• Charles Sturt marketing-communications students maintain outstanding record of performance in annual national competition
• Final-year students develop strategies in response to real-world briefs for clients
• This type of industry engagement leads to high graduate employment outcomes for Charles Sturt’s communication students

The Kajulu Blue team (pictured) from the Charles Sturt School of Communication and Creative Industries is among the five finalist teams selected from 200 students from universities across Australia.

They will present their ‘Big Idea Pitch’ on Monday 9 November to the judging panel, where the national champion team will be selected and announced.

The students in the Kajulu Blue team are Mr Benjamin Breden, Mr Christopher Couper, Mr Charlie Hodgkin, Ms Rebeka Magok, Ms Lucy Pirrie, Ms Pia Priestley, and Ms Mia Scudds.

The 2020 nominated client is ANZ bank and the brief was to promote the bank’s financial wellbeing package for young Australians.

Kajulu Communications is the Charles Sturt on-campus student advertising agency for students enrolled in the Bachelor of Communication (Advertising), Bachelor of Communication (Advertising)/Bachelor of Business (Marketing), and Bachelor of Communication (Advertising and Public Relations).

Course Director in the Charles Sturt Faculty of Arts and Education Dr Travis Holland said, “Our students continue to astound. This continues a decade and a half of success in the Big Idea and demonstrates why our students are job-ready and sought after by industry.”

Senior lecturer and advertising discipline lead in the School Ms Anne Llewellynn, said, “This is the twelfth consecutive year Charles Sturt Kajulu teams have made it to the finals of the Big Idea, and I am so proud of these students.

“It was a great brief from ANZ and a challenging problem to address, made more so by having to work remotely under COVID-19 restrictions. The students really excelled in their passion and dedication. Well-deserved congratulations to all and we look forward to presenting their pitch at the finals.”

Chairman of IAA Jury, Mr Kjetil Undhjem, ANZ Head of Brand Strategy and Marketing, said, “First and foremost, a big thank you to all the teams for all the work on the submissions for the IAA Big Idea this year.

“In addition to the quality and creativity provided, I am so proud to see the passion for research, strategy, consumer insight, to ensure the whole plan holds together; true testament that the future is bright for our marketing community.

“Finally, it is really interesting to see so many different ways to solve the problem, clearly indicating the beauty of marketing; there is no one answer only.”

IAA Australia Chapter Chair Ms Heather Leembruggen , said, “The International Advertising Association (IAA) is very pleased that IAA BIG IDEA 2020 has given over 200 undergraduate students all over Australia, the challenge of developing a marketing communications program to help ANZ Banking Group to deliver financial services and solutions to improve people’s financial wellbeing.

“This is an exceptional learning experience and the students have excelled in combining strategic thinking with strong story-telling to create fresh ideas to impact the target market. All those who participated in IAA BIG IDEA 2020 can be very proud of their achievements.”