WARC Creative 100 rankings highlight untold stories

The World Advertising Research Center (WARC) released its Creative 100 rankings on Tuesday, a list gleaned from the winners of the most prominent creative award shows “to reveal the best of the best,” according to the firm.

This year, the campaigns that headed the list all made an effort “to highlight untold stories,” according to a leader of the research firm.

AMV BBDO and Bodyform/Libresse’s #Wombstories, for instance, which topped the list, aims to break taboos about women’s health and bodies. The campaign won four Grand Prix at Cannes Lions in 2021.

The 10th most awarded creative campaign, The Bread Exam, also aimed to tackle taboos, in this instance trying to encourage early breast cancer detection in the Middle East by disguising a self-exam as a dough kneading tutorial. The campaign was produced by McCann for Spinneys, the Lebanese Breast Cancer Foundation and the American University of Beirut Medical Center.

The top 10 campaigns demonstrate an effort “to give a voice to sections of society that may not have been properly represented in the past,” David Tiltman, WARC senior vice president of content, stated in an email to Campaign. “#Wombstories is an outstanding success for the brand, for women, for their health and wellbeing. It encourages people to share the complex truth of their bodies.” 

Nicholas Hulley and Nadja Lossgott, chief creative officers of AMV BBDO, in a press release described #wombstories as “the result of true collaboration with so many restless, kind and brilliantly talented people. We couldn’t be prouder of this team and the poignant magic we’ve all created together.”

Publicis Milan topped the list of most awarded creative agencies. The firm produced the Shutter Ads campaign for Heineken, in which the beer maker paid to post ads on the shutters of bars closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. AMV BBDO London took the second spot.

“Publicis Milan have steadily climbed the Creative 100 ranking since 2019 and have now achieved the top spot with four campaigns in the top 100,” Tiltman said. “Agencies and their clients who are using the power of creativity to be brave and tackle stigmas in a human way are the ones that are gaining recognition and setting them apart from the rest of the pack.”

Burger King ranked as the top brand on WARC’s list for the fourth consecutive year. The fast-food chain used its Cows’ Menu campaign to highlight the impact of cow farts on climate change — and its commitment to reducing methane emissions. 

“The secret to [Burger King’s] consistent success is through powerful creative campaigns which demonstrate its brand values and products,” Tiltman said. 

Anheuser-Busch InBev ranked as the top advertiser on WARC’s list. The company was recognized for its Michelob Ultra Courtside campaign, in which fans could scan Michelob Ultra bottles to win virtual tickets to games broadcast from the COVID-19 NBA’s bubble.

“For the past few years, AB InBev have put creativity into the heart of their marketing strategy, the results of which are now paying off,” Tiltman said. “With seven campaigns from five different brands in the top 100, the most awarded was Michelob Ultra’s Courtside campaign in fourth, a campaign that took the impact of Covid-19 on sport in its stride and innovated to created an immersive digital stadium experience to save its first year as the official sponsor of the NBA.”

Pedro Earp, chief marketing officer of AB InBev, said in a press release that the company was “humbled to be ranked number one in creativity.” 

“Our journey over the last five years has embedded creativity into our core resulting in significant business growth,” he added.

Asked what impact the ranking leaders could have on the industry, Tiltman stated, “The campaigns, agencies and brands that are ranked in the Creative 100 will truly inspire others to use creativity as a tool to break boundaries and evolve the industry.”