Over 70 entries were received but the standard of these entries varied considerably with the worst submissions coming from companies that market to IFAs.
The awards are the first to focus specifically on marketing effectiveness in financial services and they are set out to fulfill a number of criteria. The awards were designed to:
• Create a better understanding of the role of marketing in financial services companies;
• Prove beyond doubt that marketing can be effective; and,
• Recognise, reward and announce best marketing practice.
Commenting on the entries, Anthony Thomson, chairman of the advisory board of the Financial Services Forum, said: “The Financial Services Forum is really pleased with the number of entries that we have received, particularly as the awards are only in their first year. As with all awards, standards do vary and from the evidence of the entries, the direct to consumer sector seem to understand marketing effectiveness much better than companies that sell through IFAs. In fact, in some of these cases it appeared as though it took more man-hours to judge the entry than it actually took to write it!”
