Your road to
success starts with
your participation

• 1. Registering for the Contest

• The German Design Council continuously nominates companies that have attracted attention through effective brand work and independent projects and campaigns. As a nominee, you will receive written notification, including access data, and can bindingly register your nominated project and participate via our registration portal under »My Design Council«. The publication of the project or the implementation of the campaign must not have taken place more than five years ago. Registration can take place in up to three categories and up to three additional categories.  

  In addition, companies have the opportunity to register projects and campaigns directly and at their own initiative so they can participate in the contest. Following a review by our panels of experts, the German Design Council will inform you in writing whether your project meets the required criteria and has thus been approved and nominated for participation in the German Brand Awards. In the event of non-approval, you will also receive notification and not incur any costs. 

  Notify me when the competition starts!

• 2. Delivery of Submission

• After successful registration, please provide us with a presentation of your project or campaign, which the jury will review and evaluate. You can find details on the content and scope of your presentation on page 17 and in your personal log-in area of »My Design Council«. Delivery of the submission for the jury session must be made by no later than 21 February 2020.

• 3. Evaluation Criteria and Judging

• All submissions delivered in the correct form and on time will be handed over to the jury. The criteria for evaluation by the jury are:

  • Independence and brand type
  • Brand impact
  • Differentiation from the competition
  • Target group relevance
  • Homogeneity of the brand result
  • Design quality of the brand presentation
  • Degree of innovation
  • Sustainability
  • Continuity
  • Future promise
  • Price premium
  • Growth
  • Economic success

  The jury is free to weight the individual criteria as it would like in the evaluation. The order does not represent any order of criteria or evaluation. You will receive written notification of the jury’s results; legal recourse is excluded.   

• 4. Awards Ceremony and German Brand Convention

• The German Brand Awards 2020 will be conferred in Berlin in June 2020. At the German Brand Convention, the current brand management issues will be discussed with selected prize winners.

Contest classes
and categories

• »Excellent Brands«
• honours the best product and company brands in an industry. The categories are:

• Banking & Financial Services

  e.g. banks, building societies, credit card companies, leasing companies

• Beauty & Care

  e.g. body care, cosmetics, wellness, hygienics

• Building & Elements

  e.g. Smart Home, building management, building materials, window and door manufacturers, construction elements, insulating material producers

• Chemical Industry

  e.g. fine chemicals, specialty chemicals

• Consumer Electronics

  e.g. entertainment electronics, TV, audio, video, photo

• Corporate Services

  e.g. business and personnel consulting, tax consulting, lawyers, security services

• Culture

  e.g. orchestras, theatres, museums

• Education

  e.g. schools, universities, kindergartens, other educational institutions private or public

• Entertainment

  e.g. TV show brands, digital formats, concerts, shows

• Fashion

  e.g. clothing, shoes, accessories, bags and luggage

• Fast Moving Consumer Goods

  e.g. food, beverages, drugstore articles

• Gardening & Tools

  e.g. garden tools, garden furniture, tools

• Health & Pharmaceuticals

  e.g. hospitals, nursing homes, health services, medical technology and medical products, pharmaceuticals 

• Heating & Bathroom

  e.g. heating, air-conditioning and energy technology, bathrooms and sanitary facilities

• Industry, Machines & Engineering

  e.g. industry 4.0, machinery & plant construction, machine tools, industrial components, construction machinery

• Insurance

  e.g. insurance companies, statutory health insurance funds, insurance brokers

• Interior & Living

  e.g. furniture, home textiles, floor coverings

• Kids & Toys

  e.g. games, toys, children's products

• Kitchen & Household Appliances

  e.g. kitchen appliances, cleaning equipment, robots

• Leisure & Crafts

  e.g. toys, art and craft supplies, musical instruments

• Lighting

  e.g. lighting, illuminants, lighting technology

• Logistics & Infrastructure

  e.g. utilities, power generators, logistics service providers, cable network providers

• Luxury

  e.g. luxury articles, jewellery, watches 

• Media & Publishing

  e.g. media companies, publishers, TV stations, radio stations, news portals, YouTube channels, newspapers, magazines

