Award Categories

Campaign Categories

1. Best Anniversary Campaign (NEW)

This category recognises the best campaigns that capitalised on a company’s anniversary – whether it was the first, 25th, or even 100th – to generate excitement, awareness, and engagement. These milestones needed to provide a valuable opportunity to create positive buzz and enhance market share.

Judges will evaluate the overall strategy and the impact of the anniversary element on the campaign’s success. Wherever possible, demonstrate how the anniversary aspect contributed to achieving campaign and business objectives more effectively.

2. Best Brand Reputation Management Strategy

This category recognises the best planning and/or most effective strategy in managing the reputation and public perceptions about the brand.

Judges will be looking at the PR strategy put in place to protect the organisation or brand reputation in terms of the public, media, and stakeholder profile. Entrants should showcase how the brand monitored and responded to customer engagement across multiple touch-points to improve brand image.

3. Best Branding Strategy

This category recognises the best PR campaign designed to enhance, promote or improve the brand image of an organisation with the public. This category is open to any one-off or ongoing campaign or initiative.

Judges will be looking at the role and contribution of PR and communications in the campaign strategy that contributed to the brand’s business objectives.

4. Best Corporate Affairs Strategy

This category recognises the best communications strategy or ongoing programme by an in-house PR team, PR agency or a combination of both, that is directed at stakeholders, which can include investors, shareholders, consumers, employees, customers, industry analysts, government agencies and/or other constituencies.

Judges will be assessing the overall strategy, as well as the effectiveness in communicating with stakeholders, promoting a favourable image or perception of the organisation, enhancing the organisation’s positioning, and where possible, a measured change in sentiment and other corporate goals.

5. Best CSR Communications (NEW)

This category recognises the best one-off or ongoing communications programme by an in-house PR team, PR agency, or a combination of both, that addressed social, economic or environmental issues the organisation has been advocating and championing.
Judges will be looking at how the campaign’s PR strategies created genuine benefits for both the cause and business objectives, as well as strengthening the company’s image as a responsible entity of society. This category is open to any one-off or ongoing campaign or initiative.

6. Best Engagement – Mass Community

This category recognises the best campaign that engaged the community at large through a smart and highly effective PR communications strategy. This category is open to any one-off or ongoing campaign or initiative.

Judges will be looking at the role and contribution of PR and communications in the campaign strategy, how the business objectives were achieved, as well as the attendees’ responses and feedback.

7. Best Engagement – Targeted Community

This category recognises the best community engagement campaign that engaged a specific target audience effectively – offline or online. This category is open to any one-off or ongoing campaign or initiative.

Judges will be looking at the nature of the campaign, communications strategy, core business objectives, and context within the overall PR campaign. Attention will also be paid to the campaign’s strategic engagement, positive action and/or change in community behaviour, attendees’ profiles, and attendees’ responses and feedback.

8. Best Experiential PR Campaign

This category recognises a campaign that focused primarily on helping consumers experience a new or existing brand, along with engaging as many of the human senses as possible. This includes immersive experiences, interactive events, and other creative approaches that engaged audiences in a memorable way.

Judges will be evaluating the creativity and execution of the experiential elements, the alignment with brand messaging and objectives, and the overall impact on audience engagement and brand perception. Measurable results such as attendance, media coverage, social media engagement, and ROI will also be considered.

9. Best Innovative PR Campaign

This category recognises the most innovative and out-of-the-box concept used in a PR campaign. This category is open to any one-off or ongoing campaign or initiative.

Judges will be looking at the originality of the idea, the creativity and implementation of the idea, and how the PR strategy delivered measurable results.

10. Best Insights-Driven PR Campaign

This category recognises the most outstanding use of insights, analytics and/or research as a foundation of a PR campaign. This category is open to any campaign or initiative by an in-house PR team, a PR agency, or a combination of both, where its research may take place outside the eligibility period, but the results must be measured between the eligibility period.

Judges will be looking at how the data was crucial in driving the campaign’s core objectives. Entrants should illustrate the details of the target audience, how they were engaged via the campaign, along with measurable results.

11. Best Integrated Communications

This category recognises the best integrated communications campaign that successfully utilised at least three channels. Channels can include digital, mobile, social media, print, TV, outdoor, events, and others. This category is open to any one-off or ongoing campaign or initiative.

Judges will be looking at the role PR played in the strategic development and implementation of a programme, as well as streamlined PR strategies that drove core business objectives, along with evidence of creativity, execution, impact, and effectiveness.

