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The competition, which gives up-and-coming indie media agency professionals the opportunity to collaborate and innovate as they hone their pitching skills, challenged teams to develop comprehensive, creative briefs for Mission Australia, focusing on campaigns to amplify the charity's work and support fundraising efforts. This year, 21 teams competed nation-wide for the top three places, with 18 teams IMAA members.
Our team’s bronze-winning campaign demonstrated a sophisticated understanding of both empathy-driven marketing and multi-platform strategy. They pitched "The One Event Project 2026"- the idea of one act making a difference. The campaign focused on building empathy without exploiting vulnerability, by showing every-day Australians that they're "one event away" from needing help, and equally, "one act away" from being someone's lifeline.
The strategic framework showcased expertise in integrated digital marketing, incorporating always-on campaigns across Meta, Google, TikTok and organic social platforms. Their strategy included an always-on campaign across Meta, Google, TikTok and organic social, using the hash tags #oneevent or #oneact to show how people have helped others experiencing homelessness, and was supported by a disruption phase, using augmented reality filters and Uber journey ads, and amplification across Optus and Allianz Stadium partnerships on digital billboards and out-of-home advertising.
The Pitch-Chella program represents the IMAA's commitment to nurturing emerging talent within Australia's independent media agency sector. IMAA Leadership Team member and Hatched Chairman, Mike Wilson, says: "We are excited to announce the winners of this year's Pitch-Chella initiative. The judging panel had an incredibly difficult task in selecting this year's winners – all our finalists prepared pitches that demonstrated a depth of thinking, creativity and strategy that was well beyond their years."
The competition's judging panel comprised industry experts including Audience360's Managing Director Jenny Parkes, TrinityP3 Business Director Steven Wright, and Tumbleturn Marketing Advisory Managing Partner Daniel Johns, alongside representatives from Mission Australia.
The Pitch-Chella brief provided valuable insights into Australia's homelessness landscape, with Mission Australia National Marketing Manager, Nicole Moore noting that many finalists were surprised as they learnt about the scale of Australia's hidden homelessness crisis and that of the 122,000 people homeless in Australia each night, only 6% are rough sleeping.
This statistic underscored the importance of their strategic approach, which focused on educating Australians about the reality that homelessness affects a much broader demographic than commonly perceived. The campaign's emphasis on "one event away" messaging aimed to shift public perception while encouraging actionable community support.
Mission Australia National Marketing Manager, Nicole Moore praised the overall standard of entries: "The standard of the entries was excellent – so many strategically thoughtful and creative ideas for how to amplify our work. The ideas will definitely be considered as part of our future campaign planning."
This feedback highlights how competitions like Pitch-Chella create genuine value for charitable organisations, providing fresh strategic perspectives that can inform real-world campaigns. Bang Digital's approach demonstrated how independent agencies can leverage their agility and local market understanding to develop innovative solutions for national challenges.
The success of programs like Pitch-Chella reflects the independent media sector's commitment to developing the next generation of marketing professionals. By providing platforms for emerging talent to demonstrate their capabilities on national stages, the IMAA ensures that Australia's independent agencies continue to attract and retain high-calibre professionals.
Bang Digital's bronze achievement represents more than individual recognition—it demonstrates Perth's capacity to compete with major metropolitan markets while maintaining the personalised service and strategic agility that defines successful independent agencies.
As the independent media sector continues to grow, competitions like Pitch-Chella provide valuable opportunities for agencies to showcase their strategic thinking, creative capabilities, and commitment to delivering meaningful outcomes for clients across all sectors—from global corporations to vital charitable organisations like Mission Australia.
The bronze medal achievement positions Bang Digital among Australia's most promising independent agencies, reinforcing the strategic foundation that continues to drive growth and client success across Perth's digital marketing landscape.
Awards aren't everything. But we are pretty proud to be Perth's most awarded Google Premier Partner agency. Over the years we have been recognised by both Telstra and Google in their award categories, which are highly competitive. Here's a few of our PPC advertising accolades we are particularly proud of.
