Judging Criteria

Judges will consider the structure, presentation and clarity of each entry. Entries should not exceed 1000 words in total and should relate to work undertaken between October 2024 – February 2026.

ALL INFORMATION PROVIDED IN THE ENTRY FORM WILL REMAIN CONFIDENTIAL TO JUDGES

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CAMPAIGN AWARDS

The judges will be looking for clear objectives, creative and effective implementation and tangible and demonstrable results in the campaign award categories. They will also consider the structure, presentation and clarity of each entry.

Each entry must include information under the following headings:

Please complete the following sections, providing details of the campaign that you are entering. Please note that entries must not exceed a total word count of 1000 words.

All information provided will remain confidential to the judges before and after the event and will not be shared with anyone outside of the judging panel allocated to review your entry.

Entrant Name(s) & Campaign Name
How you wish for the website to be credited, including any organisation name, any partner(s)/clients you want to credit and the campaign.

Please structure your title in the following format:
“Entrant Name & Client Name – Campaign Name”

Please keep this concise, as it will appear on the website if you are shortlisted.

Objective(s) & budget (1-10 points)
Tell us what you were looking to achieve from the campaign and any targets that were set. We recommend showing targets as quantifiable metrics, e.g., ‘Increase conversions from 150 to 300 a month’ rather than ‘Increase conversions by 10%’.

Please include a breakdown of implementation costs, staffing costs, agency fees, etc. All elements of the entry form are confidential, and judges will not share this information. If you are unable to provide a detailed budget breakdown, please include the financial band your budget is within, along with the percentage budget allocated for staffing costs, agency fees, and media spend, etc.

Target audience & strategy (1-10 points)
Please provide us with details about the audience you were targeting and your overall strategy to reach them, as well as the strategy to meet the overall objectives.

Implementation & creativity (1-10 points)
Please give us a detailed explanation of your implementation of the campaign. Include screenshots to help us visualise campaigns. Provide information on the creativity of the campaign.

Details of any challenges faced and how these were overcome (1-10 points)
What challenges were unique to you, and how have you overcome them? What was the result of overcoming these challenges?

Results & evaluation (1-10 points)
Please relate these to the objectives and targets stated above. Provide actual numbers rather than percentages wherever possible.

Why should your campaign win? (1-10 points)
What do you think sets your campaign apart from the other campaigns being judged? Judges will in particular be looking for the thing that makes this campaign different to the others, what is unique?

Please detail any supporting documents you are including as part of your submission.
Optional – Please upload to the online entry portal when submitting this entry form.

Any entries that do not include information under all of these headings will be marked down. If appropriate, you may include up to three pieces of supporting materials.

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SOCIAL MEDIA TOOL AWARD

Please complete the following sections, providing details of the tool or software that you are entering. Please note that entries must not exceed a total word count of 1000 words in this section.

All information provided will remain confidential to the judges before and after the event and will not be shared with anyone outside of the judging panel allocated to review your entry.

Entrant Name(s) & Tool/Software Name
How you wish for the website to be credited, including any organisation name, any partner(s) / clients you want to credit & the entry.

Please structure your title in the following format:
“Entrant Name & Client Name – Tool / Software Name”

Please keep this concise, as it will appear on the website if you are shortlisted.

Overview of Tool/Software
Please provide the judges with a synopsis of what the tool does and how it adds value to the end user.

Total budget
Please include costs associated with running the tool/software, and how much you intend to or do sell the tool/software for.

Existing problems and target audience (1-10 points)
Please include details outlining the problems that this tool/software solves and how, if at all, these problems were previously dealt with. Entrants should detail who the target customers or users of this product are.

USP and Features (1-10 points)
Please outline what is the tool/software’s unique proposition. Entrants should highlight the major features that are unique to the product/software or innovation which help solve a customer problem or benefit the customer positively.

Key Metrics (1-10 points)
Please detail what key metrics you have used to measure whether this tool or product is successful. I.e., does it save money, make things faster, generate more revenue?

Why should your Tool or Software win? (1-10 points)
What single thing about your tool or software is not done by anyone else? What makes it stand out to be award-worthy?

