Marketing and advertising students will be given a journey through the divide between what they learn in the lecture halls and the real world practicalities of direct marketing in the new age by three of South Africa's awarded, top direct strategists and creatives - Michelle Perrow from Lesoba Difference, Andrew Ambrogioni from Action Ambro's and Xolisa Deyshana from Joe Public.
The Young Direct Marketer category offers students two opportunities to get involved by submitting into the Assegai Awards either their completed direct marketing campaigns done as part of their annual study curriculum or by attending the workshop and submitting their campaign, which they will develop on behalf of Standard Bank. Winning teams in both the curriculum and workshop entry sections will each receive cash prizes of R15 000 for the winning curriculum entry and two prizes of R7 500 each for the best creative and strategic campaign in the workshop category. It is also a great opportunity for the students to expose their talents to the country's top direct marketers who will be judging the Assegai Awards.
"A key objective for us is to expose young talent to the exciting opportunities that exist in the direct marketing space from a career perspective. Most graduates don't consciously plan to become direct marketers and they usually end up in the field by default. The new rules of marketing are changing dramatically and redefining marketing as we know it - everything is becoming direct and it's all about dialogue with consumers now. The web has fundamentally changed the manner in which we need to engage with consumers to succeed in a new knowledge economy. This is an incredible opportunity for these students to be put through their paces in a practical, hands-on session with South Africa's very best direct marketing thought leaders who bring the traditional and new age marketing channels together in a cohesive demonstration of the power of direct," says Jenny Pheiffer, director: integrated marketing communications at Standard Bank.
