Apr 19 2013

Microsoft’s new operating system for mobile devices, Windows 8, was launched just a few months ago. But that’s exactly the kind of new challenges which stimulate our developerse! That’s why a team of Emakina’s mobile experts participated in Microsoft’s Superhackathon competition.

The Superhackathon brought hundreds of young and bright developers who worked simultaneously in four different locations across the country. Their goal was one: create the best Windows 8 app! Unfortunately, only one team can go home with the first prize. Fortunately, it was us…! First, our team won the first place in Mons. Then came the real big news: First place at the national finals went to Emakina’s Fit beast.

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Mar 11 2013

Que pourrait-on ajouter n’ayant pas encore été dit à propos de ce projet inédit transeuropéen et transmédia ? The Spiral a déjà retenu l’attention de la presse internationale grâce à l’originale combinaison de suspens de série télé, de jeu en ligne (développé par Emakina) et d’événement physique.

Mais ce qui arrive est bien plus grand que tout ce à quoi nous nous attendions : effectivement, The Spiral est officiellement nommé aux International Digital Emmy Awards 2013 !

Aux côtés de trois autres candidats, The Spiral a été nominé dans la catégorie fiction. Les gagnants seront présentés avec leur Emmy Award lors de l’International Digital Emmy Awards, soirée d’ouverture du MIPTV le lundi 8 Avril, à Cannes.

Selon Bruce L. Paisner, président de l’International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences « Les candidats 2013 du Emmy Award présentent un aperçu global des productions digitales les plus créatives et performantes d’aujourd’hui ».

*Traduit du post anglais, écrit par Dan Sobovitz pour Emakina.com

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Feb 22 2013

What hasn’t been said about this unique cross-country cross-media project? The Spiral has already won major attention of the international press, thanks to the original combination of a suspense TV series, a highly popular online game (developed by Emakina), and real-life events.

But this is bigger than even we could have ever expected:

The Spiral is now officially nominated to the 2013 International Digital Emmy Awards!

Along with three other candidates, The Spiral was nominated under the Fiction category. Winners will be presented with their Emmys at The International Digital Emmy Awards ceremony, during MIPTV’s Opening night festivities on Monday, April 8, in Cannes.

According to Bruce L. Paisner, CEO of the International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, “”The 2013 Digital Emmy Award Nominees present a global snapshot of today’s most creative and well produced digital programming.”

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Jul 23 2012

Deep down, we’ve always known we were one of the coolest agencies around. We are reminded of that every time we sit in one of our hyper-creatively designed meeting rooms, when we hear of yet another award we just won, or when our top management is (again) making headlines for its crucial influence.

What we did not expect was for our trade mark to become an international pop icon!

French DJ, David Guetta, seems to have been so deeply impressed by our insignia that he simply had to turn it into the visual theme of his new video…

PS. David, congrats for the new song. And if we may, Emakina looks smashingly good on you…:)

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Jul 9 2012

Following the great success of previous collaborations between Emakina and Test-Achats, the Belgian consumer-protection organisation has contacted us again. This time, we were asked to promote the organisation’s “Best Buy” service, offering Test-Achats members, access to a comprehensive data base of product analyses. So before spending money on buying a new camera, phone, television, or even a bicycle – it’s worth checking what the Test-Achats experts have to say about your product’s value-for-money. As opposed to other comparison sites, the Best Buy platform is not based on subjective consumers’ impressions but rather on a series of extensive scientific tests, conducted in laboratory conditions.

This was a key element of our approach when Emakina was asked to promote the new service. In a set of print ads we presented various electronic appliances disassembled into their smallest particles in order to illustrate the thoroughness of the testing process. We know this was a huge success, not only because “Media Marketing” magazine  chosenit as “campaign of the month” (in its May 2012 edition) but also because this campaign was subsequently exported to the Test-Achats branches in Spain, Brazil, Portugal and soon Italy. What started off as a local campaign to assist Belgian consumers is now expanding all over Europe and has even crossed the ocean!

