"The awards must keep their emphasis on Afrikaans creativity, as Afrikaans shares a large advertising stage where English dominates," says Tim du Plessis, executive editor of Afrikaans newspapers at Media24. "It is on this stage that Pendoring shines a special spotlight on Afrikaans.

"Afrikaans newspapers play an important role in the market when it comes to the dissemination of important information, which includes commercial messages. These newspapers are top quality products that have to satisfy the editorial needs of a very specific market. Advertisements in these newspapers must therefore satisfy the opportunities that are created in this niche market and add value to the existing editorial work. A bad or weak advertisement doesn't just cripple the product, service or brand being advertised, but also affects the overall quality of the publication in which it appears."

High demand for content

Beeld's nearly 513 000 daily readers and Rapport's more than 1 million weekly readers prove that there is a great demand for the editorial content of these newspapers.

"Although the digital frontier is the main priority for most media companies at present, advertising in the digital sphere hasn't been nearly as large or lucrative as it is in printed media."

According to Du Plessis, this is because print media are far more familiar territory to advertisers. "But this will change rapidly, as advertising in the digital realm becomes more important to soon reach critical mass."

"Everywhere in the world, the value of mother-tongue advertising is respected and appreciated. However, a benevolent ignorance exists in South Africa, as there is a docile assumption that, surely, all South Africans understand English.

"Understanding is one thing, but appreciating is something completely different. People appreciate it more when they are addressed in the language of their hearts. It can also increase the chances of attaining commercial success.

"People create in Afrikaans, trade in Afrikaans and express themselves in Afrikaans: it involves more than just knowing, reading and understanding the language.

"Pendoring is an important showcase to the world. It is where creatives come and say, 'Here we are! Look at how remarkable we are with our creative work across all platforms - in Afrikaans.' With truly South African words, expressions, phrases and ideas, we communicate to a very loyal market that will show its appreciation for talking to them in their language by opening their wallets."

Du Plessis' advice to creatives in the industry is to create original, high quality advertising that speaks to the hearts of the loyal Afrikaans market.

The closing date for entries is 15 July 2013. For more information, go to www.pendoring.co.za.