CHICAGO—  Ketchum took home top honors at the In2 SABRE Awards last night for its work with Wendy's on a bold takeover of the massively popular video game Fortnite.

In2 SABRE judges praised for its ingenuity in entering the game to target meat freezers, driving home Wendy's message that its meat is never frozen. Wendy's worked with Ketchum, VMLY&R and Spark Foundry on the campaign that was praised as a "bold takeover of Fortnite going after frozen meat that went totally viral with the players." In addition to the Platinum Best in Show trophy, the campaign garnered a win in the gamification category and social networks categories. 

Ketchum took home seven  trophies for the night. Other big winners included followed by ICF Next winning five times, Day One and Weber Shandwick taking home three trophies. The full list is below, with comments from judges on why these campaigns broke through. 

Best In Show #1

Keeping Fortnite Fresh — Wendy's with Ketchum with VMLY&R and Spark Foundry

"Bold takeover of Fortnite by going after frozen meat — and that went totally viral with the players."

Best In Show #2

The Shape of History — Hulu with Courageous Studios/UM

"Ignited a social conversation that had lost momentum — while prompting action and an increase in viewership."

Best In Show #3

#AcceptanceMatters — Mastercard with Ketchum, McCann, BMF

"Topped off an event with business action, giving transgender customers a product they needed."

Best in Show #4

Broadway the Rainbow  — Skittle with ICF Next

"They topped their unconventional approach to Super Bowl in 2018 with a Broadway show in 2019. Totally fits the brand."

Best in Show #5 

Driscoll's Rosé Berry Limited Edition Summer Launch — Driscoll's with Allison+Partners

"If you can increase 10% shelf space - that's like a whole country at a grocery store."

The Innovation SABRE Awards — North America 2020

Experiential Marketing

Best in Live Events 

#AcceptanceMatters — Mastercard with Ketchum, McCann, BMF

"Topped off an event with business action, giving transgender customers a product they needed."

Best in Digital Promo & Activation

Chipotle Reward Me - The only thing better than free money is free Chipotle — Chipotle with Day One Agency

"The first restaurant to get it own custom emoji in Venmo — and what a pay-off: drove 1m reward sign-ups!"

Best in Sponsorships

Over Delivering for Super Bowl LIII — Pizza Hut with Zeno Group

"Results truly overdelivered with a sales lift that surpassed the forecast."  

Best in Trade Shows & Awards

From Shadow to Spotlight - How speaking helped Zoox gain an inside track on rivals — Zoox with The Bulleit Group

"Transformed Zoox into a dominant and respected player in the autonomous vehicle sector."

Earned Media

Best in Digital/Print Consumer Media (Earned)

Driscoll's Rosé Berry Limited Edition Summer Launch — Driscoll's with Allison+Partners

"If you can increase 10% shelf space - that's like a whole country at a grocery store."

Best in Digital/Print B2B Media (Earned)

WSJ really IS the Future of Everything, when it comes to AI and Ethics — Affectiva with March Communications

"Spot on placement at the Future of Everything — and excellent use of the media that followed."

Best in Broadcast Media (Earned)

Teen Summer Challenge — Planet Fitness

"Took a big business risk to build a relationship with Gen Z — and it seems to have worked."

Best in Product Reviews (Earned)

SickKids Airbnb — SickKids Foundation with No Fixed Address

"Bringing people into a replica of the hospital to drive donations was moving and effective."

Best Earned Media with Influencers + Communities

Mahomes 57 — Heinz with ICF Next

"An out-of-pocket cost of $0 yielded 333x the engagement of the brand's baseline tweet."

Best Persuasive Content

UL Close Before You Doze — UL with Allison + Partners

"Stunning visuals that really drove behavior change." 

Best Content Creation for Media Sites (Earned)

Natty Light Summer Intern — Natural Light with M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment

"Smart and relatable for 21+ market just graduating from college."

Sponsored & Paid Media

Best Content Creation for Media Sites (Paid)

The Super American Pecan-A-Thon — American Pecan Council with Weber Shandwick

"Such funny and engaging content — I watched all of the content."

Best Influencer Programs + Endorsements (Paid)

David Dobrik Breaks Records with Chipotle — Chipotle with Day One Agency

"Chipotle clearly knows its audience and the channels they are on — and how to get them to act."