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Jun 25 2012

You’ve all seen the signs, hung all across the city of Brussels, inviting participants to the EU Sustainable Energy Week. But have you watched the viral clip, produced by Emakina, which accompanies this cross-national campaign?

The EU Sustainable Energy Week (EUSEW) is the key annual event of the Sustainable Energy Europe Campaign. It showcases activities and over 600 events, dedicated to energy efficiency and renewable energy solutions in almost 40 countries. These events are organised by the Executive Agency for Competitiveness and Innovation (EACI) on behalf of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Energy. From 18 to 22 June, more than 30,000 participants discussed energy efficiency and renewable energy in all their forms during the 2012 edition of EU Sustainable Energy Week.

The new video trailer, produced by Emakina.eu, shows how small changes can make a big difference in the future of our energy consumption. The video was being used to promote this large-scale annual event. Its target audience was fairly wide, with a spectrum of industries, schools, local authorities and municipalities, transport companies and academia. In addition, Emakina produced a series of interviews with winners of the EUSEW Awards, using the same visual identity and setting as that used in the clip in order to give the campaign a coherent branding. Among the interviewees are representatives of initiatives from the UK, Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands; and even a Belgian minister.

For more information on the events, please visit the Sustainable Energy Week website.

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May 30 2012

The  50 Lawyers campaign developed by Emakina for Test-Achats/Test Aankoop wins an important price, once again.
Emakina’s David Grünewald and Xavier Bouillon were welcomed in the Nest of the Best at the 8th Cuckoos, the competition for Best ‘Winning Direct Marketing Campaigns’, of the Belgian Direct Marketing Association.
As winners of the B2C Cuckoo, they received their trophy at a spectacular gala evening at the Brussels Autoworld.

Their smart message, combined with the creation of a coherent Eco-system and dynamic social media actions, were recognised by the Belgian Direct Marketing Association as an outstanding achievement.

This is the fourth major award for the Test-Achats campaign, having already collected IAC and Communicator awards and a Mixx.

The message that 50 lawyers are ready to go to war for your consumer rights was supported by social media activities and a viral clip. It generated a record number of citizens engaging with the organisation. Up to date, a record number of 31.863 consumer complaints were filed on the tailor-made campaign website. The once ‘hidden treasure’ of the legal service is now property of all consumers.

And the campaign catches on. It is now starting its second life with similar initiatives in Italy, Spain, Portugal and Brazil. Emakina manages the contacts with the local sister consumer associations and is adapting the messages to the different languages .

The army of lawyers now has a lot of work. Luckily they are well trained and in top shape…

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May 14 2012

But in order for Brice to win the ‘Wow Effect’ award he still needs your vote…

What is that all about? Well, the Belgian Direct Marketing Association (BDMA) runs a competition for selecting the person who had the greatest contribution to the direct marketing sector. One of the four candidates for this year’s award is Emakina’s Chief Visionary Officer, Brice Le Blévennec.

That’s all you need to know. Now go execute your democratic right and vote (for Brice)!

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Apr 3 2012

As every year, business magazine Trends-Tendances has ranked the fastest growing companies across the Belgian market. The competition is open for companies active for at least five years, presenting a positive cash-flow, and which have created at least 20 jobs since their creation.

Out of a database of the top 100,000 companies, Trends-Tendances selects the best cases in three different size categories: small, medium, and large. Emakina made the Gazelles list of medium-size companies thanks to its solid figures: 17% growth in its turnover, 153% increase in cash-flow, and 34% in its personnel. Winners were announced in Brussels in a festive event on March 28, at the Tour&Taxis venue.

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Mar 27 2012

It’s not easy, knowing that we were yet again winners of such distinguished prizes, and to have to remain silent about it… But now that the organisers of the Internet Advertising Competition (IAC) gave us their OK, we can proudly announce: we did it; Emakina won two IACs this year!

Our first prize was for the “Test-Achats 50 Avocats ” campaign, under the Best Magazine Online category. The original campaign was supported by social media activities and a viral clip on protecting consumer rights. It generated a record number of citizens engaging with the organisation, thus making it more relevant than ever before.

