BBDO named 2012's most awarded advertising agency network by The Directory Big Won Rankings

Patrick Collister has released his annual analysis of the world's best communications agencies and campaigns, from advertising to direct marketing, as measured by the quality and quantity of awards won.

Patrick Collister’s The Directory Big Won, in conjunction with The Drum, has revealed that BBDO (including Proximity) is the most awarded ad network of 2012. The Directory Big Won rankings are based on 4,459 separate campaigns or pieces of creative work, which won awards at 39 shows around the world. Of the 1,595 agencies who won awards in 2012, 223 were from integrated campaigns, 599 from press awards, 614 from posters or outdoor campaigns, 634 from digital campaigns, 785 from TV and film campaigns, and 1,134 direct marketing. To achieve Top Five agency status in the Big Won rankings an agency has to produce work to a consistently high standard across most of its portfolio of clients. As the most creative agency 2012, Colenso BBDO Auckland won 110 awards (30 per cent of which were Golds or Grand Prix) with 20 separate pieces of work on behalf of 11 clients. BBDO New York won 119 awards with 52 separate pieces of work for 16 different clients. Serviceplan Munich won 77 awards for some 15 clients, and AMV BBDO London took home 82 awards for 18 of its clients. Creative countriesThe USA was found to be 2012's most creative country with Germany and the UK coming in second and third respectively. The UK came third in 2008, 2009 and 2010 but went up to second place in 2011, again behind the US. In terms of rankings by media, the UK is second when it comes to outdoor/poster advertising and TV/Film. The UK takes the fourth spot for direct marketing, and comes in fifth for both media and digital campaigns. The UK takes sixth place for integrated campaigns and comes in eighth for radio. In press, design, and alternative and innovative, the UK is outside the Top 10 ranking. UK listingsFor the sixth year in a row, Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO has cinched the top spot as the Number One UK agency. AMV BBDO is also Number One in the UK for radio, film and TV, and digital campaigns. “Dips Desperado” was the Number One campaign for TV and film in the UK, but the agency also had four campaigns in the digital Top 10, with Mercedes “Escape the Map” ranking in third place. DDB was the UK’s Number One press agency, and BBH, the third UK agency to dominate the Big Won rankings since the listing began, has been named the UK’s second most awarded agency having won in outdoor, press, TV and film, digital, and integrated for Aaron Biber, Google, The Guardian, Audi, St. John’s Ambulance, Unilever Lynx, Weetabix, ASOS, Johnnie Walker and Yeo Valley. Wieden + Kennedy ranked equal seventh with Euro RSCG London. Notable absences from the UK Top 10 include Fallon, Mother and Saatchi & Saatchi. First time appearances in the Top 10 are OgilvyOne in fourth place, Euro RSCG London, DLKW Lowe in ninth, and Grey rounding off the Top 10 at Number 10. The Big Won Rankings also covers the top campaigns across all channels (UK), the top agencies for creativity across all media (global) the top campaigns across all channels (global), the top design agencies and top design campaigns (UK and global), the top digital agencies and top digital campaigns (UK and global), the top direct agencies and direct campaigns (UK and global), the top outdoor agencies and outdoor campaigns (UK and global), the top press agencies (UK and global), the top TV agencies and TV campaigns (UK and global), the top integrated campaigns (UK and global), the top copywriters (UK and global), the top art directors (UK and global), and the top CCO/ECD’s (UK and global).