Social media platforms have become the main source of news for many people in the age of Covid-19. Every once in a while, we need to stop and take a look at those who are pushing boundaries and cleverly using social as part of the overall marketing mix.
That’s why The Drum Awards for Social Media 2020 are celebrating the best strategies and campaigns over the past 12 months and now we can reveal the winners.
Brands like Network Rail, Crunchyroll, HBO, Klarna Maltesers Häagen-Dazs, Just Eat, Getty, KFC, Kraft and Crocs have all swiped up accolades at this year’s virtual ceremony, which you can re-watch below.
UM Birmingham and Network Rail were awarded the Grand Prix for the campaign, ‘You v Train: You won’t see it coming‘ while chair of the jury, David Wilding, director of planning at Twitter UK chose ‘CTRL Your Future ‘by Karmarama and the Institute of Coding for his personal Chair Award.
Below you will find some of these amazing winners and their award winning work.
Grand Prix/ Most Effective Use of Video/ Best Charity or Not For Profit Social Media Strategy or Campaign/ Best Automotive or Transport Sector Social Media Strategy or Campaign
Agency: UM Birmingham
Client: Network Rail
Campaign: ‘You vs. Train: You won’t see it coming‘
In order for Network Rail to persuade rebellious rule-breakers adhere too the safety rules of the railway, the brand played them at their own game.
The ‘You vs Train: You won’t see it coming’ campaign saw a 23% reduction in trespass incidents during its live period and reflects the confrontational nature of Network Rail’s high-energy audience back at them in a series of influencer-created ‘vs’ battles. And in the end, the 1.5m individuals that viewed this awareness campaign now understand “you won’t see it coming,”
Juror’s thoughts: ”This was a really strong example of use of video for a good cause. It had a strong understanding of the audience interests and how they consume content on social, which was very authentic to the platform.”
Chair Award/ Most Innovative Use of Social/ Best Public Sector Social Media Strategy/Campaign
Agency: Karmarama
Client: Institute of Coding
Campaign: ‘CTRL Your Future‘
16% of the UK’s IT specialists are women, and only 11% of IT Directors are from a BAME background despite this sectors forward thinking and innovative behaviour. Karmarama were challenged by the Institute of Coding (IoC) to inspire more diverse people to pursue digital skills education and shake up the tech industry.
‘CTRL Your Future’ called for young people to join and create an inclusive and representative industry for future generations. By tapping into this audience’s specific passion points, creating engaging content with compelling stories from the true faces of the industry highlighted the powerful industry change that they could be part of.
Juror’s thoughts: ”This is an important piece of work that was well planned, superbly executed and could genuinely change the DNA of an industry. It had a powerful message behind the campaign, an actual campaign that could change the landscape of traditionally male-dominated industries. While breaking barriers of gender-based industries, it also raised awareness on an industry that parents don’t typically see their children investing in. The smart usage of IG Stories and IGTV was a major plus point. Having a 9:16 content makes it so much more immersive.”
Best Influencer Campaign/ Most Effective Use of Group or Community/ Best FMCG, Consumer Goods Social Media Strategy or Campaign/ Best Social Event
Agency: Space, Takumi, Secret Cinema, General Mills
Client: Häagen-Dazs
Campaign: Secret Sofa
At the height of lockdown, thousands of people across the country took part in a reimagined cultural experience. For eight consecutive Fridays from April to June 2020, Secret Sofa presented by Häagen-Dazs activated influencers and Secret Cinema fans across Facebook Live, Instagram, and Tik-Tok, drawing a wider community into the stories and worlds around our best loved films.
Secret Sofa reinforced a message of togetherness, became a force for joy, and brought memorable communal entertainment to those stuck at home.
Juror’s thoughts: ”This is a well rounded, smart, accessible campaign with quality creative (with a strong feeling of watching the movie with ice cream), a strong use of channels and the final results proved success. A fast pivot campaign that made us all smile.”
Best Integrated Campaign
Agency: Byte London
Client: Just Eat
Campaign: ‘Did Somebody Say Just Eat x Snoop Dogg‘
The global campaign (produced by McCann London) launched across six markets for an entire year. Byte brought the Snoop brand campaign to life on social, landing on seven social platforms.
This channel variety led to innovation including platform-first content (including a re-engineered hero ad for social), a blinged-up AR lens, GIFs, innovative formats and the use of booming platforms Twitch and TikTok.
The activation on social followed a three-phase paid social strategy dubbed ‘Tease, Launch and Sustain’ which aimed to drive intrigue, maximise impact and provide longevity, respectively.
Juror’s thoughts: ”We appreciated the legs of the campaign and how much value was created. A fantastic fully integrated campaign implementing online, offline and social extensions.”
Low Budget
Agency: Battenhall
Client: NHS England and NHS Improvement
Campaign: ‘Covid-19 – supporting ‘Stay Home, Protect the NHS, Save Lives’‘
When Covid-19 took its hold in March 2020, Battenhall began working with NHS England and NHS Improvement to create a campaign that aimed to ensure NHS coronavirus safety messages engaged young adults in the UK.
By explaining how to stay safe, save lives and protect the NHS, the agency augmented the government’s mainstream media campaign through newly created social content tailored to a specific audience group.
Juror’s thoughts: ”The campaign was relatively simple, but we felt the influencer reach that they were able to achieve with zero spend makes them a clear winner in this category.”
For a full rundown of the winners, visit The Drum Awards for Social Media website. Winmo are partners of the Social Media Awards.
