LONDON, 30 March 2010 – The inaugural Digital Impact Awards have been launched today. The first UK awards programme to celebrate the best in digital stakeholder communications is welcoming submissions of digital work developed, launched or carried out between January 2009 and March 2010.
Judged by a jury of digital experts, communications practitioners and academics, the Digital Impact Awards are launched by Communicate magazine, the UK’s leading magazine for corporate communications and stakeholder relations which was also responsible for the Transform awards for rebranding.
The Digital Impact Awards recognise best practice in all areas of corporate communications including media relations, social media, investor relations, and internal communications with categories that focus on strategy, execution, content and evaluation.
Entries are welcomed from in-house communications professionals, digital agencies, business strategists, design firms, advertising agencies, non-profit organisations, and government agencies, and will be accepted until 14 June. Winners will be announced in September at a gala dinner in London.
While several award programmes recognise digital strategy and creativity as part of an organisation’s marketing activity, or for specific areas of communications, the Digital Impact Awards are the first to recognise digital work across all areas of corporate communications.
Publisher of Communicate Andrew Thomas said: “Companies increasingly need to talk to all their audiences with a single voice, and digital and social media tools allow companies to achieve that quickly and effectively. But with creativity and best practice moving at such a fast pace, it is difficult for organisations to know where excellence lies. We felt digital communication was not properly benchmarked or recognised. Our awards will create an industry-wide benchmark, as well as giving teams the recognition they deserve.”
Drew Benvie, MD of digital agency 33-Digital, commented: “Lessons in digital communications are gold dust right now. We’re working in an information-sharing economy and yet the success of great campaigns is often hidden away. With adoption of new technologies and media consumption habits evolving faster than brands can catch up, recognising innovation and sharing experiences is critical.”
Communicate consistently covers digital work – from the recent social media campaign by Greenpeace in its lobbying of Nestle, to ArcelorMittal’s harnessing TV, radio and viral marketing to deliver its internal message and Kraft’s use of video to convince sceptical investors. The Digital Impact Awards provide the opportunity for organisations to tell their digital stories, to network and to share best practice.