Mastercard was named Brand of the Year for the second consecutive year at the jubilee 35th edition of the Slovenian Advertising Festival (SOF), further confirming the brand’s long-term consistency in developing communication projects that successfully combine strategic relevance, creative execution, and measurable impact on audiences and business results.
This year’s recognition comes after a series of awards won during the festival by projects created in collaboration with the agency Povem, with the campaign “Geste vključenosti: Što pa roka!” standing out in particular. The campaign received multiple awards across different categories, further demonstrating its breadth and ability to function simultaneously as a socially relevant initiative, a content-driven project, and creatively effective communication.
The project won a Gold Award and the Grand Prix in the content communication category, a Gold Award for creative effectiveness, a Gold Award for innovation in communication, as well as a Gold Award in the brand experience category. In addition, the campaign also received several silver awards, including categories for brand activation, public relations, and socially responsible projects.
Particular attention was drawn by the fact that the project sought to bring inclusive communication and financial literacy closer to audiences through the format of the first inclusive performance about understanding finance, allowing the communication to move beyond the framework of a traditional campaign and become an experience that audiences actively engage with and share. Projects of this kind are increasingly defining festival results across the region – not only through creative ideas, but through the ability of communication to create real social and emotional impact.
On the occasion of receiving the recognition, Aleš Petejan, Marketing Director at Mastercard Slovenia, commented:
“Winning the Brand of the Year title for the second consecutive year is, for Mastercard, above all a confirmation that long-term relevance, a consistent strategy, and creativity with clear impact create the greatest value. We are especially pleased that the industry, through SOF, recognises the importance of ideas that generate not only attention, but also a tangible impact on people, brands, and business results. It is precisely this balance between a strong idea, high-quality execution, and measurable impact that today distinguishes good brands from truly outstanding ones.”
This year’s SOF once again demonstrated how the regional industry increasingly values projects that successfully connect creativity, audience experience, social context, and business effectiveness, while the communication relevance of brands today is being built less through individual campaigns and increasingly through long-term consistency and the clear value a brand creates for both the community and the market.
