For the second consecutive year, WONDR has been listed in the ‘Top 10 Global Agencies’

Once the main award programme concludes, the Vega Digital Awards select their top ten participating agencies for the honours of being listed in the ‘Top 10 Leading Global Agencies‘.

This list is to highlight the years ‘Pillars of Digital Creation’ to be crowned the best among their contemporaries, showcasing companies that embody the very essence of excellence, culminating from creativity, strategy and expertise.

WONDR has been named #6 in the 2023 Top 20 Leading Agencies, progressing from #10 last year. The Top Leading Agency listing is further recognition for WONDR and follows on from our 5 wins at this year’s programme.

This year we collected awards for:

• Best Biotechnology Website
• Best Healthcare Services Website
• Best Travel & Tourism Website
• Best Radio & TV Website
• Best Professional Services Website

It is the third year in a row that WONDR has won multiple awards at the Vega Digital Awards for clients across the energy, banking, fintech, utilities, finance, eCommerce, web 3 & insurance sectors, making our total award count 55.

Vanguards of the Digital Space

This year the Vega Statuette has been upgraded to honour the “Vanguards of the Digital Space”

Stoic and prepared, the Vega statuettes exude the very essence of what it takes to be a frontrunner in a digital age. The statuette depicts the figure of a warrior, who’s postured upright with their shield up, ready to take on whatever comes their way.

The statuette’s face is indiscernible under their helmet, signifying how those who go further do not always do so to seek glory.

About the Vega Awards

The Vega Digital Global Awards highlight the vital role of digital pioneers in an ever-changing digital landscape. Organised by the International Awards Association (IAA), the Vega Digital Awards is an Adobe Authorised Affiliate.

This year’s programme had over 1,200 submissions from 22 countries, with a judging panel comprised of over 25 industry experts from around the globe. Clearly demonstrating the influence and reach the awards have in its mission of honouring excellence in the digital industry.

WONDR were a sponsor at DE{CODE}, WP Engine’s Virtual Developer Conference, which took place on 23/24 March 2023.

Over 4,000 attendees from across the globe comprised of developers, designers, marketers, and other tech enthusiasts attended the event to learn about the latest trends and technologies in the WordPress ecosystem.

Here’s our takeouts from the event:

Technology is shaping the power dynamics

One of the most discussed topics at the conference was ‘how technology has shaped the power dynamics between designers, developers, and marketers’. Speakers shared insights into how these roles have evolved over time, and how they are now collaborating more closely than ever before to create successful websites and digital experiences.

WordPress’s latest advancements in low-code/no-code solutions through the WordPress Block Editor and Full Site Editing provide endless possibilities for our clients. We use this for many of our client deliveries as it allows for a faster development cycle and enables many different resources to contribute to the project at the same time, especially as you move into content editorialisation & UAT.

We have built up a vast library of re-usable, open-source components that significantly speed up development and allow our team and clients to have greater insight into rapid branding and content editorialisation. We’re thrilled to leverage these capabilities to deliver even more innovative and effective digital products for our clients.

Maximizing Conversions to drive revenue

A key topic we passionately agree with it is how to increase revenue by simplifying payment processes, using smart reporting, and optimising websites for better performance.

• On average, a consumer makes 19 online transactions per year.
• Although standard credit cards may be the most user-friendly way to shop online, it could be beneficial to offer multiple payment methods in order to address the high percentage (70%) of online cart abandonment and to simplify the overall checkout process.
• Offering multiple payment methods can address high cart abandonment rates and make the checkout process easier.

Simplifying the cart system and minimising distractions can also help increase conversions by minimising distractions. Streamlining the checkout process, including payment options, can lead to a better user experience and reduce cart abandonment.

Going Headless

We were particularly interested in the headless WordPress discussions at the conference. Separating the back-end and front-end of a website with this approach offers numerous benefits, including superior flexibility, scalability, and performance. 

For developers focused on headless builds, an Atlas Sandbox account, Atlas Blueprints, and Faust.js all provide excellent opportunities for exploring the possibilities of headless WordPress. Using Frost and Genesis, builders that encapsulate Block Editor or Full Site Editing tools to support any project workflow, including patterns, themes, and custom blocks is small all the way up to enterprise solutions

We’re always looking for new ways to improve our workflows, and headless WordPress offers us a wealth of opportunities. We’ve delivered headless WordPress experience with tools like Atlas Sandbox account, Atlas Blueprints, and Faust.js, which provide an excellent starting point for developers focused on headless builds.

We discussed this topic in more detail as part of an expert panel at WP Engine’s Ignite event.

Robust Privacy & Security

The changing privacy landscape and its impact on websites was also a key topic at DE{CODE}. With updated regulations and user expectations, it is more important than ever for websites to prioritise privacy and security. 

