Data Creativity Awards

Award Categories

The I-COM Data Creativity Awards comprises 24 Award categories and 2 Special categories.

Main Categories

Performance Measurement

Focus:
This category is for marketers and agencies who use attribution or marketing mix modeling (MMM) to measure the value of marketing strategies and channels.
How to win:
To win, submissions must showcase innovative methodologies that clearly demonstrate marketing's impact on sales and brand performance, supported by robust data management, transparent measurement, and actionable insights that drive real-world business outcomes.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring is based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement).
50% on the extent to which innovative and creative approaches were adopted in achieving those results.
Who Should Enter?
Media Agencies, Creative Agencies, Attribution Providers, Consultancies, In-House Attribution departments in major marketing companies, PurePlay, Market Research, Marketing Tech, Media Owners.
Focus:
This category is for practitioners focused on measuring ad effectiveness in capturing and holding user focus, especially with the increasing amount of tracking limitations.
How to win:
To win, submissions must showcase cutting-edge methods, demonstrate business impact through case studies showing innovative uses of attention data, measurement, and insights.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring is based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement).
50% on the extent to which innovative and creative approaches were adopted in achieving those results.
Who Should Enter?
Media Agencies, Creative Agencies, Attribution Providers, Consultancies, In-House Attribution departments in major marketing companies, PurePlay, Market Research, Marketing Tech, Media Owners.
Focus:
This category recognizes excellence in the execution of randomized experiments measuring the impact of marketing investments versus a control group.
How to win:
To win, submissions must present case studies that include hypothesis definition, various experiment modes (e.g., ghost ads, geo-tests), randomization, media channels, and robust validation. Findings should accurately project to the broader population.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement).
50% on the extent to which innovative and creative approaches were adopted in achieving those results.
Who should enter?
Marketers, Agencies, Media companies, Ad-Tech Companies.
Focus:
The Location Based category recognizes projects that effectively utilize data from mobile devices, including location data and proximity insights.
How to win:
Entries will show innovative applications that address the unique opportunities and challenges presented by mobile technology, particularly in sectors like retail and telecommunications.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement).
50% on the extent to which innovative and creative approaches were adopted in achieving those results.
Who Should Enter?
All parties involved in Location Based communications, such as Mobile and Digital Agencies, Advertising Agencies, PR Agencies, Marketers, Media Owners, Brands, etc.

