The 15th edition of the Most Awards saw Heed named overall media owner of the year and Phd Cape Town awarded overall media agency of the year.
The recent awards recognise media professionals and personalities, voted for by their peers.
Mike van Tonder and Chris Botha were recognised as Media Owner Legends, while Media Owner Rising Star awards went to Icci van Niekerk and Megan Sayle.
The Shepard Award went to Merissa Himraj, and the Bell Award went to Sandra Gordon and Karen Phelan.
All the winners
Media agencies
Overall best media owner winner - PHD Cape Town
Full-service media agency of the year - PHD – Cape Town
Lamb Award for media agencies - Meta Media Johannesburg
Specialist media agencies category - IntiMedia
Media owners
Overall media owner of the year – Heed
Best media owner trade marketing services team - Mediamark
Lamb award for media owners - Rook Digital
Media sales consultants category - Whisper Media
Multimedia category – Mediamark
Print category: Spark Media
Digital category: Heed Digital
Outdoor category: Epic Outdoor
Cinema category: Cinevation Popcorn
Television Sales category: eMedia
Gold standard
After pausing the event for a year while an industry advisory panel debated and refined categories to reflect the changing nature of the media, professionals from media agencies and owners were prepped, as Lyndon Barends, managing director of strategic partnerships and events at Arena Holdings, says, to “honour excellence, resilience and innovation in South Africa’s media buying industry”.
Reflecting on why the Most Awards remain the gold standard for recognising outstanding service in South Africa’s media industry, Barends says the media industry is dynamic, demanding, and constantly evolving.
“To stay relevant, media professionals must continuously refine their skills, embrace innovation and foster strong relationships across the ecosystem. That’s exactly what the Most Awards celebrate: excellence, adaptability, and the power of collaboration,” he says.
Once again, Freshly Ground Insights’ Brad Aigner conducted the research for the (lucky) 13th time.
Responses to this year’s Most Survey were the second highest of all time, a “sign that it remains a unique and highly relevant benchmark of partnership and service excellence in our media industry", says Aigner.
