CELEBRATING EXCELLENCE IN DIGITAL MARKETING AND ADVERTISING

The editors of AdExchanger present the 2024 AdExchanger Awards, the only recognition program honoring the best of the best in programmatic.

Categories

    • Best Commerce Agency Services
      Commerce and digital marketing have converged, powered by consumer adoption of online shopping and groceries, as well as by retailers pushing more data and marketing to the web. This trend has created a big opportunity – a need, really – for agency services to support this new world of commerce media. This award recognizes the best agencies, consultants and marketing supporters enabling brands and retailers to take advantage of new commerce trends and delight their customers wherever they may be, from a physical store location to an app or website.
    • Best Programmatic Consulting Or Advisory Firm
      Navigating the constantly changing world of programmatic requires sharp minds. This award recognizes firms that guide clients deftly through a complex landscape and help them determine how to best apply programmatic to achieve their business goals by, for example, better leveraging agency partnerships, taking programmatic in-house, education or building custom products.
    • Best Use Of Data By An Agency
      Data has always been the lifeblood of media investments, but with the rise of digital – and the growing importance of first-party data – having a data strategy is critical. Agencies nominated for this award show a deft ability to not only use data to improve clients' media investments, but to know which pieces of data can make media dollars work harder.
    • Best Use Of Technology By An Agency
      Agencies must have a deep understanding of platforms and how to best leverage them for their clients' specific needs. Agencies nominated for this award have either demonstrated exceptional understanding and ability to work with top platforms in the space or built technology in-house that solves for identity, buying, measurement and beyond.

    • Best Data-Driven TV Campaign
      This category recognizes nominees that have identified, targeted and purchased an audience on linear TV or over-the-top, including connected TV campaigns. Innovation in targeting, planning, interactivity or measurement are all considered.
    • Best Overall Use Of Programmatic In A Marketing Campaign
      This category recognizes campaigns that applied programmatic concepts and techniques in unique ways, from their planning to execution, use of identity and/or contextual signals, measurement optimization.
    • Best Programmatic Out-Of-Home Activation
      From digital signage to location data, out-of-home marketing offers new ways of customization and measurement. The Best Programmatic Out-Of-Home Activation will recognize a campaign or strategy that exemplifies the success and innovation in OOH marketing.
    • Innovation In Audio Advertising
      From podcasts to voice-activated devices, audio is rapidly becoming a crucial medium to engage with consumers. This award recognizes companies that have innovated their approach to audio, from buying to measurement to ad formats. Award is open to audio publishers and podcasters, marketers and audio ad tech companies.

    • Best Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion Initiative
      Hiring. Supply chain initiatives. Media planning. In both internal and external projects, companies are putting diversity, equity and inclusion principles at the forefront of their decision-making. This award recognizes companies who are putting resources behind creating an equitable workplace and world.
    • Best Sustainability Initiative
      Sustainability is a priority for many industries, including digital advertising. From processing power to environmental impact, sustainable advertising is key as the industry moves forward. This award recognizes a company, project or partnership that is putting in the effort to reduce carbon emissions and create a more sustainable future.
    • Leadership In Advertising
      This category recognizes digital advertising and marketing professionals who typify visionary leadership by effectively guiding their organization or business unit to meet business goals while advancing innovation and inspiring their teams.
    • Rising Star - Leadership Under 40
      This category recognizes emerging leaders in digital advertising and marketing, with a focus on mid-level professionals under 40 years of age who already have demonstrated a track record of achievement, exceptional growth and huge potential to disrupt the industry.

    • Best In-House Media Operation
      Call it "in-housing" or "hands on." This award category recognizes advertisers who have built media-buying and advertising capabilities in-house. Winning entries will excel in one or more of these areas: data strategy, technology integration, supply relationships, creativity, measurement and continuous improvement.
    • Most Innovative Measurement Approach
      Some marketers have reams of data that needs organization, while others must undertake projects to start collecting data and tap into that data to better understand their customers and how to reach them online and offline. Meanwhile, the loss of signal is prompting new measurement undertakings. This award will recognize marketers who are making progress in how they’re using data and transforming their measurement approaches, judging both work that’s undertaken and the larger roadmap they’ve created for themselves.

    • Best Use Of Technology By A Publisher
      Whether it’s a new integration or going deeper with an existing technology, leading publishers have found ways to make the tech work for them to boost results. This category recognizes publishers who have built, partnered or bought technology that is driving notable business success or audience growth.

