Too Many Trophies? Never! 5 Things We’ve Learned
17 Sep 2025
Another One? It’s been quite the year for our client Trafford Centre and their trophy shelf is filling fast.
Here’s why Trafford Centre keeps winning…
In the past 12 months, together we’ve…
🏆 Won Best Local Campaign (Large) at the UK Agency Awards for the Wow-being campaign
🏆 Scooped RLI’s Best Marketing Campaign, also for the Wow-being campaign
🏆 Celebrated winning MAPIC’s Best Sustainable Initiative for their ESG strategy
🏆 Taken home the ESG & Sustainability Award for the annual Impact Report
And with more shortlists in the pipeline… we’re just getting started.
But beyond the shiny trophies, what’s the secret sauce behind an award-winning campaign? What takes an idea from “good” to “great” and from “great” to “shine your shoes, we’re off to the stage”?
Here’s 5 things we’ve learned from delivering award–winning campaigns and strategies.
1. Start with a bold idea
Trafford Centre turned into Manchester’s wellness HQ when we delivered the Wow-being campaign. Katie Piper headlined a live podcast that packed out the space, the centre was filled with free talks, workshops, and interactive moments making wellness accessible to all. Local influencers turned it into Manchester’s most shareable campaign, while press and paid social amplified it far beyond the usual audience.
When it comes to sustainability, Trafford Centre’s ESG Strategy follows the same philosophy – bold objectives, clear communication, and inviting tenants, employees and visitors to get involved. The report is fully transparent on progress toward net zero, openly highlighting successes and areas for improvement, an approach that has impressed judges.
2. Measure what matters
Integration gets everyone moving in sync. Measurement proves it’s working.
We track the metrics that matter: sales, footfall, new data subscribers, PR coverage, and social engagement, and tie it all back to commercial growth.
Trafford Centre’s ESG initiative uses clear year-on-year KPIs to measure progress on Net Zero, biodiversity, and community goals and is transparent about where more work is needed. This honest reporting builds trust and proves to judges that the impact is real, not just headline-grabbing.
3. Integration is everything
Campaigns are a true all-hands-on-deck effort – influencers, PR, paid and organic social, in-centre activations, and standout creative all pulling in the same direction. Behind the scenes, teams work side by side with clear KPIs to deliver one cohesive story.
This approach isn’t limited to sales campaigns, reporting on For Our Future – the Trafford Centre ESG initiative uses the same alignment of data, design, and narrative to make progress meaningful and engaging. Integration means every team, every channel, and every objective is connected turning good work into great work.
4. Back it with data
Big ideas are great, but they need be backed with insight.
Wow-being was built on customer insight; loyalty programme data, footfall patterns and social listening. We knew what people were talking about and what would inspire them to get involved which meant the Wow-being campaign was bang on target.
On the ESG side, we’ve helped Trafford Centre put transparency front and centre. The yearly Impact Report gives a bold, visual snapshot of progress, with clear measurable KPI’s celebrating the wins and highlighting where more work is needed – all wrapped up in a bright, engaging format you can actually enjoy reading – no triple-espresso required!.
5. Celebrate and keep going
We love a celebration – but awards are fuel, not the finish line.
Each win is proof that our approach works: insight-led ideas, fully integrated delivery, measurable results, and a commitment to transparency. That mix is what keeps Trafford Centre campaigns – and ESG initiatives – ahead of the curve.
So yes, we’ll raise a glass, then get straight back to it. Because there are more campaigns to launch, more data to learn from, and more ambitious goals to hit.
