Hat Media Wins Two Stevie® Awards for Innovation and Thought Leadership

We’re incredibly honoured to announce that Hat Media has been recognised with two 2025 Asia-Pacific Stevie® Awards—receiving accolades in the categories of Most Innovative Marketing or Advertising Professional of the Year and Thought Leader of the Year.

These awards are more than just industry recognition—they’re a moment of reflection and gratitude. They speak to the heart of what we stand for: an ongoing pursuit of excellence, innovation, and leadership in the ever-evolving world of digital marketing.

A Celebration of Regional Innovation

The Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards are the only business awards program that specifically recognises innovation in the workplace across all 29 markets of the Asia-Pacific region. Widely regarded as one of the world’s premier business awards, the Stevies—named after the Greek word for “crowned”—have honoured outstanding business achievements for over two decades through programs like The International Business Awards®.

This year, more than 1,000 nominations were submitted across a range of categories including Innovation in Products & Services, Corporate Websites, and Management. Winners were determined by the average scores of over 100 executives around the globe, who served as judges throughout February and March.

Hat Media’s dual win in Most Innovative Marketing or Advertising Professional of the Year and Thought Leader of the Year is a genuine honour—and we’re deeply grateful to be recognised alongside so many impressive organisations and individuals from across the region.

"The 12th Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards received an impressive array of outstanding entries," said Maggie Miller, President of the Stevie Awards. "This year’s winners have clearly shown their dedication to innovation, and we commend their resilience and imaginative efforts. We’re excited to honor many of them at our awards ceremony on 13 May."

The 2025 award ceremony will take place in Seoul, South Korea, bringing together some of the brightest minds and boldest ideas from across APAC. We are excited (and a little stunned!) to be part of it.

Innovation With Purpose

For us, innovation has never been about trend-chasing or disruption for disruption’s sake. It’s about creating meaningful value—through data, creativity, and strategy—whether we’re launching a campaign, building a tech stack, or helping a startup founder find their market footing.

Joana Inch, our Co-Founder, has always approached marketing with this ethos in mind. Her award-winning leadership has helped shape Hat Media’s transformation from a digital agency to one of Australia’s leading B2B strategy partners for SaaS enterprises.

From pioneering account-based marketing (ABM) strategies in Australia to designing integrated demand generation programs for clients like Lenovo, Joana’s work has constantly sought to bridge the gap between innovation and action. A standout example of this is our Lenovo campaign, which delivered:

• $66 million in revenue in 12 months
• 30% increase in subscribers
• 35% email open rate—13% above the industry average
• Influencer-authored content and organic mentions from global brands like Xerox
• Recognition from LinkedIn as a Top 1% content marketing site globally
• Finalist placement in the mUmBRELLA Asia Awards

Recognising Real Leadership

Winning Thought Leader of the Year feels especially meaningful because thought leadership isn't just about sharing opinions—it’s about consistently contributing insights, sparking meaningful conversations, and helping others succeed.

Over the past few years, Joana has become a trusted voice in the SaaS and B2B marketing space. From hosting the SaaS Stories podcast, which saw over 750% growth in streams in 2024, to authoring two books—‘Go To Market’ (an Amazon bestseller) and the recently released ‘Account-Based Playbook’—she has worked tirelessly to support founders and marketers navigating complexity.