Emvies 2016 Update: "Maxus, Lodestar have tied at No.2": Ad Club

An important clarification.

On September 3, 2016, afaqs! carried a story on the winners of the Emvies 2016, an annual event that felicitates media agencies, organised by The Advertising Club.

Read our coverage here.

What ensued was an unpleasant back-and-forth between this publication and Maxus, a media agency from the house of GroupM. Here's why: According to our story, Maxus stood third, but the agency spokesperson insisted that it stood second. Despite a fair amount of pressure to modify our story, we refused. Here is our reason: The tally sheet (see image) provided to us by The Ad Club read:

1. Mindshare

2. Lodestar

3. Maxus

4. Madison

However, when Maxus continued insisting our report is incorrect, we decided to reach out to the Ad Club authorities. They clarified that the numbers on the left side of the list do not represent agency ranks at all and are, instead, to be treated as mere serial numbers. The only determinant of rank, then, is the column on the extreme right, in which the points secured by each agency are mentioned. Lodestar and Maxus have secured 135 points each.

Bipin Pandit, COO, The Advertising Club, said by way of clarification, "Lodestar and Maxus are both runners up this time. They have tied for the No.2 spot - the honours are shared equally. There is no agency at No.3." Madison, therefore, is at No.4.

Here was our mistake: Breaking the points tie between Lodestar and Maxus basis the number of Golds won by each; Lodestar has six and Maxus has four. Over the years, our reports on the Effies and Abby Awards, similar events organised by The Ad Club, have been led by the number of Golds won by participating agencies.

afaqs! was not the only publication that was mis-led by the numbers provided by The Ad Club, which ought to have read:

1. Mindshare

2. Maxus

2. Lodestar

4. Madison

Or:

1. Mindshare

2. Lodestar

2. Maxus

4. Madison

Basically, No.3 should have been skipped.

In the event of a points tie in the future, we implore The Ad Club to skip the requisite serial number when enumerating the results in the margin on paper. Or simply use bullet points. This will help us avert tricky situations such as these and prevent mistakes that, some may argue, fall within the... margin of error.