As an agency, your hard work and dedication need to meet its merit. For digital marketing agencies, it is important to submit their work and become a part of leading award programs.
Awards are an agency’s best way to get independent feedback on the quality of their work. Entering takes time and money, but the rewards are worth the effort. Winning an award brings prestige, reputation and a huge PR & marketing opportunity that can’t be missed.
When you win an award, the reputation and prestige you gain are important but you should also learn from your competitors.
Look at what you won and you didn’t. Share what you have learned with your team and clients. These insights make your work stronger. Trophies are only given to those who worked hard on the competition. You can learn from your mistakes and prepare even harder for the next year’s awards.
Top 15 Digital Agency Awards in 2020
Agencies need to be selective about award programs. The program you want to attend should meet the expectations of your clients’ business metrics and of course the budget that you spare. You need to be honest about where you’re standing and your chance to win.
Here are the best digital marketing agency awards for your consideration in 2020:
The Webby Awards
Established in 1996, the Webby Awards is the leading international award honoring exellence on the internet. The Webby is presented by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences (IADAS). A 2000+ member judging the submitted works. The jury comprised of executive members such as leading Web experts, visionaries, business figures, creative celebrities and associate members who are former Webby winners, nominees and other internet professionals.
The Webbys now honors excellence in 7 major media types: Websites, Film & Video, Advertising, Media & PR, Social, Mobile Sites & Apps, Games, and Podcasts & Digital Audio.
The Webby Awards presents two honors in every category: The Webby Award and The Webby People’s Voice Award. Members of the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences (IADAS) select the nominees for both awards in each category. The Webby People’s Voice is awarded by the voting public. Each year, The Webby People’s Voice Awards gets millions of votes from all over the world.
WebAwards
The Web Marketing Association was founded in 1997, to help set a high standard for Internet marketing and development of the best websites on the World Wide Web.
By volunteers, this organization is made up of Internet marketing, online advertising, PR, and top web site design professionals who share an interest in improving the quality of online advertising, internet marketing, and website promotion.
Now in its 23rd year, the WebAward program is the longest running annual website award competition dedicated to choose the best websites in 96 industries while setting the standard of excellence for all website development.
If you want to be an award-winning website builder to impress your clients or to create internet marketing opportunity, you can easily enter WebAwards and experience the excitement of recognition you deserve.
BIMA Awards
The BIMA Awards are the longest standing and most prestigious digital awards in the UK, celebrating the British digital work pushing the limits across innovation, craft and impact. BIMA Awards seek to support and encourage the work in the British digital sector that is pushing the limits of what is possible, making a difference in business, society and culture.
These awards represent the pinnacle of the digital revolution. To win a BIMA award is a prestigious honour for your organisation as one of an elite few moving the game on and the digital economy forward.
Award categories: BIMA Advance Awards, Communications and Content, Data & Performance Marketing, Emerging Technology, Product and Service Design, Transformation & Consultancy, Website & Apps, BIMA Advance Jury Prize Awards. You can see last year’s BIMA Awards Shortlist here.
The Drum Awards
The Drum Awards are global award programs aiming to identify the best practices, companies and people in the digital industry. Award winners not only get the recognition they deserve, but also the new business. Drum Awards also help position winners as the best places to work, helping them to attract and retain talented people.
There are a series of competitions, which run throughout the year, and reflect every part of The Drum’s editorial eco-system. These competitions are:
- DADI Awards: Rewarding digital excellence for the past 12 years.
- Digital Trading Awards APAC: Rewarding programmatic performance.
- Digital Trading Awards USA: Rewarding the best in programmatic.
- Search Awards USA: The event that aims to find the very best in Search.
- B2B Awards: Rewarding B2B Champions.
- Out of Home Awards: The Drum Out of Home Awards is the award scheme that aims to identify the best practices, companies and people in the industry.
- Content Awards: Rewarding everyone who is producing exciting and innovative content.
- Agency Business Awards: The Drum Agency Business Awards (formerly The Drum Network Awards) aims to celebrate the very best run agencies.
- Experience Awards: The Drum Experience Awards, formerly The Drum UK Event Awards, are on a mission to remind the world of the power of this growing sector, as well as recognizing the very best in the business.
- Social Purpose Awards: Through our awards we’ll be celebrating all organisations, who are champions of change, and driving a more diverse, purposeful and socially responsible representation of marketing today.
- Social Buzz Awards: At The Drum Social Buzz Awards, we are all about sharing, retweeting and regramming the world’s best creative work.
- Advertising Awards: These awards are open globally to creatives who are producing the best, most creative and innovative work in the advertising.
- Design Awards: The Drum Design Awards recognise great design being produced by agencies globally.
- Marketing Awards: The Drum Marketing Awards are one of the industry’s most sought after accolades.
- Mobile Awards: The MOMAs (Marketing on Mobile Awards) return to celebrate another fantastic year in mobile.
- Online Media Awards: The Drum Online Media Awards identify the cleverest, boldest and most original purveyors of news and views from around the world.
- Recommended Agency Awards: Recommended Agency Register (RAR) is The Drum’s service to help brands to choose agencies, based on ratings.
- Digital Trading Awards Europe: The Drum Digital Trading Awards, recognise and highlight the best examples of digital trading in practice.
UK Agency Awards
Following its successful launch in 2015, The UK Agency Awards is now in its fifth year. The awards are open to all creative, design, digital, marketing, advertising, media and public relations agencies that are based in the UK.
