Over 500 people attended this year’s Irish Digital Media Awards ceremony on the 29th September, where Teneo was declared Ireland’s best agency. Held in the Clayton Hotel, Burlington Road and hosted by Anton Savage, the Awards acknowledge creativity across multiple areas of an ever-evolving sector including digital content creation, advertising and marketing, mobile media, social networking, app development, web design and development. Once again, this year’s award winners showcased the best of what Ireland’s digital media industry has to offer.
The Digital Media Awards were joined by their official sponsors AudioXi, Connexus Recruit, Ebow, Joe Media Group , Kantar Media, Olytico, Virgin Media Solutions , Wondr, Better Business Magazine, In Business Magazine and Hotel & Catering Review whom all attended on the night
Rob Timony, head of AudioXi , Ireland’s largest programmatic trading platform for digital audio, said ‘’It’s important to have a strong indigenous Irish digital sector, and I think events and initiatives like the Digital Media Awards are vital to that. So to give space to celebrate, collaborate and highlight the really great work that’s been done throughout the year is a really important thing to do. ‘’
Another sponsor was Joe Media Group, Ireland’s leading digital media power house, and Niamh Geoghegan, general manager from Greencastle Media Group, which owns Joe, said that in the fast moving world in which they operate, the Digital Media Awards “is one day a year you can take stock, sit down, and look at the really great work and say well done”.
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A winner on the evening was Waterways Ireland. They were delighted that the Waterways Through Time podcast clinched the Bronze Award in the best podcast category. A spokesperson said: “This incredible achievement is testament to the hard work and dedication of everyone involved in making this podcast a reality. Commissioned by archivist Nuala Reilly and education officer Manus Tiernan with the view to promoting the rich history and heritage of our inland waterways, the podcast series was developed and produced by Turtle Bunbury and Ally Bunbury of Turtle Bunbury Histories. A huge congratulations to them and their team, Mary Burke and Liam Mulvaney for helping make the podcast series a success.”
It was a wonderful evening for those still learning and educating themselves in this industry. Technological University of Shannon, Athlone had four students nominated for digital student of the year: Adam Bermingham, Caoimhe Horan, Dara Lenihan and Anna Fenlon of the Bachelor of Business (Hons) in digital marketing course. Adam Birmingham took home gold on the awards night. Adam Bermingham, a recent graduate of the BBs (Hons) in Digital Marketing at TUS Athlone Campus, secured the top prize in the category at this year’s awards, building on the achievements of last year’s gold winner, Chris Kearns, from TUS Athlone Campus and the 2021 gold winner, Orla Donworth, from TUS Moylish Campus.
Speaking about award ceremony, Trish Murphy, sponsorship director of the Digital Media Awards, thanked the award sponsors: AudioXi, Connexus Recruit, Ebow, Joe Media Group, Kantar Media, Olytico, Virgin Media Solutions , Wondr, Better Business Magazine, In Business Magazine, Hotel & Catering Review. “Without their support and commitment to the sector, the award would not be possible,” says Murphy. “We are very grateful for their support of the Awards which are viewed as the ‘Oscars’ for the digital sector.”
Jill Thornton, head of events with Ashville Media, thanked all the attendees, noting they had a record breaking number of over 400 entries, “which pushed digital boundaries and showcased the talent in Ireland across the globe”.
The awards were judged by a distinguished panel of experts drawn from all areas of the sector.
Full list of judges:
Avril Crotty, performing arts and live event management)
Colin Baker, presenter at Ireland AM
Damian Gordon, lecturer, Technological University (TU) Dublin
Darren Conway, sketch comedian, actor, writer and podcaster
Dr. Kevin Byrne, head of school, business technology, retail and supply chain, TU Dublin
Edel Walsh, head of digital marketing, EY Ireland
Emmet Ryan, business and technology reporter
Gareth Dunlop, speaker, writer, consultant on digital and design leadership
Graham Morris. founder at Connexus Recruit, co-founder at Conscia
Greg Canty, managing partner of Fuzion Communications
Dr. John Carty, lecturer and researcher, Atlantic Technological University (ATU) Galway
Joseph McGucken, online content creator
Keith McLoughlin, director at Connexus Recruit
Marija Grishin, assistant professor in marketing, University College Dublin (UCD)
Mark O’Brien, senior product manager (content, data andAI) at Pond5
Martyn Rosney, partner at Reputation Inc
Megan O’Riordan, B2B growth leader at Accenture Song
Niall Kitson, editor of Techcentral.ie and co-host of Tech Radio
Rick McKee, chief executive of The Foundation
Robert Farrell, digital transformation lecturer and trainer
Timothy Kovar, lecturer, TU Dublin
Best agency
Gold winner – Teneo: Developing creative solutions to the most complex problems
Best OOH digital campaign
Gold winner – Brill Building/PML Group: The first poster to catch lung cancer
Silver winner – PHD/PML Group: Welcome home
Bronze winner – Dentsu/Talon in Ireland: Lunchtime liberation: Heineken 0.0 defies the afternoon slump with DOOH
Best use of video
Gold winner – Teneo: The glass hammer
Silver winner – Havas Media Ireland: Video takes centre stage: How we leveraged innovative solutions to drive young moviegoers to the box office
