About
Digipub
Awards

Welcome to Digipub Awards 2018, the 2nd edition of India’s first such initiative specially for web publishers.

Most major publishers had participated in our 1st edition and based on their feedback, we are back with better-defined awards categories.

The Digipub Awards were created to recognise and reward exciting initiatives by websites in India across a spectrum of parameters: from great content to brand partnership to overall user experience.

The Digipub Awards will also identify Websites of the Year in five categories.

The awards are designed specifically for traditional publishing sites – that is, they depend on content and advertising/sponsorship/subscription for their business model.

(The Digipub Awards are not open to other kinds of sites such as corporate websites and ecommerce sites.)
Applicants can compete under the ‘English’ category or under ‘Indian Languages’. Reason: English websites have had a headstart in India.

Categories
Advertising
  • Best Native Advertising Creative use of native advertising to further a brand's communications objectives

    Judging criteria

    - Content should be engaging
    - Persuasive
    - Sit comfortably in the site
    - Should not be misleading

    Participants could enter up to 3 pieces of work for each client per entry.

  • Best Brand Partnership Pact between a publisher and a brand to promote a product or service

    Judging criteria

    - The pact must have a specific objective
    - Should have endured for some time
    - Must be unique in some way

    Participants could enter up to 3 pieces of work for each client per entry.

Innovation
  • Best Innovation in Publishing The innovation could relate to content, advertising, audience generation - or just about any initiative on the site. But it has to be original, make people sit up and say 'wow'.

    Judging criteria

    - Should be a specific initiative with a clear purpose
    - Looks at an opportunity in a unique way
    - Ideally, not tried before in India
    - Inspiring to others in the business

Personal Blog
  • Best Lifestyle Blog A personal blog in the area of travel, fashion, beauty, fitness or wellness. (The URL must be owned by the writer and not be part of a larger publisher’s offerings)

    Judging criteria

    - Original point of view
    - Engaging
    - Seeks and gets reader interaction

    Participants may submit up to three blogs per entry.

Content
  • Best Article/Video Feature The coverage of an important issue in an insightful way.

    Judging criteria

    - The issue must be of significance
    - Stories be online-first (not have appeared earlier in print/TV)
    - Could be in text or video

    Participants should submit a single entry for this category.

  • Best Article/Video Series Sustained coverage of an important issue in a logical, systematic, and insightful way.

    Judging criteria

    - The issue must be of significance
    - Stories be online-first (not have appeared earlier in print/TV)
    - Could be in text or video
    - Should consist of up to three articles/clips

    Participants could enter up to 3 pieces of work for each client per entry.

  • Best Use of Video The strategic use of video in a way as to attract and keep an audience on the website.

    Judging criteria

    - Visual story telling in an absorbing way
    - Consistently, not one-off
    - Draws visitors, keeps them longer, makes them return

    More than specific videos, the participant should highlight the role that videos play on the site, and how. Use of PDF to explain recommended.

  • Best Columnist An individual who has written an online-first engrossing column in such a way that readers find it irresistible.

    Judging criteria

    - Is written with regular frequency by a specific individual
    - Has been around for some time
    - Offers opinion and an original point of view

    Participants could enter up to 3 pieces of work per entry.

  • Best Interview (text) An interview that brings out the interviewee’s point of view in a funny, insightful or revealing manner.

    Judging criteria

    - The interaction must be engrossing
    - Not only must the answers be compelling, the questions should be perceptive as well

    Participants need to submit only one interview per entry.

  • Best Podcast A podcast, whatever the subject or format, that keeps listeners riveted.

    Judging criteria

    - The podcast must take full advantage of the medium
    - Be original, compelling

    Participants need to submit only one podcast per entry.

Social Media
  • Best Use of Social Media Best use of social media to promote content on the website

    Judging criteria

    - Help distribute content
    - Create interest in site and draw in new people
    - Help in bringing back existing users
    - Create buzz around the site

    Use of PDF to explain recommended.

Design
  • Best Interactive Story Using the best possibilities of interactivity that the web offers to tell a great story.

    Judging criteria

    - The story should stand out
    - Should use interactivity that the web offers
    - To draw readers into the subject

    Participants need to submit only one article per entry.

  • Best Site Design Where the site is aesthetically appealing and yet functionally efficient.

    Judging criteria

    - Objective-driven design
    - Communicates clearly
    - High visual quality
    - Helps visitors find content
    - Must work across both desktop and mobile devices

  • Best E-mail Newsletter Design The use of a daily or weekly e-mailer to inform opt-in subscribers what’s new on the site.

    Judging criteria

    - The mailer must effectively convey what new content is on the site
    - And tempt the recipient to visit it

    Participants may submit up to three mailers per entry.

Website of the year
  • Website of the Year (General News and Features) Website of the Year (Lifestyle and Infotainment) Website of the Year (Sports and Entertainment) Website of the Year (Business) Website of the Year (Emerging) (less than 3 years old as on June 30, 2018) Outstanding overall experience for a site which persuades the target audience to come again and again and spend time.

