Volvo and agency partners Mindshare and WhiteGREY won the Grand Prix at last night’s MFA Awards 2019 gala presentation at Carriageworks in Sydney, with Mindshare and Bohemia Group dominating the list of winners. See all the winners at the bottom of this article.
The MFA Awards, which returned this year after a pause in 2018, are focused on effectiveness; recognising and rewarding work that has delivered tangible brand and business results for clients in the short and long term.
The winners were chosen by silent vote, with more than 100 judges participating in the rigorous judging process, which included an independent review of all finalist entries. Mindshare and Bohemia Group scored four winners each on behalf of clients Volvo and Foxtel, and News Corp, Aspen Pharmacare and Ozmosis / Rip Curl respectively.
Nolan Yu and Max Learmont, who won the NGEN category in 2017, once again took out the NGEN Award, with their entry ‘Walk A Mile in Their Boots’ for UnLtd charity BackTrack. The NGEN Award recognises the talent of young media agency executives with less than five years’ experience.
Industry stalwarts Carol Morris, Stuart Bailey and Vince Meoli were recognised with Industry Contribution honours, and Anthony Fitzgerald was inducted into the Hall of Fame.
MFA CEO Sophie Madden said: “The MFA Awards’ renewed focus on effectiveness is a key part of the MFA’s commitment to demonstrating media agencies’ contribution to achieving tangible, long-lasting results for clients. Entries were streamlined to ensure only the very best were awarded, and judging overhauled to maximise transparency and rigour. Congratulations to the winners, who can confidently say they are delivering the highest quality of strategic thinking and long-lasting results for clients in the country!”
The 2019 MFA Awards winners are:
Grand Prix – Sponsored by Seven West Media
Volvo Australia, Omtanke: Rethinking Volvo, Mindshare and WhiteGREY
Behaviour Change
Foxtel, Fox Sports: Monty’s Wicket Warnings, Mindshare
Best Use of Real-time Marketing
News Corp, The News in Colour, Bohemia Group
Collaborating partners: M&C Saatchi
Business Impact – Sponsored by Google
Volvo Australia, Omtanke: Rethinking Volvo, Mindshare and WhiteGREY
Partnerships – Sponsored by Facebook
Specsavers, The Test Experts, Initiative Australia
Brand Impact – Sponsored by SBS Media
Aspen Pharmacare, Get back to your Asian adventure, Bohemia Group
Collaborating partners: Ogilvy Health
Best Use of Innovation in Media – Sponsored by MOVE (OMA)
Foxtel, Fox Sports: Monty’s Wicket Warnings, Mindshare
Best Use of Technology
VOTE, PHD
Long-term results – Sponsored by Network Ten
Aspen Pharmacare, Creating Travel FOMO drives long-term growth for Gastro-Stop, Bohemia Group
Collaborating partners: Ogilvy Health
Best Use of Data & Analytics – Sponsored by OzTAM
Coles, Setting a new benchmark for effective media measurement, OMD
Collaborating Partners: Beatgrid, Brand Metric Measurement, Lewers, Technology Provider
Best Use of Content – Sponsored by Ad Standards
AncenstryDNA, The DNA of shared milestones, OMD
Bravery – Sponsored by SCA
Ozmosis / Rip Curl, Leveraging scars as a media channel: Pay with pain, Bohemia Group
Collaborating Partners: M&C Saatchi Group
NGEN – Sponsored by UnLtd
Walk A Mile in Their Boots, Nolan Yu (OMD) and Max Learmont (M&C Saatchi)
Pro Bono/Cause Marketing Incentive – In recognition of Pam Lane
OMDonate continues!, OMD Australia
Agency Talent & Culture – Sponsored by Foxtel Media
Initiative Australia
Hall of Fame
Anthony Fitzgerald
Industry Contribution
Carol Morris
Vincenzo Meoli, Commercial Director, HYLAND
Stuart Bailey, Chief Digital Officer, PHD
