HIGHLY COMMENDED

A great podcast episode doesn’t finish when you close your app. The end of a truly great episode should be the start of something else. We can probably all think of an episode we’ve listened to that has made us act, whether it’s starting a conversation with someone in real life, booking a ticket to the cinema or, on the odd occasion, doing something truly life-changing. This Branded Episode from the 90s Baby podcast for NHS Blood & Transplant - Do Your Part For Sickle Cell - did just that. The 90s Baby Blood Club was born, resulting in people actually donating blood. At 49 minutes the episode started a conversation featuring the medical professional Dr Emeka Okorocha, fellow podcast hosts within the Black African and Black Caribbean British target audience alongside Fred, Temi and VP from 90s Baby. The conversation continued online and at donation centres long after the episode was released, proving the lifespan of a podcast episode is much longer than a listen through rate.

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This is a story of how the British Red Cross used the power of sound through podcast content to overcome not just a marketing challenge, but a longstanding charitable behavioural bias. British Red Cross are helping some of the most devasted regions globally. The scale of their work is immense. However, research highlighted that donors were more responsive to charitable pleas that feature a single, identifiable narrative rather than the scale of the problem being faced. We wanted to showcase the individual selflessness behind their work and highlight its critical role and personal impact in responding to crises. To do this, we wouldn’t talk to the scale of devastation or aid shortages globally but instead, we would tell personal stories of people who worked for the Red Cross and get people to hear the stories of their experiences in longer form, quality content. This partnership with the British Red Cross, Acast & Havas Media gave listeners a deeper understanding of the British Red Cross’s efforts. To capture the personal humanity within the British Red Cross, we created Branded Episodes and Social content with the Stompcast, hosted by Dr. Alex George. Episodes featured conversations with inspiring individuals who embody the charity’s mission. We explored the importance of neutrality in humanitarian efforts with Claire to discussions on migration and displacement with Giulia. These garnered over 400,000 views, capturing the hearts of listeners and increasing consideration to donate (our primary KPI) to a high of 29.9 in Q4 2024.

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This radio ad brings to life the risks associated with copyright infringement by actually appearing to infringe the copyright of a famous 00s hit song in the ad itself.

WINNER

Returning for a second series in 2024, Gaydio in Europe with British Airways lifts the lid on the hidden LGBTQ gems of Europe and aims to inspire and entertain listeners in doing so! The show’s formula is simple; each episode features members of the Gaydio presenting team jetting off on a BA Euroflyer flight from Gatwick to a different destination across Europe. Once they’ve landed, their goal is to get under the skin of the destination from a LGBTQ travellers’ perspective, shining the spotlight on places which may have otherwise gone under the radar. Many listeners will be familiar with popular LGBTQ travel hot spots like Gran Canaria, Sitges and Berlin but how about Seville, Bordeaux or Thessaloniki? This series features insider tips from locals and fun anecdotes from the presenting team as they showcase all that Europe has to offer in the ultimate travel guide for the LGBTQ traveller.

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EuroMillions allure was fading—until we ditched tradition with a bold, audio-first strategy that “dreamed big”. Through the launch of “Rich Beyond My Wildest Dreams” a playful, immersive podcast in partnership with Acast, we turned jackpot dreams into a pop-culture moment. The result? Record-breaking sales, £41.9M raised for good causes, and a renewed sense of wonder around winning big.

HIGHLY COMMENDED

Hear From Her: Women in Healthcare Leadership Series podcast seeks to create a healthcare industry that values and promotes gender diversity and equality by advocating for equity at the highest levels, including access to life-transforming research and medicines to close the gender divide and promote healthcare solutions for women, by elevating and empowering women leaders in healthcare through a groundbreaking webinar series. Season 2 of the podcast dove into specialized topics such as digital therapeutics for mental health, patient advocacy in rare diseases, and the growing role of women leaders in healthcare, especially in rare diseases, cancer care, and HIV prevention.

