Judges

Ethical, transparent and respected, the awards are judged by esteemed industry experts who follow a robust two-step judging process that includes pre-scoring to establish a shortlist and judge discussion to determine winners and in some cases silver awards.

None of our award judges can take part in the competition and any conflicts of interest must be declared.

The Global Social Media Awards are accredited by the Awards Trust Mark – The Independent Awards Standards Council – Trust Mark Scheme.

Become a Judge Previous Judges

Our Judges

Abbi McGregor
Abbi McGregor | Social Media Manager |  Barclays
Abbi has had a long career in Financial Services which has given her a deep understanding of customer needs, motivations and behaviours. An avid consumer of social media herself, she has lead on a number of social media campaigns for Barclays UK across a range of segments from home-ownership to wealth management and everything in between. Most recently her focus has been on engaging at an ultra-local level with customers and communities across the UK working with agencies, professionals and colleagues to build the value of the Barclays brand.
Andy Green
Andy Green | Co-founder | Dublin Conversations
Andy is a co-founder of the Dublin Conversations, a non-commercial initiative which is co-creating new thinking and doing to transform communications industries’ practice. He has run pilot trials around the globe on new programmes to enable individuals, teams, and organisations to identify their character and purpose, which will be freely shared when launched this year. Andy has written six books, translated into eight languages on purpose, creativity, social capital, organisational change, and creativity. His wrote book, ‘Creativity in Public Relations’, was the first in the world on the subject and he continues to be at the forefront of new thinking and doing. Andy is a working practitioner and academic teaching innovation, communications and public relations at several universities including Boston University. He is co-founder of social enterprise ‘Grow Social Capital’ that is developing new thinking and doing for community activists and how shared social identities can tackle growing social division. Believing we can all gain inspiration from the unlikeliest of sources, Andy even runs creativity classes on the London Tube.
Batool E Azra
Batool E Azra | Chief Client Officer | IAL Saatchi & Saatchi
There is no such thing as failure. There are only results. In just under a decade, Batool has blossomed in the chaos of creativity that is the advertising industry. She is a true inspiration inside and outside the Saatchi network and is among the youngest women in the industry to lead business operations. Only a few minutes into a meeting with Batool and you know you’ll enjoy working or traveling with her. Capitalizing on this strength, Batool has not only formed immovable relationships with multitudes of clients but also chiseled her trusty client relationship team to be more future-focused. This is why they only present clients with holistic advertising solutions that drive unmistakable results. The past couple of years were a whirlwind of emotions and accomplishments. Having achieved it all behind the figurative curtains of advertisers, Batool now wishes to move beyond her comfort zone. She got a taste of the other side of the fold by entering the grand juries of prestigious award shows such as The Dragons of Asia Awards, Global Content Awards, MENA Agency Awards, MENA Search Awards and New York Festivals Advertising Awards. In doing so, she got a sneak peek into the kaleidoscope of advertising cultures around the world. She is a true champion for growth and one of the pioneering minds that led the agency’s drive towards experimenting with cutting-edge advertising solutions. Batool believes that the two keys to her success in transforming lifeless brands into superstars is trust and transparency. This is why her quest to making impossible possible has been a rollercoaster ride she would gladly relive a thousand times.
Bianca Spada
Bianca Spada | Global Senior Social Media Manager | Red Bull
Bianca is a global digital strategy expert with 10 years experience of delivering successful digital strategies and global campaigns in some of the world’s leading and cutting edge companies. She is an expert in consolidating and creating brand new social strategies to significantly increase the visibility of brands online. Bianca has a proven record of radically turning around performance and generating 3-figure growth within 12 months of working in a company.
Carbo Yu
Carbo Yu | REGIONAL EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR | Sinclair
A seasoned PR professional in Asia Pacific, Carbo drives integrated communications and storytelling strategy across the Sinclair portfolio regionally, and has a stellar record of directing communications for consumer brands and corporates across industry and sector. Seeing herself as a partner to brands, Carbo’s priority lies in enabling them to achieve and exceed their business goals through her sharp insights and quick thinking, qualities which saw her named Campaign Asia’s Women to Watch Asia Pacific in 2022 and PR Professional of the Year (Agency) by PR Awards Asia in 2021. Carbo currently serves as the Chairperson at PRHK.