• Non-Governmental Organisation

  e.g. charitable institutions, foundations, associations

• Office & Stationery

  e.g. paper, office supplies, stationery

• Public Affairs, City & State

  e.g. city brands, regional brands, parties

• Research and Development

  research institutes, foundations, universities

• Sports & Outdoor Goods

  e.g. sports equipment and products, sports equipment clothing

• Sports Associations & Sporting Clubs

  e.g. associations, clubs, leagues incl. e-sports, championships, tournaments

• Telecommunications & IT

  e.g. telecommunications companies, Hardware and software manufacturers, cloud solution providers, IT service providers

• Tourism

  e.g. hotels, tour operators, airlines, travel marketer

• Trade Fairs & Event Locations

  e.g. trade fair companies, arenas, stadiums & venues

• Trade, Retail & e-Commerce

  e.g. food retailing, fashion chains, web shops, comparison portals

• Transport & Mobility

  e.g. automobility, electromobility, mobility service provider

• ___________________________________________

• Additional categories

• »Brand Innovation of the Year«

  Best brand innovation

• »Corporate Brand of the Year«

  Best corporate brand

• »Digital Brand of the Year«

  best digital brand

• »Employer Brand of the Year«

  Best employer brand

• »Newcomer Brand of the Year«

  Best start-up

• »Product Brand of the Year«

  Best product brand

• »Service Brand of the Year«

  Best service brand

• »Sustainable Brand of the Year«

  Most sustainable brand

• »Excellence in Brand Strategy and Creation«
• honours the best projects in individual disciplines:

• Brand Behaviour

  e.g. behaviour guidelines, employee programs, corporate fashion collections

• Brand Design

  e.g. corporate design, product design

• Brand Digitalization

  e.g. digital brand experiences

• Brand Communication – Business Model & Product Innovation

  e.g. digital business models, disruptive approaches, new product launches

• Brand Strategy

  e.g. brand portfolio, brand architecture, brand positioning, brand partnership strategies, brand controlling

• Employer Branding Activities & Campaigns

  e.g. employer marketing, employer brand campaigns and events

• Internal Branding & Brand Academies

  e.g. brand academies, internal brand communication concepts, internal communication, e-learning offers

• Brand Communication - Acustic & Sensoric branding

  z.B. Audio Logos, Sound Logos, Klangwelten, Earcons, Corporate Songs

• Brand Communication – Ambient Media & Outdoor Advertising

  e.g. poster campaigns, city light, special advertising forms

• Brand Communication – Architecture & Buildings

  e.g. brand-typical architecture of company buildings

• Brand Communication – Brand Events, Fairs & Exhibitions

  e.g. trade fair stands, pop-up stores, company anniversaries, brand experience centres

• Brand Communication – Dialogue & CRM

  e.g. CRM programs, mailings off- and online, integrated dialog campaigns, direct marketing activities

• Brand Communication - Digital solutions & Apps

  e.g. digital solutions, apps

• Brand Communication – Influencer Marketing

  e.g. influencer campaigns

• Brand Communication – Integrated Campaign

  e.g. image campaigns, product campaigns

• Brand Communication – Intranet & Collaboration

  e.g. intranet portals, collaboration platforms, forums and blogs

• Brand Communication – Movies, Commercials & Virals

  e.g. corporate films, image films, TV commercials, virals

• Brand Communication – Point of Sale

  e.g. flagship stores, franchise concepts, branch systems, individual shops, digital showrooms, e-shops

• Brand Communication – Print

  e.g. advertising campaigns, annual reports, yearbooks

• Brand Communication – Public Relations

  e.g. press conferences & events, press dialog & tools

• Brand Communication – Social Media

  e.g. activities and campaigns for e.g. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, Snapchat 

• Brand Communication – Storytelling & Content Marketing

  e.g. content marketing

• Brand Communication – User experience

  e.g. holistic customer experiences, HMI, interfaces

• Brand Communication – Web & Mobile

  e.g. company or product websites, microsites, portals, magazines, blogs

• ___________________________________________

• Additional categories

• »Agency of the Year«

  Best agency

• »Brand Experience of the Year«

  Best brand experience

• »Brand Effect of the Year«

  Project with the best effect

• »Lighthouse Project of the Year«

  Project with the greatest radiance

• »Employer Branding Project of the Year«

  Best employer brand

• »Brand Strategy of the Year«

  beste Markenstrategie

• »Brand Innovation of the Year«

  best brand innovation