Africa has creative talent to burn. We spoke to African creative leaders about how pan-African showcases like the Loeries, help promote African talent to the world – and why awards like these, inspire brands to be bolder, and do more creative and effective work.

There is a very human voice to African brand communication, as well as a sense of fun. Lesibane Mohale, Group Creative Director of Ogilvy Africa Group, in Ghana, admires the way “humour is weaved into communication messages”. In Africa, “telecommunications brands thrive on humour and simplicity to connect with consumers,” he says.

Many African creatives are driven by a belief that we can tell better stories by taking inspiration from each other, particularly from the unique and diverse creative resources across the continent. Angolan graphic designer Hilma Sassa feels that Africans don't yet fully value their creative industry and its importance in society, making it harder to get noticed, “As a creative, you may have more luck getting noticed beyond your country, and outside the continent, if you share your work on the international stage.”

That sentiment informs the work of the Loeries, the most prestigious creative awards across Africa and the Middle East. “Our mandate is to showcase the best creative work from the continent, of course. But, it’s equally about helping brands find the right creative team to help them realise their business goals,” says Andrew Human, CEO of the Loeries. “Countries such as Brazil and India are great examples of markets that have entered work into international award shows and won by leveraging locally relevant ideas backed by solid local consumer insights,” says Mohale.

“As a continent, we should champion work that feels unapologetically African so that we can showcase to the world what the continent is truly about.”

As Sassa puts it: “I am stimulated by the diversity of work created in Africa, which is deeply inspired by our culture and tradition. That signature makes it unique and different from the things we see out there.” A similar impulse drives Human, who urges more creatives from around the African continent to enter the Loeries. “The Loeries is the only award in Africa that is recognised by the global WARC Report, which makes the Loeries a unique platform for African excellence on the global stage.” Human says the international standing of the Loeries is the result of a commitment to high standards and an independent and objective judging process. “Every year, we host some of the world's top creative leaders to act as jury presidents, coupled with panels of leading experts from throughout the region. Their objectivity and expert insight is part of what makes the Loeries the benchmark.”

“Entrants know that their work is being held to the highest global standards, and it’s a unique opportunity for African creatives to show the world just how good they are.” About  Loeries Africa Middle East:    The Loeries, a non-profit company, is Africa and the Middle East’s premiere initiative that recognises, rewards, inspires and fosters creative excellence in the brand communication industry.

As the highest accolade for creativity and innovation across our region, the Loeries promotes and supports creativity by helping marketers, agencies and consumers appreciate the value of ideas and fresh  thinking.  Culminating in the biggest creative gathering in Africa and the Middle East, Loeries Creative Week Durban brings together the best innovative minds from our industry for a festival of networking, inspiring minds and recognising great work. Our region's creative economy is world-class and has great potential to grow and to offer employment to our talented youth. The growth occurring throughout Africa and the Middle East is very exciting, and a major focus of the Loeries is to increase the standard of brand communication in the region.

DEADLINE FOR 2019 ENTRIES EXTENDED TO 31 MAY
Major Partners: DStv Media Sales, Gearhouse
Category Partners: AB InBev, Barron, Brand South Africa, Facebook, Gagasi FM, Google, JCDecaux, Nando’s, Tsogo Sun, Vodacom, Woolworths

Additional Partners and Official Suppliers:    AAA School of Advertising, Antalis South Africa, Aon South Africa, Backsberg, BEE Online, First     Source, Fresh RSVP Guest Logistics, Funk Productions, Gallo Images, Grid Worldwide, Hetzner,     Mama Creative, Newsclip, Paygate, Rocketseed, Shared Value Initiative, Shift Social Development,  Vega School, VQI Communications Nigeria

Endorsed by:    Association of Communication and Design, Brand Council South Africa, Commercial Producers     Association, Creative Circle, EXCA, IAB, South African Institute of Architects, IID

Official Media Partners    Between 10and5, Bizcommunity.com, Book of Swag, Brand Communicator Nigeria, Business Insider by Pulse, Campaign Middle East, Film & Event Media, Modern Marketing, The Redzone.

