Discovering Digital ‘Gems’ with Amazon Advertising S.M.A.R.T Challenge Grand Finale

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With the ever-growing pace of the internet, digital marketing and advertising are becoming the most-coveted roles, which means one needs to stay at the top of their game in this rapidly evolving field. And the Amazon Advertising team presented one such amazing opportunity to the B-Schoolers to work on real marketing projects under the guidance of senior leaders, thus giving the budding digital marketers a chance to leg up on the cut-throat competition.

In case you missed the updates of the Amazon Advertising S.M.A.R.T Challenge, here is a round-up of this momentous event.

On 1st October students from across coveted B-Schools got together for the Amazon Advertising S.M.A.R.T Challenge Grand Finale. This out-of-the-ordinary challenge witnessed the registration of about 9,808 students, with 30 of them making it to the grand finale (10 teams). With the theme of Strategize, Market, Advertise, Reign, Transcend, the national finalists presented some groundbreaking ideas! 

A structured framework to funnel down the best

With 1,80,102 impressions, S.M.A.R.T Challenge by Amazon Advertising left an indelible mark on both first and second-year students pursuing full-time MBA programs across select B-Schools in the country. Strategically divided into four rounds, the challenge judged students on their ability to present ideas on shaping advertising campaigns and measuring results. Reflecting on the encouraging work culture of Amazon, the organizing team kick-started the competition with a launch event for all the registered students, giving them an opportunity to meet the Amazon Advertising team and hear from them on how to ace the S.M.A.R.T Challenge and much more. Following the launch session, the rounds were as followed:

Round 1: Online Quiz

Round 2: Case Study: Approach Note Submission Round

Round 3: Grand Finale (Presentation Submission Round)

Round 4: Grand Finale (Team Presentation)

The competition got the ball rolling with a mandatory 30-minute online quiz, where every participant got a set of questions based on digital marketing, advertising fundamentals, and fundamental understanding of Amazon Advertising products through the Amazon Advertising learning console. The shortlisted teams then submitted their solutions to the problem statement as a part of the second round.

The 10 teams that played their cards well to grab a position in the third round of the competition, submitted and presented their solutions in form of presentations to the panel of judges comprising leaders from Amazon Advertising at the S.M.A.R.T Challenge Grand Finale.

Each team got 10 minutes to present and 5 mins for Q&A (A total of 15 minutes to present their solutions). The teams presented novel ideas that delved deep into the world of advertisement and digital marketing. 

The distinguished jury and the brilliant national finalists

The judges' table was shared by Mr. Anurag Goyal, Manager - Finance, Amazon; Mr. Sriram Sowrirajan, Senior Manager - Seller Ads, Amazon Advertising; Mr. Vijay Iyer, Director - Ad Sales, Amazon Advertising; Ms. Mini Manakame, Head of Product, Amazon Advertising; and Mr. Kapil Sharma, Head - Sponsored Ads for vendors, Amazon Advertising.

Talking about the national finalists, 10 teams finally made it to the Amazon Advertising S.M.A.R.T Challenge Grand Finale after facing tough competition against each other. 

… and we are the digi-champs

On October 1, 2021, Amazon Advertising S.M.A.R.T Challenge Grand Finale kickstarted with a brief introductory session and wishes from the judges. Each team put their best foot forward with their detailed presentation reflecting unique, innovative, and realistic solutions to tackle the challenges at hand. 

After a brief deliberation of the jury posts the presentations, results were announced. Team 221 B from IIM Bangalore comprising Swasthik Prabhu, Suman Yadav, and Mythili K bagged the position of the Second Runner Up. The trophy for the First Runner Up was grabbed by Team Disco Dancers from the Indian School of Business, comprising Rishabh Gopal, Sanjana Pachory, and Shimona Bordia. The coveted position of the National Winners was bagged by Team Kollaborators from IIM Kozhikode, comprising Sumeet Sethi, Saumya Jindal, and Priyanka Gupta.

With its one-of-a-kind challenge, Amazon Advertising won the hearts and minds of the students! The esteemed jury, participants, audience, the backend team, and every other person connected to the challenge made the journey remarkable. Wishing everyone a big congratulations!

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