Data, omni-channels and search campaigns that think outside the box have been making a mark in the entries of The Drum Search Awards 2019.
Our panel of industry experts came together recently to debate and deliberate who in the industry has been pushing the bar on great work in search.
Chair of the judging panel and head of global search marketing at Lego, Luis Navarrete Gómez expressed how the panel saw better use of data. He said: “We have seen campaigns who have been pulling data from their SEO channels, the CRM, mixing it up in a DNP and truly driving data-driven campaigns in very smart ways.”
Richard Keenan-Heard, head of SEO at Trainline added that those entries focused on how search plays a function within a multiple channel approach to performance. “It’s not just SEO or PPC but it’s about bringing in social, above the line and then taking an omni-channel approach to performance.”
The nominations for SEO – Most Effective Use of Data are: Croud for Easy Offices, iCrossing UK, iProspect for The Body Shop and Reprise for Lego.
The health category stood out for Telegraph Media Group head of SEO and content, Michelle Wilding. “It’s nice to see that a lot of entrants weren’t just thinking about search in silo, there were taking a holistic approach,” she explained.
“From a search point of view,” she continued, “I’m seeing a lot of SEO’s optimise for different types of searches, whether it’s image or voice using different schema mark-up and really ensuring that their content is put out there and is visible,”
The nominees for Health are: Nmpi for Superdrug Online Doctor, Space and Time Media for Lillyfields Care, The SEO Works Ltd for Weldrick’s Pharmacy Limited and Wagada Ltd for Allon Barsam.
There are plenty of submissions that are thinking outside of the box, in very innovative ways with smaller budgets, says Milka Kramer, sales director at Bing. “Which is interesting in search where people don’t necessarily perceive it as a very creative industry.” In the Financial and Professional Service’s category, Kramer expressed how there has been a lot of strong entries with solid results and campaigns, as well as a lot of innovative thinking, a lot of thinking outside the box.
The shortlist for Financial and Professional Services are: Absolute Digital Media for Uncle Buck, Brand Content for Ageas UK, Evolved Search for Money Guru, Found for All Clear, Jellyfish for Experian, Latitude Digital Marketing for L&C Mortgages, WMG, Ingenuity Digital, Net Construct for 118 118 Money.
A full list of the nominees can be found here.
The Drum Search Awards also has a brand new category, sponsored by Bing, we are looking for the company who is passionate about diversity and inclusion, this category is free to enter. Find out more here. Entry deadline Friday 1 March.