AME's Grand Jury represents some of the world’s most creative and strategic minds in advertising and marketing communications.

The AME Awards honors not just campaigns that are creative, but campaigns that hit the bullseye for brands, triumphing in both creativity and effectiveness. AME’s Grand Jury are the genius minds associated with many of AME’s award-winning entries.

AME Grand Jury member, Tim Keller is Managing Director for Wynken Blynken & Nod, Germany. He brings 20 years of experience in developing digital products and brand strategies for leading German agencies to the Grand Jury. Throughout his career, he has developed a commercially effective and award-winning work for some of the world's leading brands such as Google, Netflix, Apple, o2, Beck’s and Audi. His particular interest is to continuously improve the agency's working methods: cross-functional, cross-mindset and crossing borders. In the end, Tim wants to create creative work that non-Advertising people talk about.

AME Awards: Tell us about your process of creating and delivering effective results.

Tim Keller: It’s about going upstream and downstream. Upstream means that you find a truth. Downstream means that you bring the campaign to life in the best possible way. There’s more to do downstream for a creative strategist these days because the execution has to be optimized for the format, channel, time and audience. Don’t expect things to work, test it and make it work.

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

Tim Keller: Campaigns without business effects are a waste of money and talent. We need AME, Effie and IPA to emphasize the worth of our work.

AME Awards: What is your favorite most effective ad and why does it hit the bullseye for the brand?

Tim Keller: My choice is “the best job in the world” by the tourism office of Queensland. It’s smart on so many levels. It’s a promotion that is not annoying. It’s content marketing that actually works. It’s viral without provoking or pressing the tear gland. It’s the best of the brand without overpromising. And it’s still great to watch the case.
https://youtu.be/SI-rsong4xs 

AME Awards: What multi-channel techniques are being used most to strategically and effectively set apart brands from the pack?

Tim Keller: Reduce messages, reduce words, reduce pushes. Reduce until it’s simple and simply great.

AME Awards: In your opinion, which brands are doing the most effective millennial friendly creative?

Tim Keller: Brands that don’t believe in Millennials, because the idea of Millennials is condescending. The most effective brands rather believe in simple ideas, clear messages and distinctive branding. 

AME Awards: What campaign or campaigns are you most proud of and how did it move the needle for the brand?

Tim Keller: Whenever we solved a business problem with more than a campaign. We did so with “Go global” for Google. Instead of promoting different Google tools we programmed a meta tool to use them at once. We did so again for the Federal Employment Agency in Germany when we “hacked” WhatsApp to help teenagers find their strength. Last, we developed for the renowned German newspaper FAZ an “humanized algorithm” and app feature that raises true journalism on the next level. It’s amazing what you can achieve with creativity combined with technology.

(FAZ: http://bit.ly/2FhoYGJ )