With a number of Irish agencies through to the Best of Europe Effie Awards- which will be announced on December 11 – Jay Reid, group strategy director of Core, reflects on its success in the recent Effies Awards Ireland and the role effectiveness played in delivering growth for the Irish League of Credit Unions and Breast Cancer Ireland.
Irish agencies have a strong track record at the Best of Europe Effie Awards, with several campaigns in recent years being recognized for their impact and creativity. This year, Core continues that tradition, having been shortlisted for two Best of Europe Effie Awards for campaigns with the Irish League of Credit Unions and Breast Cancer Ireland.
Core has been shortlisted for two Best of Europe Effie Awards for campaigns with the Irish League of Credit Unions and Breast Cancer Ireland.
In addition to Core’s nominations, other Irish agencies have also been recognised. Forsman & Bodenfors Dublin, in collaboration with EssenceMediacom Ireland, was shortlisted for their work with Allianz and Women’s Aid. This highlights the collective strength and creativity of Irish agencies on the European stage.
Both Core campaigns previously won Gold in the Irish Effie Awards, and their selection for the Best of Europe competition highlights that Ireland’s most effective work holds its own internationally. The Effie Awards are rigorously judged by a panel of highly experienced and accomplished marketing experts, from both agency and client side. Winning one requires proving, without a shadow of a doubt, that a campaign achieved (or surpassed) its stated objectives, and that it did so as a result of sharp strategic thinking and a strong creative idea that is expertly executed.
The ‘Monster Loans’ campaign for the Irish League of Credit Unions, shortlisted in the Sustained Effectiveness category, aimed to transform the commercial performance of Irish Credit Unions, which play a crucial role in Irish society and the economy. Facing increased pressure from pillar banks and fintech challengers, Credit Unions needed to grow their loan books. Through analysis, it became clear that the challenge was not merely increasing the volume of loans but addressing the perception that Credit Unions were primarily for smaller loans.
The Monster Loans campaign set out to show that the Credit Union could offer ‘monster’ loans of all sizes, catering to diverse needs. As a result, average loan sizes grew significantly, and the Credit Union’s share of the personal loan market rose from 32% to 40% over three years, all with a Share-of-Voice of just 7%.
The “Make Time to Check” campaign for Breast Cancer Ireland, while on a smaller scale, also achieved strong results. Early detection is key to better outcomes in breast cancer, yet research showed that many women in Ireland, particularly those under 50, were not checking regularly. The insight driving this campaign was that breast cancer was largely seen as an older woman’s disease, leading to under-50s being 27% less likely to self-check.
The campaign’s message was encapsulated in a 50-second film of a mother and daughter dealing with a diagnosis, which powerfully subverted expectations to reveal that it was the daughter, not the mother, who was diagnosed. The film highlighted that breast cancer affects women of all ages and called for women to make time to check. Despite a modest budget of €50,000 covering both creative and media costs, the campaign led to a 31% increase in monthly self-checks for breast cancer among women, with 40,000 additional women checking every month—a significant outcome for such a small investment.
Both campaigns demonstrate the effectiveness of targeted strategy and impactful creative execution. The recognition at the Best of Europe Effie Awards is a positive acknowledgment of this work, and it will be interesting to see how Irish advertising is received on the international stage come December 11th.
Jay Reid is Group Strategy Director at Core