12. Best Launch/Rebranding PR Campaign

This category recognises the best use of PR for the launch or rebranding of a product and/or service. This category is open to any one-off or ongoing campaign or initiative.

Judges will be looking at the role and contribution of PR in the campaign, such as brand share of voice, buzz, and public awareness, along with an increase in conversations about the product and/or service.

13. Best Performance PR Campaign

This category recognises the most outstanding PR campaign that successfully drove significant results and performed the best in achieving the business goal. This category is open to any one-off or ongoing campaign or initiative.

Judges will be looking for the most effective PR and communications strategy that contributed to the success of the campaign, audience profile, objectives, and outcomes.

14. Best PR Campaign – Banking, Finance & Insurance

This category recognises the most effective ongoing campaign or one-off project in the banking, finance, and insurance sectors.

Judges will be looking at the role and contribution of PR and communications in the campaign strategy that contributed to the brand’s business objectives. Entrants should demonstrate the creative and innovative elements, the successful execution, how they generated buzz and public awareness, and how the business goals were achieved with measurable results.

15. Best PR Campaign – Beauty & Wellness (NEW)

Judges will be looking at the role and contribution of PR/communications in the campaign strategies that contributed to the brand, product and/or service’s business objectives. Entrants should be able to outline the creative and innovative elements, the successful execution, and evidence that the campaign increased share of voice, and generated buzz and public awareness about the brand, product and/or service in the media. Entrants should also show how ROI was measured and how the campaign and/or business goals were achieved.

16. Best PR Campaign – Customer Acquisition & Retention (NEW)

This category recognises the best campaign that showed a strong and significant impact on customer acquisition and retention with a public relations strategy.

Judges will be looking at the role that PR played in the strategic development and implementation of a customer acquisition and retention campaign, which successfully grew and gained new customers, widened the customer base, helped to retain business, and enhanced the customer proposition.

17. Best PR Campaign – ESG

This category recognises a PR campaign or ongoing project that best implemented an ESG strategy in promoting or enhancing a corporate reputation.

Judges will be looking at the role and contribution of PR and communications in the campaign strategy that contributed to the brand’s business objectives. Entrants should be able to outline the creative and innovative elements, the successful execution, and evidence on how the campaign generated sustainable benefits to the community.

18. Best PR Campaign – Food & Beverage

This category recognises the most effective ongoing campaign or one-off project in the food and beverage sector. This can include food, beverages, bars, restaurants, spirits or novel ideas in the F&B space.

Judges will be looking at the role and contribution of PR and communications in the campaign strategy that contributed to the brand’s business objectives. Entrants should demonstrate the creative and innovative elements, the successful execution, and how the business goals were achieved with measurable results.

19. Best PR Campaign – Government/Public Services (NEW)

This category recognises the best one-off or ongoing PR/communications campaign by an in-house PR team, a PR agency or a combination of both, that effectively engaged members of the media to raise awareness about a government or public service initiative. Government and/or public service initiatives could include employment, economy, transport, commerce and industry, environment, social welfare, education, infrastructure development, culture and recreation, or government/community services.

Judges will be looking at the role and contribution of PR/communications in the campaign strategies that contributed to the product, services, and/or business objectives. Entrants should be able to outline the creative and innovative elements, the successful execution, and evidence that the campaign increased share of voice, and generated buzz and public awareness about the product or service in the media. Entrants should also show how ROI was measured and how the campaign and/or business goals were achieved or exceeded.

20. Best PR Campaign – Lifestyle, Entertainment & Sport (NEW)

This category recognises the most effective ongoing campaign or one-off project in the lifestyle, entertainment, or sport sectors that effectively engaged members of the media to raise brand awareness.

21. Best PR Campaign – Partnership/Sponsorship

This category recognises the best PR campaign that successfully increased brand awareness through partnership or sponsorship programmes. It is open to any one-off or ongoing campaign or initiative.

Judges will be looking at the role and contribution of PR and communications in the campaign strategy that benefited both the company/brand to reach a mutual benefit.

22. Best PR Campaign – Property

This category recognises the most effective ongoing campaign or one-off project in the property sector.

Judges will be looking at the role and contribution of PR and communications in the campaign strategy that contributed to the brand’s business objectives. Entrants should demonstrate the creative and innovative elements, the successful execution, and how the business goals were achieved with measurable results.

