We are thrilled to announce that the search industry’s most prestigious awards competition is now open for submissions. Exciting changes are in store for the 4th annual awards program with several new categories added for 2018, including:
- Best Search & Social Media Marketing Initiative
- Best Research Initiative by an Agency or Individual
- Best Research Initiative by a Software Tool or Platform
- Boutique Agency of the Year – SEO
- Boutique Agency of the Year – SEM
- Large Agency of the Year – SEO
- Large Agency of the Year – SEM
This year’s competition features over 25 categories across the various disciplines of search marketing, setting the gold standard for rewarding innovation and those search marketers delivering exceptional results.
As part of our ongoing commitment to the highest editorial standards, our awards program proudly upholds the strictest submission criteria in the industry and the unbiased judging process affirms our commitment to editorial integrity.
Only the Search Engine Land editorial staff (and independent contractors of our parent company) are responsible for the primary task of reviewing and scoring all of the campaign focused categories, in conjunction with representatives from Google and Bing.
That means agency employees and individual consultants do not review or judge other agency work. Ever. Similarly, sponsorship of the awards program does not influence the outcomes.
For 2018, we again worked with our trusted partner Clutch.co to further build out the entry criteria for the agency competition. Clutch will oversee the independent review, client verification and judging of the Agency of the Year categories, following our scoring protocol. However, the editorial team is not involved in selecting the finalists or winners of these categories.
Learn more about the judging process here.
The biggest search event of the year
Most exciting of all, this year we have decided to move the Search Engine Land Awards ceremony and celebration to Seattle, Washington — in conjunction with our annual SMX Advanced conference, bringing together the best minds and brightest voices in search marketing for the biggest night in search.
This year’s awards celebration will be held on June 12, 2018 at Seattle’s Museum of Pop Culture and will include not just the awards finalists, but will be open to all SMX Advanced All-Access attendees and EXPO+ Pass holders for one epic evening celebrating search marketing with over 600 of your peers and colleagues in the SEO and SEM community.
In addition to honoring all of the achievements by the awards finalists and winners, there will be fabulous food and drinks, entertainment and surprises you won’t want to miss.
How to enter the awards
First, review all categories and entry criteria here.
Next, create an account and begin the application process. It is recommended to login and review how the application process is structured for the category (or categories) you plan to enter before preparing submission materials. You may also complete the entry process in phases until the deadline.
Fees & Deadlines:
- $295 USD per entry submitted before March 31, 2018 at 11:59PM PST.
- $395 USD per entry submitted between April 1 – April 13, 2018.
- Entries close April 13, 2018 at 11:59PM PST.
Read the FAQ and Rules & Regulations for additional information.
2017 Search Engine Land Awards highlights
Opinions expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily Search Engine Land. Staff authors are listed here.