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In response to Lloyds’s challenge to highlight their role in supporting small and medium-sized businesses, we created From Start-Up to Stand Out—a series from the team at the High Performance Podcast With 60% of UK businesses failing within three years, the series, led by Jake Humphrey, explored how four Lloyds small business customers defied those odds. Across the series, Jake traveled to meet each business owner, with the aim of gleaning practical advice for business owners. Distributed across a 360 strategy, the series featured podcast episodes, branded content in the High Performance feed, and YouTube videos, amassing 196,000 downloads. Creatively, Jake’s hands-on storytelling—from frying steaks in Norwich to exploring seaweed-based packaging in London—fostered authentic conversations with a whole range of business owners, and to amplify the reach of these conversations, we shared snippets further across the podcast ecosystem, through Sensemaker and The New Statesman, adding nearly a million additional listens. As a testament to its success, Lloyds created an online hub to showcase the series, reinforcing their commitment to championing small businesses. This campaign not only demonstrated excellence in branded podcasting but also delivered measurable growth, meaningful engagement, and lasting value for Lloyds and its audience.

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Reigniting the Doctor Who brand as a global franchise needed a disruptive approach to make Radio 1 listeners sit up and listen. This was not going to be the childhood sci-fi series of yesterday - it would be a bold, fresh and inclusive adventure for everyone. What better way to grab attention than having the Doctor himself hacking into the BBC, travelling from the 1960s back to present day, as a complete surprise to R1 Breakfast Show's Greg James? Nostalgic Radio 1 jingles peaked his interest - he was sold by the time his personalised 1960's "Greg James" jingle played. The coverage spilled out of promo space into editorial, sparking a raft of social media posts and chatter.

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Team GB House provided an exclusive opportunity for sponsors to connect with fans both on the ground in Paris and back home in the UK. With not all supporters able to travel, the challenge was to create an engaging, inclusive experience that maximised sponsor visibility across multiple platforms. Global, experts in entertainment and audience engagement, crafted a multi-brand partnership that brought Team GB House to life. By allowing sponsors to tailor their involvement at key moments, the activation ensured maximum impact and brand alignment. Delivering live from Paris, Global transported the excitement of the Games back to UK audiences, ensuring fans felt part of the action. Through dynamic content, live coverage, and strategic brand integration, Team GB House became a standout sponsorship and live event success—celebrating the spirit of the Olympics while driving meaningful engagement for fans and sponsors alike.

WINNER

This is a story of how the British Red Cross used the power of sound through podcast content to overcome not just a marketing challenge, but a longstanding charitable behavioural bias. British Red Cross are helping some of the most devasted regions globally. The scale of their work is immense. However, research highlighted that donors were more responsive to charitable pleas that feature a single, identifiable narrative rather than the scale of the problem being faced. We wanted to showcase the individual selflessness behind their work and highlight its critical role and personal impact in responding to crises. To do this, we wouldn’t talk to the scale of devastation or aid shortages globally but instead, we would tell personal stories of people who worked for the Red Cross and get people to hear the stories of their experiences in longer form, quality content. This partnership with the British Red Cross, Acast & Havas Media gave listeners a deeper understanding of the British Red Cross’s efforts. To capture the personal humanity within the British Red Cross, we created Branded Episodes and Social content with the Stompcast, hosted by Dr. Alex George. Episodes featured conversations with inspiring individuals who embody the charity’s mission. We explored the importance of neutrality in humanitarian efforts with Claire to discussions on migration and displacement with Giulia. These garnered over 400,000 views, capturing the hearts of listeners and increasing consideration to donate (our primary KPI) to a high of 29.9 in Q4 2024.

