The HEIST Awards celebrate excellence and innovation within education marketing across the higher and further education sectors. Dan Trussell, PR Manager, Amy West, Sport Marketing Manager, and Dane Vincent, Multimedia PR Manager, won gold for their campaign ‘Don’t Mention It’ in the ‘Best Use Of Content’ category.
Imagine legally not being able to mention the event you’re covering. This is what Loughborough faced during that major global sporting event in summer 2024. The University wanted to amplify our strong involvement, showcasing our enviable sporting ecosystem and academic expertise around the Games. The campaign, which lasted eight weeks, targeted current and prospective students, alumni, partners, local community, media, and policymakers through a robust content strategy – all while avoiding protected terminology.
The judges said: “Brilliantly inspiring with remarkable engagement metrics. The campaigns innovative content strategy, including a dedicated microsite and multimedia content effectively amplified the University's involvement.”
Amy commented: “Winning the HEIST Award for Best Use of Content is a proud moment for the team. Our ‘Don’t Mention It’ campaign came with a clear challenge, and it was met with smart thinking, creativity, and real collaboration under pressure. The end result was fresh, impactful, and engaging, and it’s great to see that recognised.”
The Business School Marketing team won bronze in the ‘Collaboration of the Year’ category for the UK Supply Chain and Logistics Excellence (SCALE) Centre. Through a new long-term collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Center for Transportation and Logistics (MIT-CTL), Loughborough established the UK SCALE Centre as the most recent member of the MIT Global SCALE Network in June 2024. The UK SCALE Centre is a significant milestone in the development of the UK’s expertise at building supply chain resilience and sustainability for the digital age.
The judges commented: “Big and bold. A great partnership with real credibility thanks to the MIT link that comes with a strong academic industry positioning.”
Will Blackshaw, Communications Manager, said: "We were delighted to receive the Bronze Award in the category of 'Collaboration of the Year' at this year's HEIST Awards, recognising the development of the UK SCALE Centre. This accolade is a fantastic acknowledgement of the growing strength of our ongoing collaboration with MIT, and a testament to the hard work of both our marketing and academic colleagues who have made it such a success so far."
Tansy Wright, Graphic and Digital Designer, won bronze in the ‘Rising Star Award’ category for her exceptional creative talent, professionalism and dedication to her craft.
The judges said: “Great to see graphic design recognised as a discipline that can help shape brand and comms. Tansy's designs are innovative and distinctive and have obviously contributed to the overall success of the campaigns.”
Tansy commented: “I’m so proud to have received a Rising Star Award at the HEIST Awards! I’m very grateful to my team for the nomination and feel lucky to be able to learn from the most talented and supportive people who have taught me so much about being a designer in the industry.
“I’ve loved getting the chance to art direct on our brand reputation campaign ‘The World Can’t Wait’ and help create visual identities for important University projects such as ‘Athena Island’, ‘Hydrogen Works’, ‘Think Human’, ‘Get Connected’ and our recent student and staff recruitment campaigns.
“I appreciate all of the amazing opportunities that I have been given at the start of my career to push creative boundaries in higher education, and I’m excited to keep contributing to the University’s efforts to stand out and lead within the sector”.
Previous Loughborough staff member Jess Greenough was awarded silver in this category.
The judges commented: “Jess' proactivity and enthusiasm is infectious. This entry demonstrated clear career growth and showed how Jess has been wearing a lot of different hats to deliver some great results across multiple schools and projects.”
Other shortlisted entries from Loughborough include:
- Best brand/reputation campaign - The World Can't Wait
- Best event experience - The AULP Conference and Inaugural Awards 2024