DUBAI: The World Advertising Research Center has announced the winners for the 2021 WARC Prize for MENA Strategy. The award was launched five years ago with the aim of encouraging strategic thinkers and planners to generate inspiring work.
This year, there were 21 entries shortlisted for both international brands including Burger King, Facebook, Knorr and Mastercard, and local brands, such as Almosafer, An-Nahar, Diari and Lotto Libanais. The jury panel of 16 industry experts was chaired by Peter DeBenedictis, chief marketing officer of Microsoft, Middle East and Africa.
This year’s Grand Prix went to TBWA\RAAD and the KFC MENA “Shift +K+F+C” campaign, which provided a unique cheat code that helped users score a limited-edition menu item. The campaign also won the Special Award for Pivot to Digital.
“We are honored to receive the Grand Prix in effectiveness at the WARC Prize for MENA Strategy for our ‘Shift +K+F+C’ campaign, which drove great affinity with gamers in the region,” said Ozge Zoralioglu, chief marketing officer, KFC MENA.
The campaign saw KFC leverage its own online ordering process to connect with gamers in Saudi Arabia. With a few tweaks to the website’s code — and zero production costs — KFC programmed the code, Shift+K+F+C, into its website as a shortcut to accelerate the online ordering process and unlock a special menu item.
The campaign tapped into the emerging gaming culture in the Kingdom and was promoted exclusively through Twitch and gaming influencers.
“‘Shift +K+F+C’ perfectly demonstrates how a simple idea with a modest budget, coupled with a disruptive, innovative strategy can effectively resonate with its audience, drive traffic and generate sales,” said Jennifer Fischer, chief innovation officer at TBWA\RAAD.
She added that the campaign “gave us a deep understanding of the gaming community and set us on track for many more meaningful ways to engage with gaming culture and deliver on their needs.”
Among the other winners, FP7 McCann bagged the most awards across Egypt, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Tunisia including two Gold, one Silver and three Bronze. The Gold-winning campaigns “A Dad’s Job” for Landmark Group’s Home Centre and “Rooftop Farms” for Knorr also won The Brand Rebel and Long-Term Strategy awards respectively.
Wunderman Thompson won a Gold and a Silver for its campaigns for Burger King, “The Doppelganger” in Saudi and “Pay Cut Whopper” in the UAE, as well as another Silver for the “Noise-O-Meter” campaign for Bose UAE.
The full list of winners is:
GOLD
Campaign: A Dad’s Job
Agency: FP7 McCann Dubai
Brand: Home Centre
Campaign: Rooftop Farms
Agency: FP7 McCann Cairo
Brand: Knorr
Campaign: The Doppelganger
Agency: Wunderman Thompson KSA
Brand: Burger King
SILVER
Campaign: Pay Cut Whopper
Agency: Wunderman Thompson Dubai
Brand: Burger King
Campaign: Noise-O-Meter
Agency: Wunderman Thompson Dubai
Brand: Bose
Campaign: Thank You Russia
Agency: TBWA\RAAD
Brand: LADA
Campaign: Mars Shot
Agency: FP7 McCann Dubai
Brand: Emirates Nation Brand (Government of UAE)
BRONZE
Campaign: Stories of Mecca
Agency: FP7 McCann Riyadh
Brand: Almosafer
Campaign: Dream Number
Agency: Impact BBDO
Brand: Lotto Libanais
Campaign: The New National Anthem Edition
Agency: Impact BBDO & OMD
Brand: An-Nahar
Campaign: The Man Who Never Got Anything Back
Agency: Momentum Riyadh
Brand: Emirates NBD
Campaign: Neb Adventures
Agency: McCann Health & FP7 McCann Dubai
Brand: AstraZeneca
Campaign: A Journey Across Tunisia
Agency: FP7 McCann Tunis & Dubai
Brand: Diari
