Advertising campaign wins Rutgers Newark students top prize in Omnicom Health competition

A team of Rutgers University-Newark students, including four from the business school, won a first-place prize of $10,000 and a chance for each student to intern with Omnicom Health in the company’s annual Health of Advertising Brand Challenge.

The competition required the students to create a campaign that would raise awareness about obesity, and they spent five weeks, including some long late-night and weekend sessions, creating an advertising campaign they named, “Silence is the Heaviest Load We Carry.”

Aparna Mathur, a psychology student who became the team manager, said the team worked to tell a story about obesity. “The real problem isn’t about people not caring about obesity. It’s about people not talking,” she said. “Our campaign had heart and discipline.”

Their campaign strategically targeted working professionals between 40 and 60 and healthcare professionals and emphasized the importance of discussing obesity without shame or pressure. It featured graphic advertising assets influenced by 90’s diet and call-in radio culture and included a social media strategy and colorful billboards that read, “It’s time for a Body Talk.”

The team was composed of Mathur, a senior at the School of Arts and Sciences; Graceann Edwards, a School of Arts and Sciences senior majoring in philosophy; and Rutgers Business School seniors, Aaryan Shekh who is studying finance, marketing, supply chain management and economics; Asiyah Hafeez, who is majoring in supply chain management and marketing; Aafrin Syedali, a supply chain management major; and Sloam Lemus, a double major in leadership and management, and marketing.

Rutgers Business School professor Madhavi Chakrabarty served as the team’s faculty adviser – they referred to her as Dr. C, -- and Erwin Caluya, an art supervisor at Omnicom Health, mentored them.

The students, Chakrabarty said, worked on the campaign around classes and jobs, making coordinated meeting times a challenge. She thought the team’s diversity was one of its strengths, but she also credited their critical thinking, creativity and strategy.

“They took this to heart. Their message was so unique. The way they played with words was very effective, and they were very strategic,” she said.

Caluya initially thought the Rutgers team was an underdog because none of them had studied advertising or worked on an advertising campaign. “Luckily, I actually do teach,” he said, adding that he used some of his classroom techniques for guiding them and encouraging them. “I wanted them to see how exciting it can be to have a simple idea and see it become a campaign,” he said. 

Rutgers competed in the intense, regional online competition against teams from three other schools, Fordham, the Borough of Manhattan Community College and New York City College of Technology. 

The students were selected by a small committee of Rutgers staff members. None of them knew one another before their first meeting and most of them had never done a similar competition. “We were a very diverse team,” said Hafeez, who took the lead in creating the campaign’s artistic graphic assets.

The students also brought different experiences and perspectives and strengths, including a passion for problem-solving, creativity and writing, according to Hafeez and Mathur. “We shared a purpose,” Mathur said. “We wanted to humanize the issue. We wanted the campaign to speak to real people. And we were competitive.”

Edwards, another team member agreed. “What truly set the project apart was how each person leaned into their strengths, turning our ideas into a living and breathing ecosystem of creativity,” she said. 

Edwards contributed strong writing skills and experience from her work in healthcare. “I understood both the provider and patient perspective, and the idea of turning those experiences into meaningful, actionable messaging drew me in,” she said.

Hafeez said she couldn’t help smiling during the team’s presentation because from the opening, she believed the team’s campaign was strong. Edwards wrote the manifesto and read it during the team’s presentation. “The (opening) manifesto was powerful, and it tied it all together,” she said.

Caluya said when the students presented, he got goosebumps. “They were so well-rehearsed,” he said. “I thought, this is how you win a pitch.”

Or in this case, a competition. The guaranteed internship allows the Rutgers students to essentially “cut in line” in front of hundreds of other applicants, Caluya said. Even if they don’t pursue the internship, Caluya said, “Hopefully, this (win) will open doors for them.”

-Susan Todd