Marketing Sciences

Focus:
This category recognizes the innovative use of AI systems to creatively interpret, analyze, and generate new insights or solutions from data through capabilities like learning, reasoning, problem-solving, perception, and Natural Language Processing. Entries related to GenAI should be submitted in the category specifically dedicated to GenAI
How to Win:
Successful AI applications in this competition should utilize cutting-edge machine learning techniques to achieve complex goals, often leveraging diverse open-source data. These automated systems should produce consistent, innovative results with minimal human intervention, while demonstrating how AI can enhance data interpretation, problem-solving, and decision-making.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement)
50% to the extent to which Data Creativity in Artificial Intelligence was adopted in achieving those results.
Who Should Enter?
Advertising Agencies, Ad Tech/Marketing Tech companies, Big Data companies, Brands/Brand Owners, Consultancies, Universities.
Focus:
This category recognizes and rewards work using Behavioural Science principles to understand, motivate, or optimize audience behaviour.
How to win:
Qualifying entries leverage data to show improved outcomes through factors like communication, media, pricing, or product features, focusing on consumer insights, behavioral response, and eliminating psychological biases.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring is based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Attention, Response Rates, Purchase Incidence, Change in Repeat Purchase, etc.)
50% to the extent to which Data Creativity in Behavioral Science was applied in achieving those results.
Who should enter?
Marketers, Advertising / Communications Agencies, Behavioural Science / Neuro / Research Companies / Consultancies, Academics, Media Platforms, Networks, Social Media Platforms.
Focus:
Creative Automation streamlines the creation, customization, and delivery of advertising content using technology.
How to win:
Qualifying entries should aim to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and maintain quality by automating repetitive tasks. Key elements include dynamic ad generation based on user data, automatic creation of multiple ad versions, A/B testing, and adapting content across multiple channels.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement)
50% to the extent to which Data Creativity in Creative Automation was adopted in achieving those results.
Who Should Enter?
Advertising Agencies, Ad Tech/Marketing Tech companies, Big Data companies, Brands, Consultancies, Technology suppliers.
Focus:
The Data Storytelling category recognizes companies that transform complex data into clear, actionable visuals, communicating insights effectively.
How to win:
Entries should demonstrate how the narrative and visualizations have led to real-world business decisions. Key evaluation criteria include relevance, impact, actionability, measurability, replicability, immediacy, simplicity, design quality, innovation, and accuracy.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring is based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement).
50% on the extent to which innovative and creative approaches were adopted in achieving those results.
Who Should Enter?
Companies involved in visualising marketing data, including Data Scientists, User Interface Designers and Marketing Executives drawn from Marketers, Digital Agencies, Design Firms, Media Owners or Research Houses.
Focus:
Generative AI refers to systems that are designed to generate new content, such as images, video, text, or even audio, that is similar to or inspired by existing data.
How to win:
Entries should demonstrate key applications including creative production, personalized content, improved customer engagement, and efficiency in tasks like data analysis and storytelling about media performance.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement)
50% to the extent to which Data Creativity in Generative Artificial Intelligence was adopted in achieving those results.
Who Should Enter?
Advertising Agencies, Ad Tech/Marketing Tech companies, Big Data companies, Brands, Consultancies, AI technology suppliers, Others.
Focus:
I-COM defines this category as any work that broadly covers and shows evidence of the creative leveraging of value from data that is instrumental to delivering business value.
How to win:
Qualifying entries include innovative data sourcing, integration, and analysis, as well as the use of advanced marketing sciences and technology. The key is to derive new insights from multiple data sources and apply them to improve planning, execution, and visualization.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement).
50% on the extent to which innovative and creative approaches were adopted in achieving those results.
Who Should Enter?
Marketers, Creative Agencies, Media Agencies, Media Owners, Data Services/Research Providers and Trade Associations involved in digital marketing.
Focus:
Projects in this category use AI to consider human wellbeing, both mental and physical. AI systems may be involved in assessing emotions, promoting positive behaviour, or supporting personal goals.
How to win:
Qualifying entries include measuring AI's impact on wellbeing, enhancing sentiment analysis and emotional understanding, creating positive impact and measurable health benefits, ensuring data privacy, transparency, and explainability, personalizing content for positive impact, analyzing content's impact on wellbeing, optimizing advertising for wellbeing, connecting to business metrics and marketing strategies, and more.
Judging & Criteria
• 40% of the scoring is based on the actual project results
• 10% of the scoring is based on the ethical sourcing and treatment of the data, especially health related data;
• 10% applied to the inclusion, unbiased outcomes across the project
• 40% on the extent to which innovative and creative approaches were adopted in achieving the results.
Who should enter?
Advertising Agencies, Ad Tech/Marketing Tech companies,Big Data companies, Brands, Consultancies, AI technology suppliers, NGOs, Medical Tech companies, Academic institutions.
Focus:
This category recognizes projects that harness the power of quantum computing and quantum-inspired technologies to revolutionize digital marketing. It encompasses applications that address complex optimization problems, process massive datasets, enhance personalization, and enable innovative solutions that surpass the capabilities of classical computing.
How to Win:
A winning entry will demonstrate a groundbreaking application of quantum computing or quantum-inspired algorithms to a real-world marketing challenge. It will showcase a clear understanding of quantum principles, innovative problem-solving, and a compelling business impact. The project should effectively communicate its potential to transform the industry, whether through direct quantum computing implementations or quantum-inspired solutions that bridge the gap to future quantum advancements.
Judging & Criteria
Considering that potential use-cases may not achieve “actual project results” today with current-state of the tech:
50% of the scoring is based on project results using current-state of quantum, OR forecasted results, assuming current technology advancement curve.
50% on the extent to which innovative and creative approaches were adopted in achieving/forecasting those results.
Who should enter?
Advertising Agencies, Ad Tech/Marketing Tech companies, Big Data companies, Brands, Consultancies, AI technology suppliers, NGOs, Medical Tech companies, Academic institutions, Telecommunications and/or Cyber Security.

