The PR category is defined this year as ‘the insight, strategy, and planning enabling brands to effectively engage consumers at scale and be heard amid the ongoing battle for attention.’ In that context the Trash Isles campaign ticks all the right boxes. According to Smith, ‘it engaged a lot of audiences from the public through to the UN,’ around an issue that seems to have hit a tipping point this year after slowly filtering into the mainstream agenda.
Smith said the criteria the jury was working to included ‘did it come from an earned-first world? Would it change society in some way? Is it something this brand has permission to do? Is it going to have an impact? Is it using its brand power for good?’
While the Trash Isles might have failed in its mission to be recognised by the United Nations, its success in raising awareness around an issue of global significance is undeniable. And with very few campaigns picking up more than one Grand Prix, this second accolade with a few days will seem all the sweeter.
Also doing well in the PR category this year are some Contagious favourites, including Edeka Zentrale’s The Most German Supermarket, and KFC’s FCK campaign, both of which take home Gold Lions.
