Opinion
With only a couple of weeks to go until the Adwanted Media Research Awards deadline, Adwanted’s head of marketing Sandy Shing reveals some secrets to success.
Is there a winning formula? Is there a discernible pattern that can help future entries hone their submission? As part of the team behind Adwanted Media Research Awards (AMRAs) and champions of media research, it was only fitting that we carry out some research of our own. So, we took a journey back over the last five years of 80 AMRAs winners to uncover any winning elements.
Across all those entries, three themes stood out.
Collaboration is a major success factor
The projects that are landing those awards are increasingly ones where different parts of an industry come together to tackle a challenge or where previously disconnected datasets and expertise are brought together. Great examples of cross industry collaboration that were rewarded at the AMRAs include:
- PwC – ISBA / AOP / PwC programmatic supply chain transparency study
(2022 winners of The Grand Prix and The Adrian Edwards Award for Best Use of Datasets awards)
- Thinkbox, Acacia Avenue, PwC, EssenceMediacom, Gain Theory, Wavemaker, Mindshare, ITV, Channel 4 and Sky – BVOD Almighty
(2024 winners of Best Custom Media Research Project – Trade Body)
- Havas Media Network, Lumen & Brand Metrics – The World’s Largest Attention and Outcome Study.
(2025 winners of Best Custom Media Research Project – Agency)
Industry-changing work wins
Many of our past winners address major industry challenges including:
- Media and attention measurement
- Programmatic transparency
- Diversity and representation
- Cross-platform attribution
The projects that stood out against the competition often created new standards, industry tools and frameworks. It seems our AMRAs alumni don’t just solve problems; they raise the capability of the wider industry.
Impact matters more than technical sophistication
Research methodology is of course important, but being able to demonstrate clear business outcomes is more vital than methodology alone. This was found to be true across all the categories.
Winning entries repeatedly showed:
- Revenue growth or cost reduction
- Audience growth
- Increased effectiveness
- Industry adoption
- Operational or strategic change
The strongest AMRA winners proved that their research directly drove an important outcome, and they were able to quantify its impact.
Last but not least, it often works best if your research can be wrapped into a compelling story. Many of our past winners receive comments from judges praising their entry for being well-written, clearly structured and supported by great visuals.
We hope this was helpful for those who are currently crafting their submission for the AMRAs 2027. Perhaps the single, biggest takeaway should be: you have to be in it to win it.
Here’s a reminder of the deadlines:
- Early bird deadline – Wednesday 7 October 2026. Entry fee: £285+VAT
Standard deadline – Wednesday 14 October 2026. Entry fee: £335 +VAT