23. Best PR Campaign – Public Awareness

This category recognises the best PR campaign by a corporate entity that successfully increased awareness or changed opinion by delivering education to the public or a targeted community. This category is open to any one-off or ongoing campaign or initiative.

Judges will be looking at the strategy and overall contribution of the PR in the campaign’s success, how it drove core campaign objectives, produced evidence-based results, had a core message, positive action, and/or changed public behaviour.

24. Best PR Campaign – Retail

This category recognises the most effective ongoing campaign or one-off project in the retail sector that effectively engaged members of the media to raise awareness about the retail industry.

Judges will be looking at the role and contribution of PR and communications in the campaign strategy that contributed to the brand’s business objectives. Entrants should demonstrate the creative and innovative elements, the successful execution, and how the business goals were achieved, along with evidence-based results.

25. Best PR Campaign – Travel & Hospitality

This category recognises the best one-off or ongoing PR/communications campaign that effectively engaged members of the media to raise awareness about a travel/hospitality brand, product and/or service. This can include hotels, airlines, taxis, travel booking platforms, etc.

Judges will be looking at the role and contribution of PR and communications in the campaign strategy that contributed to the brand’s business objectives. Entrants should demonstrate the creative and innovative elements, the successful execution, and how the business goals were achieved, along with evidence-based results.

26. Best PR Event

This category recognises the most outstanding event that was organised either in support of public relations objectives or as part of a wider public relations campaign. This category is open to any one-off or ongoing campaign or initiative and the events can range from physical, hybrid, and/or virtual.

Judges will be looking at the nature of the event, communications strategy, core business objectives, context within the overall PR campaign, and success at building brand reputation.

27. Best Promotional PR Campaign

This category recognises the most effective, attention-grabbing promotional PR campaign. It is open to any one-off or ongoing campaign or initiative. Entrants should include information on the aim, size of the event/activity, and whether it stood alone or was part of a larger campaign.

Judges will be looking for the most effective and innovative PR and communications strategy that contributed to the success of the campaign, audience profile, objectives, and outcomes.

28. Best Storytelling Strategy

This category recognises the best PR campaign that created the most successful brand or consumer stories.

Judges will be looking at the originality of the idea, creativity, the implementation of the idea, and the PR strategy which delivered measurable results.

29. Best Use of Brand Mascots (NEW)

This category recognises the most effective use of brand mascots in PR campaigns. Entrants should showcase their creativity and storytelling, while highlighting the overall impact of the mascot on brand awareness and consumer perception. You should also demonstrate the strategic integration across the various platforms that resulted in measurable outcomes.

Judges will be looking at how well the mascot embodied the brand’s identity and engaged the target audience.

30. Best Use of Content

This category recognises the most effective use of content marketing to accommodate the overall PR campaign, designed to enhance credibility and to attract media coverage. This can range from print publications to online newsletters to video channels. This category is open to any one-off or ongoing campaign or initiative.

Judges will be looking at the creativity and originality of the content. Entrants should illustrate how the content was developed and tailored to the target audience, how the strategy was developed and executed across various channels, how the successful execution delivered an increased level of awareness, how ROI was measured, and how the campaign and/or business goals were achieved or exceeded.

31. Best Use of Influencers

This category recognises the most creative and effective use of influencers such as bloggers, artists, celebrities, key opinion leaders, and others, within a one-off or ongoing PR campaign in order to engage directly with a targeted audience or increase brand awareness, communicate key messages, and meet business objectives.

Judges will be looking at how the PR team leveraged a celebrity/influencer’s position as part of the PR strategy, how the content and delivery fitted into the brand and campaign’s overall strategy, and how by incorporating the influencer element the campaign was successfully impacted. Entrants should show how ROI was measured, and how the campaign and/or business goals were achieved or exceeded.

32. Best Use of Social Media

This category recognises the best one-off or ongoing campaign that demonstrated an innovative and effective use of social media channel(s) such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, blogs, mobile apps, and/or other emerging social channels.

Judges will be looking for a well-thought-out strategy, and a clear understanding and appropriate use of social media channel(s) to communicate with target audiences while driving core campaign and business objectives. Entrants should show how ROI was measured and how the successful execution delivered an increased level of awareness.

33. Best Use of Tech/AI (NEW)

This category recognises the most creative and innovative use of technology and artificial intelligence by an in-house PR team, a PR agency, or a collaborative effort between both, within a one-off or ongoing PR campaign, to engage with a targeted audience. Technologies can include AI-powered event ticketing systems, customer experience platforms, interactive digital screens, bespoke apps, chatbots, data analytics, and predictive algorithms, among others.