Claire Hoang
Claire Hoang | Vice President ITV Studios Social Media | ITV Studios
Claire Hoang is currently Vice President of ITV Studios Social Media and has over 17 years of experience working in the world of social media.  She's worked for a range of different companies including the BBC and Fremantle.  As well as her day to day job, she also loves supporting new talent into the industry by mentoring with Creative Access. She was also one of the first Breakthrough Leaders in TV when the scheme was announced in 2021. 
Eli Schwartz
Eli Schwartz | Author of Product-Led SEO | Survey Monkey
Eli Schwartz is the author of the bestselling book Product-Led SEO. He is an SEO expert and consultant with more than a decade of experience driving successful SEO and growth programs for leading B2B and B2C companies. He helps clients like Shutterstock, BlueNile, Quora, Gusto, Mixpanel, and Zendesk build and execute Global SEO strategies that dramatically increase their organic visibility at scale. In the past, Eli led the SEO team at SurveyMonkey, building organic search from nearly zero to one of the largest growth drivers at the company. He helped launched SurveyMonkey’s first APAC office and oversaw international SEO pre- and post-IPO. Prior to SurveyMonkey, he led user acquisition at High Gear Media, pushing the company from 500,000 new users to 6 million every month in just three years.
Gellan Watt
Gellan Watt | Global Brand + Creative Consultant |
Gellan Watt is an agency entrepreneur and NED. He founded an agency that went on to become a Top Ten Agency and UK Agency of the Year. He and his partners successfully exited their Group business at c. £60m revenue. An award-winning Creative and Strategist, today he invests in and works with a select group of brands direct, and with independent agencies direct, focusing on high growth value creation and doing great work.
Jesse Alter
Jesse Alter | Head of Social Media and Video | Imperial College London
Jesse Alter has been working in social media since the days of the Fail Whale. He is currently the Head of Social Media and Video at Imperial College London, setting the strategy and leading a team of content creators across a range of social platforms. Prior to higher education, Jesse worked in the museums sector in a variety of digital and social-focused roles. You can connect with Jesse on Twitter (@jesse_a) and LinkedIn.
Jaime Hill
Jaime Hill | Ecommerce Director | Hurtigruten Group
Jaime has over two decades of experience as a Marketing & Ecommerce professional with a successful track record leading teams and developing strategy to transform organisations’ digital capability and channels to market. She has had success in roles at brands including Avis, Barclays, Dairy Crest and Oak Furnitureland, and across a wide range of B2B and B2C vertical markets. Most recently, she joined Hurtigruten Group as Ecommerce Director for HRN & Shared Services in January 2023.. A graduate of the Institute of Digital Marketing and qualified Executive Business Coach, Jaime's professional passion is for making life easier for the customer at every touch point.
Kelly Friend
Kelly Friend | PR Manager – UK & US | WithSecure™
Kelly is the UK & US PR Manager for cyber security company WithSecure. With almost 15 years in the industry, Kelly has led technology PR campaigns across industries including healthcare, aviation, subsea oil and gas, and maritime defence. You can find Kelly on Twitter @KellyFriendPR and on LinkedIn.
Lukas Adamec
Lukas Adamec | Freelancer & CEO | Abadam Marketing
Lukas Adamec has been working within Paid Digital for 11+ years, during which he transitioned from an employee to a freelancer & CEO of Abadam Marketing. In the last 5 years Lukas has focused on Consultancy - working with established agencies to deliver client growth. His focus is particularly on international paid opportunities, from Google to Yandex, from Naver to Baidu, from Yahoo JP to Seznam. Lukas is a firm believer in knowledge sharing and enjoys discussing experiences with established online marketers as well as providing training to new colleagues. During his time off, Lukas recharges his energy by being disconnected from online influences and instead spends his time on wildlife photography.
Liam Lodge
Liam Lodge | Global Head of Social Media | Hotels.com
Liam is a seasoned social media leader with over a decade’s experience leading in-house and agency teams. Liam currently heads up the global social media team at Hotels.com, using content and community engagement to position the brand as the modern hotelier and differentiate itself from the competition. Before Hotels.com, Liam worked across a wide range of industries, including retail (Selfridges, Primark), tech (Samsung, Google), automotive (Volkswagen), alcohol (Haig Club, Guinness) and food (M&S, Sainsbury’s, Domino’s Pizza). As a social strategist on the Domino’s Pizza account at Iris, he also won a Drum Content Award for the most innovative use of social media.
