AME's Grand Jury members have a reputation for innovation, creative excellence, and strategic mastery, they deliver distinctive and effective results for global brands. As award-winners, they view all entries with experience and understanding of what attributes set the bar for effective excellence. 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 Agustina Univaso is a Senior Strategist at GUT Argentina and brings years of experience to the jury panel. Agustina looks for opportunities to design experiences that help people to improve their quality of life while interacting with more human, relevant, sustainable and resolute marks. I work so that brands are more efficient in a constantly changing world.

In the interview below Agustina shares her perspective (both in Spanish and in English) on new innovations, the evolution brand postioning, values and tone of voice, why she's sharing her experience on the AME Grand Jury and more.

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

Agustina Univaso: Las personas nunca fueron tan centrales para las marcas como hoy. La constante digitalización nos sigue enseñando a no subestimar a nuestras audiencias porque son más activas, exigentes y poderosas que nunca.

Ese cambio de paradigma obligó a que los documentos estratégicos de marca vivan más allá de la nube corporativa y las oficinas. Para conectar con las personas, las marcas deben empezar por un punto de vista claro hacia la cultura, reflejarlo tanto en valores compartidos con las comunidades correspondientes como en un propósito marcario centrado en las personas, y visibilizar esa esencia a través de un tono de voz inspirador, humano e interactivo que sea coherente en cada comunicación creativa, activación e interacción con la marca. Ya sabemos que todo punto de contacto cuenta al posicionar una marca, pero todavía estamos aprendiendo que para que la publicidad sea cautivante y creíble tenemos que acompañar la transformación cultural interna en todo el ecosistema CX-BX de nuestros clientes.

Translation:

Agustina Univaso: People have never been as central to brands as they are today. The constant digitization continues to teach us not to underestimate our audiences, because they are more active, demanding and powerful than ever.

This paradigm shift has forced branding documents to live beyond the corporate cloud and offices. To connect with people, brands have to start with a clear point of view towards culture, reflecting it both in shared values with the corresponding communities and in a people-centered brand purpose, and visualize the brand essence through an inspiring, human and interactive tone of voice that is consistent in each creative communication, activation and interaction. We already know that when positioning a brand, every point of contact counts, but we are still learning that for advertising to be captivating and credible we must accompany the internal cultural transformation throughout the entire CX-BX ecosystem of our clients.

AME Awards: How has brand messaging evolved and succeeded these past few years?

Agustina Univaso: En un mundo digitalizado que parece acercarse, de a poco, a uno similar al de Blade Runner o Neuromante (cada vez más phygital), era cuestión de tiempo que la disciplina del UX le demostrara a nuestra industria cómo comunicar centrados en las personas y que la nuestra le demuestre al UX que su potencial puede optimizar comunicación más allá de lo meramente virtual (CX-BX). Es interesante porque UX y Publicidad suelen enseñarse como mundos opuestos, aunque pueden no serlo necesariamente.

Creo que las nuevas comunicaciones marcarias eficientes son las que evolucionaron hacia un proceso de pensamiento estratégico-creativo más empático e integral. Empezar por las personas y el propósito marcario en vez de la competencia ayuda a inspirar mensajes que, como el UX/CX, conectan de forma más significativa, horizontal, proactiva y transparente con las personas. La creatividad se vuelve clave para simplificar mensajes en un mundo data-driven y la ética profesional, un must para curar mensajes con sentido y responsabilidad en una época que le exige a las marcas impactar positivamente en la mejora de la calidad de vida.

Translation:

Agustina Univaso: In a digitized world that seems to be becoming, little by little, that of Blade Runner or Neuromancer (increasingly phygital), it was only a matter of time before the UX discipline showed our industry how to communicate centered on people, and our industry showed UX that its potential can optimize communication beyond the merely virtual (CX-BX). It's interesting that  UX and Advertising are often taught as worlds apart, when they are not necessarily so.

I believe that the new efficient brand communications are those that have evolved towards a more empathic and comprehensive strategic-creative thinking process. Starting with people and the brand purpose instead of the competition helps to inspire messages that, like UX/CX, connect more significantly, horizontally, proactively and transparently with people. Creativity becomes key to simplifying messages in a data-driven world and professional ethics, a must to curate messages with meaning and responsibility in a time that requires brands to have a positive impact on improving quality of life.

AME Awards: What innovations are changing the way agencies engage consumers on behalf of brands?

Agustina Univaso: Las agencias ya están experimentando un proceso de transformación interno en el que se adoptan metodologías y herramientas de trabajo más horizontales, colaborativas, digitales, plurales e interdisciplinarias… tanto entre los equipos internos como con los de los clientes, agencias de medios y otros proveedores. Si hablamos del equipo de estrategia específicamente, el desafío más grande que estamos atravesando es cómo conseguimos profundidad en una industria Agile, es decir, cómo cuidamos la etapa de investigación (con los tiempos que conlleva) para garantizar estrategias lo más humanas, objetivas e interesantes posibles en tiempos récord. Si hablamos del equipo de creatividad, creo que algunos de los desafíos más interesantes que tienen es aplicar metodologías y herramientas del mundo del UX/CX a su trabajo diario para siempre recordar empatizar con los buyer personas y descubrir soluciones disruptivas no solo de comunicación sino también de negocio para las distintas partes del journey.

Translation:

Agustina Univaso: Agencies are already experiencing a process of internal transformation in which more horizontal, collaborative, digital, plural and interdisciplinary work methodologies and tools are adopted... both among internal teams and with those of clients, media agencies and other providers. If we talk about the strategy team specifically, the biggest challenge we are facing is how we achieve depth in an agile industry, that is, how we take care of the research stage (with the time it entails) to guarantee the most humane, objective and interesting possible strategies in record times. If we talk about the creative team, I think that some of the most interesting challenges they face  is to apply methodologies and tools from the UX/CX world to their daily work so as to always remember to empathize with buyer personas and discover disruptive solutions not only in terms of communication, but also of business for the different parts of the journey.

AME Awards: Why did you agree to participate on this year’s AME Grand Jury and What do you hope to learn by viewing entries into this competition?

Agustina Univaso: Creo que en nuestra industria todavía hay mucho cinismo y que necesitamos volver a creer en el poder que tiene la comunicación para aportar a un mundo más sostenible y plural. Así como todo comunica, todo impacta.

Siento que ser parte de este jurado es una gran responsabilidad y oportunidad para visibilizar las voces que se escuchan en las distintas redes de profesionales con orientación a la sostenibilidad (triple impacto) y pluralidad. Necesitamos que los premios ayuden a cambiar las reglas de juego para inspirar comunicaciones, marcas, productos, servicios y experiencias que impacten de forma realmente positiva en un mundo que necesita con urgencia soluciones concretas a grandes problemáticas sociales y económicas.

Espero ver estrategias creativas centradas en las personas, que consigan profundidad en un mundo Agile y que acompañen la cultura aportando a mejorar la calidad de vida de forma sostenible, plural y disruptiva.

Translation:

Agustina Univaso: I think that in our industry there is still a lot of cynicism and that we need to start believing again in the power of communication to contribute to a more sustainable and plural world. Just as everything communicates, everything impacts.

I feel that being part of this jury is a great responsibility and opportunity to make visible the voices that are heard in the different networks of professionals with a focus on sustainability (triple impact) and plurality. We need the awards to help change the rules of the game to inspire communications, brands, products, services and experiences that have a truly positive impact on a world that urgently needs concrete solutions to major social and economic problems.

I hope to see people-centered creative strategies that achieve depth in an agile world and that accompany culture by contributing to improving the quality of life in a sustainable, plural and disruptive way.