MMA 2014 SMARTIESTM APAC Awards Shortlist Shows Growing Mobile Interest in Asia Pacific

The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) Asia Pacific (APAC) announced today the list of finalists for the second annual MMA SMARTIESTM APAC Awards, which witnessed a 40 per cent increase in entries this year. The shortlist, across 20 categories, including two new creative categories, features 87 campaigns from nine markets across the region, demonstrating the growing interest in and expanse of mobile marketing in the Asia Pacific region.

In their 10th year globally, the SMARTIESTM Awards are the only global recognition programme devoted to mobile advertising. A full list of the SMARTIESTM  APAC shortlist can be found here.

“With 88 brands and 48 agencies participating, the response we have received for the SMARTIES this year is very encouraging and demonstrates the prominence, potential and effectiveness of the mobile medium in marketing in the region,” said Rohit Dadwal, Managing Director of MMA APAC. “The finalists have challenged the status quo and demonstrate to us what more can be done with mobile marketing. The most exciting part – that there is even more to be explored on this medium in the years to come.”

Shortlisted entries represent a range of industries including food & beverage, automotive, non-governmental organisations, telecommunications, and fast-moving consumer-goods (FMCG) brands, which lead the pack. Furthermore, relationship-building and innovation came up as the most popular functions of mobile marketing in emerging economies such as China, India and Indonesia. This year’s awards received entries from over 15 markets in the region, demonstrating mobile’s unparalleled reach.

The shortlist was determined by a pre-screening council of senior marketing executives and agency partners, led by Jury Chairman, Ashutosh Srivastava, who is also Chairman & CEO, Global Emerging Markets at MindShare. The final winners will be determined by a Grand Jury of 17 senior advertising and communications experts including representatives from all five major advertising networks; brands such as DBS Bank, Lenovo, OCBC Bank, Phillips, Pizza Hut, and Resorts World Sentosa; as well as publishers and technology enablers such as Facebook and MasterCard. A full list of both the Grand Jury and pre-screening council can be found here.

Winners of the SMARTIES APAC Awards will be announced at a gala dinner event, to be held at the Grand Hyatt Singapore on Friday, 5 September 2014.