Ogilvy scoops top DMA prize for polemic 'Maaate' blitz

Ogilvy UK has scooped this year’s DMA grand prix – its second in three years after regularly dominating the shortlist – picking up the top gong for another hard-hitting yet controversial campaign for the Mayor of London, designed to tackle sexist attitudes and inappropriate male behaviour towards women and girls.

Launched in August 2023, the “Breaking the Silence” campaign was part of a wider initiative from the Mayor of London launched three years ago in the aftermath of the horrific Sarah Everard case. It followed reports that her murderer, serving Met police officer Wayne Couzens, had exchanged grossly offensive misogynistic WhatsApp messages with fellow officers, ‘joking’ about sexual assault and rape but no-one had acted.

The campaign was designed to break the silence many men maintain when encountering such behaviour, with the ultimate goal being to equip men with a tool to intervene when they witnessed their friends crossing the line.

Led by a “Say Maaate to a Mate” interactive film, the activity gave viewers the option to intervene when a group of young men’s conversation became increasingly misogynistic.

By clicking “Maaate”, the film adopted a “choose-your-own-ending” game and acted as a tool for men and boys to help determine when, where and how to call out inappropriate language.

According to the results, the activity emerged as the most talked about campaign of 2023: over 35 articles in major papers dissecting its merits and shortcomings. From primetime broadcasts on BBC1, Piers Morgan Uncensored and ITV, to radio discussions on BBC Radio 5 Live and Women’s Hour, it sparked fervent discussion amassing an earned reach of 3.5 billion.

Even so, not everyone was convinced of the merits, with one activist claiming the campaign was myopic and “offensive in its naivety”. On social media one user wrote: “This is so important and, for me at least 20 years too late #TackleViolenceAgainstFemales!”

A second wrote: “This is one of the most ridiculous and pathetic campaigns on a very important subject.” And a third added: “Good idea in theory. In practice, it is unlikely the men who would call out such language are friends with those who regularly use it. So it won’t have much impact.”

However, ultimately, it is claimed the campaign turned the target audience from the group least likely to intervene to the most likely.

And, in what was to prove a top night for Ogilvy UK, with the WPP agency scooped a total of 30 awards, including the grand prix and three golds for “Breaking the Silence”, plus eight golds, 12 silvers and 9 bronzes for clients including AkzoNobel UK, Unilever, Coca-Cola and Skin Cancer UK.

Other big winners on the night included Uncommon Experience Studio, which scooped five golds, three silvers and two bronzes for clients British Airways, Marshmallow and Not on the High Street.

Meanwhile, TP&M, House 337, Rapp, Sela and Newcastle Utd bagged three golds apiece and TMW and Armadillo walked off with two golds.

As is tradition, more than 300 senior marketers from agencies, brands and specialists helped to judge the awards over a ten-day period. There were 39 categories in total, split across five tracks; industry sectors, channels, campaigns, data and craft.

The DMA has yet to officially comment on this year’s awards.