-- ENDS --

Twitter: @loeries    Instagram: Loerieawards    Facebook: The Loeries

Distributed on behalf of the  Loeries  by:    Riana Greenblo Communications Date: May 16, 2019

For more information, interview requests or high-res images, please contact: Riana Greenblo on 011 3256006; 0825675159 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Riverbed is a bold and contemporary through-the-line creative agency. It is a black, female owned company that has throughout its ten plus years, navigated and adapted to industry changes to remain relevant and competitive. And now in this month of new beginnings, Riverbed announces its rebrand, revealing a modern look that’s more closely aligned to its renewed vision. 

Earlier this year, the agency’s founder and CEO Monalisa Sibongile Zwambila refocused the agency to place ‘brand experience’ at the heart of its creative thinking. “In the age of CX, Riverbed is fervent about developing creativity that people want to spend time with and so we’re always thinking about how we can build emotional attachments between the brands we represent and their consumers. Even through our brand assets such as our website refresh, we’re aspiring to build a brand and an agency that our customers will want to spend time with too,” shared Zwambila. 

Riverbed’s new identity is bold, contemporary, striking and simple. The imagery used with the icon is ever-changing, boasting a versatility that never tires. The creative team behind the redesign added that the predominant black and white colour palette is timeless, but through the application of colour, can be expressed differently to suit specific needs, again keeping it current. 

Zwambila commented, “Our team is aligned to our new ambition to become a leading independent agency and we felt that while over time Riverbed had evolved, our brand hadn’t. We wanted a strong, attractive brand statement that supported this ambition.” 

Awarded designer, Catherine Blomkamp developed the new CI, while Muguette Crozier created the website internally, fortifying the agency’s growing digital competency.                                            

Condriac’s data-focused approach to PR is changing the game 

As a progressive, future-thinking PR and Digital Marketing agency, Condriac’s approach to all work starts and ends with data. 

Data affords Condriac an unprecedented capacity to remain dynamic, agile and responsive to subtle changes in the way in which audiences respond to key messaging, creative concepts and value offerings. 

Traditionally, public relations has relied on time-tested methods of tailoring the development and execution of campaigns. These methods rely largely on data collection post-campaign launch, meaning insights and calibrations are only available once campaigns are already running for some time. While this outdated approach does have its merits as a process of learning about target audiences, Condriac has found that using carefully collected, statistically relevant data to guide PR campaign development from day one is a much more effective strategy. 

An argument may be made against this approach, in that it is perhaps too limiting or constraining on the potential scope and freedom afforded to creative and strategic processes. However, after years of using this data-centric approach for delivering profitable public relations campaigns, Condriac would argue that it is these very constraints that are largely responsible for their success. Knowing the specific interests, sensitivities and limitations of target audiences controls the focus, and as a result allows Condriac freedom to execute quickly, efficiently and most importantly, with confidence. 

Databases have been used to help identify potential areas of friction in demographics, audiences and focus groups for clients in a myriad of industries. Findings from digital-only campaigns are combined with empirical “in-the-field” data to attentively curate service offerings to current and future clients. This process enables a more personal, “in-house” approach to the relationships manage both with and for customers. 

In addition to the priceless value data provides us in the research, planning, execution and management of campaigns, another crucial area data aids us in is reporting. By basing reports on real, accurate data collected throughout a campaign’s lifecycle, our capacity to unearth insights for customers is magnified ten-fold. It is not unusual to discover information about client’s own customer that affects the very way their business is conducted going forward. This data enables clients to make the changes and improvements necessary for growth in their businesses, all while cutting costs and improving their focus on delivering valuable products and services to their own customers. 

In conclusion, in order to create dynamic, relevant, engaging, successful PR campaigns, simply follow the data. 

About Gary Meyer, Condriac’s Managing Partner

Gary is the founder and managing partner of Condriac. Gary boasts over 10 years’ experience in the industry and has worked on brands both locally and across Africa. He has a record of success in integrated digital marketing, social media and product launches for B2C consumer companies including Guinness, Hollard, Virgin Atlantic, Apple, Nintendo, TomTom, Microsoft and Dimension Data. Gary has created innovative online campaigns which have directly impacted brand awareness and reflected positive ROI. He offers unique expertise in the South African and African market through innovative strategies to resonate with consumers.