Effie United States, which recognises marketing effectiveness, has announced that its 10th Effie Collegiate program will be in partnership with IBM. Modelled after the Effie Awards, the Effie Collegiate program calls on the next generation’s brightest marketers to research, ideate, and execute comprehensive marketing plans to address real world business challenges.
For the 2020 brand challenge, IBM will invite college students across the US to develop a non-traditional integrated marketing campaign focused on IBM and The Weather Channel app, the world's most downloaded weather app. The campaign should drive relevance for the IBM brand and showcase the interesting and surprising ways that IBM and The Weather Channel (an IBM Business) affect consumers' daily lives.
"The Effie Collegiate program provides IBM the opportunity to inspire and give back to the next generation of marketers. The Effie program unearths young, fresh, and diverse talent whose ideas benefit IBM as we get a unique perspective on our brand and benefits students who gain invaluable experience. It's a fantastic opportunity for both our brand and the students and we can't wait to see all the great thinking that comes out of this program!" said Ann Rubin, VP corporate marketing, IBM.
IBM has earned many Effie Awards globally through the years and was most recently a recipient of the 5 for 50 Effie Award, honouring the five marketers who most effectively adapted, stayed relevant and sustained business success for the brand over time. IBM also partnered with Effie US on the 2017 Effie Collegiate program.
“For both the students and their future employers, starting marketing careers with a focused lens on effectiveness will only have a positive impact on our industry. Having the support of IBM, with decades of proven effectiveness, is an incredible opportunity for our industry’s future talent to gain real world experience. I look forward to seeing the great ideas that emerge from this semester’s program,” said Traci Alford, president & CEO, Effie Worldwide.
Entry materials for the 2020 Effie Collegiate IBM Brand Challenge will be available in December 2019 and call for entries will launch in January 2020. The challenge is open to students enrolled in full/part-time graduate, undergraduate and portfolio programs at accredited educational institutions. The competition is free to enter and the entry deadline is April 2, 2020.
Competition finalists will be invited to pitch their campaigns to the IBM brand team at their New York headquarters.
For complete details on the Effie Collegiate competition, please visit here. Details of the challenge will be released in the coming weeks.