Last night, the TikTok Ad Awards 2024 ceremony was held in Dubai, at Upside, for the first time ever in the region. The event celebrated the standout brands and agencies across the METAP region, encompassing UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, Turkey, Pakistan, North and South Africa, that are setting the standard for creative, high-performing campaigns on TikTok.

Each winning campaign brought something unique to the platform, tapping into TikTok's vibrant culture, engaged community, and innovative ad solutions to captivate audiences and exceed campaign goals. These brands delivered a masterclass on how to succeed on TikTok, showcasing the strategies and ad formats that lead to exceptional results.

Presenting this year's winners and their remarkable campaigns.

Bougie on a budget
This category is for campaigns with the most creative use of modest production budgets and resources through both paid and organic content with community management to create maximum impact.

Gold Winners:
For The Spicy Love of Fries, KFC Arabia, TBWA\RAAD, UAE
A new product inspired by community love and engagement.

KFC's signature spicy fries have been a fan favourite for years. But as they were showcased on TikTok, the customers' response was overwhelming - the users' positive comments and feedback inspired the brand to take the next step and introduce a new product: the Spicy Fries Bucket, a shareable, larger portion of the beloved fries. It quickly became a hit, proving the power of listening to customer feedback and creatively evolving a beloved product.

Silver Medalists:
A Mama and Baba kinda love, Chevrolet Arabia, Commonwealth//McCann, UAE

Chevrolet Arabia / Agency: Commonwealth//McCann

Bronze Medalists:
Reusable Ads, City Lodge, TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris, South Africa

Community Core
Celebrates the best use of creators and the community. The category shows how creators can use their unique voices and content styles seamlessly within a campaign idea.

Gold Winners:
Hear ZA Hearing Challenge, Vodacom, VML, South Africa
Raising awareness about hearing health through a fun & engaging branded challenge.

Vodacom's 'Hearing Challenge' aimed to raise awareness about hearing loss among South African youth by using an interactive, music-based hearing test. The brand collaborated with the rising musician Lady Du and an audiologist to create a special music track used to empower users to test their hearing while sharing results on TikTok. The campaign went viral, sparking conversations about hearing health and encouraging young people to seek professional help.

#MakeUpForThePayGap, ItsHerWay, Leo Burnett, UAE
Sending a powerful message about gender equality and equal pay, and uniting women in the region through creative social challenge.

To address the issue of gender pay gap, the UAE's leading female entrepreneur network ItsHerWay.com launched a campaign on TikTok in the platform's popular makeup tutorial format. In the typical #GRWM (Get Ready With Me) makeup tutorials women apply make up and transform into men, revealing the shocking fact that women often need to 'become a man' to earn the same pay.

Brand: Itsherway / Agency: Leo Burnett UAE

Saraylı Furnishings, QNB Finansbank, Kompüter, Turkey
Building trust of SMBs by educating them about a tailored solution for their challenges through native and relatable content.

QNB Finansbank created a TikTok account called Saraylı Furnishings through which the brand communicated with its target audience about its special solution for SMBs called Digital Bridge Platform. This platform offers more than 20 digital solutions beyond banking. By creating relatable and educational TikTok-native content, and leveraging current trends the brand managed to explain the advantages of Digital Bridge in a comprehensive way and raise awareness of its products and services.

Silver Medalists:
Lexus Content Lab, Al-Futtaim Lexus, Memac Ogilvy, UAE
Another Kind of Girl Math, Kız Başına, Senfonico, Turkey

Brand: Al Futtaim, Lexus / Agency: Memac Ogilvy

Bronze Medalists:
You Be The Judge, Roadster Diner, TBWA\RAAD, Lebanon
Luminous630 Crash Test Live Campaign, NIVEA, Beiersdorf, Turkey

Agency: TBWA\RAAD

It’s the Creative for me
This award focuses on the idea and its strategy, and celebrates the brands and agencies that dared to push the boundaries of creativity with campaigns that were built TikTok-first, and showcased impactful results.

Gold Winners:
'Feel the Fire', Chicken Licken, Joe Public, South Africa
A creative challenge turning users into actors auditioning for a role in the brand's next commercial.

Chicken Licken 'turned up the heat' and engaged the South African community through a fun and interactive TikTok challenge featuring actor Atandwa Kani. This was the brand’s first TikTok content, offering participants the opportunity to showcase their acting skills for the coveted prize of appearing in a future ad.

