Leo Burnett wins only gold Appies award for Sri Lanka

Leo Burnett Solutions Inc. (LBSI) the local office of the global advertising network Leo Burnett Worldwide, yet again made its mark in the annals of the advertising industry by winning Gold at the Appies 2012 in Singapore. The winning short film titled, ‘Pass it on when you’re done with it’ created by LBSI for the Sri Lanka Eye Donation Society (SLEDS) was awarded a Gold metal for being one of the best marketing ideas in Asia-Pacific.

Winning metal previously at the Spikes Asia Festival and the Effie Awards 2011 and Adfest 2012, this filmet has made its mark for its creative prowess once again. This simple yet effective short film was received by the judges with a standing ovation.  The filmet struck gold competing against 100 shortlisted entries showcasing 48 global brands from 16 countries from across Asia Pacific this year.

Commenting on the win LBSI Managing Director Ranil de Silva stated, ‘‘We are delighted to be the only Sri Lankan agency awarded with a Gold Appies Award this year, it recognises the creativity of this commercial as well as its ability to deliver meaningful results for the cause. This win once again demonstrates the capability of the Sri Lankan communications industry in the international arena.”

Appies 2012 offers unparalleled networking and a knowledge-sharing platform for the industry, inspiring marketing leaders and creative gurus. The awards brings together some of the best regional marketers under one roof to share their knowledge on the ongoing battle to reach consumers minds with their brands in Asia’s competitive markets. The 100 best regional marketing campaigns are judged in a unique manner via live presentations which are held over two days covering a broad range of six product/service categories that include consumer durables, consumer services, food and beverage, non-food FMCG, business services and government, cultural, social and environmental campaigns.

Representing Leo Burnett at the Appies this year Brand Director Selonica Nalwansa made the presentation on behalf of the team. Speaking on her experience at the Appies, Selonica stated, ‘‘The Appies 2012 was an extraordinary experience. Every shortlisted entry had a compelling story to tell and each campaign had been implemented meticulously. More importantly each campaign had to be effective in reaching its individual target audiences. The Appies provides an amazing opportunity for marketers and agencies from across the region to display outstanding work which delivers worthy results.’’

‘Pass it on when you’re done with it’ made its debut on 5 April impacting millions of Sri Lankans. This call for action has moved audiences with online communications alone for the commercial on YouTube generating over 248,000 views surpassing all norms as Sri Lanka is still very much at an early stage of engaging with communications online. The commercial stands as the 32nd most viewed video in India in any category, the 44th most viewed video in ‘Film and Animation’ globally and the second most tweeted video in ‘Film and Animation’. This successful and effective campaign produced over 5,000 calls requesting donor applications on the hotline following its launch.