The awards celebrate innovation and entrepreneurial spirit in media and publishing. They were established in 2010 as the Media Pioneer Awards and have recognised both large media businesses like Future and UBM and small independents like SingleTrack, Songlines and LOOP.
This year, as well as publishers, the awards were opened to suppliers to the media and publishing industry, who are frequently experimenting with new approaches and pushing publishers to innovate, say the organisers.
The winners and commended were:
PUBLISHERS
Commended: Centaur – The Lawyer
The Lawyer had historically derived all their revenues from advertisers, and developed a platform that allowed them to grow revenues from their readers, delivering them thousands of new leads. This platform can be applied to other markets across the group. The judges were impressed with “this imaginative take on the traditional b2b directory, combining customer listings with relevant content stream.”
Commended: Green Star Media – Basketball Coach Weekly
This is a small publisher who isn’t afraid to challenge the big guys. They did their homework, hired an experienced editor, and used their proven e-marketing tactics to launch a basketball coaching title in the US, from their base in Surrey. The judges liked the story of “a small UK publisher taking all-American subject matter to a US audience with nerve and verve”
Winner: The Beans Group – Student Beans ID
This youth media specialist did their research into changing trends in their audience, and designed in-house a new product that has captured the attention of over 7000 clients and has an average of 700 users a day. It’s proving a great way to attract new clients to their core website – and the team already have ambitious plans to expand internationally. The judges considered this an “innovative use of audience targeting and geo-location to deliver real value.”
Winner: Carnyx Group – The Drum
This is an independent publisher that took a tough decision to focus on just one brand, and extend it into live events, an agency register and a professional network. They are prepared to experiment with new approaches – such as creating an edition of the magazine live in a day in front of an audience of 200. Creating this ecosystem has paid off handsomely, with turnover up 37% and profits up 152%. The judges felt they came across as “genuinely ambitious and innovative publishers, breaking into new markets with a well-executed multi-platform offering”.
SUPPLIERS
Commended: Flume Training
This small organisation seem intent on single-handedly revolutionizing the way the whole media industry approaches advertising sales. As one judge said, they are “re-imagining old-school sales for the 21st century”
Winner: Adnostic
Adnostic spotted a big problem in the industry, and undeterred by the technical challenges, and rate of change, have developed a dynamic team, who have been able to launch features very quickly. The judges welcomed “real action on the marketing services/agency model that so many talk about but never execute, especially in the tablet space.” They have been rewarded with 80 individual client builds and support from all the major agencies.
Winner: Dwell Agency
This is a small start-up with great ambitions, keen to test the boundaries of digital content. The judges felt they were “offering creative solutions to the interactivity gap for magazine publishers” They have already scored two world firsts: an infinite scrolling page for GQ magazine and a “selfie cover” for Wired.
Read about the full 2014 shortlist.
The Media Innovation Awards celebrate innovation and entrepreneurial spirit in media and publishing businesses. They are organised by the Information Industry Network, part of SIIA.