Best Media Partnership

#SponCon Vows — Hotels.com with ICF Next

"Created a cultural moment of its own — amazing that five couples actually incorporatedHotels.com into their wedding vows."

Best SEO/Content Distribution Program (Paid + Organic)

Fremont Police Department Turns to Microsite to Reach Job Candidates — City of Fremont with The Hoffman Agency

"This should be what all government entities are doing."

Best in Digital Marketing/Advertising

Fantasy Life — Fantasy Life with Hot Paper Lantern

"Impressive integrated campaign exceeded  campaign goals significantly."

Social Media & Community Management

Best Use of Integrated Social Media

OpenTable Goes Into #DiningMode for Mother’s Day — Open Table with Carmichael Lynch Relate

"Breakthrough creativity that taps into a familiar issue with a new twist, giving OpenTable its best Mother's Day bookings."

Best Use of Social Networks

Keeping Fortnite Fresh — Wendy's with Ketchum with VMLY&R and Spark Foundry

"Bold takeover of Fortnite by going after frozen meat — and that went totally viral with the players."

Best Use of Video Networks

ASMR for DIYers — Behr with ICF Next

"The video was soothing — accomplished what they set out to do."

Best Use of Photo Networks 

Tag Responsibly, Keep Jackson Hole Wild — Jackson Hole Travel & Tourism Board with Exponent PR

"They used social media, almost against itself with amazing results."

Best in Crowdsourcing & Co-creating

Chipotle’s Summer of TikTok — Chipotle with Day One Agency

"Reached Gen Z by integrating an organic experience into TikTok."

Best in Real-time Engagement

Wrangler Claps Back - Lil Nas X Collection — Wrangler with French | West | Vaughan

"The speed was remarkable — and brave, as there was backlash. But it all ultimately paid off."

Best Meme/Viral Campaign

Mahomes 57 — Heinz with ICF Next

"The Mahomes-ketchup jokes turned into a viral gag."

Best Use of Gamification/User-Generated Contests

Keeping Fortnite Fresh — Wendy's with Ketchum with VMLY&R and Spark Foundry

"Tens of thousands of gamers continued the mission and shared their own freezer destruction as user content." 

Brand Content & Creativity

Best in Brand Narratives 

Broadway the Rainbow  — Skittle with ICF Next

"They topped their unconventional approach to Super Bowl in 2018 with a Broadway show in 2019. Totally fits the brand."

Best in Digital Brand Platforms  

Microsite Tells the Fremont Police Department's Brand Story to Job Candidates — City of Fremont with The Hoffman Agency

"Why can't more government entities speak in such a human way? They understood the issue and used smart communication to deal with it."

Best in Brand Film/Video

Railroad Ties — Ancestry with Weber Shandwick

"Showcases their competitive advantage with their emphasis on historical analysis." 

Best in Brand Animation

EARTH- Brand Animation — RYOT (A Verizon Media Company) with Rogers & Cowan

"Catchy, star-studded video with amazing results: 180m+ views, among other jaw-dropping stats."

Best Use of Illustrations + Photography

Ask About the Curve — Endo Pharmaceuticals with Ogilvy

"What powerful images — the picture told the whole story."

Best in Audio: Podcasts + Music

RUNAWAY TRAIN 25 — National Center for Missing & Exploited Children with Powell Communications and M/H VCCP

"They localized to markets to find three children — that's hard to top."

Best in Identity Branding

Doritos Another Level — Frito-Lay with Ketchum

"Resonated with Gen Z — as well as the business press. That's an impressive balance!"

Best in Social Good + Public Service

360PR HELPS STONYFIELD ORGANIC TAKE ITS MISSION TO NEW PASTURES — STONYFIELD ORGANIC with 360PR

"Totally on brand, shining the light on an issue that lacks awareness." 

Best in Brand Purpose

Secret x USWNT: Equal Work, Equal Sweat, Equal Pay — Secret Deodorant (Procter & Gamble) with DeVries Global

"Secret's brand heritage lended itself authentically to taking up equal pay."

