Northern Ireland’s social media stars shine bright as 2025 winners announced

Such a brilliant night in the Europa!

The winners of the 2025 Northern Ireland Social Media Awards were announced at a glittering ceremony in the Europa Hotel, celebrating the individuals, brands and organisations leading the way in creativity, community and impact online.

Now in its sixth year, the awards recognised excellence across more than 30 categories, highlighting the strength, innovation and authenticity that define Northern Ireland’s vibrant digital landscape.

This year’s theme, ‘Let Them’, embodied confidence, resilience and unapologetic authenticity – values that shone through in every winning campaign. Judges praised entrants for ‘showing courage in creativity’, ‘building genuine connection with audiences’ and ‘delivering meaningful impact through social media storytelling’.

Neil and Donna Sands were honoured with the prestigious Judges’ Choice Award in recognition of their landmark legal case against the gossip site Tattle Life that set a new standard for accountability and integrity online.

Visit Belfast was the organisation leading the honours, picking up four awards for Best Use of TikTok , Best Social Media Campaign in Hospitality & Tourism , Best Social Media Team In-House and Best Overall Use of Social Media . Genesis X Barista Bar won Best Social Media Campaign in Retail, while the Department of Education won Best Use of Social Media in Public Sector or Education.

One of Northern Ireland’s much-loved content creators, Annalivia McGivern, won five awards: Home/Family Content Creator of the Year; Fashion/Lifestyle Content Creator or the Year; Hair/Beauty Content Creator of the Year; Audience Choice Award and Social Media personality of the Year .

BBQ sensation, Jim Moore AKA OnlySlaggin, picked up the gong for Content Creator of the Year , while best-selling cookbook author, Nathan Anthony, of Bored of Lunch, was named Food/Drink/Hospitality Content Creator of the Year .

Two new awards were introduced for 2025 – Rising Brand of the Year which was won by social media stars, The Girls Groupchat Podcast, and the Rising Creator of the Year was won by Amy Campbell-Quigg. Both categories aimed to reflect the evolution of Northern Ireland’s social media landscape, honouring emerging voices that are helping to shape the future of social and digital marketing.

The independent panel of global expert judges, each with extensive experience working alongside leading international brands, commended the standard of entries as the highest to date, noting the diversity of industries represented, from retail and hospitality to health, charity and public sector.

Awards organiser Niamh Taylor, one of Northern Ireland’s leading digital marketers and industry mentors, said: “The 2025 NI Social Media Awards were a true celebration of the people and businesses who are making social media meaningful. From small start-ups to established brands, we’ve seen powerful examples of creativity, authenticity and community impact. This year’s ‘Let Them’ theme inspired confidence and self-belief, encouraging everyone to show up unapologetically online, and our winners did exactly that.”

“Every year, the standard gets higher. What stands out most is the real impact that social media is having across Northern Ireland driving growth, fostering connection and using platforms for good. A huge congratulations to all of our winners and runners-up!”

“The winners of the Judges’ Choice Award, Neil and Donna Sands, delivered a landmark win, proving that real people can be protected and private pain can be turned into a pathway others can follow. This is clear proof that abuse and harassment can not and will not be tolerated, not by courts, not by platforms and not by a community that values human dignity,” Niamh concluded.

Individual category partners include Adorn Dress Hire, Bellamianta, BNL Productions, Bradley Shoots, Digital Twenty Four, Fiona Brown Communications, Kobault, Lunn’s, Little Penny Thoughts, MAD Colour, MB Motors, Mourne Stars, Northern Lights, Northern Mortgages, No 7 Duke Street, O’Neills, Stacked, Starview Hot Tubs & Outdoor Living, Ted & Stitch, Tedberry Market, The Green East, Vermillion Cosmetic Clinic, VOCÊ, West Coast Cooler. Media Partner is Belfast Live. Charity Partner is Cancer Fund for Children.

FULL LIST OF AWARD WINNERS:

SPECIAL AWARD. Category: JUDGES’ CHOICE AWARD / NEIL + DONNA SANDS

Category: BEST USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA – START-UP Runner up: WILD RIVER DOG PARK Winner: NOVA X SUGAR SNAP