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Financial awards success for Mail writers and brands
Mail writers and brands came out on top at the 2011 headlinemoney awards.
The Mail on Sunday's Personal Finance Editor, Jeff Prestridge, was named Consumer Journalist of the Year.
Judges praised his 'passion for representing his readers' interests and insightful commentaries on a range of industry issues', confirming that this is no easy to trophy to land in the face of strong opposition. 'His is the column I turn to first in the consumer space, his campaigns have been great and he has presented a human face on the personal finance frustrations of many customers.' Judges concluded that 'His stories cause changes in the industry and that is a pretty impressive badge of honour when you stop and think about it.'
ThisisMoney.co.uk was named Financial Website of the Year.
The site has achieved back-to-back victories in this category. Judges commented: 'It continues to set the standard and includes a really good mix of news and features for its audience...their campaigning stuff is really good and the way they go about innovating is terrific.'
ThisisMoney also won Best Use of Social Media
'The site really encapsulates the word 'social' in their social media offering... they were an early adopter of revealing reader comments, their Facebook page allows engagement and their Twitter style is pithy, punchy and to the point. This is uncluttered tweeting which continues over the weekend and 24/7.'
The Daily Mail's James Salmon was runner-up in the Consumer Journalist category. 'His campaigning style of journalism makes a real difference on behalf of readers,' one judge pointed out. 'It was impressive to see the police highlighting the section for exposing one case in particular and suggesting this exposure helped their cause.'
Consumer Journalist of the Year Jeff Prestridge was also highly commended in the Consumer Columnist category for 2011. 'This journalist is a legend. It is impossible for anyone to describe Jeff as a pussy cat when he gets the bit between his teeth on certain issues'. 'I really like his campaigning style of writing; he picks up on money-related and even wider social themes which are often so important to such a wide number of people up and down the UK.'
Financial Mail on Sunday's Stephen Womack, a former winner, took second place in the General Insurance Writer of the Year consumer category. The judges were impressed with his balanced reporting style and the fact that, as one judge described: 'Stephen not only has an eye for what makes a good story in the first place but I am sure his readers always come away feeling really well-informed and clued-up about a topic thanks to his efforts.'
Last year's overall winner of Consumer Title of the year, Money Mail, was runner-up this year. 'If I needed to sort out my money, this is the section I would read each week to steer me through what can be a trappy market for the uninitiated,' one judge commented. 'The reporters do exactly what journalists working in this sphere ought to do, they latch on to financial issues of great importance to numerous consumers and follow through their coverage right to the end often asking awkward questions of providers and other institutions along the way, You might not like it if you are on the receiving end, but you have to acknowledge this section crams in as much advice as possible for its readers.'
