This is directly attributed to the innovative and highly targeted advertising campaign implemented by Cinevation to raise awareness and encourage entries. The campaign required that each and every media planner in the country be individually photographed. Each photograph was then inserted into a replica Cannes delegate card and placed in a mocked up front page of the Sunday Times dated for the week after the Cannes festival and chronicling a diary of this exciting event written by the so called "Roger Garlick winner".
Other fun, lighthearted Cannes related stories were also placed on the page using the names of well-known local media personalities. Each unique, personalised Sunday Times front page mock up was then laminated and hand delivered to planners where they could be put up on a wall as a constant reminder to enter.
"We think this campaign was such a great success because the personalised page helped the planner visualise being the lucky Roger Garlick winner and made the rewards so much more tangible and desirable. Although many planners may have heard of the Cannes festival, prior to reading the diary, many of them have had no idea of just how rewarding and how much fun that week really is. We made that concept come to life for them, making the prize of the Cannes trip very motivational" comments Torrani.
Although a huge project to undertake because of the individualisation of each call for entry, the resultant 80% increase in entries more than justified the effort. "And besides", comments Torrani, tongue firmly in cheek, "we all know it's fairly easy to end up on the back pages of the Sunday Times but appearing on the front page is no mean feat!"
This years Roger Garlick competition has been expanded to incorporate AMASA Gold Awards to be issued in various media categories in honour of those entries deemed worthy of recognition while the overall Roger Garlick winner wins a trip to Cannes. The finalists will be announced at the AMASA AGM to be held on the 20th of April at the Inanda Club Ballroom with the winners announced at the prestigious Financial Mail Ad Focus Awards in May 2005.