Whilst it is getting cooler and cooler outside, things are currently hotting up at the Cologne-based publishing company and event organisers, WA Media, in the scope of the Promotional Gift Award 2022. Namely part of the preparations involve viewing and preparing all of the national and international entries – from give-aways, mailing boosters and premium products, to merchandising items and custom-made products, through to campaigns in which haptic advertising plays a role. Otherwise the products and information the jury members require to select the winners in December wouldn’t be available on time. Companies still have the opportunity to submit their creations for the regular fee up until October 29, 2021, this is followed by the so-called late bird phase, which ends on November 26, 2021.
The jury at work at the end of 2019. The assessment of the entries took place online in 2020 due to COVID-19. This year a judging session with a physical presence is planned again.
The judges are also waiting for the starting signal: At the end of the year the five marketing professionals Jens Bräunig, Michael Mätzener, Michael Scherer, Michael Witzorrek and Martin Zettl will come together to inspect the entries and distinguish the best product ideas and campaigns. The composition of the jury is the same as last year.
It is Bräunig’s third year on the panel. He has been working as an executive in the sales and marketing sector of the football industry for many years and is among others responsible for the merchandising activities at VfB Stuttgart. Witzorrek has been on the panel of judges since 2015. In his capacity as a merchandising expert, in the past he has among others created products for Norddeutsche Rundfunk (a radio channel in North Germany). Today in his role as Brand Merchandise Manager, he develops and supervises the collections of the agricultural machine manufacturer, Fendt. Zettl organises the Austrian series of promotional products trade shows, markeding, as well as the series of online events, md XPO. The Swiss native, Mätzener, and his agency diewerbeartikelgmbh advise customers on how to implement haptic advertising. Scherer is the managing partner of WA Media. The publishing company has been publishing magazines for the promotional products industry and for the marketing industry since 1982. The latter three jury members have been members of the panel for a number of years.
The assessment of the entries occurs based on five criteria: The product idea, design and production quality, communicative potential and sustainability. Advertising agencies, designers and creative directors from corporate marketing divisions as well promotional products manufacturers and distributors are eligible to participate. The same applies for all: The more precisely and detailed the special features of the entry are communicated, the easier it is for the judges to make their decision.
All of the participants will be informed about the outcome of the competition before Christmas. Then all of the award-winning products will be showcased in a separate exhibition at the HAPTICA® live ‘22 on March 16, 2022 at the World Conference Center Bonn. Furthermore, the award-winning products and campaigns will be presented to a broad audience in the trade publications of WA Media (which corresponds to a media value of over 3,000 Euros). The online registration form, all further information as well as the terms of participation can be found on the award website at:
Photos: Andrea Bothe, Anik Ginet Servais, © WA Media
