2009 HispanicAd.com Account Planning Excelencia Winners.

Winners of the HispanicAd.com Account Planning Excelencia (HAPE) awards were announced today at the Association of Hispanic Advertising Agencies (AHAA) Conference in Miami.  Campaigns from Grupo Gallegos won Gold and Silver in two categories, the Vidal Partnership was awarded Bronze in two categories, and the Concept Café received a Bronze as well.  Creative on Demand, Diesté and Alma DDB received Honorable Mentions. 

“Congratulations to all of the HispanicAd.com award winners,” said Gisela Girard, AHAA chair and president/COO of Creative Civilization.  “The complexity in strategy and creative approach to account planning is inspiring.  Hispanic-specialized advertising requires consumer insight and innovation, and this year’s HAPE award winners are extraordinary.”

The HAPE awards were designed to identify and reward the best account planning in the industry.  Bryan says the standards for excellence are set high by the judges and entries were evaluated on insight, creativity and effectiveness, the case study entries summarized a business challenge and described the skillful solution that changed or guided the course of communications development.

Account planning seeks to understand the motivation behind consumer behavior and reveals closely held attitudes, beliefs, and feelings about brands, self, family and lifestyle.  Insight and consumer perspective combined with innovative concepts, strategic analytical thinking, and instinctive curiosity guide planners in developing the platform for brilliant creative execution.  The account planning profession plays a vital role in an integrated approach to serving clients and delivering demonstrated business value.

“Account Planning is discipline that is a necessity and not a luxury in marketing to US Hispanics,” says Gene Bryan, CEO of HispanicAd.com.  “It is a tool to regain our legitimate position in the marketing hierarchy requiring a unique Hispanic focused skill-set that cannot be commoditized.  Account Planning adds context, a wider perspective, guidance and opinion to the complexity of Hispanic advertising development.”

The HAPE award winners in each category are:

Best Strategic thinking for the introduction or repositioning of a product or service

Gold: Foster Farms / Fresh Chicken – Grupo Gallegos

Bronze: National Football League / NFL – The Vidal Partnership

Honorable Mention:

Volkswagen of America / Routan Minivan – Creative on Demand

Nationwide Insurance / On Your Side Review – Dieste

Best Strategic thinking in the creative development for a product or service

Silver: Comcast / Comcast Cine Latino- Grupo Gallegos

Bronze: American Honda Motor Company / Honda Pilot – Concept Café

Bronze: Heineken USA / Heineken – The Vidal Partnership

Best Strategic thinking in the development of an integrated communications plan

Honorable Mention:

State Farm – Alma DDB

Best Strategic thinking in the planning of a Pro-Bono brand

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