• by Steve McClellan  @mp_mcclellan, June 5, 2015

“The World’s Toughest Job” Mother’s Day campaign from Mullen Lowe and American Greetings is the winner of the 2015 North American Grand Effie. The award was presented at the Effie Awards Gala in New York Thursday night. The Effies award work based on effectiveness. 

According to the agency’s entry, Mullen’s challenge — the work occurred last year prior to the merger with Lowe — was to persuade people to make their mom a Mother’s Day card using the American Greetings Cardstore--a significant challenge when data shows only 50% of people actually buy Mom a card.

The Effie-winning work shook the indifference out of them by making them see Mom differently: as the amazing professional she is. 

With 21M+ views, the earned media effort for #worldstoughestjob increased American Greetings Cardstore orders by 20%, user base by 40% and met sales goals for the entire year, not just the Mother’s Day period for which it was designed.
 
“The American Greetings possessed what I feel the very best ideas have in common, inevitability and surprise,” said Todd Waterbury, Chief Creative Officer of Target Corporation, and member of the 2015 Grand Effie Jury. “It found a completely original way of inspiring gratitude through reframing the experience and human truth of Motherhood that provoked emotion -- and action.” 

Other Grand Effie Finalists included:

•    Big Heart Pet Brands and FCB/RED for Milk-Bone Brushing Chews Shopper Marketing Launch Campaign 
•    British Airways and Ogilvy & Mather for “Visit Mum”                                
•    Newcastle Brown Ale, Heineken USA and Droga5 (with contributing agency Fast Horse) for “If We Made It”     
•    NBC Sports Group and The Brooklyn Brothers (with contributing agencies Maxus, Ignited and Civic Entertainment Group) for “NBC Sports Network: Barclays Premier League” 
•    Procter & Gamble’s Always and Starcom MediaVest Group and Leo Burnett (with contributing agency MSLGROUP for “#LikeAGirl” 
•    Procter & Gamble’s Old Spice and Wieden+Kennedy (with contributing agency Citizen Relations) for “Smellcome to Manhood”  

This year, CPG giant Procter & Gamble was recognized as the most effective marketer in North America for the 5th consecutive year.  The top five most effective companies in the Effie Index include: IBM (brand), WPP (holding group), Ogilvy & Mather (agency network), Ogilvy & Mather New York (agency office) and Droga5 (independent agency). 

More on the awards can be found at the Effie Web site.