“With 213 entries in 37 categories received, this year’s judging process is going to be a very robust and interactive one,” says Marilyn Watson, chief judge of the PRISM Awards. "Each year the competition just gets tougher," she adds.

Leading consultancies from across the continent are again well represented, with a number of them submitting entries in multiple categories.

As per previous years, the most popular categories were the the Launch of a New Product, Service or Category, which received 20 entries; closely followed by the Social Media for Public Relations with 17 entries; and Consumer PR for an Existing Product, Service or Category, which received 17 entries. New categories like African Campaign of the Year and African Network of the Year seem to be well accepted, attracting several entries.

“The Financial Services and Investor Relations Category, proudly sponsored by CIMA, has also seen an increase from last year – with entries from both corporate companies and consultancies,” states Watson.

Over 40 judges have been selected to adjudicate the entries, while a separate panel will judge the South African Campaign of the Year and Pan African Campaign of the Year from a shortlist of five noteworthy campaigns.

“The quality of submissions is good, and as judges we will be looking out for obvious measurable objectives, as well as key insights from research,” concludes Watson.

This year’s PRISM Award sponsors include Blue Apple, Innovative Glass, Pear Factor, The Maslow Hotel, Afroflame, Zoom, Airports Company South Africa, Paper Packaging Place, Upstage Productions, CIMA, We Collaborate, Sappi, ROI Africa, Facebox, Grind Mobile Coffee, Von H Brand Provocateur, Just You Model & Artist Management and Mango. Media partners include Mix FM, Jozi Maboneng Radio, The Event and Unisa Radio.