India contributes 27 per cent of total entries at 2012 Warc Prize

The competition has received 44 entries from India, out of the total 160 case studies, which in itself is 20 per cent more than the last year's 135 entries.

The Warc Prize 2012 has recorded 160 total entries from brands and agencies across 13 Asian countries. Of these, 27 per cent case studies are from India, which is much more than any other market in Asia. The competition offers a cash prize of $7000 for the most insightful marketing strategy of the region.

Out of the total 13 Asian countries, India leads with 44 entries, followed by Singapore, Philippines and China.

Though the organisation refused to predict India's performance, as per the previous year's analysis, India had a large share in the shortlists and finalists list, too. Out of the total 135 entries in 2011, about 45 were Indian entries. Moreover, nearly 12 out of the 25 shortlists were Indian entries in 2011. Also, three out of the total 10 finalists were Indian entries.

The organisation suggests, "Indian brands and agencies seem to be particularly good at developing smart strategies that can really have an impact on a brand's business - the best Indian campaigns showed a real understanding of clients' business needs, and addressed them intelligently and creatively. One of the things we'll be doing this year is to see whether that suggestion holds true, and whether Indian entries can repeat that performance."

Charles Wigley, chairman of BBH Asia-Pacific and the chairman, Warc 2012 hails the rise in entry numbers as a sign of the strength of Asia's marketing industry. "I think the significant growth in the number of entries is reflective of an increasingly strong and sophisticated business across the region," he says.

Earlier, the cash prize was $5000 for the region's best strategy case study. Warc, the marketing intelligence service, has expanded the prize fund by $2000 to recognise the best example of low-budget strategy.

While submitting the case studies, the company stressed on specifying media channels. On an average, the campaigns used 7.5 channels each, similar to 7.9 channels of the past year. Of these, 92 cases used television, making it the most commonly used channel.

In the analysis of prize performance by sector in 2011, it was clear that the classic marketing categories - FMCG, food and drink - still led the industry in terms of executing strategy and delivering results.

Wigley will chair a judging panel of senior client-side marketers and strategy experts from around the world. Warc expects to announce the shortlist and then the finalists later in the summer, with the winners set to be revealed in September.

For the records, Warc's online intelligence service, warc.com, includes more than 6,000 case studies.