    • AI Innovators

      These companies are blazing a trail in the evolving field of generative AI and machine learning. They’re ignoring the hype and the buzz to go directly for what drives real value for companies, whether that be to support ideation, monetization, optimization, productivity and more. This rewards creators of AI technology and/or innovative applications of AI in marketing.

    • Best Account Support by a Technology Company
      The human touch still matters, especially as technological complexity increases. The top platforms in this category help their customers resolve issues and succeed with outstanding personalized service.
    • Best Commerce Media Brand

      This category recognizes brands with retail media businesses, from retailers to travel to financial services and beyond. They demonstrate excellent in how they work with clients, their use of data to create better outcomes, target campaigns and personalize consumers’ experience.

    • Best Commerce Media Technology
      Publishers are creating innovative, data-driven ways to connect their audiences with retail marketers to sell everything from groceries to clothes to furniture. Data and ad tech companies have built platforms and devised methods to improve online advertising by connecting mobile or web impressions to in-store sales and business results that actually matter. Retailers themselves have also built programmatic technology to better use their data to target or measure campaigns. This award recognizes companies building commerce media technologies that improve the shopper experience and help retailers and brands seize new revenue opportunities.
    • Best Data Technology
      This award recognizes the leading companies that bring data to bear in programmatic media and beyond, from CDPs to DMPs to identity companies.
    • Best Demand-Side Technology
      This award recognizes outstanding demand-side technology companies that consistently meet the highest standards and show leadership and innovation in areas like identity, targeting, measurement, partnerships, client services and marketplace quality.
    • Best Identity Technology
      Signal loss is one of the biggest challenges facing the online advertising industry today – but it’s also a massive opportunity for smart, future-minded companies that help brands navigate the shifting landscape. This award recognizes identity-focused technology companies that enable brands, agencies and publishers to remain simultaneously effective and ethical.
    • Best Industry Startup

      This award recognizes the best and most innovative of the new wave of technology firms. Applicants should have been founded less than five years ago.  

    • Best Measurement Or Analytics Capability
      This award recognizes the best measurement and analytics that takes into account the evolving identity landscape as well as the need to deliver meaningful insights.
    • Best Privacy Technology
      The advertising industry is being forced to roll with a lot of changes at once, from Apple’s AppTrackingTransparency framework and the imminent phaseout of third-party cookies on Chrome to privacy regulations coming into effect around the world. But brands still need to reach people, albeit in a privacy-safe way. This category recognizes companies that help the ad ecosystem chart a course toward a more privacy-centric web, including privacy tech vendors and companies (brands and publishers) that have effectively woven privacy principles into their own ad tech product or marketing initiatives.
    • Best Seller-Focused Technology
      Through technology, publishers can solve many problems: understand their readers better, meet advertisers’ KPIs, drive subscriptions or increase their bottom line. This category recognizes vendors that excel in helping publishers build stronger and more sustainable businesses.
    • Most Innovative TV Advertising Technology
      From streaming to linear to CTV, more data is being introduced into video buys. Measurement is evolving, the big screen is being infused with identity and cutting-edge companies are emerging to meet the growing appetite for advanced television advertising solutions.

Eligibility

  • Open to all brands, agencies, publishers, and technology providers.
  • International entries are welcome.
  • All entries must be related to programs/events/campaigns that started after January 1, 2023.
  • Entrants may submit as many campaigns as they wish.
  • Campaigns may be entered in multiple categories to increase chances of winning.
  • Companies can submit on behalf of others (e.g. their client) with the participant’s permission. For example, a vendor could submit for a campaign their client ran using their technology.

Entry Guidelines

Deadline & Cost

Regular Deadline:
July 3 at 11:59 PM ET

Entries received before midnight ET on July 3 are $475 each.

Final Deadline Extended:
July 12 at 11:59 PM ET

Entries received after July 3 will incur an additional $100 late fee per entry.

Prepare Your Entry

Below is a list of the items you will need in order to complete your AdExchanger Awards entry:

  1. Primary entry contact.
  2. For agencies and suppliers, you’ll need a client contact for entry verification.
  3. Brand logo as vector file.
  4. Start and end dates of campaign/project.
  5. Visuals: Videos are optional  (but judges love them.)
  6. Full summary of campaign’s goals and any available results. (if applicable)
  7. If the entry wins an AdExchanger Award, what companies should be listed on the trophy?

VIEW LAST YEAR’S WINNERS

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Contact

Should you have any questions about the categories, rules, or gala for the AdExchanger Awards, please contact:

Emily Rocca
[email protected]