CASSIES 2014 Call for Submissions

^[1]The CASSIES Awards ^[2] come with bragging rights not just within the creative communications industry, but also within business boardrooms across Canada. The country’s only industry awards recognizing business effectiveness (based on rigorous published cases), has just announced its 2014 call for submissions and entries are due by Thursday August 1, 2013, 12:00pm ET.

“Like listening to a song that takes you back to a certain moment in time, CASSIES award-winning campaigns serve as signature markers in the history of our communications culture,” said Jani Yates, president, Institute of Communication Agencies (ICA). “We’re looking for this year’s equivalent to campaigns such as autoTRADER’s ‘The Most Cars in One Place,’ Newfoundland & Labrador Tourism’s ‘Find Yourself’ or ‘diamond’ Shreddies – communications that are so compelling, they both drive business and stick with us in the long run.”

This is a chance for communications professionals across all disciplines who produce paid client work, including advertising, public relations, social media, mobile and shopper marketing to enjoy the high profile that comes with CASSIES wins.  Gold-winning cases will be featured in strategy magazine’s February 2014 issue and will qualify for The Globe Effectiveness Prize, which provides client-agency teams with delegate passes to the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.

Winning CASSIES cases will also be featured in the exclusive CASSIES online library ^[3], thereby becoming a part of Canada’s celebrated communications history. This library has become a popular go-to industry reference, resource and learning tool.

Ted Boyd, CEO of One, is serving as this year’s CASSIES Chair of Judging.  Boyd is pleased to present this year’s panel of notable judges who represent clients, agencies, media, interactive, international and research disciplines across the communications industry. The 2014 CASSIES judges are:

• Ian MacDonald, National Director, Marketing and Nutrition, Dairy Farmers of Canada
• Jennifer Davidson, General Manager, Six Pints Specialty Beer Co.
• Angela Scardillo, VP Marketing & Communications, Best Buy/Future Shop
• Elaine Bissonnette, Director, Brand Strategy, Bell
• Elise Vaillancourt, Regional Marketing Manager, Home Depot Canada
• Sonya Bacon, EVP, Bleublancrouge
• Luc Perreault, VP Creation, kbs+
• Christian Mathieu, Partner, Strategy, Open Creative
• Andrew Simon, CMO, Cundari
• Judy Davey, EVP Activation, ZenithOptimedia
• Jay Moonah, VP Marketing, Wild Apricot
• Stephan Argent, President, Argedia Group

Eligible CASSIES entries must demonstrate impressive business results and prove convincingly that these results are a direct output of the campaign. Details on how to enter, including a step-by-step video tutorial, can be found online ^[4]. The 2014 CASSIES Award categories are:

• Events, Seasonal and Short-Term
• Off to a Good Start
• Services – General
• Services – Financial
• Packaged Goods – Food/Other
• Packaged Goods – Beverage
• Prescription Pharmaceuticals
• Durables
• Automotive and DIY
• Retail
• Not-for-Profit
• Government & Advocacy
• Business to Business
• Sustained Success
• Best Launch
• Best Insight
• Best Integrated Program
• Best Use of Media
• Canadian Contribution to a Global or Multi-Country Campaign
• Canadian Success Outside Canada

“This is a very exciting time in our industry, where communications strategies, tactics and enabling technologies are evolving at a lightning pace,” said Boyd.  “We’re looking forward to reviewing campaigns that are at the forefront of those advancements, where bold, innovative, memorable creative is inextricably linked to data, research results, tracking and solid business outcomes.”

This year’s entries must be filed online ^[2] by Thursday, August 1, 2013 at 12:00 noon ET and winners will be announced at the annual CASSIES awards show in late February 2014.