WINNER

In an innovative collaboration between Acast, Google Pixel and EssenceMediacom, we delivered a social-first campaign showcasing the power of Gemini Live, Google Pixel’s personal AI assistant, to solve everyday dilemmas. Tasked with demonstrating how this cutting-edge technology can provide real solutions, we took advantage of the ‘listener questions’ sections from some of the UK’s most popular podcasts. Rather than focusing on podcast content alone, we created over 12 hours of social media-focused content, producing ten 60’’-120’’ videos shared across podcasters’ Instagram & TikTok feeds. With talent like Rio Ferdinand, Peter Crouch and Katherine Ryan, these videos used humour to address dilemmas ranging from dealing with office antics to how to stop your partner calling you “Squishy” in public. By naturally integrating Gemini Live into regular content formats, we avoided forced product placement and fostered authentic engagement with audiences. Google Pixel and EssenceMediacom also amplified the campaign through targeted 6’’ and 15’’ video ads on YouTube, turning podcast content into promotional pre-rolls. The results were outstanding, with over 450,000 listens, 22 million social plays and millions of YouTube impressions. The campaign proved how AI can help solve everyday challenges, all while engaging audiences with relatable content from the voices they trust.

WINNER

Azerion's Hawk Platform harnessed the power of Captify search data to revolutionise digital audio advertising for Dunelm. By integrating real-time search insights with premium audio supply, the campaign achieved measurable success across key performance metrics, delivering exceptional brand awareness (+13%), significant search uplift (+58%), and increased in-store footfall (2000+ visits). This innovative approach showcased the unparalleled synergy of data-driven targeting and advanced digital audio activation, setting a new benchmark for campaign impact.

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When we use energy matters as The National Grid is powered by a mix of both renewable and non-renewable sources, the balance of which fluctuate throughout the day, meaning there are greener times of day to use energy. To help more people to identify these times at home, we created Power Nap, a new Amazon Alexa Skill to report on the levels of renewable energy powering your home, right now, in real-time. Voiced by the calming tones of James Norton, Power Nap draws inspiration from meditation apps to bring zen vibes and more mindfulness to home energy use. Power Nap is powered by our Greener Grid API, proprietary tech we built to plug into the National Grid to determine when the network is being powered by higher levels of renewable energy and was developed in collaboration between Goodstuff, Assembly, Saatchi & Saatchi and Say It Now.

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Becki Salmon is a rising force in commercial audio, gaining experience across client, publisher, and agency roles - all before the age of 30. Currently, Becki drives audio innovation at Hearts & Science, as seen in her high-impact campaigns with key clients Peloton, The National Lottery and JLR. Her strong strategic vision and proven revenue growth has gained industry recognition (Campaign's Top Audio Ads for the Year), positioning her as an undoubted rising star, destined to help shape our industry's future.

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Audio media owners talk about how audio is the audiences’ companion throughout the day, and it is - but it is so much more than that. Audio plays so many roles in our lives; be that Radio, Music Streaming, Podcasts or audio ads in Mobile Gaming. DAX Audio is the only place where advertisers can share every audio moment with audiences. Our ambition this year as market leader was not only to keep up our strong history of innovating over the last 10 years, but to ensure our advertisers continue their love affair with audio into the next 10 years.

WINNER

Acast Sales are a small + mighty team, continually defying challenges - economic, talent, inventory and resource amongst them - to position ourselves as market leader. We put our clients and agencies front and centre of everything we do, taking pride and delight in the full package, we’re audio first, but not only. With a focus on diversity, inclusion, and mental well-being being carried through in our external relationships and development, we’re committed to a truly collaborative, innovative and inclusive audio landscape. We’ve delivered all important revenue growth, across Agency Groups - OMG landing 50% YoY growth, Brands - Google up 74% and direct client count 137% up and have reaped the rewards of an Ex London focus to our strategy, with Mediacom Manchester delivering 230% growth, and a whole bunch of great new friends along with it! Across the year we amped up our client engagement efforts, hosting 18 exclusive housewarming events in our newly opened UK headquarters, offering immersive experiences like Q&As with top podcasters, and open studios for agency partners. Our Audio VIPs program gave key industry players early access to innovative opportunities, strengthening relationships and boosting Acast's visibility across the audio market. We’re pioneering the OmniChannel Audio approach too, we start with audio and end up everywhere, to create an experience that resonates with advertisers and consumers alike - 84% take action after encountering Omnichannel campaigns. In summary, you could say - we have fun, we work damn hard, and people tend to like us!