We also won the Outstanding Website award for Belgium Rollers’s new home page, designed by Emakina. Thanks to its original funky characters and marvelous design, the website presents to its visitors the fun urban universe in the Roller Parade spirit. All that’s left is scrolling and clicking around this dynamic website in order to learn about the event!

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Mar 5 2012

The Delhaize Dream Job Website, created by Emakina, won the ‘Best in Class’ prize under the ‘Recruitment’ category, in the 2011 competition of the Interactive Media Awards (IMA). This announcement comes shortly after Emakina was bestowed six other awards in this year’s competition. The IMA recognize the highest standards of excellence in website design and development and honour individuals and organizations for their outstanding achievement.

The ‘Best in Class’ award is the highest honour of the competition, representing the very best in planning, execution and overall professionalism. In order to win this award level, the Delhaize website had to successfully pass a comprehensive judging process, achieving very high marks in each of the judging criteria – an achievement only a fraction of sites in the IMA competition earn each year.

The judges utilised a points-based scoring system which allows each entry to receive up to 100 points for each of five criteria, adding up to a maximum of 500 points. By adhering to the specific guidelines and criteria of this system judges were able to maintain the highest degree of fairness, accuracy and integrity; competently and effectively evaluate entries; and, deliver clear results.

Websites receiving an overall score between 460 and 479 receive the Outstanding Achievement award. A score of 480 and above entitles the prestigious ‘Best in Class’ award. Our website scored a total of 489 points (96 on Design, 98 on Content, 100 on Features Functionality, 97 on Usability, and 98 on Standard Compliance & Cross-Browser Capability), making it a ‘Best in Class’ laureate. This is the seventh IMA Emakina wins in 2011 and our 24^th IMA since 2008.

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Mar 1 2012

Data News magazine, organiser of the annual Data News Awards for Excellence, has announced its final list of candidates for this year’s awards. Every year, the magazine selects the most promising companies, products, and individuals of the ICT industry, awarding them for their outstanding contribution in one of twelve categories.  The magazine additionally recognizes one individual as the “ICT Personality of the Year”. This year’s list of nominees for the prestigious ICT Personality award includes Brice Le Blévennec, Emakina’s  President and Chief Visionary Officer.

Candidates were selected based on a series of interviews with ICT specialists, university professors, and presidents of professional associations. Le Blévennec’s nomination was justified by the fact that he is “a self-made man”. He started his career at the age of 16, and now serves as president of Emakina – “by far the largest web company in Belgium”. The company’s multi-national profile and its ambitions to become among Europe’s top five – were equally emphasised by Data News’ editorial staff.

Data News has assembled a specialized jury to select the winner in each category. The jury is made up of representatives from the academic world, business, and the magazine’s editorial team. Final winners will be announced at the Data News Awards of Excellence ceremony, to be held on April 26^th at the Tour & Taxis venue.

 Le Blévennec among some of the other candidates for the ICT Personality prize

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Feb 27 2012

Inside Digital Media’s new annual digital communication ranking, made with Feweb, once again places Emakina in the number one position in the Belgian agency list. Investments in marketing in 2011 were influenced by the financial crisis, shortages in human resources and reluctance of advertisers. Inside indicates in its February special issue that not all interactive agencies have reacted as successfully to this second crash test in a decade in the market.

For Emakina, the trend clearly had a positive effect. The 375 staff members generated new growth with well over 20 %. The market confirmed that digital marketing has become an unavoidable necessity, and the digital native agency benefits from this conclusion.

Brice Le Blévennec, CVO of Emakina, further states in Inside Digital Media that companies are entering an era of mature online marketing and promotions. Digital budgets went up, replacing spending in traditional advertising, with a swing towards social and mobile projects.

Large companies are rationalizing their approach. A series of large accounts have decided in 2011 to reduce the number of authorized agencies that can work for them, often on a European scale. Others have opted to work with partners who could offer a portfolio of services, improving the coordination of service providers.

