Ethical, transparent and respected, the awards are judged by esteemed industry experts who follow a robust two-step judging process that includes pre-scoring to establish a shortlist and judge discussion to determine winners and, in some cases, silver awards.
None of our award judges can take part in the competition, and any conflicts of interest must be declared.
The MENA Search Awards have been accredited ‘Outstanding’ by the Independent Awards Standards Council – Awards Trust Mark.
To apply to become a judge, fill out the form at the bottom of this page.
Anju Anil | Head - Digital Marketing, eCommerce, and Loyalty | Bhima Middle East
Based in Dubai, Anju is a recognized leader in the digital marketing space, with a robust background that spans multiple facets of digital channels. She has developed expertise in key areas such as SEO, PPC, Content Marketing, Digital Performance Analytics, CRO, UX, and more. Anju’s strategic approach and deep knowledge have earned her a seat on the judging panel of prestigious industry awards, where she offers valuable insights into the latest trends and strategies. Her unique blend of technical fluency and marketing acumen makes her an influential figure and voice in the industry.
Laura Iancu | Independent SEO & AI Search Consultant | SearchPedia
Laura Iancu is an independent SEO and AI Search Consultant with 7+ years’ experience shaping search strategies that put humans first. Founder of SearchPedia, she’s known for her quirky, big-idea thinking and her sharp, user-focused approach to SEO. A member of Women in Tech SEO and a recognised industry voice, Laura brings creativity and clarity for modern search, helping both emerging brands find their footing and established brands adapt and thrive in a changing landscape.
Rejoice Ojiaku | Freelance SEO Specialist & Content Strategist
Rejoice Ojiaku is an SEO Specialist & Content Strategist, as well as the Co-Founder of B-DigitalUK – a platform for showcasing and empowering black talent in the UK digital marketing scene. Her expertise lies in SEO, Diversity and inclusion, all bolstered by strong personal branding both online and offline.
Amir Khan | Lecturer in Digital Marketing | Salford Business School
Dr. Amir Khan is a distinguished academic and digital marketing professional with over 14 years of experience in teaching, research, and consultancy. Currently a Lecturer in Digital Marketing at the University of Salford, he brings together academic insight and industry expertise to inspire future marketing leaders. He has provided consultancy to a range of corporate clients in brand management, digital marketing, and strategic management. His research explores consumer behaviour, ESG, digital strategy, and marketing innovation, with numerous publications in international peer-reviewed journals. He holds a PhD in Business Economics and is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA).
Anu Adegbola | Founder & CEO | PPC Live
Anu Adegbola is a digital marketing professional specialising in paid media, with a focus on PPC and paid search. She is the Paid Media Editor at Search Engine Land, where she reports on paid search, paid social, and retail media, providing insight and analysis on key industry developments. She is the Founder and CMO of PPC Live, a UK-based paid media community delivering in-person and online events for PPC professionals. Anu also hosts PPC Live The Podcast, where she discusses industry trends and practical insights with fellow paid media experts. She is a regular speaker at leading international digital marketing conferences (SMX (US/UK/Europe), BrightonSEO, Friends of Search, HeroConf, and more) and is recognised for her contributions to industry education and community building.
Judith Lewis | Founder | Decabbit Consultancy
Judith is a renowned international speaker, writer, trainer, blogger and digital media consultant specialising in applying strategic understanding of digital technologies to help businesses innovate and optimise their effectiveness within the new, networked communications environment. She is a regular speaker around the world on SEO, content strategy, link building, paid media, and digital strategy, and has been recognised by her peers as one of the most influential people in the UK digital industry. Judith judges the industry leading Search Awards around the world, and has every year since their inception. She has worked with market-leading global businesses including Google, NatWest/RBS, National Gallery, Fidelity, GalaCoral, NBC Universal, Readers Digest, Bayer, Family Search, Amadeus, AMD, AmEx , Virgin.com, Virgin Startup & more. She has over 23 years of experience, predating Google in her entry into the market, and now runs her own consultancy. She has worked both in-house and agency-side. Judith also blogs about chocolate, has contributed to the book “Pimp My Site” and the Econsultancy guide to Paid Search and rewrote the large foundational Econsultancy Best Practice Guide to SEO.