Speakers discussed best practices for protecting user data and shared insights on how to comply with privacy regulations.

We find WP Engine to be a very robust and secure platform that we’ve successfully used for large fintech & insurance clients where security is paramount. Coupled with partners like Cloudflare we find WP Engine to provide excellent support and reassurance to any clients looking at it as alternative to other providers.

For more on the latest trends and technologies discussed at DE{CODE}, view here.

Marilese is a great addition to the WONDR team fitting right into our culture of driven professionals who are passionate about the power of design.

She has worked in South Africa, the Netherlands and our lucky isle of Ireland. With expertise in client relationships, partnership roll-outs, and process elevation, Marilese is always looking at the bigger picture & we believe she will help WONDR continue on an upward trajectory in our recent successes.

Marilese continued … “Design has the power to convey a brand’s values, tone, and personality. Good design can make a brand stand out in a crowded market, and it can help build trust and credibility with potential customers. “

Creating a Customer-Centric Culture

At WONDR we believe a positive and inclusive work environment not only makes employees feel valued and appreciated but also translates into better client relationships and higher-quality work.

When everyone is working towards the same goals and values, it creates a sense of unity and purpose that can drive success for the whole team.

The Art of Customer Excellence

We are committed to providing top-quality digital solutions for all of WONDR’s clients. Building and maintaining strong relationships with clients is crucial to our success. We build strong relationships through collaboration.

Our clients are experts in their industry, and we value their input and insights throughout the design process. By working together, we are able to create a product that not only meets their needs, but also exceeds their expectations.

We also understand that our clients’ needs and goals may change over time, and we strive to be flexible and adaptable to these changes. This means being proactive in our communication and being willing to make adjustments as needed.

Marilese added…”Communication is also key – I make sure to keep clients informed throughout the project and encourage them to provide feedback so that we can make any necessary adjustments.”

At WONDR,  we believe that our success is directly tied to the success of our clients. By focusing on building strong client relationships and delivering high-quality design solutions, we are able to help our clients achieve their goals and stand out in a crowded digital marketplace.

With Marilese’s wealth of experience and commitment to creating top-quality solutions for our clients, we know that she will be a valuable asset to our team.

WONDR were guest speakers on the latest video series by Velocitize Magazine.

In the latest episode of Velocitize Talks, our very own Peter Delaney (Director of Product & Technology – WONDR) shares his thoughts on emerging trends in fintech, blockchain and e-commerce.

Velocitize Talks is an award-winning video series featuring agency innovators, digital disruptors and marketing leaders from around the world. The publication is delivered by WP Engine to provide insights into the shifting trends and innovative technologies defining digital marketing today.

Peter also joined an expert industry panel at WP Engine’s Ignite event in London to share his experience building cutting edge digital products on the world’s most trusted enterprise WordPress platform.

WONDR have been listed in the Top 10 Global Agencies at this year’s Vega Digital Awards 2022.

One the main award programme concludes, the Vega Digital Awards select the top ten participating agencies for the honours of being listed in the ‘Top 10 Global Agencies‘.

Selection is based on the number of categories won, the quality of entries and the company’s wider profile. To be listed in the ten agencies listing you have to deliver excellence through your creativity, strategy and expertise.

The Top 10 Global Agency listing is further recognition for WONDR and follows on from our 4 wins at this year’s programme.

This year we collected awards for

• Best Energy Website
• Best Financial Services App
• Best Insurance Website
• Best Services / Utilities App.

It is the second year in a row that WONDR have won 4 awards at the Vega Digital Awards for clients across banking, fintech, eCommerce, web 3 & insurance sectors.

Dermot further added…

“We are grateful for this recognition as it concludes a hugely successful year for us where we collected 22 awards in 12 months. Our award wins were from some of the world’s most prestigious programmes such as the Webby’s & UX Design Awards. We were also recognised at home at the Spiders, Digital Business Ireland Awards & the Digital Media Awards.”

About the Vega Awards
The Vega Digital Awards highlight the vital role of digital pioneers in an ever-changing digital landscape.

Organised by the International Awards Association (IAA), this year’s programme had over 1,000 submissions from 20 countries, clearly demonstrating the influence and reach the awards has in its mission of honouring excellence in the digital industry.

The judging panel was comprised of 22 industry experts from 10 countries around the globe.

WONDR continues its winning streak by collecting 3 international design awards at the 2022 Vega Global Digital Awards.

We collected 3 awards in the categories for Best Financial Services App, Best Insurance Website & Best Services & Utilities App.

This year the awards programmes had over 1,000 submissions from 20 countries worldwide. The International Awards Associate (IAA) organised the Vega Digital Awards to celebrate digital excellence worldwide, recognising the very best in Websites, Video, Mobile, Social, Animation, Marketing, and Podcasts.