Customer Centric

Focus:
Content marketing is a strategic approach to creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and helpful information to a target audience, using owned, paid, and earned media to achieve marketing goals.
How to win:
Effective content marketing requires data-driven creativity, including the ability to adapt to emerging data signals, measure results accurately, and demonstrate the value of content marketing to the organization.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement).
50% to the extent to which Data Creativity in Content Marketing was adopted in achieving those results.
Who Should Enter?
Media, Creative Agencies, Media Agencies, Marketers, Solution providers - Platforms (e.g. Vice, Spotify, Contently, Buzzfeed, StoryFull, Mashable, Adobe).
Focus:
This category recognizes work that leverages known customer data to better drive and measure marketing results across all channels.
How to win:
Successful entries should demonstrate a degree of applicability across multiple devices, channels, geographies or ad formats, scalability, unique use of disparate data sets and innovation in managing identity.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement).
50% on the extent to which innovative and creative approaches were adopted in achieving those results.
Who Should Enter?
Companies with a CRM file, Retailers, companies that are in the Media Space, Television Networks, AdTech companies, Agencies, CRM Software companies.
Focus:
Customer experience (CX) encompasses all interactions a customer has with a brand, its perceptions, feelings, opinions, and overall relationship with a business.
How to win:
Successful entries will include analyzing customer feedback, engagement, and conversion rates, as well as evaluating personalization, UX, consistency across channels, and customer journey mapping.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement)
50% to the extent to which Data Creativity in Customer Experience was adopted in achieving those results.
Who should enter?
Advertising Agencies, Ad Tech/Marketing Tech companies, Big Data companies, Brands, Consultancies, AI technology suppliers, Others.
Focus:
This category focuses on leveraging privacy-preserving identity solutions to achieve and improve marketing outcomes.
How to win:
Demonstrate how your submission uses identity solutions to reach the right audience, gain insights, improve measurement, and enhance data security, while improving areas like targeting, measurement, collaboration, personalization, and customer experience, ultimately leading to better campaign performance and ROI.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement).
50% on the extent to which innovative and creative approaches were adopted in achieving those results.
Who should enter?
Agencies and Consultancies, Marketers, Advertising and Marketing Technology companies, Data/Data Services Providers, Media companies.
Focus:
This category rewards data-driven approaches to retail media that boost brand visibility and sales through online and offline distributors.
How to win:
Showcase innovative uses of retailer data for targeting, insights, media activation, and measurement, including strategies like personalized ads, frequency experimentation, and cross-category targeting. The focus is on leveraging data to optimize campaigns and drive incremental sales.
Judging & Criteria
Judging will be based on how innovative and impactful the use case was for the brand leveraging the retailer's data.
50% of the scoring will be based on the actual KPIs of the project: Sales Lift, Incremental ROI, Conversion Rate, Brand awareness, high-quality 1st party data enrichment.
50% on the extent to which innovative and creative approaches were adopted in achieving those results.
Who should enter?
We encourage all companies involved in Retail Media, including but not limited to Digital & Media Agencies, CRM & Loyalty Agencies, Shopper Marketing Agencies, Trading desks, Retail Media Networks, Clean Room providers, Technology providers, Retailers, Media owners, Brands, Research Labs, or a combination of the above.
Focus:
The Total Video category recognizes the use of video advertising across multiple devices and platforms to create a cohesive brand experience. This includes various formats like pre-roll, mid-roll, out-stream, in-banner, and can involve both linear TV and digital video. The goal is to engage consumers effectively across their content consumption journey.
How to Win:
To win, demonstrate how your project leverages video advertising—whether linear TV or digital formats—to deliver an integrated, impactful experience. Showcase the use of data-driven insights to optimize targeting, creativity, and engagement, driving measurable results across multiple platforms.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring is based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement).
50% on the extent to which innovative and creative approaches were adopted in achieving those results.
Who Should Enter?
Marketers, Creative Agencies, Media Agencies, Media Owners, Data Services/Research Providers and Trade Associations involved in digital marketing.

