Beyond the Hashtag: Cork Chamber of Commerce - Overall Digital Marketing Legends 2024
Cork Chamber recently sat down with Sinead O’Dea, Deputy Head of Griffith College Cork, to reflect on the College's recognition as "Digital Legends", an honour that celebrates its lasting impact and influence in the digital landscape.
1. What did winning the overall Digital Marketing Legend title mean for your team or business?
Winning the Overall Digital Marketing Legends award and the Best Digital Marketing Team award at the 2024 Cork Digital Marketing Awards was a huge milestone for us at Griffith College Cork. It wasn’t just an award; it was a powerful recognition of the creativity, strategy, and dedication that our team brings to every campaign. Digital platforms are a key way in which the college promotes its undergraduate, postgraduate and professional courses to potential learners nationwide. We’ve invested considerable resources to ensure our content is engaging and impactful.
The win validated our efforts and strengthened our brand’s reputation. It was a moment of celebration that reminded us of the profound impact our digital voice can have.
2. Upon entering the awards, did it help you reflect on or improve your digital strategy?
Absolutely. Preparing our submission last year was an opportunity to pause and critically evaluate how far we had come. It helped us clarify what was working, identify opportunities for improvement, and highlight the value of strategic collaboration, both within the college and with our agency partners.
That process of reflection pushed us toward more refined, results-driven strategies and has continued to shape our digital direction since the awards.
3. What advice would you give to businesses considering entering this year’s awards?
Our advice is, don’t hesitate and go for it! Whether you're a start-up, a growing SME, or a large organisation, entering the Cork Digital Marketing Awards is a valuable experience.
Bring your digital marketing team together and select the categories that best highlight your digital strengths. You may have redesigned your website recently or prioritised growing engagement on social media. Tell your story of what makes your digital journey unique and impactful, using metrics to support this.
The process encourages strategic reflection, and even being shortlisted can provide visibility and validation. If you win, the recognition is powerful. But even without a trophy, it’s a great opportunity to increase brand awareness and benchmark your progress.
4. How has the recognition from the awards impacted your brand visibility or engagement since your win?
Since our win in 2024, we’ve seen a tangible boost in brand visibility, media attention, and audience engagement. The award gave us a strong talking point in outreach and communications, and reinforced our leadership in digital strategy. It also instilled a strong sense of pride across our campus community. As we celebrated our 50th anniversary last year, this recognition felt especially meaningful, and positioned Griffith College as a digital-first third-level institution, ready to innovate for the next 50 years.
Final Thoughts
As someone who’s had the honour of being recognised in the past, I know just how meaningful these awards can be - not only as a celebration of achievement, but as a reminder of the incredible talent, creativity, and innovation thriving in our community.
To all this year’s nominees and contenders: enjoy every moment of the journey, take pride in your work, and know that your efforts are already making an impact.
View our previous news story here: Griffith College Wins Big at Cork Digital Marketing Awards 2024
Wishing you all the very best of luck!
Warmest regards,
Sinead O’Dea
Deputy Head of Campus
Griffith College Cork
