Top Brands Emerge Winners at The Gala Awards 2016

The Marketing Society of Kenya held its Annual Gala Awards on the 18th of November 2016 at Arboretum Grounds. Being the highlight of MSK’s events calendar, the Gala was well

attended with over 700 marketers present at the event ready to know which campaigns emerged top in this year’s awards.

The ICT Authority scooped the top prize at the Marketing Society of Kenya Awards this past Friday, taking home both the Judges Category Award and Best Distribution and Implementation Strategy of the Year for the ICT Authority. The award was as a result of the Authority’s implementation of the complex Digital Literacy Programme nationwide launches that saw all Cabinet Secretaries and Principal Secretaries traverse all 47 Counties in remote schools to deliver digital learning devices through its PR and Marketing agency PMS Group.

The judges praised the programme’s proven dedication to transform the lives of our generation, and reshape the direction of the country.

Maggie Ireri, the MSK Chairperson said “This year’s awards were hotly contended, with many excellent entries. The judges had a tough job to select a winner in each category, but these successful agencies each had a distinguishing feature that made them stand out. They represent the very best of the marketing industry and can be justifiably proud of their achievement.”

Safaricom took home the Best Advertising Campaign for Marketing the Network campaign handled by Scanad. The Best Experiential Campaign went to Tusker Twende Rio by East African Breweries Limited implemented by Swivel Marketing.

The Digital Marketing award was taken by Airtel for the Madaraka Day Story through Ogilvy Africa. The Naomba Nicheki Mbele campaign was won by Vivo Energy in the Brand Loyalty Category through its agency YDX.

KCB, which took home the Award for Best Product Launch, was singled out by the judges for its highly innovative and effective approach to introducing service solutions that deliver significant benefits to its clients. The Ule Msee campaign was implemented by Squad Digital.

Coca Cola’s Taste the Feeling by Ogilvy & Mather won the Sports Marketing category while Kuwa True by Transcend Media Group took home the Product Re-Launch award.

The KCB Tujiajiri Campaign scooped the Sustainability Marketing award. The project is run by 5 different teams including Scanad, Squad Digital, Ogilvy PR, KCB Marketing and the KCB Foundation team.

The judges said they were impressed by KCB’s commitment to fostering innovation and creating employment.

The highly regarded MSK Awards are designed to reward best practice in the communications and marketing industry in the management of their businesses and the development of services they provide to their either their clients or the public. This year’s event was officiated by Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala, who noted the critical role played by marketers and communications experts in the branding of the country. Balala called for a partnership with the Marketing Society of Kenya to create winning strategies that will place Kenya as the first choice destination in Africa.

About MSK

1. The Marketing Society of Kenya (MSK) is the national umbrella body for Marketers in Kenya. MSK’s key mandate is to empower and regulate the Marketing industry through creating policy that governs the Marketing industry (self-regulated), Education and training of Professionals,
2. Corporates & Entrepreneurs. The membership of MSK has grown 100 fold over the last 2 years.
3. MSK is currently adding value to marketers through a number of initiatives; namely:

The arbitration arm that mediates disputes with between marketers.
Mentorship programme that assists university students to understand the practical aspects of marketing.
The Sokoni magazine that has now gone digital and you can read your favourite columns on your smartphone or tablet.
Taking a futuristic view – in 2017, MSK is working on a Bill that will go through parliament to ensure that the marketing profession is recognized under law.