Being part of the team behind two campaigns shortlisted as finalists in the Global Social Media Awards 2021 is one of the highlights of my career. The awards recognise the best in social media globally, including the individuals, companies and organisations that use online platforms to communicate in genuinely fresh and effective ways, so seeing two projects I worked on make that shortlist, and win it, meant a lot.
#FreeYourMind: Best Use of Social Media in a Crisis
I worked on #FreeYourMind, our mental health campaign for NHS South East London CCG, which was shortlisted in the Best Use of Social Media in a Crisis category. This category looks specifically at social media that engaged audiences, built credibility and trust, and adapted flexibly under extraordinary circumstances, which is exactly the environment we were working in, delivering this campaign during the first UK lockdown.
The client’s reflection captured what made it work:
Fair Rents: Best Use of Paid Media
The second campaign I contributed to, Fair Rents for Bron Afon Community Housing, was shortlisted in the Best Use of Paid Media category, which recognises paid social campaigns that deliver exceptional, measurable results against clear objectives: awareness, reach, engagement, and ROI.
What stood out to me about this project was the shift toward a genuinely behavioural approach to understanding what customers actually thought about their rents, rather than relying on assumption.
Why This Matters to Me
These were two very different sectors, (public health communications and social housing), but both campaigns shared the same foundation: starting with data and behavioural insight rather than assumption, and measuring success by real impact rather than reach alone.
Being part of the team that got both to a global shortlist reinforced something I still carry into my own work today, that the strongest campaigns are the ones built to understand people first, and communicate second.