There are some new additions to this year's categories, so please have a read over the specification here if you're thinking of entering.

It is also recommended that you download a draft copy of the entry forms from the tab at the top of the screen, to use for preparing your final submission. 

Innovation Categories

1. Best Innovation in the Customer Journey

This award recognises innovation in providing customers with a more effective and more efficient pathway at any stage of the customer--company contact cycle – from initial awareness of need, through acquisition and the entire length of the relationship.

2. Best Innovation in Customer Service

This award highlights the way in which some firms have delivered enhanced levels of effective high-quality service that customers really value, through innovative approaches.

3. Best Use of a Marketing Channel or Format

This award recognises the use of a new marketing channel, or the use of an existing channel in a new way, to interact with customers more effectively. Examples of the former could include podcasts, social media channels and (with appropriate caution) influencers.

4. Best Innovation in Customer Personalisation

This award focuses on innovation in approaches to communications, delivering genuinely one-to- one marketing through effective use of new techniques in, for example, segmentation and targeting.

5. Best Use of Behavioural Science

This award recognises the use of behavioural insight techniques to understand better people's motivations and reactions, and thus improve interactions with customers.

6. Most Innovative Organisational Transformation

This award focuses on significant improvements in marketing effectiveness (or cost- effectiveness) by innovative changes in internal corporate structures or relationships with external partners – including, for example, decisions to bring some agency roles in-house or to outsource internal functions, or decisions on off-shoring vs on-shoring.

7. Most Innovative Marketing of New Product Launch

This category highlights innovative marketing campaigns that have enhanced the interest in and demand for a new product.

8. Best Use of Data and Analytics

This award recognises innovative uses of data to measure and improve marketing performance, by better understanding target markets and, for example, building more reliable and effective segmentation models.

9. Most Innovative Use of Audience Insights for Customer Profiling

This category recognises the best use of data to understand target markets and their customer preferences, and to build more effective segmentation models.

10. Most Effective Innovation in Diversity and Inclusion

This award highlights innovation in marketing and product design to improve accessibility, relevance and uptake for diverse audiences.

11. Most Innovative Partnership

This award recognises innovative collaborations (whether within companies, with external agencies or intermediaries, or with third-sector or other social-focused groups) that deliver new capabilities, expertise or understanding of customers and their needs, and thus facilitate more effective marketing campaigns.

12. Best Use of Marketing Technology

This award focuses on transformative projects that embrace innovative new technology, or existing technology in innovative ways, to support marketing initiatives and to improve overall customer experience and satisfaction.

13. Most Effective Innovation in Relaunching an Existing Product or Service

Times may be changing but many customer needs are unchanged, which means that many existing products or services still deliver what customers really need – but in a way that may be sub-optimal in terms of delivery or customer experience. This award recognises proven success in using innovative methods to update such products and services and to sustain their relevance and value to customers.

In addition to the award categories described above, all entries will be considered by the judges for two sector awards and four special Judges' Awards that recognise the best of all the entries.

The sector awards are: 

Most Effective Innovation in B2C 

Most Effective Innovation in B2B

The judge's special awards are: 

Best Agency Partnership 

Most Effective Innovation on a Limited Budget 

Best Creative Leap

and the final accolade to the best entry across all categories: 

Innovator of the Year