June 24, 2025
Shortlist Shows a Surge in Financial Services and Corporate Influencer Campaigns
London, Tuesday 24th June 2025 – The World Media Group unveiled the shortlist for the 2025 World Media Awards today, celebrating excellence in international content marketing and cross-border advertising. Now celebrating 10 years, the World Media Awards continues to draw high-calibre submissions from all over the world with entries from across Asia, Europe, the Middle East and the US.
The 2025 shortlist reflects continued growth in strategic content partnerships, with notable increases in the Financial Services and Corporate Influencer categories, suggesting that brands are sharpening their focus on trust-building and purpose-driven narratives in complex and regulated sectors. Technology & Telecoms also saw strong representation, underlining the sector’s ongoing investment in brand storytelling.
This year also saw the introduction of two new categories – Technology Partner and Branded Event, to demonstrate the growing importance of media innovation and brand experiences in bringing to life international advertising campaigns.
Jamie Credland, CEO of the World Media Group, commented: “As we celebrate 10 years of the World Media Awards, I’m blown away by the quality and ambition of the entries, highlighting the continued evolution of global content marketing. It’s brilliant to see how brands are using events and technology partnerships to drive deeper audience engagement and business impact.”
Storytelling by World-Class Brands
The shortlist features campaigns from an impressive mix of global brands, including Bayer, Bupa, Cartier, De Beers Group, Dianomi, JW Marriott, Lombard Odier, L’Oreal Group, Mastercard, Netflix, Prada, PwC, Samsung, Swift, TikTok, UBS, ViiV Healthcare, Visa, VistaJet and Zurich Insurance.
The independent jury, comprising senior leaders from brands, agencies and media owners, is now tasked with selecting the winners for each category. This year’s co-chairs are Anna Campbell, Global Client President at Carat and Alison Harbert, Marketing Director at Investec.
Campbell noted, “The new Technology Partner category revealed some of the most dynamic collaborations we’ve seen this year. It’s evident that when brands and tech providers work in sync, they can unlock new formats for storytelling that are both innovative and measurable.”
Harbert added: “The entries in the Corporate Influencer and Financial Services categories stand out for their clarity, authenticity and smart integration of trusted voices. These campaigns are redefining how influence works at scale – grounded in credibility and aligned with brand values.”
World Media Awards Ceremony:
Winners will be announced at a live ceremony at the Ham Yard Hotel in London on Thursday 18th September 2025, where the coveted Grand Prix Award will also be presented. You can buy tickets to attend the ceremony here.
Previous winners of the top prize include Cymru Wales, Infosys, Johnnie Walker, Malaria No More, Shell and Tata Motors.
Winners’ Perks
In addition to global recognition and a trophy, winners receive a unique prize – an exclusive international media campaign worth €750k+, run across the World Media Group’s prestigious media brands: The Atlantic, BBC News, Business Insider, CNN International, The Economist, Forbes, Fortune, National Geographic, Politico Europe, Reuters, The New York Times, TIME, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post.
The 2025 shortlist is as follows:
Corporate Influencer
| Brand / Campaign | Entered by |
| BCG – Future Forward: Human Potential in the Gen AI Era | The Wall Street Journal |
| De Beers Group – Talent Unearthed | Fortune Brand Studio |
| Diriyah Company x TIME 2030 Cities | TIME |
| The Emirates – Voices of Vision | BBC StoryWorks |
| Fujitsu – Advancing Net Positive Agenda | Economist Impact |
| Gilead – Ending HIV: The Road to 2030 | POLITICO |
| IDA Ireland – Unlock Your Potential: Invest in Ireland | Reuters |
| UK Department for Business and Trade – UK DBT: Great Trade & Investment | CNN Create Brand Studio |
Financial Services
| Brand / Campaign | Entered by |
| Lombard Odier – Rethinking Through the Noise | Lombard Odier |
| PGIM – Outfront | Reuters |
| Swift – Growth at a Crossroads | Economist Impact |
| UBS – Banking is Our Craft | Publicis ULABS |
