The 2025 Webby Awards and the Future of B2B Marketing

What’s next in digital culture? The 2025 Webby Awards provides a great way to find out. Surprisingly (or not?), the insights and impact go beyond TikTok and B2C brands. For B2B marketers, these awards offer a sneak peek into how expectations are shifting and what it takes to earn attention in a noisy, distracted world—and how to stay visible, valuable, and trusted.

Five things to learn from the winners

1. Create content with character
What’s working and winning for Trixie Mattel, Nickelodeon, and other creators and brands? Personality, irreverence, and emotional connection. Provocative beyond expectations, “nonsense is the new wave online,” reports the 2025 Webby Trend Report. “From ‘brainrot’ to ‘brat,’ niche, absurd, and humorous, microtrends on the internet are shifting culture.”

B2B takeaway: Your brand needs a recognizable voice. One that’s confident, real, and distinct. Because the buying journey starts way before a demo request—it starts with whether someone even remembers who you are. (To put it more bluntly, try to avoid bland, jargon-packed white papers.)

2. AI is front and center
The best use of emerging tech was emotionally resonant, visually dynamic, and creatively integrated. A prime example: Reid Hoffman’s conversation with his AI twin, which didn’t just use AI, but made it the feature.

B2B takeaway: Whether you’re selling AI tools or using AI to power customer experiences, make the innovation tangible and understandable. Don’t just talk about AI—show it.

3. Make cool experiences
Digital that’s fast, intuitive, and joyful got the spotlight. The “Sing Sing” project won for best mobile UX. The Obama Foundation was celebrated for its clarity and accessibility. Design wasn’t decoration—it was differentiation.

B2B takeaway: Make every web experience seamless, responsive, and buyer focused. Your site is more than a brochure—it’s a growth engine.

4. Leverage community and collabs
Winning brands let their audiences in on the fun. For example, Nickelodeon’s “Live from Bikini Bottom” Super Bowl activation and the fan-created Skibidi Toilet Multiverse showed how much users want to participate, not just consume.

B2B takeaway: Whether it’s activating customer voices, showcasing partners, or engaging your employee brand, creating space for cocreation boosts credibility and reach.

5. Purpose still matters
Projects with a strong sense of social responsibility stood out. The National Immigration Law Center podcast won big for its storytelling around equity and inclusion. The Obama Foundation was another standout in the nonprofit space.

B2B takeaway: If you’re not clear about what your brand believes in, don’t expect buyers to believe in you. This isn’t about virtue signaling—it’s about showing up with clarity and conviction.

Our POV: B2B needs to borrow from the best of the internet

At CMD, we believe B2B brands need to stop viewing consumer creativity as irrelevant. The people laughing at memes and watching fan edits on their phones—they’re also your buyers. And their standards for digital experiences are rising by the day.

So instead of asking, “How do we stand out in a crowded category?” ask:

• How can we inject personality into our brand voice?
• What could we do with emerging tech that surprises or educates?
• Where are we still making it hard for users to engage or convert?
• What conversations or communities could we be enabling?

Because the winners of the Webby Awards aren’t just digital darlings. They’re setting new expectations for what engaging, effective, and memorable digital experiences look and feel like. Moreover, brands that score highly on creative effectiveness grow twice as fast.

Companies that prioritize creativity and design outperform their peers by 2x in revenue growth and shareholder returns. (McKinsey & Company, The Business Value of Design)

Brands delivering superior customer experiences see 1.6x higher brand awareness and 1.9x higher average order value, driving long-term growth. (Forrester, The US Customer Experience Index)

 

Conclusion: You don’t need a Webby, but don’t settle for the status quo

Not every B2B brand needs to win an award. But every B2B brand needs to pay attention. The way people experience content, form opinions, and make decisions is changing fast. If your marketing looks and feels the same as it did two years ago, you’re falling behind.

Want to apply these insights to your site, campaign, or next big idea? Let’s talk about how we can bring a little Webby-worthy thinking to your B2B marketing.