Marcelo De Carvalho | International SEO Manager | Motorola Solutions
I like SEO. I’ve been enjoying the ride and consistently delivering strong business impact through organic search, from a specialized agency to a Fortune 500 company. With 12+ years of experience, originally from a traditional offline Communications and PR background, I gradually transitioned into Digital Marketing, pivoting to SEO not too long ago, in 2020. Turning tangible SEO results into a career accelerator, I moved into senior and management roles at a rapid pace. Working both agency-side and in-house has exposed me to a wide range of scenarios. I’ve tackled projects of varying scale across multiple industries and markets, managing specific complexities that gave me a solid foundation of knowledge and experience. Looking forward to strategies that combine smart thinking with tangible impact and excited to celebrate the very best work our industry has to offer.
Phil Bacon | Marketing Director, Strategist, and Consultant | Marketing Managed
I'm a marketing strategist with over 20 years of experience spanning in-house roles, agency collaborations, and consultancy. My career has taken me across diverse sectors, including education, food, technology, engineering, and manufacturing, where I’ve been involved in almost every aspect and channel in marketing, whether that has been hands-on or managing multiple agency and freelance relationships.
Natalia Witczyk | CEO / International SEO Consultant | Mosquita Digital
Natalia Witczyk is an International SEO Consultant with over a decade of experience, specializing in driving organic growth for businesses in global markets, including Spain, China, and the UK. As the founder of the consultancy Mosquita Digital, she leverages her deep understanding of multilingual and technical SEO to craft scalable strategies for a diverse clientele, from SaaS startups to Fortune 500 companies. Originally from Poland and now based in China, Natalia's expertise extends beyond Google to other major international search engines such as Baidu and Yandex. On top of consulting and judging industry awards, Natalia is also a frequent speaker at marketing conferences.
Sara Vordermeier | Content & Search Strategist | Uberall
Sara Vordermeier is a Hamburg-based content & SEO strategist with 8 years of experience, including 4+ years in B2B SaaS (adtech and martech). She currently works at Uberall, where she develops strategies that communicate how multi-location businesses can drive growth through incremental location marketing improvements in the age of AI search. Sara has spoken at BrightonSEO and focuses on cutting through industry noise to prioritise clarity over complexity for business owners and other search marketers, so that they achieve their goals.
Lukasz Rogala | Head of SEO & Strategy | VerticalSEO
ing his 13-year adventure in the SEO industry, he learned all the "shades" of activities carried out for clients. Knowledge of how to work in-house and in an agency allows him to provide high-quality and non-standard tactics for clients. Currently, he is developing his boutique SEO and Content agency, VerticalSEO, and is responsible for technical SEO for Warner Bros. Discovery in Poland. In the past, he planned and implemented SEO activities for the largest brands in Poland, and also supported them in their activities abroad. He prefers content SEO for breakfast, technical SEO for lunch, and linkbuilding for dinner. This allows him to maintain a good work-life fit. ;)
Iva Jovanovic | Content Marketing Specialist & SEO consultant
Iva Jovanovic is an experienced Content Marketing Specialist & SEO consultant, and the organizer of the Belgrade SEO Conference and Heapcon. She specializes in SEO and content creation for websites and social media, but also works on Technical SEO and web development. As an active member of Heapspace, a vibrant community for IT professionals, she has been on the organizing team for Heapcon since 2022 and Belgrade SEO Conference, and hosted Heapspace Meetups and SEO Talks. Originally an MA Art Historian and curator, she has been in the content marketing and SEO industry since 2018 and has worked with brands across Europe and the US in various industries ranging from IT, AI, cybersecurity, and SaaS to lifestyle, travel, transport, automotive, and relocation. She's also been a guest on podcasts, panels, meetups, and conferences.