Lukasz Zelezny
Lukasz Zelezny | SEO Consultant |
Lukasz Zelezny, UK Search Awards judge, Top10 UK Social Media influencer and former director of organic performance at uSwitch / Zoopla. Currently is working as an independent SEO Consultant helping in organic traffic acquisition, technical SEO and content marketing. Lukasz started his career in 2005 and has since been responsible for the organic performance of a number of companies including HomeAway, Thomson Reuters, The Digital Property Group, Fleetway Travel, uSwitch, Zoopla. Each year Lukasz is speaking at many SEO and social media conferences. He was a speaker at ClickZ Shanghai China, ClickZ Jakarta Indonesia, SiMGA Malta, SES London as well as Marketing Festival in Brno, Brighton SEO in Brighton and UnGagged in London. Every year he is actively participating in 10 to 20 events as an SEO/Social Media keynote speaker. Additionally, he organizes workshops and meetups where he is sharing tips around SEO, Social Media and Analytics. To get in touch with Lukasz simply search “Lukasz Zelezny” or visit https://Zelezny.uk
Natalie Messingham
Natalie Messingham | Senior Social Media and PR Manager |  Domino's Pizza
Natalie started her marketing journey on the graduate scheme at Tesco, where she worked across community marketing launching the Farm to Fork project, colleague insight, local marketing and then in the social media and digital content team. She then joined Dixons Carphone to transform the Carphone Warehouse and Currys channels, launching some epic collaborations including 'Big Narstie and the Samsung S9' launch. Natalie is now leading social media for M&S Food, which involves driving social expertise across M&S, developing their strategy for each of their core channels, and creating engaging social-first content for M&S’s 8m+ followers. She's excited to see the creativity and stepping outside of the box with this year's awards entries.
Neville Hobson
Neville Hobson | Social Strategist, Communicator, Podcaster |
Neville Hobson is a social strategist, communicator, and podcaster. He works independently, consulting with a number of organizations to help them create and build foundations for authentic engagement that enable them to develop and expand their online presence, reach and influence. He is also a non-executive director of a Web3 start-up that’s bringing innovation to NFT marketplaces. He has been helping organizations leverage his experiences, knowledge and subject-matter expertise over a 20-year period of social networks, social media strategy development, marketing, analytics and insights reporting. He connects this expertise with a 15-year career in traditional public relations, marketing communication, corporate communication, employee, compensation and benefits communication, and investor relations. Neville is based in West Berkshire, England.
Omar Qureshi
Omar Qureshi | Creative Director | SadaPay, Pakistan
Omar Qureshi is a multi-disciplinary Creative Director at SadaPay, Pakistan, and a MarCom Professional who believes in & practices constant innovation, explosive thinking coupled with real-time collaboration. Omar unlocked his way to becoming a Creative Director at SadaPay in 2020; since then he’s been spearheading a team of Creatives that's taken SadaPay’s branding, visual & content game to the pinnacle of the FinTech Industry in PK. With a keen eye for aesthetics & detail, his work is known for its thoughtfulness, precision, and consistency. And, with agency & client experiences across a range of industries including chemicals, transport, luxury & publishing, Omar has had the opportunity to work with brands such as SWVL, IAL Saatchi & Saatchi, JS Bank, National Foods, and Engro Polymer & Chemicals Limited in various creative domains; which has not only helped him create what he creates best, but has also paved way for him to be on the panel for Grand Jury on platforms ie New York Advertising Awards. Post 6 in the evening, Omar can be either found reading Marty Neumeier, booking hostels on hostelworld.com, or helping 2,900+ creatives & marketers in Pakistan find authentic jobs through Pakistan Creatives – A Job Search & Apply Community platform built exclusively for all-creatives.
