Purpose-driven storytelling drives communication

Kigali, Rwanda. Image source: Gallo/Getty.

Here’s what she had to say about emerging trends within the African PR scene:

What was the overall calibre of work like?

It was exciting to see the level of work competing at this year’s SABRE Awards. Agencies are becoming increasingly creative in their drive to tell powerful, relevant stories, and we can certainly be proud of the work we’re creating as a continent.  

Was there a recurring theme across award-winning work?

Consultancies that perform well are typically those leading or at the very least ensuring they prioritise the conversation around data and analytics. As an industry we’re still at the beginning of our data revolution, but already we see that those campaigns that generate the greatest long-term success and impact are those that leverage strong insights. PR will always be built on creativity, but the difference now is that successful campaigns are using data to inform their strategies.

WE was the second most awarded agency of the evening* – what in your opinion made the agency’s awards campaign so successful?

Like many players in the industry WE has turned its attention to more strategic insights to drive measurable results. One campaign we are particularly proud of is She will Connect, which we worked on together with Intel. The objective of She will Connect was to empower women across Africa with access and a basic understanding of technology. Taking into account that women in developing countries are 25% less likely to be online that men, we had our work cut out for us. To put together a plan of execution, the campaign relied on several layers of insights, beginning with how women in Africa access the internet, which platforms they use and how they use them.