Bronze winner - F&B Huskies: The Wild Atlantic Way wilderness trailer
Best brand
Gold winner – Goss Media: Goss.ie
Silver winner – Ringers Creative: WrkWrk Brand
Bronze winner – Fota Island Adventure: Fota Island Adventure
Proudly sponsored by Wondr
Best conversion strategy
Gold winner – dentsu: Apache Pizza’s Really Big Deal, delivers a doughlightful triumph with 2676% ROI
Silver winner – Mindshare Ireland/Failte Ireland: Lead the way
Bronze winner – Strike Digital: Strike Digital driving record growth for Brastop & Curvy Kate
Best AR or VR implementation for the digital marketing industry
Gold winner – PHD Media: Making a Guinness Christmas a reality
Best big data implementation for digital marketing
Gold winner – The National Lottery: Leaving nothing to chance
Best strategy
Gold winner – Wolfgang Digital & BodySlims - BodySlims built a business, UGC built the band
Silver winner – EY Ireland Digital Strategy: Bigger, brighter and bolder
Bronze winner – Starcom part of Core: A personal journey with AIB
Proudly Sponsored by Joe Media Group
Best digital student of the year
Gold winner – Adam Bermingham, TUS, Athlone
Silver winner – Tommy Martin, Munster Technological University
Bronze winner – Caoimhe Horan, TUS, Athlone
Best search campaign
Gold winner – EBS: EBS Mortgages: A human-centric approach to search
Silver winner – Starcom – powered by Core: Results delivered straight to your door
Bronze winner – Spark Foundry, part of Core: The search for position one
Best integrated digital campaign
Gold winner – Wolfgang Digital & Innopharma Education: When life gives you lemons, turn them Into leads
Silver winner – Wavemaker: Finding the perfect recipe
Bronze winner – EssenceMediaCom: Sky had a fiery trick up their sleeves
Proudly sponsored by Kantar Media
Best website
Gold winner – Annertech: The National Library of Ireland
Silver winner – Total Digital: The next generation Credit Union
Bronze winner – Ebow The Digital Agency: Virtual record treasury of Ireland: A groundbreaking digital recreation of lost archives
Best App
Gold winner – Vhi Healthcare/Graphite Digital: Designing for the next generation of digital healthcare and insurance
Best use of mobile
Gold winner – audioXi: Mobile gaming gold - Cadbury Wispa’s sweet success with in-game Aao
Silver winner – ePaper.io by Square1
Bronze winner – audioXi: Who knew your smartphone was smart enough to shake up your business
Best integrated media strategy
Gold winner – Vroom Digital: Shamrocking the narrative - EPIC Immigration Museum challenges negative Irish stereotypes
Silver winner – Spar Ireland (BWG Foods): Spar community road trip
Bronze winner – Wolfgang Digital & Woodie’s: How cross channel integration drove higher ROI for Woodie’s DIY
Proudly Sponsored by Virgin Media Solutions
Best in digital financial services
Gold winner – Wavemaker: Square: everything your business needs...almost
Silver winner – Total Digital: The next generation Credit Union
Bronze winner – Mindshare Ireland / 123.ie: As easy as 1,2,3
Best social media campaign
Gold winner – Today FM: We’ve got the world
Silver winner – Wavemaker: Feed to fork: Making potatoes Instagramable
Bronze winner – Mindshare: A Lucozade original story
Best technology innovation
Gold winner – Brill Building/PML Group: the first poster to catch lung cancer
Silver winner – audioXi: Gaming Gold - Cadbury Wispa’s sweet success with in-game audio
Bronze winner – OMD: Gamifying the cinema experience through mobile with an Ireland market first for Virgin Mobile
Proudly Sponsored by Ebow The Digital Agency
Best in retail & consumer goods
Gold winner – Wolfgang Digital: Wolfgang Digital and The Night Sky - The Night Sky’s the Limit
Silver winner – Mace: Jokes with Johnny
Bronze winner – Zenith, part of Core: One4All gift card = One exceptional Christmas
Best native campaign
Gold winner – Joe Media Group: Lighten your load: Embracing vulnerability and empowering conversations with GAA stars
Silver winner – Ringers Creative: The Lámh Project
Bronze winner – Spark Foundry, part of Core: Pulling away from the pack: how data-powered native helped WHOOP triumph over the competition at the Giro D’Italia
Best collaborative campaign
Gold winner – Today FM: Today FM and Focus Ireland – The Big Busk for Focus Ireland
Silver winner – Joe Media Group: Lighten your load: Embracing vulnerability and empowering conversations with GAA stars
Bronze winner – Just Eat: Just Eat Presents: The Nutmeg
Proudly Sponsored by AudioXi
Best in Government & not for profit
Gold winner – Ebow The Digital Agency: Virtual record treasury of Ireland: Recreating Ireland’s history through digital innovation
Silver winner – Belong To: It’s our social media
Bronze winner – DEPT Agency Dublin: Screens to screenings/Helping save lives through social
Proudly Sponsored by Hotel & Catering Review
Best newcomer
Gold winner – ePaper.io by Square1: ePaper.io by Square1
Best podcast
Gold winner – Teneo: Under Construction with Chadwicks Season 3
Silver winner – CarePlus Pharmacy Group: Care and Conversations
Bronze winner – Waterways Ireland: Waterways Through Time
Best creative
Gold winner – Bord Gais Energy: Bord Gáis Energy’s creative innovation sparks success
Silver winner – Ebow The Digital Agency: Emerald Park: Capturing the spirit of fun and thrills online
Bronze winner – Spar Ireland: Spar finding Christmas
Best small agency
Gold winner – Wondr: Delivering unique and innovative digital products.
Silver winner – Part Three Digital: Blurred lines between social and search
Bronze winner – Strike Digital: Digital growth experts
Proudly Sponsored by Connexus Recruit
Read more about the Irish Digital Media Awards 2023 winners here.