Organisation Centric

Focus:
The Brand Purpose category recognizes businesses that use data and technology to drive positive change, address social and environmental issues, improve people's lives, and create new opportunities for growth.
How to win:
Successful entries will demonstrate a strong strategic foundation, creative use of data and technology, and a clear focus on actionable outcomes that benefit both the business and society.
Judging & Criteria
The Strategy - How solid is the idea, building research rigour, fit with brand (25%)
What is the creative use of data/tech on the idea (25%)
How does that creative use of data/tech drive actionable outcomes (50%)
Who should enter?
Marketers, Advertising/Communication Agencies, Behavioural Science/Neuro/Research Companies and Consultancies, Academics, Media platforms, Networks, Social Media Platforms, PR Agencies, Non-Profit Organisations, Government Agencies.
Focus:
The Data Driven Business Transformation category recognizes work that strategically utilizes data to achieve significant and fundamental business change.
How to win:
Entries must demonstrate clear measurable outcomes, such as increased revenue, improved margins, or reduced operational costs. Key elements considered include the scope and comprehensiveness of the transformation, the innovative use of data analysis, the speed to results, the actionability of findings, and the broader impact on the organization and industry.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement).
50% to the extent to which Data Creativity in Data Driven Business Transformation was adopted in achieving those results.
Who Should Enter?
All kinds of suppliers: service-oriented, software providers and others. Any type of client. All major agencies as well as all ad-tech/mar-tech analytics vendors.
Focus:
This category recognizes projects with a strong commitment to ethical data practices, backed by robust policies and mechanisms.
How to win:
Successful entries should showcase how the organization empowers individuals by providing transparency, control, and the ability to exercise their data rights. Entries should also highlight the organization's proactive approach to internal monitoring and accountability, ensuring that ethical principles are upheld in all data-driven endeavors.
Judging & Criteria
40% based upon foundations of a data ethics program: written commitment in the form of policies and processes that speak to data governance and the ethical use of data.
40% based upon operational data governance mechanisms that implement commitments and demonstrate ethical use of data, individual rights, and other aspects of Data Ethics.
20% maturity of the program, including administrative and technical controls, and other demonstrable accountability aspects.
Who should enter?
Any and every company that is trying to leverage data in their business, including but not limited to: Advertising & Marketing Technology companies, Agencies & Consultancies, Brands across all industries, Data/Data Services Providers, Marketers, Media companies, Universities & Scientific Organisations, others.
Focus:
This category focuses on the degree to which data is accurate, complete, consistent, timely, and relevant to its intended use.
How to win:
Qualifying entries should not only address the fundamental aspects of accuracy, completeness, and consistency but should also demonstrate a deep understanding of how these elements contribute to tangible business outcomes.
Judging & Criteria
40% based upon improvements in data quality, such as data accuracy, completeness, comprehensiveness, usability and consistency.
40% based upon improvements in the usefulness of the data resulting in some positive, measurable outcome.
20% on the extent to which innovative and creative approaches were adopted in achieving those results.
Who should enter?
Any and every company that is trying to leverage data in their business, including but not limited to: Advertising & Marketing Technology companies, Agencies & Consultancies, Brands across all industries, Data/Data Services Providers, Marketers, Media companies, Universities & Scientific Organisations, others.
Focus:
MarTech encompasses a vast array of technologies and tools designed to enhance marketing efforts, empowering businesses to leverage data to drive business growth.
How to win:
Successful entries should demonstrate groundbreaking solutions that leverage technology to achieve significant impact on business outcomes, prioritizing data privacy and ethical practices, while fostering collaboration and enhancing customer experiences.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring is based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Attention, Response Rates, Purchase Incidence, Change in Repeat Purchase, etc.)
50% to the extent to which Data Creativity in Marketing Technology was applied in achieving those results.
Who should enter?
Advertising and Marketing Technology companies, Pure-Play Systems Integrators, Agencies and Consultancies, Marketers, Data/Data Services Providers.
Focus:
This category recognizes innovative projects that harness the power of data and technology to create a sustainable future by integrating economic, social, and environmental efforts to foster wellbeing, reduce inequality, and address global challenges.
How to win:
Successful entries will demonstrate the degree the project has had a positive impact on society, while outlining the unique approaches to address societal sustainability challenges and the degree to which the project can be sustainable and measurable in the long-term.
Judging & Criteria
50% of the scoring is based on the actual project results (for example: ROI, Awareness, Degree of Process Improvement).
50% on the extent to which innovative and creative approaches were adopted in achieving those results.
Who should enter?
Marketers, Advertising/Communication Agencies, Behavioural Science/Neuro/Research Companies and Consultancies, Academics, Media platforms, Networks, Social Media Platforms, PR Agencies, Non-Profit Organisations, Government Agencies.

Special Categories

To compete in the Special Categories below, an Entry must be competing in at least one regular Award Category. You should indicate in your Entry Form if you would like your Entry to be considered for either of these Special Categories and pay the Additional Category fee accordingly.

Awarding projects which results extend beyond commercial success and impact their communities.
Awarding projects involving research departments of Academic Institutions.

Call for Entries

HOW TO ENTER