Starcom Worldwide continuously driving innovative media solutions

The Starcom Team

Starcom Worldwide Sri Lanka continues to drive excellence in media solutions in Sri Lanka with its executions of award winning campaigns conceptualized by Leo Burnett Solutions Inc. The exemplary campaigns have proved to enhance pride in the country, strengthened unity and braved national problems with confidence. These innovative campaigns that have driven Sri Lankans into making positive changes for the country reiterates Starcom’s philosophy which is to make ‘Connections which Captivate”.

The Paper Flag campaign executed by Starcom in 2012 was the first campaign in Sri Lanka to win metal at the Cannes Lions, the world's biggest celebration of creativity in communications.  The bronze award winning idea engaged newspaper readers to celebrate Independence Day following the 30 year civil war by turning a national newspaper into a national flag. By following the instructions given in the paper and building their own flag, readers had the national flag at their hands allowing them to take part in the Independence Day festivities. The campaign created a patriotic feeling amongst Sri Lankans as it engaged with people during the country’s National Day.

Paper Flag

The 2013 the Unity Paper, a game changing idea launched to make meaningful connections by strengthening national unity was launched. Starcom’s execution of the campaign was created to remind every Sri Lankan of the importance of national unity and integration after the setbacks due to the 30-year civil war. The Unity Paper is the first ever dual language newspaper used to bring together the most prominent ethnic groups of Sri Lanka. Expanding to social media, a joint alphabet was also created where letters from the Sinhala and Tamil alphabet were interlocked representing the same letter, further demonstrating the unity between two groups. The paper won awards at the prestigious Cannes Lions 2013, was a finalist at Adstar 2013, won two silvers and one bronze at Spikes Asia 2013, and won two finalists, gold and Lotus Root Award at Adfest 2014 and was the first Sri Lankan agency to be awarded a Merit Award at the One Show in 2014.

Dengue Paper

The Dengue Paper initiative in 2014 was executed by Starcom in an attempt to solve the grave dengue problem Sri Lanka faced. The world’s first mosquito-repellant newspaper was published on the last day of National Dengue Week, which was also World Health Day.  The ink used to print the newspaper was was specially formulated with citronella essence, a natural mosquito repellent and thus every letter of every word stopped mosquitos from biting. Along with this, the campaign also used posters at prominent bus stops, which were also coated with Citronella essence and striking print ads where letters in the vernacular blocked the Dengue mosquito. The campaign recently scored an 8 ball at the Leo Burnett Global Product Committee review in Paris.

The Unity Paper

Speaking of Starcom Worldwide Sri Lanka’s achievements, Michael Holsinger, CEO, Starcom Sri Lanka stated:  “We are always looking at innovative ways to push the boundaries of communication and convey our clients to all stakeholders and build stronger brand awareness for the company, while creative meaningful communications that benefit the end user. These achievements would not have been possible without the support of our clients and the dedication of the team at Starcom and Leo Burnett, who made it happen.”

For their outstanding performance within the South Asian region last year, Starcom Worldwide Sri Lanka walked away with the gold award for the Rest of South Asia Media Agency of the year at the prestigious Campaign Asia Awards 2013 held in India. Campaign Asia is a globally recognized brand within the advertising and marketing industry that is highly influential in shaping the region’s marketing-communications industry.

With more than 9 years of experience in the local industry and an impressive portfolio of clients, Starcom Worldwide Sri Lanka continues to raise awareness for its clients making lasting impression and building brand confidence amongst people.  Starcom offers a wide range of media services including media management, entertainment and sport marketing as well as internet and digital communications. Clients are provided with an enhanced understanding, improved customer insights and added contact innovation. Starcom Worldwide Sri Lanka is part of the worldwide Starcom MediaVest Group which has delivered success to many of the world’s largest companies such as P&G, Disney and Coca-Cola.