A new initiative by AMEC’s Asia Pacific Chapter led by vice chair Marion McDonald of Ogilvy PR Worldwide with design execution by John Croll’s team at Sentia Media sent a visual reminder to Cannes PR judges that AVE’s should not be used as the only measure in an Awards entry.

AMEC sent a hard-to-miss eDM mailer to Cannes judges noting that “some marketers are still using the wrong measures”. The email included a wallet-sized card of the

Barcelona Principles as a reminder to take into the judging rooms.

Cannes PR Lions juries were singled out with a box of inappropriate measurement instruments to drive home the point that AVEs, or advertising value equivalents, were discredited as a PR effectiveness measure two years ago and now banned in many global awards.