2015 FAQs - Info

COLLEGIATE EFFIE
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Contacting Collegiate Effie
Email: collegiate@effie.org
Call: Danielle Gallo (212) 913-9772 ext. 227
Connect:
Entering the Competition
Q: How do I sign up for the Collegiate Effie Target Brand Challenge?
A: Register your Intent to Enter the competition online here.
Q: What do I need to enter the competition?
A: All entry materials can be found on our website:
NOTE: Non-Disclosure Agreement must be signed by each participant and sent to the Collegiate Effie
team in order to participate in the Target Brand Challenge.
Q: How do I receive Target’s Client Brief?
A: Target’s Client Brief will be emailed to you only after the Collegiate Effie team has received your
signed NDA.
NOTE: The Client Brief is confidential information. All members of your team, as well as
Professors involved in the competition, must sign it.
Team Composition
Q: How many people are allowed on a team? Do I have to be part of a team to enter, or can I enter
by myself?
A: Teams wishing to enter the 2015 Target Brand Challenge cannot exceed 4 members. You are also
welcome to enter as an individual.
Q: Are international students allowed to enter the competition?
A: International students are considered temporary residents of the United States. These students are
eligible to participate, provided they have a valid student visa.
Q: Can I enter the competition with a student from another university?
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A: Yes. You may have team members from different schools as long everyone is at least 18 years old
and enrolled in an accredited education institution. Students enrolled in portfolio programs, postundergraduate, and graduate students are also eligible to participate.
Strategic Brief (Entry Form)
Q: How many pages can the entry form be? Can we delete instructions?
A: The entry form (also called strategic brief) may not exceed 3 pages and is not to be altered in any
way. Questions/instructions serve as a guideline for both entrants and judges and are not to be
deleted. Please note that unanswered questions will result in disqualification.
Q: Why is there a page limit?
A: Previous judges have given consistent feedback stating that they believe the best cases have been
concise and focused strategic briefs. They do not want extra fluff.
Q: What is the required writing style? MLA? APA?
A: There is no writing style requirement. You are free to use the writing style of your choice. However,
we strongly urge you to proofread your work. Grammatical errors, spelling mistakes, and typos are one
of the top reasons judges give cases a low score.
Q: How should research, data, and facts be referenced in the entry form?
A: The use of footnotes is recommended. Please do not submit additional pages for references. All
sources must fit on your entry form, and your entry form must still not exceed 3 pages. You may use a
smaller font size for sources in order to fit them within the 3 pages.
NOTE: Providing data or facts that do not have a source will result in disqualification.
Q: If we conducted a focus group, how should the information used from it be referenced?
A: This information can be interweaved into the entry form where necessary/relevant (number of
participants/description of group), or can be referenced with footnotes. (Focus Group Study:
Description (#of participants, relevant info: age/ethnicity/gender)
Q: What exactly are you looking for in the objective section of the strategic brief (entry form)? Can
you elaborate?
A: Objectives are essentially the goals of your campaign/effort. What are you trying to achieve for the
client. Objectives should be based off the insight you uncovered after researching the target
audience. Be sure to explain and justify your objectives and illustrate how they relate to the target
audience. You should have measurable objectives. Be sure to review the 2015 Entry Companion for
insight into what makes a strong entry as well as tips from previous Collegiate Effie Jurors.
Target Brand Guide
Q: Is it okay to alter the Target logo/image in order to illustrate a creative point?
A: We want you to be creative, but it is important that your work stays true to the Target brand. We
recommend reviewing current Target work, as well as the Target Brand Guide, which was provided with
the entry materials, in order to strike a balance between creativity and brand integrity.
Q: What about contacting Target corporate headquarters for information? Is that allowed?
A: We request that students do not contact the corporate headquarters of Target. Instead we ask that
all questions are filtered through Collegiate Effie. You may send these questions to
collegiate@effie.org.
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Creative Requirements
Q: Are we allowed to submit social media executions?
A: We require a minimum of 3 different creative executions using 3 different media channels/methods
of engagement (Entry Guide, pg. 6) You decide which media channels those will be based on your
research. The client brief indicates the use of specific channels. Be sure to adhere to these
recommendations.
Q: Do students have to produce a Radio or TV spot as part of the challenge?
A: No. Radio & TV spots are not required (see answer above).
Q: What is the creative reel? Is it required?
A: Yes. The creative reel is required. The purpose of the creative reel is to show how the idea will be
brought to life (i.e. showcase how the creative executions would run in the marketplace). Entrants are
allowed to provide set-up information on the reel to provide context. However, the reel should not
become a video version of the entry form. Rather, the reel should support/complement the entry form
– particularly questions 2c. (How did you bring the idea to life?) and 2d. (What channels did you
use?). Judges evaluate the work as a whole (entry form + creative reel). Check out the creative reels
from Collegiate Effie winners on our YouTube channel.
Q: Are there specifications for the creative reel?
A: It may not exceed 250MB or 4 minutes in length, and it must be a .mov/mpeg format. If you have
trouble with formatting, try converting the file via www.zamzar.com, or email collegiate@effie.org.
Q: Are storyboards acceptable?
A: Yes. Storyboards may be used to show judges how the Big Idea was brought to life. Storyboards
must be included on the creative reel and judges should be able to clearly understand the overall idea
and creative concept being proposed.
Q: Do judges expect commercial-quality videos from students? Are there set guidelines for quality?
A: Creative reels vary from team to team. Judges are aware that they are evaluating the work of the
students and, therefore, do not expect commercial-quality videos. If you have not already done so,
check out last year’s winners on www.youtube.com/Collegiateeffie.
Q: Do we have to submit individual samples of work that are featured on the creative reel?
