The AME Awards Grand Jury members are recruited from 5 regions and include some of the world’s most creative and strategic minds in advertising, marketing communications, and brand building from agencies around the globe. They have a reputation for innovation, creative excellence, and strategic mastery and consitently deliver distinctive and effective results for global brands.Their high standard of excellence guarantees that AME’s 28-year legacy is upheld and respected globally both by winners and industry reports measuring creative distinction.

2022 AME Grand Jury member Krisztian Cvitko leads Mai Dubai’s brand awareness as Head of Marketing. He brings 24 years of experience as a consumer marketing expert to the AME jury panel. He has managed such power brands as Vanish, Calgon, Cillit, Johnnie Walker, Smirnoff, Guinness, Al Ain Water, Monster Energy Drink, and many others. Krisztian has been a successful leader for  years, steering firms like Agthia Group (and its subsidiaries), Diageo, and Reckitt Benckiser to success, from 1997 to 2018. His expertise further extends to International Marketing and Business Management in major FMCG organisations in Eastern Europe, and the MENA region.

In the interview below Krisztian shares his perspective on his most favorite effective ad, mediums taking the lead in 2022, brand positioning and much more.

AME Awards: Why are effectiveness competitions like the AME Awards important?

Krisztian Cvitko: My own view is that any marketing campaign's main objective should be to measure the effectiveness of the communication, so it's great to have an award that is focusing on this aspect.

AME Awards: Speak of the evolution of brand positioning, values and tone of voice during the past few years.

Krisztian Cvitko: Reaching the consumers with the right message in the right time has been important, even more so in the last decade when consumer's demand of 'everything-for me-now' has accelerated. So it has become imperative for brands to provide solutions to reflect this. Brands that can do this better than their competitors by setting the pace of action are those that will be successful and convert it to consumer loyalty.

As for values, every brand's values must remain constant. In today's fast paced and digitalised environment, brands with relevant footprint and values that resonate with the consumers and are easy to identify and understand are the winners.

The tone of voice for every brand is an aspect that can change, depending on the target audience, or situation, or even exceptional circumstances like COVID.

AME Awards: What mediums will be at the forefront and centre in 2022?

The digital medium that has mushroomed in the last few years will only grow further, especially as has been proven in the current pandemic times. Emerging smart technologies supported by Artificial Intelligence-driven solutions is going to make digital even more exciting in the times to come.

AME Awards: Why did you agree to participate on this year's AME Grand Jury and what do you hope to learn by viewing the entries in this competition?

Krisztian Cvitko: As a marketeer, I am always keen to learn how the successful brands deliver exceptional campaigns with great results. To me it's even more interesting to have a glimpse of 'behind the scenes' that leads to the end result.

AME Awards: Which is your favourite most successful ad and why? What campaign resulted in a global brand making an impressive pivot?

Krisztian Cvitko: I still believe that one of the best campaigns in the last 20-30 years has been the 'Just do it' campaign from Nike. You will find marketing professionals quoting this campaign in most of the marketing forums even today. Nike made an exceptionally strong brand promise that still continues to drive it to be on top of the game. In the last few years or so, the campaign that I really love is the 'Shot on iPhone' from Apple. The reason... simple and intelligent.