Frankfurt – November 06, 2026 -- The German Dialogue Marketing Association (DDV) presented the 2026 Alfred Gerardi Memorial Prize (AGGP) at the DialogSummit in Frankfurt and, for the first time, added a special prize for societal relevance, awarded for a thesis on digital accessibility.
The AGGP has honored academic theses in dialogue and data-driven marketing since 1986. More than 900 works have been submitted since its founding, making it one of the longest-running early-career prizes in its field in the German-speaking region. Printus GmbH of Offenburg, a DDV member and premium partner, funds the prize in full.
Three theses on AI agents, chatbots and accessible UX testing win awards
The winning papers center on artificial intelligence and virtual agents, trust and customer experience, and acceptance of new forms of customer communication.
Best master's thesis: Jens Kröll of Hochschule Niederrhein, supervised by Prof. Dr. Silvia Zaharia, analyzed how anthropomorphic traits of virtual agents in DIY retail affect trust, customer experience and purchase intention.
Best bachelor's thesis: Lisa Munding of DHBW Ravensburg, supervised by Prof. Dr. Simone Besemer, studied perceived benefit, trust and acceptance of AI chatbots in customer communication. Her empirical work examined brand-specific customer segments of the mail-order retailer Walz.
Special prize for societal relevance: Jana Alaze of Hochschule Offenburg, supervised by Prof. Dr. Andrea Müller, designed and evaluated a method for accessible user-experience testing. Her case study covered a B2B and B2C e-commerce mail-order retailer.
DDV President Nitsche ties prize to industry challenges
DDV President Martin Nitsche said the winning works address topics that shape customer dialogue today and in the future. He described the special prize as recognition of research with relevance beyond the marketing industry, and thanked the jury and the Printus Group for their long-standing support.