A: You are welcome to submit samples. However, this is NOT required. If you choose to submit
samples of your work (such as screenshots of webpages, print ads, etc.) you may do so via the online
entry system or by mailing in hardcopies, which will allow judges to view your work up close.
Q: Can we use stock music or images on the creative reel?
A: Yes. You are welcome to use stock music and/or images as long as you have the rights to them.
Q: Can quotes from focus groups be placed on the creative reel?
A: Although students are allowed to reference focus groups in the reel, this research should primarily
be incorporated into the entry form. Be mindful that the purpose of the creative reel is to show how the
idea was brought to life (showcase the creative work). We do allow entrants to provide set-up
information on the reel in order to provide context. As part of the set-up, previous entrants have
included snippets of their focus groups (e.g. respondent comments – what they think about Target).
Remember, this is not required.
Q: Do you require that we submit photo releases for individuals in our presentations along with our
entry?
A: All team members will be required to sign a Release and Liability Waiver. However, we do not
require photo releases for non-team members used in the creative work.
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Submitting your final entry
Q: Where do I submit my final entry for the Collegiate Effie Target Brand Challenge?
A: You will submit your final entry in the same site in which you registered your Intent to Enter. On the
home screen, the menu is on the left side of your screen. Click “Start Your Entry” to begin.
Q: Do I have to submit my final entry in one sitting?
A: No. You may log in and out of your entry and make edits. Just make sure to always save before
logging out.
NOTE: When you log back in, click “Edit/Submit Entry” to pick up where you last left off. If you
click “Start Your Entry” again, it will start a new entry. If you accidentally start multiple entries, make sure
to delete all except the one you plan to submit.
Q: What happens if I accidentally submit an unfinished entry?
A: You cannot make any edits once you click the final “Submit” button. However, if you did not fill out
all the required forms, the site will not allow you to submit your entry, and will give you a checklist of the
missing items.
Q: What is an Entry ID number and where can I find mine?
A: Your Entry ID number will be provided after you “Start Your Entry”. Once you enter and save
information on the Entry Info tab the system will generate an Entry ID number. After saving, you can
easily find the number by selecting “Edit/Submit Entry” on the left navigation menu. Your Entry ID
number will be listed at the bottom of this page.
Q: In what format would Collegiate Effie/Target like my team’s survey results?
A: If the survey was conducted digitally, you may upload the file (containing raw data) via the online
entry system. The ideal formats would be Excel, PDF, docx/doc. There are 3 upload options, in case
the entrant is able to supply more than one format. If you have extensive data, or distributed
hardcopies of surveys, the file size may be too large to upload. Please email us at collegiate@effie.org .
Entry Deadline
Q: When is the 2015 Collegiate Effie Target Brand Challenge deadline to submit my entry?
A: 11:59PM (PST, EST, CST) Thursday, April 2nd, 2015
Q: When do I need to have my team’s creative materials shipped by?
A: If you wish to have judges look at your creative materials via hard copies, in lieu of on a computer
screen, they must arrive at Effie Headquarters by Monday, April 6th, 2015. Hard copies of creative
materials should be sent to:
Effie Worldwide, Inc.
Attn: Danielle Gallo
116 E. 27th Street
6th floor
New York, NY 10016
NOTE : It is not required to ship hard copies of creative materials. Some teams choose to send
hard copies because they believe their creative work looks better on print than on a screen.
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Judging
Q: As a young professional, what do judges believe exhibit a winning idea?
A: As far as the Big Idea on the entry form, it’s the core idea that will lead to your communications
strategy. How you get to this idea will be based on the research that your team conducts. Judges
look for ideas that can be backed up by research, and are creative. There are no specific qualities in
which judges will automatically flag an entry as a winner.
NOTE: You are trying to address a challenge set forth by the client. Figure out why the
challenge is a challenge and address this in the strategic communications challenge section. In
addition to your target audience, you should also research and understand the Target brand. Every
section on the entry form should have a clear linkage, and the creative reel should
support/complement this by showing how the idea will be brought to life.
For more insight on what makes a strong entry, please check out our 2015 Entry Companion which
includes tips from the pros to review feedback from past judges.
Q: How long does the average judge spend examining entries?
A: Judging is done in two ways: 1) Online and 2) as a Group (see entry guide, P.8)
During the group session, although entries are reviewed in a group setting, scoring is done individually
and confidentially. Judges evaluate the entry form and creative reel as a whole.
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First, judges will read the brief/entry form (8 minutes or so).
Next, judges watch the creative reel (4 minutes max).
Then, the judges have a candid discussion about the work (times varies).
Lastly, the judges privately determine their individual scores and team feedback.
Q: How will my case be scored?
A: Judges will evaluate how effectively your campaign addresses the following:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Strategic Challenge, Target Audience Insight & Objectives (Questions 1 a-c): 25%
The Big Idea (Questions 2 a-b): 25%
Bringing the Idea to Life (Questions 2 c-d): 25%
Measures of Success/Results Methodology (Question 3 a-d): 25%
Judges will also have the option to “flag” each entry that they consider finalist worthy. These are
called “finalist flags.” These flags indicate to Target that your submission should strongly be considered
for the next round of review. However, Target will ultimately approve all finalists.
Q: How are finalists determined?
A: Semi-finalists are chosen based on judges’ scores and finalist flags. The score cut-off varies from
year to year. The top 5 scoring entries are recommended as potential finalists to Target. The Target
brand team evaluates all semi-finalists to select the finalist teams that will be invited to present.
Q: When will the finalists be announced?
A: Judging will take place over the entire month of April. We will notify the finalists within the first two
weeks of May.
Misc.
Q: Approximately how many entries do you receive each year?
A: We do not disclose the amount of entries we receive.
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