Ubisoft‘s “Watch Dogs” campaign from Publicis Montreal captured the top honour at the 44th annual Canadian Marketing Association (CMA) Awards Gala on Friday night in Toronto.
The effort included an app that allowed players to experience the game in real life by turning their smartphones into hacking devices. Players were challenged to “hack” targets all across the country. Each hack earned them points, putting them higher on a national leader board as they competed for cash and prizes.
The campaign resulted in 200,000 downloads, which was double Ubisoft’s goal. Players hacked more than 8 million targets and the game’s 80% engagement rate was unprecedented for a free mobile gaming app, according to the CMA Awards submission.
“Ubisoft’s campaign for Watch Dogs Live raised the industry bar on what’s possible in the world of digitally integrated advertising,” said CMA president and CEO John Gustavson, in a release. “It also delivered against a tough target group where technological innovation isn’t just enjoyed — it’s expected and takes a truly inventive campaign to connect with fans.”
Watch Dogs also won six gold CMA awards in categories including Advertising, Integrated and Digital.
A number of brands took home multiple gold awards during Friday night’s ceremony. Tourette Syndrome Foundation of Canada also took home six golds for its “Surrender Your Say” Twitter campaign from Saatchi & Saatchi in categories such as Digital, Experiential and Innovative Media, and Pro Bono.
Volkswagen Canada took home two for Red Urban’s “The Beetle 3-Track WOTE” and “Once More: The story of VIN 903847” campaigns, as did Canadian Tire for Clean Sheet’s “We All Play for Canada” and North Strategic’s “The Canadian Tire Ice Truck.”
Other gold winners from the CMA Awards include:
-Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment’s “It’s a Bloody Big Deal” by Sid Lee
-Intact Insurance’s “The Test” by Cossette
-Strategic Milk Alliance’s “Milke Every Moment” campaign by DDB Canada
-La Carnita’s “La Carnita DOS” by OneMethod
-Expedia’s “Expedia Fear” by Grip
Another notable award went to Dominic Mercuri, executive vice-president and chief marketing officer at TD Bank, who was named Canada’s 2014 Marketer of the Year for playing a “pivotal role in building a Canadian brand that is today recognized across Canada and in the United States for customer service, convenience and comfort,” according to a release.
“Together with the many talented marketing professionals with whom I work, I salute the thousands of employees who serve our 22 million customers – and whose legendary service truly brings the TD brand to life,” said Mercuri, in a release.
