All the Marketing Achievement Awards 2021 winners

The Marketing Achievement Awards (MAAs) took place last night by way of a premium virtual event, giving everyone the opportunity to safely participate in the evening's festivities. Each year, the event celebrates the marketers and brands who have promoted the value marketing in driving strategy and business growth. This year was no different in spite of the alternative ceremony format.
All the Marketing Achievement Awards 2021 winners

The night featured live musical stylings from DJ Ready D and was hosted by MC Napsta who brilliantly drove the evening’s theme of ‘Abo Genius’ as he announced the extraordinary men and women who are never out of touch with culture and are constantly seeking new and innovative ways to connect with consumers and move brands forward.

No awards evening would be complete without an audience prize and this event was no exception because, Surajh Surjoo was the lucky audience winner who was selected for the spot prize of 2 tickets aboard The Blue Train.

Announcing this year’s winners

Each year, the calibre of marketers and brands who have best exemplified the art and science of marketing increases. This is a strong testament to the vision behind the MAAs platform to propel constant improvements within the discipline, set a high benchmark for the industry, raise the bar for local marketers, and bring the art and science of marketing to life.

Last night, 12 such winners were selected from across the categories as a result of a rigorous judging process. This year’s judging panel included 60 industry experts and professionals to ensure a wide range of even and unbiased feedback. These judges followed a methodologically-sound adjudication process to review 180 entries, spending several hours in lengthy debates and intense deliberations to ensure that the selections were fair and robust. Moreover, the judging process was overseen by the Marketing Awards Council who have been unwavering in their commitment to make certain that the Awards are an honest and true reflection of the integrity of the MAAs.

Says Mohale Ralebitso, Chairperson of the Marketing Awards Council, “While it was certainly an arduous task for our esteemed judges to sift through the entries for each category and select the winners from an impressive list of finalists, there is no doubt in my mind that this has been a rewarding time, enabling us as a Council to become more acutely aware of the tremendous talent that we have growing right here in our own country.”

None of this would be possible, however, without the support of key partners and sponsors from among the country’s biggest, dynamic, and most well-loved brands. These sponsors have provided invaluable insights and financial support, including The Marketing Association of South Africa, SABC, Nando’s, Provantage Media Group (PMG), Accenture Interactive, Google, ABSA Group, Brand South Africa, Kantar, Unilever and The Blue Train together with media and monitoring partners BizCommunity, Modern Marketing and Newsclip.

To view the full list of winners and finalists for each category, please see a full list on our website.

The 2020/2021 MAA winners are:

Leadership Awards:

  • Rising Star of the Year, Serisha Pillay, Discovery Limited
  • Marketing Person of the Year, Bernice Samuels, MTN Group
  • Marketing Organisation of the Year, Nando’s

Category Awards:

CategoryCompanyfor
Excellence in Strategic Sponsorship MarketingDiscoveryDiscovery Vitality | Running World Cup
Excellence in Brand PositioningFirst National Bank Positioning FNB as a ‘one-stop-shop’ Integrated Financial Services Provider
Excellence in South African Resonance MarketingNedbank Nedbank | Money Secrets
Excellence in Purpose Led MarketingMondelēz Cadbury | Dairy Milk’s Little Generosity Shop
Excellence in Reputation Management Spur Steak Ranches Global Leaders in Reputation & Review Management
Excellence in Internal MarketingStandard BankStandard Bank | Instant Money Employee Campaign
Excellence in New Product or Brand LaunchThe Shoprite Group of Companies Checkers Sixty60 | 60 Minute Grocery Delivery App Launch
Excellence in Marketing Innovation The Shoprite Group of CompaniesCheckers Sixty60 | 60 Minute Grocery Delivery Service
Excellence in Resourceful MarketingKFC SA#KFC Proposal
Excellence in Brand Marketing B2BHollard InsureHollard | Highway Heroes
Excellence in Integrated MarketingThe Shoprite Group of CompaniesCheckers | Xtra Savings Rewards Programme
Excellence in Digital Brand MarketingThe Shoprite Group of CompaniesCheckers for Sixty60 | 60 Minute Grocery Delivery Service

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