Dove's Evolution won best of show at Marketing Magazine's Digital Marketing Awards last week racking up yet another in a long list of industry accolades that includes collecting the Grand Prix at Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival.
As one of the judges of this year's DMA awards, I thought it may be of interest to know why this was at the top of the pile of everything that was digital in 2007 (in my mind at least). I can't speak for the other judges but can acknowledge there was some interesting debate and great discussion on all of the awards handed out, especially around Best of Show. Kudos to the folks at Marketing Magazine for collecting the best and brightest in the digital industry to judge with honesty and integrity.
Know that this was not a case of simply rubber stamping Ogilvy's entry because it had already won at Cannes, One Show and D&AD awards. It was far from easy as all entries were based on individual merits and many were outstanding.
So why Evolution? After all, it is just a 1:14 tv spot, right? Well, consider the following elements in terms of it's worthiness:
Interactivity: What is interactivity? Is it the requirement to have flash and complex navigation? Or, do we look beyond and see interactivity as the output of of the work? The fact that it spawned parodies and inspired conversations inside and outside the medium. The fact that it had us look at the use of online video and the space and reevaluate how a brand can play in this space. On those levels, it transcended the traditional notion of "interactivity" as it managed to find interaction on a variety of levels.
Community: Did the effort create, inspire or activate a community? Did it bring people together around a central idea? I think we can all agree it did this very well. From the comments on YouTube to the reaction in the blogosphere to the buzz from consumers and industry insiders, it was hands down the "it" campaign of the year.
Use of digital media and content:
Targeting distribution via YouTube with a 75 second video was risky and brilliant (well at least it worked out to look brilliant). Did the team at Ogilvy and Dove know they would create a viral reaction? Did they know that they would find such success in the digital space with a simple little video? They likely hoped for such a response (as all marketers do), but there were no guarantees. That is where content counts. And, as far as content goes here, it was killer.
Consumer insight: This does not even need to be explained, does it? The first time I saw it, I thought "this is bang on". I am sure you did too. Almost like it was living in all our subconscious minds just waiting to jump out. The insight was simple and the creative expression was stellar. At the end of the day, that is what stood out the most on this campaign.
So, there you are. That was my guide in the judging process and now I am done talking about Dove (for at least a few posts anyways).
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