Benjamin to Lead Panel of 30 Highly Acclaimed Thought Leaders from Across the Digital Marketing Ecosystem to Honor Innovative Interactive Creative
NEW YORK – The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) announced that Jeff Benjamin, Chief Creative Officer, JWT North America, will serve as the Judging Panel Chair for the 10th anniversary IAB MIXX Awards. One of the advertising world’s most innovative talents, Benjamin will oversee a panel of 30 industry luminaries, including agency creatives, brand marketers, and major media company leaders, all of whom have been pivotal stakeholders in moving the entire digital industry forward.
“We are honored that Jeff Benjamin, a highly accomplished creative pioneer, has agreed to lead the IAB MIXX Awards jury and raise the bar even higher in collaboration with a stellar gathering of cross-industry judges”
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the IAB MIXX Awards, an esteemed and unique digital marketing awards program, celebrating groundbreaking interactive advertising that not only raises the level of artistry and imagination across the industry, but also delivers high-impact results. The winners of these prestigious awards are seen as guideposts for what currently works and why, while serving as clear indicators of future trends.
“We are honored that Jeff Benjamin, a highly accomplished creative pioneer, has agreed to lead the IAB MIXX Awards jury and raise the bar even higher in collaboration with a stellar gathering of cross-industry judges,” said David Doty, Executive Vice President and CMO, IAB. “His deep commitment to leveraging digital’s distinct capabilities for engaging and delighting consumers in interactive promises to result in an impressive showing of the best-of-the-best in this 10th anniversary year of the awards.”
“Digital marketing has enabled brands to become modern storytellers, pulling consumers off the sidelines and getting them to participate,” said Benjamin. “What makes the IAB MIXX Awards so unique is its ability to assemble not just creatives – but everyone who is responsible for making great work. Brand managers, media planners, strategists, technologists, creatives – all working together, debating, and discovering the best work in the world. Work that inspires creatively, effectively, and moves our industry forward.”
Spotlighting the lessons learned through the IAB MIXX Awards, this past year saw the first-ever release of “The 2013 IAB MIXX Awards Insights Report,” that took a revealing deep dive into a curated collection of select winning campaigns, providing analyses on what works and why through the eyes of top digital marketing leaders, such as Benjamin and other notables on the 2014 jury. To review the report, go to www.iab.net/mixxawardsinsights, and to see the complete gallery of past award-winners, please visit www.iab.net/mixxawards/#pastwinnersgalleries.
Joining Jeff Benjamin on the 2014 judging panel are:
- Lincoln Bjorkman – Global Chief Creative Officer, Wunderman
- Brad Brinegar – Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, McKinney
- Ed Brojerdi – President and Co-Chief Creative Officer, kbs+
- Andreas Combuechen – Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, and Chief Creative Officer, Atmosphere Proximity
- Emma Cookson – Chairman, BBH North America
- John Costello, President, Global Marketing and Innovation, Dunkin Brands
- Jane Grenier – Vice President, Integrated Strategy, Condé Nast Media Group
- Jack Haber – Vice President Global Advertising & Digital, Colgate Palmolive
- Jon Jackson – Executive Creative Director, HUGE
- Kim Kadlec – Global Partnership, AOL
- Laurie Koehler – Consumer Campaigns Manager, Americas Marketing Group, Intel Corporation
- Joyce King Thomas – President and Chief Creative Officer, McCann XBC
- Natalie Lam – Executive Creative Director, Razorfish New York
- Nick Law – Global Chief Creative Officer, R/GA
- Michael Lebowitz – Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Big Spaceship
- Robert Lund – Creative Director, The Barbarian Group
- Andy Markowitz – Director, Global Digital Strategy, General Electric Company
- Chris Miller – Divisional Vice President, Global Brand Strategy and Innovation, Abbott
- Richelle Parham – Chief Marketing Officer, eBay
- Lou Paskalis – Senior Vice President, Enterprise Media Executive, Bank of America
- Elizabeth Pizzinato – Senior Vice President, Marketing and Communications, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts
- Suzie Reider – Head, Media Solutions, YouTube/Google
- David Roman – Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, Lenovo
- Antonio Ruiz – Partner, Communications Planning, The Vidal Partnership
- Mauricio Sabogal, Global Chief Executive Officer, Kinetic Worldwide
- Alan Schulman – Vice President and Global Digital Marketing & Brand Content, SapientNitro
- Baba Shetty – Chief Strategy and Media Officer, DigitasLBi
- Shiv Singh – Head, Global Brand and Marketing Transformation, Visa
- Marla Skiko – Executive Vice President and Director, Digital Innovation, SMG Multicultural
- Steve Wax – Partner, Ladies & Gentlemen and Cooke&Co.
The finalists and winners are honored each year at the IAB MIXX Awards Gala, which is the culmination of the preeminent two-day IAB MIXX Conference & Expo Marketplace held during Advertising Week in New York City. The 2014 Gala will take place at the Crowne Plaza Hotel Times Square (1605 Broadway at 49th Street) on Tuesday, September 30, and will celebrate the 10th anniversary of the competition.
The IAB MIXX Awards are open to marketers, advertising agencies, and media companies that have run any media, marketing or advertising element, or campaign that was carried out during the qualifying period: April 1, 2013 through March 31, 2014. Full details are available at www.iab.net/mixxawards/about/rules. To submit an entry before the extended and final deadline of July 18, 2014, go to www.iab.net/mixxawards/submit_entry.
Founded in 2005 to honor creativity and effectiveness in interactive advertising, the IAB MIXX Awards have become the premier honor in digital marketing. Last year’s MIXX Award winners included many of the most prominent brand marketers in the United States including American Express, Unilever, HBO, Intel, Procter & Gamble and Mondelēz International, as well as leading agencies such as BBH New York, DigitasLBi, R/GA, Pereira & O’Dell and Goodby, Silverstein & Partners.
In 2013, Best-in-Show, the gala’s top prize, went to The Coca-Cola Company and Leo Burnett Sydney and Chicago for their “Small World Machines” campaign, which set out to unite people in India and Pakistan in a moment of happiness through the placement of special touchscreen vending machines with screening and filming capabilities in each country. Indian consumers were filmed purchasing a Coca-Cola, while simultaneously watching an image from a similar machine in Pakistan, and vice versa. During the three-day campaign, more than 10,000 attendees put aside their differences and became part of the live event, creating a multitude of connections across the border.
About the IAB
The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) is comprised of more than 600 leading media and technology companies that are responsible for selling 86% of online advertising in the United States. The IAB empowers the media and marketing industries to thrive in the digital economy. The organization educates marketers, agencies, media companies and the wider business community about the value of interactive advertising. Working with its member companies, the IAB evaluates and recommends standards and practices and fields critical research on interactive advertising. Founded in 1996, the IAB is headquartered in New York City with a Public Policy office in Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit iab.net.