The awards celebrate exceptional agencies, campaigns and talent in 26 categories. The judging panel features leading in-house professionals in marketing, communications, advertising and digital from some of the UK’s best brands.
Awwwards
The Awwwards are given to recognize the talent and effort of the best web designers, developers and agencies in the world. Awwwards is also a meeting point where “always questioning” and “always evolving” digital design professionals around the globe find inspiration, share knowledge and experience, connect.
Every year Awwwards holds conferences in different cities all around the world, from New York, Barcelona and Amsterdam to London, Paris and L.A. The events unite the best agencies and thought leaders in the world of digital design.
Awards: Developer, Honorable Mentions, Mobile Exellence, Nominees, Sites of the Day, Sites of the Month, Sites of the Year.
Award categories: Architecture, Art & Illustration, Business & Corporate, Culture & Education, Design Agencies, E-Commerce, Events, Experimental, Fashion, Film & TV, Food & Drink, Games & Entertainment, Hotel / Restaurant, Institutions, Magazine / Newspaper / Blog, Mobile & Apps, Music & Sound, Other, Photography, Promotional, Real Estate, Sports, Technology, Web & Interactive.
Digiday Awards
The Digiday Awards is the industry’s annual recognition of the companies and campaigns that are modernizing media and marketing. Over the years, these awards have honored leading work from brands, agencies, publishers and tech providers. This year, the award program will honour creative minds under 19 categories.
W³ Awards
The W³ Awards honors creative excellence on the web, and recognizes the creative and marketing professionals behind award winning sites, videos and marketing programs. In short, the W³ is the first major web competition open to biggest agencies, the smallest firms, and everyone in between.
The W³’s invitation-only jury consists of Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts members and top professionals from advertising, marketing, media, and interactive firms. Just by entering, you honour the work of your team and recognition from the Academy proves to your clients and your colleagues that your work is truly great.
D&AD Awards
In 1962 a group of designers and art directors come together to celebrate creative communication and raise standards within their industry. Calling themselves British Design & Art Direction, they organise their first event. And they just select 16 pieces from 2,500 entries for Yellow Pencil prize; the first of its kind.
Today, British Design & Art Direction has grown rapidly. D&AD and its members represent the the creative and advertising communities, not just in Britain, but worldwide.
Awards:
Digital Impact Awards
UK’s largest event of digital work in corporate communications, the Digital Impact Awards launched in 2010. Since then, digital communication landscape has changed dramatically.
Winners of past years prove that digital has reached maturity. Digital Impact Awards welcome enteries from all across the European region.
You can check the Digital Impact Awards categories here.
Content Marketing Awards
UBM company owned Content Marketing Institute presents The Content Marketing Awards. Each year Content Marketing Institute recognizes and awards the best content marketing projects, marketers and agencies in the industry.
The leading international awards program includes 92 categories recognizing all aspects of content marketing from strategy to distribution, from design to editorial.
Performance Marketing Awards
Performance Marketing Awards celebrate the evolving brilliance in the industry. The awards program has 28 categories carefully chosen, and developed by an advisory board.
They aim to recognize and reward the best performance marketing world has to offer. In the award ceremony, you can network with 1,000 of your peers awaits and build new relationships while strengthening the existing.
Influencer Marketing Awards
Influencer Marketing Awards welcome entries from agencies, brands, and influencers alongside technologies that add value to influencer marketing ecosystem from around the world.
There are 28 categories carefully crafted by an advisory board. Their panel of judges recognizes and reward the best innovative and creative minds who design and execute successful and exceptional influencer marketing campaigns.
MGS mBolden Awards
The MGS mBolden Awards were created to recognize women in digital and mobile. mBolden has over 10,000 members in 10 chapters around the world. They want women positively influence and lead.
mBolden seeks to inspire, connect and also embolden a diverse representation of women. Award Categories are: mBolden Mobile Growth Leader of the Year, Champion of Women Award, Rising Star Award, People Choice Award.
AVA Awards
International competition AVA Digital Awards recognize excellence by creative professionals responsible for concept, planning, design, direction and production of digital communication. There are 277 categories in a broad range of categories under Digital Marketing, Web, Video, Television, Audio Communication and Electronic, Social, Interactive Media.
The competition is open to all organizations, companies and individuals involved in producing any type of digital media project for external or internal audiences. You can submit your work from here.
Bonus: Digital Marketing eWards
The Ewards are brand new digital marketing distinctions for marketers and agencies: a high recognition for marketers’ creativity, expertise, and outstanding performance.
If you already created an innovative, one-of-a-kind digital marketing campaign and your recent strategy is an undeniable client magnet you can register for the 2020 Ewards to receive the recognition you deserve!
Why to enter Digital Agency Awards?
Digital agency awards can help identify which firms are doing some of the best work and helping their clients’ business to grow. Award programs assist brands to differentiate good from great. While client success should be the ultimate goal of achievement, most high-achievers appreciate this recognition among rivals.
The best talents in their field want to work with top players who are as good as they are. A digital agency award is that meeting point. If you win an award, you prove yourself and honour your talent. Moreover, your organisation has a respectfully accepted reputation in the digital marketing industry.
Digital marketing agency award programs also help to raise the inspiration with collectiveness. Great agencies are focused on their clients’ goals, and awards provide an opportunity to take a step back and review what other brands are doing.
With so many digital marketing agencies out there, it’s important to stand out from the crowd!
The application deadlines for these digital marketing agency awards occur throughout the year, so it might be useful to create a calendar to help your team keep track of your favorite programs.
Good luck with your submissions!
