There are many reasons why the Mobius Awards advertising and package design competition is different from most annual creative reviews.
The international prestige and industry credibility — which have been growing since the event was founded in 1971 — are no doubt admirable. But the selection process is what really separates it from the rest.
To determine winners in all categories except packaging, Mobius judges vote individually, rather than in groups. Accessing an online system that spans the globe, more than fifty professionals from Australia to Los Angeles and Chicago to Singapore weigh “creativity and effectiveness” when casting their ballots, according to Mobius’ Media Relations Manager Sandra Kelly.
“Our judging has become electronic,” she explains. “Individual judges judge from wherever they wish.”
This process replicates the consumer experience in more ways than one. Besides eliminating the weight of peer pressure and the distractions of group deliberation, decisions are based on personal preferences and made through personal devices. Until the winners are announced in January, no judge knows how another has voted on an entry.
The autonomy wielded by the judges also means that they, like consumers, can chose not to make any selection at all.
“One of the things that I think is particularly good is that the judges do not have to declare a winner,” Kelly continues. “If they don’t find anything that is worthy of their vote, they don’t have to give an award.”
This is not a mere talking point. There were no winning submissions from Chicago last year.
Havas’ “Streaker” for DishLATINO — which portrays a naked man disrupting a fictitious soccer match in a sold-out stadium — earned recognition in 2015.
The judges hail from internationally recognized academic, entertainment and marketing companies and organizations. Many of them are recruited directly by Lee Gluckman, the event’s President who makes presentations in the cities of winning agencies every year. Among the 2017 group is Leo Burnett-Chicago ACD Doug Burnett, a One Show Top 200 Creative Worldwide.
According his bio on the Mobius Awards website, Barnett “works on the global accounts for Samsung, Allstate and Brooks and is currently directing a campaign to smuggle donated USB drives into North Korea.”
Submissions for the 2017 Mobius Awards will be accepted until October 1. The competition will consider work created between Oct. 1, 2016, and Oct. 1, 2017 in several categories and mediums.
Recently introduced categories include Health and Wellness, Animal/Pet Products and Services, and Financial and Lifestyle Products and Services. Others include Brochure/Book, Cinema-In-flight, Direct, Mixed Media Campaign, New Media, Online, Outdoor, Package Design, Photography, Point-of-Purchase, Print, Radio, Television and Student. Package Design categories include Sustainable Packaging and Packaging Redesign.
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