Judges will be looking for innovative PR strategies and effective ways that technology and AI were used to enhance audience engagement and the customer experience. Entries should focus on how the technology and AI were leveraged and provide evidence that the successful implementation of these technologies increased awareness and engagement. Additionally, entrants should show how ROI was measured and how the campaign and/or business goals were achieved or exceeded.

34. Best Viral Campaign

This category recognises the most creative, innovative, and effective viral campaign designed to attract and engage its audience in spreading word-of-mouth messages and creating viral buzz.

Judges will be looking for an innovative strategy and demonstration of creative content and execution that drove the brand’s awareness and strengthened the connection with its audiences. Entries should demonstrate how the campaign helped in the creative content the public generated, the amount of engagement the brand received, the increase in reach, and other positive marketing results.

35. Campaign of the Year

This category recognises the best PR campaign which demonstrated command of an impressive number of PR tools, tactics, and strategies. This award welcomes any specialised PR campaign that was notable for outstanding results.

Judges will be looking for evidence on how the successful implementation of the campaign delivered an increased level of awareness, how ROI was measured, and how the campaign and/or business goals were achieved or exceeded. Entrants should also showcase any other exceptional achievements or work that especially merits this award.

Talent Categories

36. PR Leader of the Year (Agency) (NEW)

This category recognises outstanding leadership and excellence from an agency-side leader who has made a significant impact to their clients’ PR campaigns, executions, and results. Judges will evaluate the nominee’s contributions to their organisation’s success, focusing on their strategic impact and innovation.

Entrants can nominate themselves or a colleague, and they should also show achievements against objectives and evidence of business impact in the following areas within the eligibility period. Key areas of assessment include notable achievements, operational excellence, professional leadership qualities, commercial results, and overall contributions to the organisation. Testimonials are highly encouraged to support nominations.

37. PR Leader of the Year (Brand) (NEW)

This category recognises outstanding leadership and excellence from a brand-side leader who has made a significant impact to their brands’ PR campaigns, execution, and results. Judges will evaluate the nominee’s contributions to their organisation’s success, focusing on their strategic impact and innovation.

38. PR Team of the Year (Agency) (NEW)

This category recognises the excellent performance of an agency team which has made a significant impact to their clients’ overall PR campaigns, executions, and results.

Judges will be looking at the team’s scope of work, strategic skills, creativity, and excellence in execution. Entrants should also showcase their exceptional achievements and successful results against objectives/KPIs. Entrants can use one particular campaign as a case study of evidence to form their entry or can use aspects from various projects, but all work must have taken place within the eligibility period.

39. PR Team of the Year (Brand) (NEW)

This category recognises outstanding work from a brand-side marketing team which has made a significant impact on an organisation’s overall PR campaigns, executions, and results.

Overall (Not for Entry)

40. Best of Show – Brand

This title is not open for direct entry, and is based solely on performance across all categories. It recognises the brand with the most successful performance at the PR Awards, based solely on the number and type of awards won as determined by the PR Awards jury.

Points system:

Gold: 4 points
Silver: 2 points
Bronze: 1 point

Tie-breakers:
Most gold: If total points are tied, the brand with the highest number of gold awards wins.
Most silver: If gold awards are also tied, the brand with the highest number of silver awards wins.
Highest average score: If a tie still persists, the brand with the highest average score percentage (as assigned by the judges across all their winning entries) will win.

41. Best of Show – Agency

This title is not open for direct entry, and is based solely on performance across all categories. It recognises the agency with the most successful performance at the PR Awards, based solely on the number and type of awards won as determined by the PR Awards jury.

Points system:

Gold: 4 points
Silver: 2 points
Bronze: 1 point

Points allocation for multiple agencies:
Lead agency: When multiple agencies collaborate on a winning entry and a lead agency is identified, the lead agency receives full points towards the overall awards. Non-lead agencies on that entry will each receive 25% of the points respectively.
Joint submission: If two agencies declare an equal partnership on a winning entry, each agency receives 50% of the points towards the overall awards.

Tie-breakers:
Most gold: If total points are tied, the agency with the highest number of gold awards wins.
Most silver: If gold awards are also tied, the agency with the highest number of silver awards wins.
Highest average score: If a tie still persists, the agency with the highest average score percentage (as assigned by the judges across all their winning entries) will win.