A trio of Cardiff-based communications firms have won a top industry award at the prestigious Chartered Institute of Public Relations’ (CIPR) Excellence Awards 2010 for a campaign which helped herald the digital switchover for viewers of S4C, the Welsh-language channel.
The team including Working Word PR, Cazbah Marketing and Events and JM Creative, were the only Welsh companies shortlisted for the UK Awards and won Gold beating 60 entries to win the coveted ‘integrated campaigns’ category.
The three firms worked together to create and deliver the On with the Show digital switchover campaign for broadcaster S4C.
The imaginative On with the Show campaign aimed to communicate to S4C’s viewers the benefits of digital television and the timetable for S4C becoming a totally digital, entirely Welsh-language channel replacing analogue television in their area.
The campaign was judged on the success of its strategy, creativity, cost effectiveness and results. Judges said: “This was a great integrated campaign with a well-thought out creative which was effective on-air and off-air. It has delivered great results”.
The firms enlisted the help of some of S4C’s best known stars and the acclaimed NoFitState Circus for the integrated campaign – using advertising, marketing and PR techniques to communicate S4C’s key messages. The circus-themed, celebrity-led campaign played on `the idea that switching to digital was easier than learning a circus skill.
As part of the campaign, seasoned S4C personalities like Sarra Elgan, Angharad Mair and Dudley Newbery learnt numerous circus skills like juggling, walking the tightrope and riding a unicycle to name a few. In a hands-on campaign, the celebrities then went into the heart of communities across Wales to showcase their skills, providing residents with the information they needed to continue to watch S4C.
Speaking on behalf of the three firms, managing director of Working Word Eoghan Mortell said: “Blending the complementary skills and experience of the three companies allowed us to create a powerful, highly-targeted and very effective campaign on behalf of S4C and it is very encouraging for this to be recognised by the PR industry at UK level.
“The S4C in-house team were highly supportive and it was a pleasure to work with them on this exciting project covering a pivotal period in the development of broadcasting in Wales.”
S4C Director of Communications Garffïld Lloyd Lewis said: “The campaign worked really well at many levels from national media down to local communities. The three companies worked effectively together and with S4C, to inform and help our audience during the digital switchover campaign.”