    Judging criteria

    - It should score high on the parameters of content, design, functionality, navigation, interactivity
    - It should inspire trust among users and, if possible, loyalty
    - It must be unique in some way
    - Must work across both desktop and mobile devices

    Important: For Website of the Year awards, entrants must submit basic information about traffic numbers, growth or anything else that could help the jury make up its mind.

Rules, Regulations
& Process

Eligibility

The Digipub Awards are open only to publishing websites that depend on content and advertising/sponsorship for their business model. Advertising/sponsorship/subscription must be its primary source of revenue.

(The awards are not open to other types such as corporate sites and ecommerce sites)
Digipub Awards are not open to ad agencies or marketers.

Entrants can only be websites operating in India. International sites that want to participate must have a significant Indian presence with reporters/editors based here.

The Digipub Awards are for open web sites and apps will not qualify

Entry Guidelines

The entries must relate to work between July 1, 2017-June 30, 2018.

Early bird discount will be valid till July 27, 2018. Entries will be closed on August 22, 2018.



All regional entries will have to translate their work into English. For videos use subtitles.

Note : Limited passes will be given to participants with 1 being minimum and 6 being maximum depending on the number of entries submitted. Additional passes can be purchased separately.

Judging Criteria

The Digipub Awards aim to recognise and celebrate exciting initiatives in the world of Indian web publishing.

The jury is given specific criteria as the basis for judging in each category.

Judging process

- Each entry will be judged by between 3-5 jurors

- Jurors will rate entries on a scale of 1-10 where 1 is poor and 10 is exceptional

- An applicant may enter either under English or Indian Languages in each category.

- An entry must score a minimum of 6/10 to qualify for Gold and 5/10 to take Silver. There is no Bronze.

Our Jury
Alpana Parida
Alpana Parida
DY Works
Neha Tulsian
Neha Tulsian
NH1 Design
Mayuri Nikumbh
Mayuri Nikumbh
Elephant Design
Anish Varghese
Anish Varghese
Isobar
Sidharth Shukla
Sidharth Shukla
OgilvyOne Worldwide
Sudhir Nair
Sudhir Nair
21N78E
Shefali Takalkar
Shefali Takalkar
BBH
Lulu Raghavan
Lulu Raghavan
Landor
Brij Jacob
Brij Jacob
DDB Mudra
Dipankar Mukherjee
Dipankar Mukherjee
Hypercollective
Ankit Desai
Ankit Desai
Marico Limited
Gurpinder Singh
Gurpinder Singh
GSK Pharmaceuticals
Dipti Sudhir
Dipti Sudhir
Britannia Industries Limited
BG Mahesh
BG Mahesh
Oneindia.com
Vikas Gupta
Vikas Gupta
9.9 Mediaworx
Prasanna Singh
Prasanna Singh
Sustainable Outcomes
Bhavana Mittal
Bhavana Mittal
Reckitt Benckiser
Nikhil Pahwa
Nikhil Pahwa
MediaNama
Anand Thakur
Anand Thakur
Jubilant FoodWorks
Rohan Padhye
Rohan Padhye
Axis Mutual Fund
Achint Setia
Achint Setia
Myntra
Diksha Madhok
Diksha Madhok
ThePrint
Alpana Parida

Alpana Parida
DY Works

Neha Tulsian

Neha Tulsian
NH1 Design

Mayuri Nikumbh

Mayuri Nikumbh
Elephant Design

Anish Varghese

Anish Varghese
Isobar

Sidharth Shukla

Sidharth Shukla
OgilvyOne Worldwide

Sudhir Nair

Sudhir Nair
21N78E

Shefali Takalkar

Shefali Takalkar
BBH

Lulu Raghavan

Lulu Raghavan
Landor

Brij Jacob

Brij Jacob
DDB Mudra

Dipankar Mukherjee

Dipankar Mukherjee
Hypercollective

Ankit Desai

Ankit Desai
Marico Limited

Gurpinder Singh

Gurpinder Singh
GSK Pharmaceuticals

Dipti Sudhir

Dipti Sudhir
Britannia Industries Limited

BG Mahesh

BG Mahesh
Oneindia.com

Vikas Gupta

Vikas Gupta
9.9 Mediaworx

Prasanna Singh

Prasanna Singh
Sustainable Outcomes

Bhavana Mittal

Bhavana Mittal
Reckitt Benckiser

Nikhil Pahwa

Nikhil Pahwa
MediaNama

Anand Thakur

Anand Thakur
Jubilant FoodWorks

Rohan Padhye

Rohan Padhye
Axis Mutual Fund

Achint Setia

Achint Setia
Myntra

Diksha Madhok

Diksha Madhok
ThePrint

Contact
us
For sponsorship opportunity, please get in touch with:
Samarjit Singh : +91 9811436040
E-mail: samarjit.singh@afaqs.com

For everything else, please get in touch with:
Sudipto Adhicary : +91 9582938291
E-mail: sudipto.adhicary@afaqs.com
For exhibition enquiries, please get in touch with:
Jatinder Singh : +91 9971658902
E-mail: jatinder.singh@afaqs.com