For more winners in other categories, visit http://www.theloerieawards.co.za

Now, we’ve heard about differences in opinion, but this, right here  takes the ‘Lion’…

Did You Know?

• The Radio Category at Cannes was only introduced and recognised in 2005 (about time!)
  

  Net#work BBDO ECD and Cannes 2012 Radio Jury President Rob McLennan

• 2012 Radio Jury President and Net#work BBDO ECD Rob McLennan has an impressive collection of more than 35 Cannes Lions.

• The radio judging procedure takes place from Saturday to the Tuesday at Cannes Lions. During the first two days, the jury is divided into two sub-juries, each group listening to one half of the radio ads submitted, to get to the shortlist. After this first voting round, the jury work together as a single team to vote on the shortlist, deliberate and eventually award the Grand Prix, Gold, Silver & Bronze Lions. At each voting stage, conflicts of interest and possible patriotic votes are automatically neutralised.

• South Africa had the highest number of entries in the radio category. To see how many made the cut, click here for a quick peek at the shortlist and here for the full list of radio winners

• Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey was named Cannes 2012‘Media Person of the Year’

• Former U.S. President Bill Clinton was one of the key note speakers at Cannes this year. After queuing for what seemed like ‘forever’ in the extremely hot and humid heat of the Cannes Le Croisette, delegates got to hear his presentation on ‘How Advertising Can Help Build a Better World’. Click here for some excerpts from his speech and other presentations we attended.

Taking top honours – ‘Go Outside’ magazine’s Radio Grand Prix winning campaign

Turning our ears now onto something that really puts the ‘RAD’ in RADIO innovation…This year’s CannesRadio Lion Grand Prix went to ‘Go Outside’ magazine’s ‘Repellent Radio’ campaign by, Sao Paulo agency, Talent – for a campaign that’s changed the experiential-marketing game by turning the radio into a mosquito repellent…

The Big Idea:

Following a sponsorship from Go Outside, a local magazine that encourages outdoor sports and activity, a Sao Paulo radio station bought air-time for two hours in the evening slot between 18:00 and 20:00pm – the peak hours for mosquito bites.

They then ran a 15KH frequency noise, which, whilst is indistinguishable to human hearing levels, it is the same frequency as a dragonfly – a predator of mosquitoes. Because the signal couldn’t be heard by people, it didn’t interfere with normal programming, but certainly did deter mosquitoes! When it comes to mosquito-repellents, this is truly ‘off-the-wall’ stuff, if you ask us!

Why it won:

We caught up with Radio Jury President Rob McLennan after the press conference, who informed us that there was a considerable amount of debate within the 15-person jury on the awarding of this campaign as the vote was split between South Africa’s very own Mercedes Benz Alert Assist and the ‘Repellent Radio’ campaign;

“How do you judge that against a traditional radio campaign?We’re all looking for a piece of work that’s never been done before and changes the environment of radio. The categories at Cannes are getting more diverse and radio is being used with impact like never before.  The debate was a tight decision between the battle for traditional or the innovative use of radio. So we had to say: Is the idea simple?  Then vote with your gut.  Our jury wasn’t only made up of creatives, but production people too. It’s very hard to categorise ideas as they are transcending all mediums”.

The Results:

Ultimately, the million dollar question we’d all like answered is – Do the radio signals really repel mosquitoes?

“Yes”, said Bob Moore, a judge and chief creative officer of Publicis USA. “We did our due diligence and, as far as we know, it worked. It’s a fantastic idea”.

*Additional info: (www.adage.com)

Where to from Cannes?

The ‘Repellent Radio’ campaign really breaks the mould when it comes to innovation on radio.Jury President Rob McLennan informs us that the collectively passionate Radio Jury  has since gotten together to take the ‘Go Outside’ Grand Prix idea (with permission), to radio stations in Africa, India and other countries where mosquito-transmitted diseases are rampant. This is how the 2012 Radio jury feels like they can give back.

Moreover, Roberto Fernandez, a judge and Executive Creative Director at JWT in Brazil adds; “An easy mosquito repellent that doesn’t have to be bought or applied could potentially be used more widely than the three-week campaign done by Talent. It could be broadened, by partnering with the health department to broadcast in areas whether there is dengue fever. Imagine people listening to music and not having to think about mosquitoes”.

(We’re thinking, Roberto… And with radio’s massive reach across all colour and socio-economic lines, this is the perfect example of the medium’s ability to connect with listeners in a real and meaningful way – advertisers take note.)

Well, there you have it. An advertising festival demonstrating how they Cannes help you!