Tasha Antwi | SEO Consultant | Renowned Media Group
Tasha Antwi is an SEO Consultant with 11 years of experience in the industry, known for developing data-driven global omnichannel search strategies driven by audience insights. She has become an expert in the luxury and premium space and is a regular speaker at Brighton SEO, featured in WARC, Prolific North, and more. She has worked with some of the biggest and most renowned brands globally and was previously Director of Search at Rise at Seven and an Advisory Board Member for Wix. Tasha was also recently named one of the 'Top 24 Marketers to Follow in 2024'.
Ryan Ogilvie | Head of SEO (Contractor)
Ryan Ogilvie is an experienced SEO and growth marketing leader with nearly 20 years’ experience delivering organic growth across B2C and B2B brands in sectors including e-commerce, automotive, insurance, finance, travel, and technology. He has led large in-house and agency teams, developed long-term digital strategies, and driven measurable commercial impact for both established and high-growth businesses. Ryan currently works as a contractor with UK-based leasing company Nationwide Vehicle Contracts, advising on SEO-led growth, content strategy, and conversion optimisation, and brings experience supporting brands across a range of sectors.
Neville Hobson | Social Media Strategist & Communication Adviser and Mentor | LinkedIn
Neville Hobson is a UK-based communication professional, consultant, and podcaster with extensive experience in digital marketing and social media strategies. Over three decades in corporate communication, he has been a prominent figure in how emerging technologies, and social media, shape business, communication, and marketing practices. Neville co-founded the popular business podcast For Immediate Release (FIR) in 2005, offering insights and opinions on public relations, social media, and digital communication to a global audience. Known for his expertise in external and internal communication and the evolving role of AI, Neville has helped organisations use podcasting to enhance their communication and engagement strategies. An early adopter and advocate of digital communication, Neville has been blogging since 2002 and sharing insights at industry and other public events. He is a frequent speaker at client events where he discusses the intersection of technology, communication, and business, and future trends. As a long-serving judge for multiple communication awards contests, he brings a seasoned perspective to evaluating digital communication excellence. https://www.threads.net/@nevillehobson Other social connections: https://linktr.ee/nevillehobson
Bill Hunt | Founder & Global Digital strategist | Back Azimuth Consulting
Bill is the President of Back Azimuth Consulting, which focuses on helping companies improve their Global Digital Marketing Strategies. Bill has extensive experience in multiple verticals uncovering missed opportunities and accelerating growth by implementing strategic centers of excellence maximize ecommerce programs at multinational corporations. Bill is the co-author of the best selling book "Search Engine Marketing, Inc." Driving Traffic to Your Companies Web Site from IBM Pres. This book has been adapted into the best practice guide for many global companies. Irene Cecotti
Boluwa Olojo | Growth & Performance Marketing | Helping Hands Home Care
CIM-certified Growth & Performance Marketing Specialist with 8 + years’ experience driving B2B lead generation across SaaS, fintech, and tech-for-good. Recognised by the Tech Nation Global Talent Visa for exceptional digital technology expertise. Proven success managing six-figure ad budgets and delivering results through Google, Meta, LinkedIn, and Microsoft Ads. Skilled in AI-driven campaign optimisation, automation, and multichannel acquisition strategy.
David Carrasco | SEO Consultant
David Carrasco embarked on his SEO journey when the field was still emerging, with no courses or masters available, learning through the trenches by exploring, experimenting, and innovating. With over a decade of experience in SEO, he has participated in an extensive range of projects, offering support to a multitude of clients. In recent years, he served as the CEO of a Spanish PR and link-building tool, a company he founded and later sold. Currently, he works as a freelance SEO Product Manager, leveraging his knowledge and experience in web positioning, growth, development, and business strategies. As a prolific content creator, he engages in producing audio, video, and written content. This not only provides a platform to connect with new people but also fuels his ongoing journey of learning and discovery. Why not connect?
