Entries are now open for the WARC Prize celebrating the best strategic thinking and marketing effectiveness in the Middle East and North Africa region – here’s what you need to know.

Now in its fifth year, this case study competition is free to enter and is open to agencies, brand owners and specialists in any marketing discipline.

Peter DeBenedictis, Chief Marketing Officer, Middle East and Africa, Microsoft, chairs this year’s competition jury. The panel features industry heavyweights from brands including Etisalat, Yum! Restaurants and Visa, as well as agency-side strategy experts.

What you need to know:

The deadline to submit entries is 28 April. More information about the awards, including jury bios and how to enter is available here.

The jury, whose full bios can be found here, will award a Grand Prix, Gold, Silver and Bronze accolades as well as five Special Awards recognising specific areas of excellence, two of which are new for this year:

  • The Long-Term Strategy Award (new) – for the best strategy designed to build a long-term brand platform, executed over a period of three years or more.
  • The Pivot to Digital Award (new) – for the best example of a brand digitising its products or services.
  • The Research Excellence Award – for the best use of research in the development of strategic ideas.
  • The Brand Rebel Award – for the best example of a campaign departing from category norms.
  • The Local Hero Award – for the best example of a challenger brand from the MENA region using smart marketing strategy to take on bigger competitors.

The judge’s voice:

“The ability to combine the art and science of marketing is one of many new challenges facing marketers today, and strategic thinking plays a key role in it,” says DeBenedictis in a statement. “The WARC Prize for MENA Strategy leaves ‘marketing for marketing’s sake’ to the side to shine a spotlight on effective work the industry can draw inspiration from.”

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Sourced from WARC