Brice Le Blévennec concludes: “Emakina now harvests the fruit of its investments in strategy, creative, social and mobile competences. As a real digital native agency, we are well equipped, staffed and organized to handle the new market demands. We understand the pressures and challenges our clients face and we can help them to respond with smart, efficient communication solutions”.

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Feb 17 2012

Emakina is one of the big winners in the Interactive Media Awards, with 2 ‘Best in Class’ and 4 ‘Outstanding Achievement’ distinctions. The jury of this worldwide contest follows the highest standards of excellence in web design and development and honours individuals and organizations for their outstanding achievement.

The Interactive Media Council (IMC) who created the awards is an international association of leading web designers, developers, programmers, advertisers and other web-related professionals.

International Crisis Group and Evolta City, Best in Class

The ‘Best in Class’ award is the highest honour bestowed by the Interactive Media Council.

This year, Emakina’s The Reference receives the prestigious award for the International Crisis Group Website. The project successfully combines the serious nature of this worldwide organisation with its dynamic, open communication style, while emphasizing ICG’s values and strengths.

Panasonic Evolta City, a project by Design is Dead also received this highest honour, in the category  ‘Community’. The collaborative social media game brought together players from across Europe to build the biggest Zero CO2-emission City on the World Wide Web.

The jury declared both winners excelled in all areas of the judging criteria and achieved a perfect or near perfect overall score. Both sites represent the highest standards of professionalism, compliance, impeccable planning and execution.

Four Outstanding Achievements

The ‘Outstanding Achievement’ awards are the second highest prize bestowed by IMA. Emakina was selected four times out of the international pack of competitors.

The Schweppesonality campaign won in the ‘Lifestyle’ category. The Schweppes brand is working on a global rebranding, together with Emakina. Schweppesonality is an original activation campaign about the fans of the brand and their charismatic, unexpected and inspiring personalities, true Schweppesonalities.

SamsungWorld received the award in the category ‘Community’ and ‘Consumer Services’ website.  This new online meeting point for Samsung clients channels all opinions and discussions on Samsung and its products towards one, dynamic environment. Visitors exchange ideas and discover promotions, goodies and news items, in a tailor made CRM system.

50 Lawyers last but not least is the winning campaign for Test-Achats, in the category ‘Professional Services’. In a web centric campaign eco system, consumers were invited to file their complaints online and share their experience in social media. The original campaign showed TestAchats/Test-Aankoop lawyers in a military training camp, preparing to fight for the rights of their consumer clients.

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Nov 10 2011

Today is usability day. And Emakina can be proud to announce that The Reference, a company of the Emakina group located in Ghent, is the big winner of yesterday’s Usability Awards 2011.

The new website of Infrax, a client of The Reference, won 2 out of 3 first prizes in the awards, making them the star of the evening. It won the First prize in the category ‘General public’ and the ‘Non-profit and e-gov’ category.

The jury composed of experts in usability, created a shortlist of 10 finalist out of 95 user-friendly websites that entered the competition. The public could then choose their preferred usability site.

Over 3000 votes were cast, giving Infrax the clear ‘thumbs up’ with ¼ of the votes.

In the categories non-profit and profit, the jury also evaluates the selection and gives points on 8 criteria. They assess the quality of the homepage, overview and detail pages, navigation and search functions, forms and content, copywriting and the overall impression. Here again, Infrax won the first prize, in the category ‘Non-profit and e-gov’.

The internet agency from Ghent, The Reference, created the new site for the network manager, with the help of AG Consult who were in charge of testing and fine tuning user friendliness.

Infrax clearly chose from the start of the project to make usability a key objective for their new website. A strongly ‘task based’ approach insures the user at one glance finds the right documents, linked to the online visit, for the specific needs related to electricity, gas, sewers or TV connectivity.

The clear home page and topical pages make the site an easy and pleasant tool for any client. By respecting standards and building in horizontal resting points and ‘jump to links’, the site was made even more to the point and intuitive.

Infrax is a collaboration between Interelectra, Iveg, Infrax West en PBE. Infrax manages the good use, maintenance and development of all public canalization related services (gas, electricity, cable television and/ or sewer systems) on the territory of a large number of communities in Belgium.

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