Pankaj Pilaniwala
Pankaj Pilaniwala | Product Manager | Google
Pankaj is a Product Manager at Google. He is a tech enthusiast, product leader and coach. He has over a decade's experience in the tech industry and has built and launched some critical and successful products worldwide. His recent creation at Google will intersect with the developer's experience on Play Store and how they quickly integrate with the Commerce Platform. In his role as a Product Manager at Google, Pankaj is responsible for the development and launch of products that are both technically advanced and user-friendly. His strong background in technology helps him make informed decisions when it comes to product design and development. His understanding of the developer's experience on the Play Store enables him to quickly integrate products with the Google Commerce Platform. Pankaj's passion for technology platforms drives him to create products that are user-friendly and feature-rich. Through his hard work and dedication, he has managed to build a reputation as an expert in product management. With his experience, Pankaj is constantly working with teams at Google to ensure the success of their product launches. Pankaj is also an active coach and mentor, offering advice to new product managers starting out in their careers. He believes in giving back to the community through speaking engagements and mentorship events. His enthusiasm for the tech industry has made him one of the most sought-after speakers among tech professionals around the world. For Pankaj, creating and launching successful products are not just his work but also a passion. As he continues to push the boundaries of product development, Pankaj’s goal is to bring innovative and user-centric products to life that have an impact on people's lives. With his eye for detail and problem-solving skills, we can expect great things from Pankaj in the future. He is truly an inspiring innovator who is making waves in the tech industry. With his passion for technology and dedication to innovation, Pankaj has established himself as an authority on product development. As he continues to craft world-class products, we can look forward to Pankaj’s impact on the tech industry for years to come.
Polly Vodenicharova
Polly Vodenicharova | Digital Marketing Manager | Homes for Students
Polly is the Digital Marketing Manager for Homes for Students - the largest PBSA independent student accommodation provider in the UK & Ireland. She has a passion for all things digital, combined with 5 years of experience in content creation, social media & paid advertising. Polly tries to combine a creative worldview with analytical thinking and believes that the secret to cracking social media is the Triple T(test, tailor & track). Previous work includes agency experience within a variety of fields - from Fashion to Education; Professional Sports; Tech. Outside of the UK, she’s worked on EU-funded projects & international events. Her main personal goal is to inspire and empower women who are just entering the Digital field and prove that the one number that never matters is your age.
Purna Virji
Purna Virji | Senior Content Solutions Consultant | LinkedIn
Purna Virji is a globally recognized content strategist and Senior Content Solutions Consultant at LinkedIn. She has been crowned the Search Personality of the Year by the US Search Awards, was named by Adweek on their Young Influentials List, and was named by PPC Hero as the #1 Most Influential Expert in the world. She is a columnist and top-rated international keynote speaker who regularly speaks at conferences such as AdWeek, DMEXCO, The Next Web Conference and INBOUND. Prior to joining LinkedIn, Purna led global learning and thought leadership programs for Microsoft. An award-winning former journalist, Purna is an avid traveler, aspiring top chef, and amateur knitter in her spare time.
Rachael Courtney
Rachael Courtney | Senior Social Marketing Lead | Virgin Media
Rachael has worked in PR & Events for over 17 years, with 15 years running Social Media for big brands. Previous roles have included heading up social at Cineworld and Three, where she was responsible for a number of award-winning social campaigns. Rachael now leads the social strategy and team at Virgin Media.
Rejoice Ojiaku
Rejoice Ojiaku | Freelance SEO Specialist & Content Strategist  | B-Digital
Rejoice Ojiaku is an SEO Specialist & Content Strategist, as well as the Co-Founder of B-DigitalUK – a platform for showcasing and empowering black talent in the UK digital marketing scene. Her expertise lies in SEO, Diversity and inclusion, all bolstered by strong personal branding both online and offline.
Luan Wise
Luan Wise | Independent Social Media Consultant and Editor | The Lighthouse
Luan Wise is a chartered marketer and fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing (FCIM) with more than 20 years’ experience in agency, client-side and consultancy roles. She has worked with clients across B2C and B2B, providing both hands-on support and strategic consultancy. In addition, Luan writes and delivers social media marketing training programmes for in-house teams, plus organisations including LinkedIn, Facebook, Google, professional bodies, and university business schools.
Sophie Boyden
Sophie Boyden | Head Of Social Media | Stylist Magazine
Sophie Boyden has over eight years of experience with all aspects of social media content creation and strategy, developing the social presence of some of the biggest media brands and networks in the world, including Cosmopolitan, Hearst, MTV, Comedy Central and Ink Global. Her current position is Stylist’s Social Media Lead, leading the strategy and content across the magazine’s social platforms for a highly engaged audience.
Steve Kuncewicz
Steve Kuncewicz | Head Of Creative, Digital & Marketing | Glaisyers Etl
Steve is a Partner and Head of Creative, Digital and Marketing at Glaisyers ETL in Manchester. He specialises in intellectual property, media social media and privacy law and is listed as a "recommended lawyer" in the Legal 500, and was a oo-founder pf the Bulletproof Agency Network. He is a regular media spokesperson, and has given interviews to the local and national press through BBC Breakfast, Sky News, ITV, BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 4, BBC Radio 5 Live and LBC London. Steve is also the Manchester Publicity Association’s Honorary Solicitor.