| UBS – Crafting Capital | The Wall Street Journal |
| UBS – Craft Matters | Bloomberg Media |
| UBS – Craft Matters | T Brand Studio, New York Times Advertising |
| UBS – Market Rhythms | Publicis ULABS |
| Visa – Level Up Your Game – Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024 | Visa |
Tech & Telecoms
| Brand / Campaign | Entered by |
| BOX – Animated Thinking: Engaging C-Suites Beyond the Boardroom | Financial Times |
| Deutsche Telekom – Summer to Remember | Mindshare |
| Fujitsu – Advancing Net Positive Agenda | Economist Impact |
| Nokia – The Exponential Era | Wavemaker |
| Samsung Galaxy – Samsung: Open Always Wins | Starcom Worldwide |
| Samsung Galaxy S24 – Samsung S24: The World’s Biggest Livestream Launch | Starcom Worldwide |
| TIME X Northern Data Group – NORTHERN DATA GROUP | TIME |
| Zscaler – Phishing for the C-Suite: How “Trust No One” engaged everyone | Financial Times |
Travel & Tourism
| Brand / Campaign | Entered by |
| Destination Canada – The Open Assignment | National Geographic/The Walt Disney Company |
| JW Marriott – Stay in the Moment | Economist Impact |
| Türkiye Tourism – Colours of Türkiye | BBC StoryWorks EMEA |
| Türkiye Tourism – Origins | CNN Create Brand Studio |
| VistaJet – Keep in Time | VistaJet |
Luxury & Lifestyle
| Brand / Campaign | Entered by |
| Cartier – Linked by Love | The New York Times |
| De Beers Group – Talent Unearthed | Fortune Brand Studio |
| New Murabba – TIME X New Murabba | TIME |
| Prada — Sea Beyond: Blue Future | National Geographic/The Walt Disney Company |
| UBS – Banking is Our Craft | Publicis ULABS |
| VistaJet – Keep in Time | VistaJet |
Specialist Categories:
Brand & Media Owner Partnership
| Brand / Campaign | Entered by |
| Brand Scotland — Scotland for the Head, Heart and Spirit | BBC StoryWorks EMEA |
| Bupa UK – Picture of Health | National Geographic |
| De Beers Group – Talent Unearthed | Fortune Brand Studio |
| EY – EY.ai Face of the Future Campaign with Quartz | EYGS LLP |
| Infosys – The Sustainability Atlas | Economist Impact |
| L’Oreal Group – This is Not a Beauty Podcast | T Brand Studio, New York Times Advertising |
| Netflix – Uber X Netflix Squid Game 2 | Blue Stripe |
| PwC – PwC & TED: Intelligence Unbound | TED |
| UBS – Crafting Capital | The Wall Street Journal |
Small Budget, Great Impact
| Name | Company |
| Bayer – Drive Sustainable Progress | POLITICO |
| Equinor – Searching for Better: The Energy Transition Told by the People Powering It | Financial Times |
| Mercator Ocean (Copernicus) – A Sea of Change | BBC StoryWorks |
| TikTok – Brands That Won Big on TikTok | Forbes |
| West Midlands Growth Company – Welcome to the West Midlands | BBC StoryWorks |
Social Good
| Brand / Campaign | Entered by |
| Ecolab – Better Water, Better Business | Reuters |
| Mastercard – She is Priceless | Weber Shandwick |
| ViiV Healthcare – Ending the Epidemic | Publicis Media – Platform GSK |
| Zurich Insurance – Resilience from the Ground Up | Economist Impact |
Branded Event
| Brand / Campaign | Entered by |
| Forbes – Forbes 30/50 Summit | Forbes |
| Iberdrola – Creating a New Energy Policy Conversation | Headland Consultancy |
| Zurich Insurance – Navigating a World in Transition | Economist Impact |
Technology Partner
| Brand / Campaign | Entered by |
| Dianomi – Your Content. Perfectly Placed | Dianomi |
| Infosys – FT Money Machine | Wongdoody |
| Infosys – Handelsblatt AI Trend Report | Wongdoody |
| Infosys – The Sustainability Atlas | Infosys |
| Mediasense – Media Impact Model: From Efficiency to Effectiveness | Mediasense |
For full details of shortlisted entries go to https://world-media-group.com/awards/2025-shortlist/
#ENDS#
About The World Media Group
The World Media Group is a strategic alliance of leading international media organisations that connects brands with highly engaged, influential audiences in the context of trusted and renowned journalism. Its members include BBC News, Business Insider, CNN International, The Economist, Forbes, Fortune, National Geographic, The New York Times Company, POLITICO Europe, Reuters, TIME, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, associate member The Atlantic, and partners Brand Metrics and Dianomi. To find out more about the World Media Group, please visit www.world-media-group.com.