WINNER

Podcasting is in a state of flux. Never before has the question “what is a podcast?” been more relevant. Over the last year there has been one creative team which has helped more brands, creators and audiences make sense of that question. In the process of doing so, Acast Creative has delivered real business results, brilliant listening experiences and campaigns that perform in audio and beyond. From launching attention-grabbing campaigns featuring top tier talent for some of the world’s most well-known brands to telling stories that really matter through their work with non-profits, Acast Creative have proven themselves to be one of the UK’s most adaptable, skilled and innovative creative teams - with the results and awards to back it up.

HIGHLY COMMENDED

Forever Audio is a powerhouse of creativity and innovation. Our Creative and Production team have delivered award winning audio campaigns that captivate and inspire in our Tottenham Court Road facility. By blending imaginative storytelling with precise sound design, we ensure each campaign resonates with target audiences to achieve our client’s objectives. We craft stories that inspire and connect audiences through the power of sound. We don’t just produce audio; we craft immersive brand experiences that deliver results. Our diverse team of sound engineers, producers, composers, and creatives provide seamless end-to-end audio solutions across commercial, branding, and content projects from initial brief to the final mix. This can be anything from sonic logo creation and bespoke music composition, to writing podcast host reads and audio adverts, working with global brands on their audio strategies, or casting, producing and mixing trailers, shows and fully immersive long-form audio content. As an independent agency, we embrace pushing the boundaries of traditional audio to showcase how sound can engage listeners. Collaboration is central to our success, and our integrated approach ensures every campaign benefits from a shared pool of expertise and creativity. Our dedication to understanding client needs allows us to deliver world class audio solutions that exceed expectations.

WINNER

Beccy Smith has been at Maple Street Creative for just three years, and during that time she’s become a vital member of the team, rising from Assistant Producer to Producer. Beccy guides clients from all sectors through the production process, and has worked on campaigns for global brands including LinkedIn, Tinder, Mars and Xero. She has developed a particular passion and expertise for Publishing and Live Events commercials, two of Maple Street Creative’s specialist sectors. Beccy has innovated the increase of authors featuring on ads and creates soundscapes that bring books to life, which receive consistent praise from clients that include Pan Macmillan, Simon & Schsuter and Quercus. Beccy is equally exceptional with another Maple Street Creative key sector, Charities, and takes great care to craft engrossing, memorable, and empathetic ads that engage with potential donors in a highly competitive market. Alongside audio ads, Beccy has worked on partnerships with Braun, the Royal Navy, the Department for Education, and QVC. These treatments resonated with audiences in new ways and bring an authentic trust that augments the consumer’s relationship with the brand and its messaging. Beccy’s creative work and attention to detail has been championed by clients and agencies alike, and if her ascendancy were now recognised by the industry, she would be a worthy winner of such a prestigious accolade.

HIGHLY COMMENDED

In his first year at Acast, Benjamin Wynne-Davies has proven himself to be a standout creative in podcasting, blending a deep passion for the medium with an instinctive understanding of what makes branded content resonate. His meticulous approach to both the fandom of each show and the specific needs of brands has resulted in campaigns that provide genuine value to audiences, brands, and podcasters alike. Ben's work on the British Red Cross x Stompcast partnership highlighted his ability to create impactful content that goes beyond the expected. By pairing Stompcast with 3D audio documentaries that transported listeners to global crises, Ben produced a campaign that achieved 400,000 views, an 87% listen-through rate, and helped elevate the charity’s mission. His first year in the industry has seen him pull together an remarkable portfolio of diverse, varied and outstanding work, from hilarious campaigns like the viral Ring doorbell stunt with Sam Thompson and Pete Wicks, generating 2.9 million impressions, to the insightful BT Business Network roundtable, which garnered 183,000 views and an 88% LTR. Ben consistently delivers content that strikes that ever-elusive balance between audience engagement, podcaster buy-in, and brand success.