Daniel Saunders | Head of Performance Marketing | Evergreen Finance London
For nearly two decades, I've thrived in the dynamic world of digital marketing, fuelled by an unwavering passion for data-driven strategies. My expertise lies in leveraging data insights to unlock new business opportunities and propel success. My approach is anchored in a deep understanding of different markets and competitors. This data-centric foundation allows me to identify trends, anticipate challenges, and establish a competitive edge. I actively collaborate with directors and heads of service, translating business goals into actionable plans informed by data-driven insights.
ALex Natthaphon Kanjarnavoranun | Consultant in SEO, Digital marketing, and Digital transformation | Foundmatic UK
Alex Natthaphon is a highly experienced SEO expert, digital marketing specialist, and management role in marketing. TechNation UK has endorsed him as the highest-tier Exceptional Leader of UK Global Talent Visa in the Digital Technology category. He has achieved multiple successful career paths in different industries, including Finance, E-commerce, Travel, Education, Automotive, and more. Alex was VP of Digital Campaign Planning & Execution Manager at SCB bank, focusing on digital banking automation and transformation. He is a founder of ABACTODAY, an ed-tech and e-learning platform for students. He was head of SEO and digital marketing at multiple Unicorn startups in Southeast Asia. He has led and provided digital marketing consultants internationally; for instance in Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, US, and UK. Not only online marketing, but he was also AVP Head of Omni-channel Marketing which focused on digital transformation at one of the biggest department stores in Thailand and UK.
Aiman Ben Haqi | Freelance SEO Consultant | Abenhaqi
Aiman is a results-driven freelance SEO consultant helping companies increase visibility, generate qualified leads and sales, and drive sustainable revenue growth across industries including fintech, healthcare, ecommerce, and education. He leads end-to-end SEO strategy and execution, aligning search initiatives with commercial goals to deliver measurable impact. With deep expertise across platforms such as Magento 2.0, WordPress, and more, Aiman blends technical SEO with data-led, demand-focused strategies that attract high-intent decision-makers. Hands-on by nature, he actively optimises campaigns, tracks performance, and maximises ROI turning search visibility into real pipeline growth, not just traffic. Outside of SEO dashboards and SERPs, Aiman is just as focused on balance. He’s an avid piano player and cycling enthusiast, bringing the same discipline, creativity, and endurance from the keys and the road into every SEO campaign he runs.
Jaime Hill | COO | Woods Furniture
Jaime has over two decades of experience as a Marketing & Ecommerce professional with a successful track record leading teams and developing strategy to transform organisations’ digital capability and channels to market. She has had success in roles at brands including Avis, Barclays, Dairy Crest and Oak Furnitureland, and across a wide range of B2B and B2C vertical markets. Most recently, Jaime was Interim Head of Ecommerce & Trading at Monsoon. A graduate of the Institute of Digital Marketing and qualified Executive Business Coach, Jaime's professional passion is for making life easier for the customer at every touch point.
Laura Calvache | SEO Consultant
Laura Calvache, freelance SEO consultant with a proven track record of helping businesses scale their online visibility through a direct and personalized approach. Specialized in local SEO and e-commerce. Lately, I’ve been taking part more in industry debates, roundtables, and events. I steer clear of the mass agency model, getting fully involved in every project as if it were my own. I have worked in highly competitive sectors, from finance to healthcare and legal services, combining technical and strategic SEO to get the best results.
Regan McGregor | Discoverability Lead | Airtasker
Regan McGregor is the Discoverability Lead at Airtasker, where he drives growth for their global marketplace. His expertise in data-driven SEO & AEO is recognised internationally, having served on judging panels for the Global Search Awards, APAC Search Awards, UK Search Awards and European Search Awards. A prominent voice in the Australian search community, Regan co-hosts the Sydney SEO Collective and is a frequent speaker at major industry events. His insights are regularly featured in leading industry publications and podcasts, where he discusses the future of search and AI.