Trond Lyngbø
Trond Lyngbø | Senior SEO Consultant |
Trond Lyngbø is the founder of Search Planet and a senior SEO Consultant. He has over two decades of experience in SEO, e-commerce, content strategy and digital analysis. His clients include multinational Fortune 500 corporations and major Norwegian companies. Trond has helped grow businesses through more effective search marketing and SEO strategies. He is most passionate about working with e-commerce companies and web shops to develop and expand their omni-channel marketing initiatives. As a regular columnist at Search Engine Land since 2011, Trond was top listed internationally for 5 consecutive years, and voted as one of the top SEO's to follow by the Search Engine Journal in 2019. His work was primed by Forbes.com, being presented as one of the world's 25 leading SEO specialists. Trond is one of the co-authors of the book Google It: Total Information Awareness (2016)."
Veronika Höller
Veronika Höller | Global SEO Lead | CompuGroup
Veronika is a Global SEO Lead and has worked in SEO and PPC marketing for over 14 years. She started as a copywriter and PPC Manager in a little Ads Agency. She has continuously developed herself further into the direction of SEO. Over the years, she has worked as a digital marketing manager in agencies and international companies, including CompuGroup where she is now. International SEO and PPC Strategies are Top of her priority list. She views SEO as a whole puzzle and not just individual sub-areas, hence why she trained herself in all areas – content, technology, PPC, SMM and UX. Today she spreads her knowledge as a speaker on the stages of international digital marketing conferences such as BrightonSEO, SMX advanced, International Search Summit etc. For her all digital marketing channels have to be united to get the best of your website.
Gabriele Bertucci
Gabriele Bertucci | Export Sales Manager | Siren Craft Brew
Gabriele is a seasoned digital marketing, communication, and sales professional, bringing more than twelve years of high-level experience within diverse and multicultural settings. His journey has been marked by significant contributions to the beverage industry, having held roles at companies such as Siren Craft Brew, Carlsberg Group, and BrewDog. Gabriele is renowned for orchestrating effective multi-stakeholder communication strategies, spearheading impactful digital marketing efforts, and fostering the brand's evolution. He created What's In The Glass?, a consultancy agency focusing on the drinks sector and Cosmic Lazers, an innovative digital music publication.
Will Wood
Will Wood | Social Media Lead | Social Media Lead | Authentic Brands Group
Will is the current Social Media Lead for a global public figure in the sports industry. His previous experience covers some of the biggest brands in the world, working with Red Bull and more recently adidas on global events including the 2019 Rugby World Cup, Euro 2020 and the Tokyo Olympics. Outside of his professional career, Will graduated from Leeds Beckett University with a Sports Marketing degree and is the proud co-host and producer of his own rugby-themed podcast. He enjoys the unrivalled access Social Media can provide to people and communities, and is passionate about producing content and publishing strategies which can add value to people’s online experiences.

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Testimonials

We are still pinching ourselves after last week’s Global Social Awards. Wolfgang Digital is now the proud holder of the title: Best Large Global Social Media Agency! As well as the Best Large Agency award and Best Integrated Campaign (BodySlims), together with our clients we won Silver in Best Use of TikTok (Elverys), Best Direct Response Campaign (HomeSecure) and Best Long Term Use of Social Media (BodySlims). These wins are a testament to the team’s hard work and dedication to delivering exceptional results for our clients. Equally, they’re a testament to our clients who work so hard with us to try out new ideas on a weekly basis. Roisin Linnie- Head of Social
Wolfgang Digital
We’re delighted to announce that we have WON the ‘Best Low Budget Campaign’ for our work with Caerphilly Skips. The Global Social Media Awards are an extremely prestigious award to win and we’re so proud of the work we have done. We have been working with Caerphilly Skips for a long time and our Social campaigns have always performed incredibly well – so to be recognised for this work is the icing on the cake
DNRG
Being shortlisted for the Global Social Media Awards categories of “Best Social Influencer Campaign” and “Best Use of Paid Social” stand as a testament to BorderX’s mission of helping brands go global and unleash their full potential through strategy, creativity, and data. As a newly rebranded global-native digital agency, the Global Social Media Awards called to us because of its desire to reward agencies breaking boundaries to bring on big results.
BorderX
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