A fire at the Plazma factory and the temporary disappearance of one of the country’s most recognizable products from the market presented Bambi with a communication challenge: how could the brand preserve its relationship with consumers when it could no longer offer them the product they were accustomed to? The answer was the Mrvica strpljenja campaign, which chose an open and emotional approach instead of conventional crisis communication, calling on consumers to show understanding and patience.
This communication strategy has now secured the campaign a place among the 132 finalists of this year’s Effie Awards Europe, one of Europe’s most important competitions dedicated to marketing effectiveness. Mrvica strpljenja is the only campaign from Serbia to reach the final of the competition’s milestone 30th edition.
The campaign was created for Bambi by McCann Beograd and Communis, in collaboration with partner agencies UM Beograd and AdVenture Skopje. At its core was the decision to treat Plazma’s temporary unavailability not exclusively as a business problem, but as an opportunity for direct communication with consumers. The call for patience drew on the relationship the brand had built with its audience over the years, seeking to preserve that connection even during the interruption in production.
The European finalist placement follows the campaign’s success at last year’s Effie Awards Serbia, where Mrvica strpljenja won a Gold award and the first Grand Prix in the history of the national competition.
At this year’s Effie Awards Europe, nearly 350 experts from 33 countries participated in the judging process. The competition, organized by the European Association of Communications Agencies (EACA), evaluates campaigns based on their ability to turn creative and strategic solutions into proven marketing results.
The winners of the Grand, Gold, Silver and Bronze awards will be announced on December 3 in Brussels, when it will become clear whether Mrvica strpljenja will add European recognition to its existing national awards.
