GENERATION NEXT AND CREATIVE PRESS AD CHALLENGE SENDING TIMES MEDIA TO THE TOP

Know your Generation Next – Attend the Inaugural Conference

The inaugural Generation Next Youth Marketing Conference will be hosted on 8 May 2015 in Sandton. What’s hot and what’s not has always been dictated by the youth. They are a huge driving force behind creative, powerful and effective marketing. The millennials also control a spending power of R98 billlion per year. Sunday Times will host the event in partnership with HDI Youth Marketers.

Trevor Ormerod, GM: Group Sales at Times Media, says that a conference was naturally the next step to add to the efficacy of the awards ceremony. “The youth market remains an exciting hunting ground for savvy brands and the conference will guide marketers on how to navigate SA’s fearless and brand-aware youth.”
Headline sponsor Proudly SA, and partner loveLife, will gather a variety of exciting speakers to tackle youth engagement strategies, consumer habits, trends and much much more.

Hosted by Anele Mdoda, the lineup for the Youth Marketing Conference will consist of:

• Jason Levin (MD at HDI Youth Marketeers) discusses findings from the Sunday Times Generation Next annual survey.
• Pepsi Pokani (CEO Bonngoe TV) hosts a discussion with representatives of HDI?s Junior Board of Directors.
• Converse, loveLife and KFC present case studies on their brands successes in the local market.
• DJ Euphonik, talks personal branding and the increasingly important emphasis on it.
• Lazi Mathebula presents the big trends watch and what lies ahead for 2015.

The Youth Marketing Conference will be hosted the morning of the annual Sunday Times Generation Next Awards, and for the first time, an interactive expo area incorporating brand activations will be showcased for all awards attendees.

For more information or to book your seat at the Youth Marketing Conference visit www.sundaytimesgennext.co.za.

How to Win a Loerie with The Times Creative Challenge

It’s time for the annual Creative Press Ad Challenge, and this year, The Times has announced that the competition will include a digital component. Creatives from all over the country will pull out all the stops to stand a chance of winning a coveted Loerie award.

The Challenge will be running between 21 April and 21 May. The Times will award a total of 21 free ads worth R97 000 each to successful entrants which will run in The Times and on TimesLive. This number is significant as we celebrate 21 years of democracy in South Africa.

This year’s theme reminds agencies about what is at stake, with a catchy tag line linked to the Loeries; “How many “Times” does it take to win a Loerie?” With 21 chances to win over 21 editions, the competition will be hot and heavy.
This year, The Times has raised the bar and upped the pressure by including an online banner in the entry criteria. This means that leading agencies stand a chance of being entered in to two categories – Press and Digital Ads.

Entry into The Times Creative Press Ad Challenge is easy:

1. Agencies choose any news story for the duration of the Challenge.
2. Agencies conceive a rapid-response ad for their client in both a print and digital format.
3. The client approves the completed ad, and the agency submits the print ready material to The Times before 11am on the day prior to placement.
4. Agencies send their ad entries to The Times via
5. The Times editor, Stephen Haw, chooses the best ad from that day’s submissions.
6. The winning ad runs in The Times and on TimesLive the following day.

The Times has a readership of over 290 000 and TimesLive boasts 2 million daily UB’s. Times Media Group, General Manager of Group Sales, Trevor Ormerod says, “agencies simply can’t afford not to earn free placement.”

All submissions, as well as terms and conditions, can be viewed on www.timescreativeads.co.za.