Laura I. Abreu | Lead Generation and SEO Manager | laurastrategy
Laura I. Abreu is a Lead Generation, Ads and SEO Manager with more than 12 years of experience across Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, particularly in Hong Kong and Australia. Based in Barcelona, Laura is a member of the Australian Marketing Institute, Women in Tech SEO, and PPC Chat (US). She is a speaker at international conferences, including International Search Summit, Search London, and Tourism Innovation Summit, and a mentor at the Freelance Coalition for Developing Countries, supporting professionals in emerging markets.
Leomerly Salismey | Head of SEO & AI Search (GEO) | Principal SEO Automation Consultant | LinkedIn
Leomerly Salismey is an international SEO and AI Search strategist with over 10 years of experience leading organic growth, technical SEO, semantic search, and automation initiatives for global brands including Disney, HBO, Forbes, Tommy Hilfiger, National Geographic, Coca-Cola, Oracle, Victoria’s Secret, and Taylor Morrison. She specializes in SEO automation, Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), AI-driven discoverability, and scalable content systems designed to improve visibility across Google, AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, and other emerging search ecosystems. Her work combines technical SEO, entity-based architectures, MCP-powered workflows, n8n automation, AI agents, APIs, Python, and next-generation AI development tools such as Lovable and Google Antigravity. As a search awards judge, she brings a strategic, innovation-focused perspective on performance, automation, user intent, and the future of search marketing.
Dev Patel | Product Manager | Google Ads
Dev Patel is a Product Manager at Google Ads, where he leads AI innovation within the core Measurement organization, shaping population-scale systems that influence how advertisers measure, attribute, and optimize performance across Google’s ads ecosystem. His work sits at the frontier of AI/ML, privacy-centric measurement, modeled conversions, experimentation, signal quality, and the next generation of performance advertising infrastructure. Earlier in his career, Dev moved across Google Play, venture-backed startups, and founder-led ventures, building web platforms, digital marketplaces, and consumer products at moments when the path forward was still being invented. That mix of engineering depth, product judgment, and zero-to-one experience gives him a rare perspective on what is genuinely innovative versus what is simply well-packaged. He has also served as a judge, mentor, and speaker at Harvard, MIT, and Stanford hackathons.
Lorenzo Solís | Head of Growth & Sales | Privilee | LinkedIn | Privilee
Lorenzo Solís is a digital growth leader with 15+ years of experience driving acquisition, engagement, and revenue growth for global brands. At Eventbrite, the world’s largest event marketplace, he leads the global growth marketing strategy. Before Eventbrite, Lorenzo led high-impact growth initiatives at Just Eat, Bwin, and EF Education First, scaling multi-channel strategies across Europe and the Americas in highly competitive industries. He also teaches digital marketing at business schools, focusing on data-driven growth and long-term business impact.
Andor Palau | International SEO Consultant | Andor Palau Consulting
Andor is an independent international SEO consultant based in Berlin, Germany, and has started his online career back in 2009. Having worked both in-house, as well as on the agency side, he is currently advising online shops, classifiers, marketplaces, and other companies regarding international organic growth strategies as well as technical SEO issues as an independent SEO consultant. He is former Head of SEO at Peak Ace, where he was responsible for SEO and managed a 20+ people team of SEO consultants and editors. Before joining the agency side, Andor was In-house SEO for a top-3 comparison portal in highly competitive verticals such as insurance, power, and telco. Andor’s core expertise is strategic SEO as well as technical SEO, covering topics such as crawlability, indexing management, migrations, and site structure optimization. He is a lecturer at the afs Akademie in Germany, which has made it its mission to offer quality education and training in the field of SEO
Janna Pugh | SEO Manager | Vintage King Audio
Janna Pugh is a SEO Manager with a history of agency and in-house work. She has recently been nationally recognized as the Industry Rising Star in Conductor's 2022 C2 Summit and regularly speaks with college classes about the essentials of organic marketing. With her passion for SEO, she knows firsthand how to make the smallest and largest websites succeed organically. Her areas of focus specialize in enterprise SEO, with scalability and automation for both small and large SEO teams. Her varied approach to SEO combines on-site content with off-site brand management. In her free time, she loves trying out new recipes and reading mystery novels.'
