Carat launched its Most Valuable Partner (MVP) programme for the second year running after crowning Nova Entertainment’s Matt Russell and Nine Entertainment’s sales team as the inaugural winners for 2022.
The programme launched last year as part of Carat’s efforts to recognise the role its media partners play in delivering results for clients.
Carat’s chief investment officer Craig Cooper said: “The Carat MVP platform has been a huge success in 2022 and we are so excited for it to continue to shine a light on our very hard-working media partners in each capital city.
“We set out to recognise and reward these individuals and it has resulted in a stronger brand connection to our team and clients, and ultimately better business outcomes for everyone. Congratulations to both Matt Russell from Nova and the entire Nine national sales team. Look forward to seeing another year of worth winners celebrated.”
Carat MVP gamifies the relationship between media agency and media owner, with Carat employees able to award points to media sales representatives recognising excellence across a variety of criteria from helping deliver great ideas, providing useful data and insights that demonstrates and an understanding of Carat’s clients’ challenges and importantly, being a pleasure to work with.
Across the year, Carat employees were able to award points to media sales representatives, with a total of 1000 points each quarter and were able to award the full quarter points to one sales representative or break up the quarterly points to reward multiple sales representatives.
Nova Entertainment senior agency client executive, Matt Russell, won the individual category. He said the programme “elevated” his “already strong perception of Carat as a hardworking, dynamic and high-functioning team that truly challenges for the best client outcomes every day”.
Russell said the programme’s “real time feedback highlights the most valuable and sought-after qualities required for collective success. It reinforced for me how these qualities can and do translate into improved outcomes for clients across the year”.
“It’s also beneficial for clients to understand the impact and vital partnership media have in building compelling and effective campaigns and see their media partners being rewarded.”
Nine Entertainment took out the company category, with Val Morgan and Network Seven rounding out the top three.
Nine Director of Sales – Total Television, Richard Hunwick, described the programme as a “wonderful initiative”. He said: “Media is a business built on relationships and respect, which together deliver best effort and in turn outcomes for clients.”
“Recognition of this effort, and public recognition, no doubt galvanises those relationships and efforts. We’re a competitive bunch in media, we all like to win, but more than that recognition of a job well done reinforces those best practice behaviours moving forward.”
The Carat MVP Programme for 2023 kicked off on January 30, with a public website, available for media partners to track the leader board throughout the year.
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Top image: Matt Russell