Unilever, Coca-Cola, WPP and BBDO Worldwide have been named the most effective marketers in the world, according to Effie Worldwide.
Unilever was awarded with the title ‘most effective marketer’ for the third consecutive year, while WPP also scored a three-peat for most effective holding company.
The 2014 Global Effie Effectiveness Index rankings are determined by data collected from June 2013 to June 2014.
Now in its fourth year, the Effie Index recognises the most effective marketing communications ideas from around the world, determined by their success in more than forty national and regional Effie Award competitions.
Sancho BBDO Bogota is the top ranked individual agency office in its Global Effie Effectiveness Index for 2014, followed by Lowe Lintas (Mumbai), Ogilvy & Mather (Mumbai), FP7/DXB (Dubai), and Starcom MediaVest Group (Chicago).
Meanwhile, a jury of six men and two women awarded “Sketches” the Grand Effie, based on it driving $24 million in incremental sales and garnering $52 million worth of media exposure, all on a budget of just $925,000, according to the winning entry.
The Effie honor follows a string of other prizes, including a Titanium Grand Prix at Cannes last summer and a Grand Brand Genius from Adweek last fall. Other agencies behind the effort included Edelman, PHD and Mindshare.
Juror Judy John, Leo Burnett’s chief creative officer for Canada, said simply, “The work demonstrated how the power of ideas can influence society and lift brands.”
Six other campaigns contended for the grand prize: Ogilvy’s “Generation Know” for Kimberly-Clark’s U by Kotex; BBDO’s “It’s Not Complicated” for AT&T; Droga5’s “Recalling 1993” for the New Museum; Goodby, Silverstein & Partners’ pedophile-deterrence program for Thorn; Publicis Kaplan Thaler’s launch of P&G’s ZzzQuil; and the weather program that Leo Burnett and Arc created for Procter & Gamble’s Pantene.
Coca-Cola was cited at the most effective brand for the second straight year and BBDO Worldwide was bestowed with most effective agency network honors while Sancho BBDO (Bogota) was named most effective individual agency office. Budapest-based ACG Advertising Agency was named the number one-ranked independent agency globally.
“Since the Effie Effectiveness Index was launched four years ago, the bar has been raised for companies with the most effective marketing communications strategies, ideas and results,” said Neal Davies, President and CEO of Effie Worldwide. “Marketers who have held the top slot or climbed another level in the Global Effie Index, continue to show the worldwide business community how to create ideas that work.”