The judging panel was comprised of 22 highly respected and experienced professional experts from 10 countries, who selected three of our entries as winners.

The winners were…

Continued Success

These awards follow on from WONDR’s incredible run of success that saw us collect 22 awards in 12 months from some of the world’s most prestigious programmes. Hopefully, these awards are the start of another successful year for us as we celebrate our 9th year in business.

Dermot added….

“These awards are important as they recognise how WONDR as a team transcends boundaries by using the latest in tech to enable rapid digital transformation.”

We’re proud to announce that our collaboration with 11Onze has won a global digital award for excellence.

11Onze‘s universal banking app ‘El Canut’ has won a Centauri Award for Best Financial Services App at the Vega Global Digital Awards.

11Onze’s financial application, which celebrated its first anniversary this month, overcame all obstacles to win a new international award. More than 1,000 applications were received from 20 countries.

This is the second year in a row that 11Onze has collected an award at this programme having previously collected a Centauri Award for La Plaça / The Square and numerous other accolades from international design associations.

A global benchmark

The story behind the launch of El Canut was captured perfectly in a film, that premiered in Barcelona, entitled ‘In a few days’. Attempts at sabotage, infiltrators and constant pressure aimed at derailing the birth of 11Onze as a Catalan community fintech.

The project, however, dodged the problems, moved forward and now users have in their hands an application that has been recognised across the globe as an award-winning benchmark by the Vega Digital Awards (global), the Webbys (USA), UX Design Awards (Germany), The ADG Laus (Spain) and IDI Awards (Ireland).

About the Vega Digital Awards

The Vega Digital Awards are organised by the International Awards Associate (IAA) and they aim to celebrate digital excellence worldwide, recognising the very best in Websites, Video, Mobile, Social, Animation, Marketing, and Podcasts.

This year the judging panel was comprised of 22 experts from 10 countries. The theme for the 2022 Vega Awards is ‘Transcending Boundaries’ – to go beyond the common and to set ourselves apart.

11Onze is a Barcelona-based fintech that has done nothing but transcend boundaries since its launch, their mission is to empower the financial health and decisions of the Catalan community in Spain and abroad by creating an expansive resource, ‘El Canut‘.

The vision for the app was to offer customers the ability to manage all their bank accounts in one place, no matter what country they reside in. In addition, customers would be able to manage all their payments, transfers, savings and loans from one source – a one-stop-shop banking app.

‘El Canut’ is an old Catalan phrase that means purse. Unlike the old phrase, the product and service of 11Onze and El Canut was radically new for the Spanish and European markets. This was the key design challenge for our team; to design a disruptive banking app to coincide with the launch of a new way of delivering community banking and ‘transcending boundaries’.

We have been selected as finalists in 3 categories at this year’s Digital Media Awards (DMAs).

We’re finalists for Best Website, Best in Financial Services & Best Small Agency.

The Digital Media Awards are now in their 19th year and one of the most well established award programmes in Ireland.

They recognise creativity and innovation across digital media which includes digital content creation, advertising and marketing, mobile media, social networking, app development, web design and development.

Gala Dinner Ceremony

The Digital Media Award winners will be announced at a gala dinner hosted by Alan Shortt on Friday the 11th of November in the Convention Centre at The Radisson Blu Royal Hotel, Dublin.

We’re shortlisted for not one, but two of our projects at The Institute of Designers Ireland’s (IDI) Awards 2022.

The IDI Awards showcases the best in Irish design across fashion/textiles, products, digital, visual communications, structures & spaces, so we’re honoured to be shortlisted.

WP Engine, one of the world’s most trusted WordPress technology companies, have showcased 11Onze’s fintech social networking platform.

La Plaça (The Square) is Europe’s first and largest fintech community, which WONDR worked closely with the 11Onze leadership team to bring to life as well as their retail and business app.

The article documents the momentum of the brand over the past 12 months as it’s expanded its product & services on their award winning platform built on WP Engine.

WP Engine has also received the prestigious ISO/IEC 27001:2013 certification for its Information Security Management System (ISMS) which is used across platforms like La Plaça.

About 11Onze’s La Plaça

11Onze is the first community fintech in Europe to offer its members financial literacy and wealth creation services.

The brand fills a gap in the larger fintech sector with its La Plaça / The Square (private social network), Les Peles (digital currency), El Canut (universal banking super App) and expansive educational library, aimed at educating people with informative content on finance, economics, well-being and sustainability.

With 14,000 members and counting, La Plaça’s content archive has grown to include more than 1,212 videos and 1,131 online posts in three languages (English, Catalan, and Spanish). La Plaça has also transformed itself into an online marketplace where members can purchase products and services, and where they will be able to sell goods and services to other members in the future.