As part of their 20th Anniversary celebrations, YouTube hosted the YouTube Works Awards in partnership with Kantar, which recognizes brands and agencies that have used YouTube to deliver exceptional storytelling and drive tangible business results.
Launched earlier in the year, a panel of industry leaders was convened to judge entries across six categories, with a focus on campaigns that demonstrated effective use of audience insights, creative vision, technology, and cross-platform integration to achieve significant business impact.
The awards underscore YouTube’s position as a platform that bridges the gap between advertisers and their audiences. YouTube provides a successful platform that also connects new brands to their audience, as 87% of viewers engage with ads, and two-thirds find them relevant and trustworthy through the platform.
Speaking at the event, Kabelo Makwane, Country Director for Google South Africa, said, “Congratulations to all the winners! The caliber of submissions we received was truly outstanding, and they showcased the vibrant ingenuity of South Africa’s advertising industry.”
“We launched these awards to celebrate the innovative talent behind campaigns that not only tell brilliant stories but also leverage YouTube to connect with over 25 million viewers and achieve significant business results. This celebratory moment shows our commitment to the growth of the creative ecosystem in South Africa even as we celebrate YouTube’s 20th birthday,” Makwane added.
The awards also recognized excellence in the following categories:
| GRAND PRIX WINNER | ||
| Winner | Absa Group Limited | I Grew It: Finance 101 |
| THE CREATIVE VISIONARY | ||
| Winner | WeBuyCars | Rev-Jou-Jeep |
| Silver | Lekkeslaap – Tripco (Pty) Ltd | There’s Something for Everyone |
| Silver | Heineken Beverages: Savanna | Savanna Neat |
| Bronze | Heineken Beverages: Savanna | Savanna Angry Lemon |
| Bronze | Dromex | Dromex South Africa Respiratory 2025 |
| Bronze | City of Cape Town | Worst Passengers |
| THE UNDERDOG | ||
| Winner | Dream drive technologies (pty) ltd | Dream Drive Launch |
| Silver | Autotrader – Homefind24 (Pty) Ltd | Do it Big with Autotrader |
| Silver | AB InBev | Drive Sharp |
| Bronze | Cartrack | Cartrack’s Anti-Jamming |
| THE YOUTUBE SYMPHONY | ||
| Winner | Absa Group Limited | I Grew It: Finance 101 |
| Silver | Volkswagen Group South Africa | Volkswagen Night School |
| Bronze | Woolworths | Easter Awareness + Partnership Ads Experiment |
| Bronze | Reckitt | Gaviscon | Gaviscon Superiority |
| Bronze | Mondelez South Africa | Oreo | Oreo Our Way |
| THE TECH PIONEER | ||
| Winner | Takealot – Naspers | George & Mason |
| Silver | Takealot – Naspers | Sol De Janeiro |
| Silver | Volkswagen Group South Africa | Volkswagen Night School |
| Bronze | Standard Bank | AI Powered music ads |
| Bronze | MTN | MTN Demand Gen Campaign |
| THE HIDDEN GEM | ||
| Winner | Heineken Beverages: Windhoek | The Beer Ads Without The Beer |
| Silver | King Price | In-Sho-Sho |
| Silver | Showmax | Shebeen Queen |
| Bronze | Nedbank | Youth Honours Board |
| Bronze | Capitec Bank | Capitec Strategic Initiative |
| Bronze | Pepkor Payments & Lending | Volume Driver |
| Bronze | Betway SA20 | Betway SA20 x Season 3 2025 |
| THE SHAPE SHIFTER | ||
| Silver | Mondelez South Africa | LunchBar | Bra Lucas |
| Silver | Nedbank | Bank Your Time |
| Silver | Nivea – Beiersdorf | Nivea Rich Nourishing |
The winners showcased how bold ideas, combined with powerful storytelling and strategic execution on YouTube, can resonate far beyond the screen. The judging process, overseen by Kantar, focused on clear business objectives and demonstrable impact, ensuring the awards are a true reflection of advertising effectiveness.
Candice Thurston, Absa Group Marketing Executive, who accepted both of the company’s awards with her team, said, “We believe that YouTube will be one of our most important channels across all our Pan-African markets in the next few years, and ‘I Grew it” was our first YouTube lead channel campaign. It was created to spark financial literacy and empowerment, reminding South Africans that when you nurture knowledge, you grow independence and confidence. This recognition from YouTube reinforces that your story matters.”
