Why enter the EVCOM London Live awards?

Why enter the EVCOM London Live awards? 

Entering work for awards can be really time consuming for agencies, so we are selective about the awards that matter most to our industry. The EVCOM London Live and Film Awards celebrate the best of the best in live events, experiences and corporate film and our work mirrors all of these areas and more. As an EVCOM member, we also wholeheartedly support the aims of the organisation to champion world class events in the UK, raise awareness of issues and drive change in areas that have recently included D&I and sustainability. 

What made you choose this particular project and category?

This project really stood out for us when considering the work we wanted to enter. It spanned a number of touch points that we felt demonstrated our full range of client services from creative through to content strategy, event production, live broadcast and the creation of a digital home. This was an international project for a longstanding client within the financial services sector with the aim to educate and inspire their SME customer base. We picked the education/​training category, as alongside global networking activities there was a stellar line up of internal and external speakers, workshops and resources which made this such a valuable experience for attendees.

Do you think digital or virtual events like this one can replace the live event experience?

With our approach to this project, our aim was not to try to recreate a live experience for attendees but to shape the platform and the content in a way that benefitted from a digital format. In spite of the challenges thrown up by the pandemic, this event gave delegates unparalleled access to global speakers, online networking with international peers and the opportunity to drop into the sessions that benefitted them the most. The way the platform and registration was designed also gave us access to key metrics which really defined the success of the campaign via attendee feedback, live page views and interactions. 

Why is recognition for being shortlisted so important for Broadsword after such a challenging period?

As anyone working in live events knows, there are incredible highs and lows to working in our industry, but collectively we have all been through one of the toughest periods in living memory. As a team, we’ve never been closer and in many ways the changes forced on us by the pandemic have arguably produced some of our best work. It’s such a morale boost to have your work recognised by industry leaders here in the UK, where our creativity is unmatched globally. 

What makes for an effective awards entry and what advice would you give to anyone entering an industry award category?

With any entry, it’s important to allocate time and resource to the planning and execution as you would for an event. Bringing all stages of a project to life for the judges is crucial, so alongside a well written description of your event, it’s essential to have great visuals and ideally a short video that will tell the story of the project. Getting everyone that worked on the project engaged in an awards submission can be difficult post event, so preparing questions and asking for insights throughout the planning process is also important. Part of your entry will also need to include statistics and post event feedback, so getting access to these is key.