#MakeUpForThePayGap, ItsHerWay, Leo Burnett, UAE
Sending a powerful message about gender equality and equal pay, and uniting women in the region through creative social challenge.

Fawazir, Chevrolet Arabia, Commonwealth//McCann, UAE
TikTok's first edutainment retro series helps lift up viewers' spirits during the month of Ramadan and remind them about safety on the road.

Inspired by the '80s Egyptian variety show 'Fawazeer', Chevrolet Fawazir series showcases four riddles released weekly during the month of Ramadan. Viewers could enjoy the energetic host, eye-popping visuals and the nostalgic theatrics that they grew up loving, forget about their fatigue for a while and learn some handy safety driving tips.

Silver Medalists:
Wastan in Ramadan, Chevrolet Arabia, Commonwealth//McCann, UAE
Saraylı Furnishings, Kompüter, QNB Finansbank, Turkey
Another Kind of Girl Math, Kız Başına, Senfonico, Turkey
Bronze Medalists:
The Comfort Chronicles Ramadan Series, Comfort Arabia, Unilever Middle East, MENA
The Lunch Bar Man, Lunch Bar, VML, South Africa

Sound On Please!
Celebrates campaigns that use sound as an entry-point to their creative idea. There are so many different types of sound, different uses of sound, and likewise different creative approaches to sound on TikTok.

Gold Winners:
Hear ZA Hearing Challenge, Vodacom, VML, South Africa
Raising awareness about hearing health through a fun & engaging branded challenge.

Silver Medalists:
Bedtime Stories, City Lodge, TBWA\ Hunt Lascaris, South Africa
Bronze Medalists:
Sound off please!, Migros Yemek, unknowns:, Turkey
Keep Asking Why, Nissan Middle East, TBWA\RAAD, UAE
The Originals, KFC Arabia, TBWA\RAAD, UAE

Brand: Nissan Middle East / Agency: TBWA\RAAD

The Trendsetter
Reimagine advertising through TikTok, showcasing your innovation and ability to captivate audiences and drive bold effective ideas through the unique utilization of ad products with a measurable impact on the platform.

Gold Winners:
The Comfort Chronicles Ramadan Series, Comfort Arabia, Unilever, Middle East
Raising awareness for a new product during Ramadan through an entertaining TikTok comedy series.

Unilever's brand Comfort Arabia launched a limited-edition fabric softener 'Royal Amber' for Ramadan and decided to create a melodramatic Khaleeji-style series for TikTok, tapping into the popular genre of Ramadan TV dramas. The series mixes melodrama with humor, keeping viewers entertained throughout Ramadan while promoting a new product.

Silver Medalists:
The Original GameChangers, KFC Arabia, TBWA\RAAD, UAE
This Girl, Molped, H2o United, Turkey
Luminous630 Crash Test Live Campaign, NIVEA, Beiersdorf, Turkey
Bronze Medalists:
Diriyah Season Out of Phone, Diriyah Season, FP7 McCann & UM, KSA
The People's Choice
Chosen through a voting by the guests of the ceremony.

Winner
Lexus Content Lab, Al-Futtaim Lexus, Memac Ogilvy, UAE
Lexus Content Lab engaged the #CarTok community by empowering car enthusiasts to improve their content creation skills. The brand partnered with UAE creators to host hands-on workshops, teaching participants dynamic filming techniques and helping them produce higher-quality TikTok videos that showcased their passion for cars. Lexus took an active role in supporting and celebrating the creativity of the community fostering engagement and deeper connection to the brand.

THE G.O.A.T.
The highest accolade was presented to the best overall campaign that excels in creativity, achieves its media objectives and demonstrates effectiveness.

Winner
#MakeUpForThePayGap, ItsHerWay, Leo Burnett, UAE
Sending a powerful message about gender equality and equal pay, and uniting women in the region through creative social challenge.

'We are delighted to witness the first-ever TikTok Ad Awards in the region evolve into a remarkable celebration of creativity and bespoke storytelling, and the impactful campaigns that have set new benchmarks,' - said Shadi Kandil, General Manager, Global Business Solutions, TikTok, Middle East, Turkey, Africa, Central and South Asia. 'We received entries from a diverse range of brands and agencies, with content that created connections, tapped into wider trends and truly brought brands to life, while driving significant impact. Our heartfelt congratulations to the winners and medalists - we are excited to see the next wave of innovation and excellence from all of you.'

And immense congratulations to the shortlisted entrants, who all delivered exceptional campaigns on the platform and helped make last night so fun and inspiring! Check out the full list of winners here.