Analytics + Insights

Best Use of Social Media or Analytics for Audience Insights or Influencer Targeting

Conoco Chooses Go with #MyHeroConoco — Phillips 66/Conoco with Carmichael Lynch Relate

"Creative idea to use anime to reach younger consumers around a commodity like gas."

Best Use of Original/Commissioned Research for PR

"It's About Respect" Sexual Violence Prevention Pilot — Washington State Department of Health with C+C

"It changed behavior through education. And they included the kids in their planning." 

Best in Measurement, Post-Campaign Analysis

Edelman Intelligence for Hologic: Getting Tested Gets Put to the Test — Hologic

"Clients credit the platform for providing data-driven answers around the actual business impact and ROI of a recent consumer campaign."

Best in Marketing Technology

Zignal Labs – Best in Marketing Technology — Zignal Labs

"Especially impressive that its client testimonials say 'no else pulls in that much data.'" 

Agency Spotlight

Best Agency Disruption

Ketchum: A Pivot Toward the Future — Ketchum

"For a large agency to eliminate geographic P&Ls is a massive undertaking — and it seems to be paying off."

Best Agency Publishing Platform

Techruptors & the Social Permission Tipping Point — Ketchum

"Touched a relevant topic with actionable insights for brands." 

Most Innovative Recruitment/Retention Initiative

We're not in Kansas Anymore — Bospar

"Everyone works from home, this eliminates typical office distractions — so people can provide clients laser-like focus."

Most Innovative Diversity & Inclusion Initiative

FH Perspectives — FleishmanHillard

"More than a 'program' —  considers  hiring, recognition, leadership opportunities to impact client work and community."

Best Live Event - Agency

A Healthcare Targeted Approach to Provide Client Value — W2O

"Impressive activation that results in business leads."

Special Campaigns

Corporate/B2B

Hack The Bracket — Adobe

"Adobe used its own platform as a stunning new business tool."

Consumer

Reese's Candy Converter — Reese's with Zeno Group

"They nailed it within a very short window — and to get it on late-night TV is perfect for this audience."

Healthcare

Taste Test Drive — GSK Consumer Healthcare, Nicorette with Weber Shandwick

"Timely issue with the uptick in vaping. Great business outcomes: positive relative lift and  best-in-class ad recall and purchase."

Financial Sector

Data Rules Everything Around Me (D.R.E.A.M): How Zelle® used Data to Make “Everyday Better” — Early Warning with Huge

"Strong insight on women's hesistancy to be paid back. Effective campaign drove continued adoption."

Social Good/Non-profit 

Just One Trip — King County Metro with C+C

"Remarkable targeting that worked in getting people on public transit."

Social Purpose

The Shape of History — Hulu with Courageous Studios/UM

"Ignited a social conversation that had lost momentum — while prompting action and an increase in viewership."

Politics/Public Affairs/Lobbying/Government

Ad Hoc Utilities Group Public Affairs Campaign — Ad Hoc Utilities Group (AHUG) with Chartwell Strategy Group

"Utilized the media narrative through geo-fencing, IP targeting, ad buys and Twitter, to reach senior administration staff."

Employee Engagement

#HitMeWithYourFluShot — Christiana Care Health System

"Impressive engagement with a fun, catchy campaign."

Lean Marketing

A More Fashionable Finland with #ANTHROINFINLAND — Visit Finland with Zapwater Communications

"Amazing results with lean resources."

Micro Marketing

How to create an October Surprise — Unisys with Bospar

"Creative solution to a common challenge. Accomplished  an impressive feat for the media and the client."

New to Market

Best New Company Launch

Making Masturbation Mainstream — plusOne with Hotwire

"Bold campaign that dovetails with the wellness movement, resulting in phenomonal sales of vibrators!"

Best New Product Launch

LEGO® Education SPIKE™ Prime – The Building Bricks to Confidence in Learning — LEGO Education

"Multi-phase campaign that puts kids' emotions at the center."

Innovation Excellence

Most Innovative Agency Initiative

Courageous Studios — Courageous Studios

"Engine for thought-provoking and stand-out 360-degree campaigns that take viewers from the screen to the real world – and back again."

Innovator of the Year — Agency

Jim Weiss — W2O Group

"Has truly disrupted the status quo across healthcare, data, and technology."