Motoko Hunt is an International SEO/SEM professional. Since establishing AJPR in 1998, her extensive knowledge of Asia and Japanese markets proves to be highly valuable as her consulting services have made a significant impact on global marketing campaigns for some of the world’s most popular multinational brands. Besides being published in industry websites and printed media, Motoko is a frequent speaker at global search marketing conferences, giving seminars and training about topics on International SEO and SEM. Since 2020, she has been serving as a member of the Board of Directors at Paid Search Association.
Dawn Anderson | Founder | Bertey Ltd
Dawn Anderson lectures on search and digital marketing strategy at Manchester Metropolitan University, is an international conference speaker (UK, US, AUS, IT), a trainer, and runs a digital marketing and international SEO consultancy agency, Bertey based in Manchester, UK. Dawn has spoken at some of the leading UK and global search marketing conferences, including Pubcon (Las Vegas and Florida), SASCON (Manchester, UK), European Search Conference (Liverpool, UK), Search Leeds (Leeds, UK), Brighton SEO (Brighton, UK), SMX London (London, UK), SMX East (San Jose, US), Ungagged London (London, UK), Ungagged Las Vegas (Las Vegas, US), MozCon (Seattle, US) and State of Search (Dallas, US). Dawn has also spoken at conference across Europe and as far afield as Australia. Dawn has been in digital marketing and SEO for 12+ years and works with leading brands providing digital marketing and SEO strategy and consultancy across a number of sectors. She is a Northern Digital, UK, EU and US Search Awards Judge. Dawn also contributes to leading search marketing industry publications such as Search Engine Land, Search Engine Journal, The SEMPost, State of Digital and Smart Insights. Dawn also supervises Masters dissertation students undertaking their MSc in digital marketing strategy at Manchester Metropolitan University and also lectures and undertakes workshops on search and marketing analytics teaching International Fashion Promotion students at Manchester Fashion Institute
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"We would like to acknowledge the MENA Search Awards community, thank them for their support, and express that we are ecstatic to have become a part of this amazing family." Kriko
"The encouragement of the MENA Search Awards to urge people and companies to share and reproduce sectoral information and to visualize our success has been one of our biggest sources of motivation in this process." Kriko
"Being validated by the likes of MENA Search Awards and amongst such stiff well-accomplished competitors is something that’s made us incredibly proud, bonded our team further and has been exceptionally well received by our customers."Mickey Llew
"The MENA Search Awards stand out for their commitment to transparency, fairness, and timely communication. Participating in these awards was a valuable and enriching experience for us at Markethinkers Agency. The clear guidelines, prompt responses to queries, and the unbiased approach to awarding excellence set a high standard for industry awards It also helped us to increase our recognition in the region and find new prospects accordingly."Çağatay Yazıcı, Global SEO Director Markethinkers
"As we look to the future, our mission remains steadfast: to empower brands through innovative digital marketing solutions that deliver real results. The recognition at the MENA Search Awards fuels our determination to continue redefining what’s possible in the world of performance marketing." Home of Performance
"The MENA Search Awards celebrate excellence in search marketing, focusing on creativity, implementation, and measurable results—qualities that align perfectly with our approach to every campaign. For a new agency on the rise, these nominations signify a major milestone, highlighting our strategic and creative approach to digital marketing. Being recognised in such a competitive space affirms that our methods are not only effective but also innovative and industry-leading." créo Global
