The results are in, folks. The winners of Chief Marketer’s 2022 PRO Awards, the world’s largest awards program recognizing excellence in promotion marketing, were unveiled this week during a virtual celebration honoring the year’s programs across 40 different categories.

The caliber of the work stunned our esteemed panel of judges, comprised of high-level marketers from Chipotle, Bayer, Burger King, Disney, Visible and many other brands. There was no shortage of inspiration and innovation among this crop of killer programs, whether it was Paramount’s social scavenger hunt promoting its popular series “Yellowstone,” adidas’ product launch for an inclusive swimwear line that included an actual swimmable billboard, or the crowd-sourced, energy-generating activation at the US Open from Mercedes-Benz—each made all the more impressive when considering the business challenges the brands and agencies involved surmounted to pull them off.

We also crowned the Platinum PRO, the one promotional campaign that stood out above the rest as the most innovative, strategic, creative, results-driven program, and that time and time again was picked by the judges as a campaign deserving of accolades: #TeamStateFarm Football Find, a four-day hybrid program that leveraged gamification, social media and prizing to captivate hard-to-reach millennial and Gen Z audiences through an augmented reality-based treasure hunt combining gameplay technology with in-person experiences. Color us impressed.

If you weren’t able to attend, here’s a replay of the event, which began with a lively conversation between two PRO Awards judges, Visible CMO Cheryl Gresham and Disney Parks’ Senior Manager, Multicultural Marketing, Angela Burgin Logan, who talk trends in promotional marketing, the future of the industry and where they look for creative inspiration. Huge congratulations to all the winners and finalists this year.

Next up is the 2023 CM200, the industry’s only comprehensive list of the best brand engagement and activation agencies across 11 categories and specialties serving the U.S. Stay tuned for that announcement on Dec. 12.

Until next time,

Kaylee Hultgren
Editor
Chief Marketer

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