The B&T Awards are back! This is your time to be bold and stand out from your peers across Australasia.
Are you the next Howatson+Company, winner of last year’s Advertising Agency of the Year? Or can you match the magic of EssenceMediacom, last year’s Media Agency of the Year? Or are you the next Born, 2024’s Emerging Agency of the Year?
Or could you be the next Akcelo? Who claimed not one, not two, but four trophies last year, including the coveted Grand Prix.
This year, we have an expanded selection of awards, reflecting the evolving landscape of the industry. We’ve also significantly refreshed several existing categories, sharpening the edge of the awards.
Check out the B&T Awards 2025 portal with all of the categories, criteria and how you can enter!
Here’s what’s new:
Agency of the Year categories
This year, we’ve separated the PR Agency of the Year category. Now, there is a Consumer PR Agency of the Year category and a Corporate PR Agency of the Year trophy.
These categories better reflect the true scope of agencies delivering PR and communications services and will fairly score the very different disciplines of protecting corporate reputations and creating eye-catching campaigns.
Creator Agency of the Year
We have a brand new Creator Agency of the Year category, too. Creators have become increasingly important to brands’ interactions with consumers, and we predict that trend will not slow down any time soon. While once an afterthought or considered a ‘development opportunity’ for junior burghers at holdcos, creator-focused work has found its way into the highest levels of strategy and planning.
And of course, there are a growing number of agencies that deal exclusively with creators and creator-focused work. It’s time we recognised their contributions to the industry, too.
Aotearoa New Zealand Agency of the Year
In 2025, we’re creating a separate category for our friends over the ditch.
Previously, we’ve awarded a trophy for the best agency from Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, Tasmania, the Northern Territory and the ACT, together with New Zealand. We believe the divergent challenges and opportunities in these markets are sufficient to warrant a separate award for Aotearoa New Zealand. It also spares any awkward green room debates about the provenance of the pavlova.
Be Bold, Be Seen: Enter the B&T Awards 2025 NOW!
Campaigns of the Year
To align with our changes to the PR categories, we’ve revamped the Best PR Campaign, making it the Best Consumer PR Campaign. Our crack panel of senior client marketers will be on the hunt for the best single PR campaign for a client that won the eyeballs, hearts and minds of consumers across Australasia.
Best Creator-Led Campaign
Similarly, we’ve launched a new Best Creator-Led Campaign trophy to recognise the significance that creators have in the best brand campaigns. We believe this is a distinct skillset from ‘traditional’ social campaigns. Creators have made and broken some of the world’s largest brands, and this work needs to be recognised.
Best Pro Bono Campaign
It’s long been known that we’re big U2 fans here at B&T. And to honour our favourite Irish musician (apologies to Jedward and Sinead O’Connor), we’ve created this new award for the Best Pro-Bono Campaign of the last 12 months.
Only joking, of course. This award will honour the best work created on a pro bono basis for a client over the last year. Agencies often do some of their best work for purpose-driven brands and organisations, with the team’s belief and zeal for the cause palpable in the resultant campaign. Not only is this trophy a chance to celebrate this incredible work, but it’s also a chance to celebrate the often incredible causes the work is created in aid of.
Retail Media
If we had a dollar for every time someone said retail media is having a moment or is so hot right now, we’d certainly have at least $15 to rub together. With that in mind, we’ve launched two new awards this year for the Best Retail Media Campaign and the Best Retail Media Network.
The first award will honour the sharpest work in the retail media space, regardless of whether it took place in Coles, Woolies, Chemist Warehouse, Bunnings, on Amazon or anywhere else.
The second award will laud the best-run retail media network in the country. Our jurors will be looking for the network that has created game-changing innovation and setting the pace for the rest of this increasingly busy sector.
Leadership Awards
The leadership category of the B&T Awards celebrates the torchbearers of the industry.
This year, we’ve reoriented the B&T Award for Diversity, moving it away from simply a campaign-focused award. Given the challenges the industry is facing on matters of DE&I, we felt it was right to broaden the scope to reflect the good work being done regardless of whether it takes the form of a campaign, workplace or societal initiative or a broader action.
The B&T Award for the planet has had its criteria sharpened with a greater focus on measurable outcomes and meaningful differences.
Finally, we’ve also launched an award for the best sales team. Whether you’re from a media owner, an adtech or martech or any other business from across the advertising, marketing and media landscape, if you have a crack sales team, we want to celebrate your success.
Check out full details of this year’s B&T Awards.
