The theme this year was 13 years of Moving the Industry Forward, with the focus being the recognition of powerful, memorable and impactful marketing strategies through campaigns that inspire, educate and build their respective brands. By encouraging future leaders and creatives to continue applying their skills and talent to future campaigns, awards like the Bookmarks ensure progressive industry growth through benchmarking.

Winners at the 2021 Bookmark Awards were announced in the following categories:

In an industry that relies heavily on its strong creative leads, the IAB Bookmark Awards also rallied 13 industry experts from various marketing disciplines who were given a platform to share their professional insights on what the future of digital marketing looks like. This springboards the industry and its key players into a pertinent conversation that will be had long after the awards ceremony.

IAB CEO Paula Hulley said “Thank you to our industry leaders and future leaders for shining a light on the meaningful opportunity that digital creates to move our industry forward. The work and the teams that win at the Bookmark Awards sets the benchmark for digital excellence and we celebrate with all our 2021 finalists and 2021 winners who demonstrate the power of digital to achieve business objectives and beyond”.

IAB Front Row winners

This year’s winners in the IAB’s Front Row initiative were also announced at The Bookmarks. Designed to give budding black digital media and marketing students much needed access to an array of industry resources and insiders, the programme plays a crucial role in the IAB SA's commitment to galvanising transformation in the industry.

Prizes include a four-month paid internship with the IAB South Africa as well as significant contributions from awards partners, The Red & Yellow Creative School of Business, Vodamedia and DMAT.

View the 2021 Front Row Winners here.

The 13th Annual Bookmark Awards were powered by DStv Media Sales and brought to you by Accenture Interactive, 24.com, Everlytic, Google, Joe Public, Tractor Outdoor, ABSA, iProspect, Bizcommunity, Mediamark, Vodamedia, The Red & Yellow Creative School of Business, and Digital Marketing Aptitude Test (DMAT).

“Double digit growth in digital media over the past few years demonstrates that digital is important in the overall media ecosystem. Digital is no longer new media .. it’s just an important player in the media ecosystem. As consumers consume more content online - this phenomenon will just experience more growth in those spaces. Particularly from a Connected TV perspective, as it affords us a bigger voice in the digital space and we look forward to partnering with brands on this digital first journey” Fahmeeda Cassim-Surtee, CEO DStv Media Sales

Congratulations to all the winners and special thank you to our round table panellist, award partners and our media partners for the continuous support.