Please include a login and password for numerous users to access your tool/software. We ask you to send a ‘Global Social Media Awards’ login to allow judges to be able to test and score your product. In addition, if you’d like to provide a demo or video, please provide the link below.

Please note that if you’re unable to provide a login, please contact awards@dontpanicprojects.com. Judging is based on the application form and the judges’ industry knowledge of the tools. They are a highly experienced judging panel with in-depth industry knowledge. The tool logins requested are for any judges who want to delve deeper into any claims/functionality detailed in the entry.

Please detail any supporting documents you are including as part of your submission.
Optional – Please upload to the online entry portal when submitting this entry form.

Any entries that do not include information under all of these headings will be marked down. If appropriate, you may include up to three pieces of supporting materials.

Please note that if you’re unable to provide a login, please contact awards@dontpanicprojects.com.

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TEAM/AGENCY/INDIVIDUAL AWARDS

Judges will be looking for agencies or teams that can demonstrate an ongoing and sustained commitment to delivering best practices while showing a creative and innovative approach to digital marketing.

Please complete the following sections, providing details of the agency/team/individual that you are entering. Please note that entries can be self-nominated or nominated by a third party and must not exceed a total word count of 1000 words in this section.

All information provided will remain confidential to the judges before and after the event and will not be shared with anyone outside of the judging panel allocated to review your entry.

Name of Agency/Team/Individual
Please keep this concise, as it will appear on the website if you are shortlisted.

Number of Employees (Agency/Team only)

Date of Birth (Emerging Talent Award nominees only)
Please note that the nominee must be under 30 in April 2026.

Overview of the Agency/Team
Please include numbers, staff turnover, roles, etc, for agency and team nominations

Agency/Team objectives (1-10 points)
Tell us what you were looking to achieve and any targets that have been set within the agency or team to help achieve your goals. We recommend showing targets as quantifiable metrics, e.g., ‘Increase conversions from 150 to 300 a month’ rather than ‘Increase conversions by 10%’.

Recent work example(s) (1-10 points)
Please include details of recent client or campaign work. How does your recent work display creativity and make your team or agency stand out amongst others?

Details of any recent achievements (1-10 points)
What makes your team or agency stand out? Please include details of any achievements you feel make your agency or team award-worthy. What are you proud of?

Details of any challenges faced and how these were overcome (1-10 points)
What challenges were unique to you, and how have you overcome them? What was the result of overcoming these challenges?

Why should your Agency/Team win? (1-10 points)
Please detail what you feel makes you stand out amongst others and why you feel your entry is award-winning. What makes you unique? What gives you the competitive edge?

Please detail any supporting documents you are including as part of your submission.
Optional – Please upload to the online entry portal when submitting this entry form.

Any entries that do not include information under all of these headings will be marked down. If appropriate, you may include up to three pieces of supporting materials.

SUPPORTING MATERIAL

A company or campaign logo (in JPEG format, max 2MB) must be uploaded along with each entry (this may be used on the website, event brochure, and presentations should you be shortlisted).

If appropriate, you may upload up to three pieces of supporting materials along with your entry. These can be in JPEG, PDF, or Microsoft Word, and must be under 2MB and could include items such as:

• Audited accounts
• Team CVs
• Training and development records
• Copies of media coverage
• Media evaluation
• Client references
• RAJAR / ABC circulation figures
• Website analytics
• Testimonials
• Videos (via online link in form)
• Publications
• Marketing materials
• Photography
• Weblinks
• Market research findings

ETHICAL, TRANSPARENT, FAIR & CONFIDENTIAL

The Global Social Media Awards prides itself on its ethical and transparent process, and confidentiality is taken extremely seriously.

Judges are not allowed to enter any of the categories.

All judging discussions are confidential, and the material will not be shared with anyone outside of the judging panel before or after the ceremony. Judging papers will not be shared with any third parties and will be deleted immediately after the judging period. Judges can only access entries they have been asked to score.

Permission to use any material for winning case studies post-event will be sought from entrants.