold Returns |
| AI-Powered Audience Engagement | ||
| GOLD | TFG | TFG Precision Marketing |
| SILVER | Flow Communications | Carspa AI CRM |
| BRONZE | Standard Bank South Africa | Gold Insights Gold Returns |
Africa: The next frontier for innovations
The awards arrived on the African continent this year, with a special focus on the sub-Saharan (SSA) regions of Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa.
Africa has long been the next frontier for tech innovations, given that many of its countries’ populations have sidestepped desktop and gone directly to mobile, meaning their markets are super savvy in this space.
Many inventions have come from these regions, as they advance their development and usage of tech such as in the use of cross-border payments and microfinance – and is why the MMA SSA has entered Kenya, and Nigeria specifically and initially.
“Our venture beyond South Africa’s borders has been an inspirational one. The rate of AI and other technology’s adoption in certain African countries is impressive and there are strong examples of how this has been used effectively in marketing campaigns.
“AI immersion is happening as fast as it is in South Africa and the African continent, with its 54 countries, is, in pockets, forging ahead with significant developments in the use of tech and other Gen AI innovations,” says Sarah Utermark, country director for the MMA SSA.
Innovation through tech
With its core 2024 themes of purpose-driven marketing, marketing impact, impact media, emerging tech media, creative and AI marketing, judging undertaken by 15 senior marketers from across various regions.
These include MTN’s Geoff Masuta, Coca-Cola’s Bunmi Adeniba, RMB’s Linda Kachingwe Sisya, True.IO’s Vince Maher and eight MMA SA’s Youth Development Board members.
Utermark says that the 14 judges were looking for innovation, tech adoption and social impact through tech, among others when adjudicating the entries.
“We are extremely buoyed by the standard of work from these regions, across the current marketing landscape.
“Africa continues to rise, and as the leading marketing industry body that recognises results driven by tech and AI, it is our privilege to honour these winners today.”
See all the winners here.
