Aruga announced as Mumbrella CommsCon Awards Finalists

Every year, the Mumbrella CommsCon Awards recognise the best campaigns, businesses and individuals in the PR and Communications industry. 

This year, we are absolutely-beside-ourselves-chuffed to have been shortlisted in not one, not two, but THREE, of the 2023 Mumbrella CommsCon Awards categories:

• Best Influencer Strategy – Rural Aid Mates Day
• Best Non-Traditional Business Opportunity – Northshore Christmas Boat Parade
• Best Campaign with a Small Budget – Rural Aid Mates Day

Mates Day is Rural Aid’s largest annual giving day but in 2022, it faced an uphill battle. Widespread floods and fires across the country had saturated media and competing appeals had splintered donations.

Aruga was engaged to counter the media fatigue and crowded charity market with a campaign to reignite awareness and drive support for farmers and their families doing it tough.

The brief was clear: “create blanket media coverage, hitting major national media outlets with a campaign hero moment.”

Aruga recognised the need to strike a powerful emotional chord and engaged Jem Cassar-Daley as the 2022 Mates Day Ambassador to offset devastating media coverage with a hopeful call to arms. 

We commissioned the rising indie music star – daughter of Australian country music legend Troy Cassar-Daley and media personality Laurel Edwards – to arrange and record a version of Carole King’s iconic 1971 anthem, You’ve Got A Friend.  

With the personable and popular Ambassador, authentic endorsement from 11 high-profile influencers and celebrities and a tight six-week timeline, Aruga’s campaign captured Aussies’ hearts quickly, ultimately inspiring $1.1M in donations on Mates Day.

Read more about the campaign here.

When Economic Development Queensland (EDQ) wanted to bring Christmas cheer to its Northshore Brisbane precinct, Aruga stepped in to play Santa.

We conceptualised and created the Northshore Christmas Boat Parade, an attention-grabbing Christmas activation unique and authentic to the waterfront precinct.

The innovative, first-of-its-kind event saw a glittering cavalcade of boats parade along the Brisbane River as visitors lined the shore to experience a Christmas lights display like no other.

The campaign successfully promoted Northshore Brisbane as an emerging hub of creativity and innovation, raised awareness of the precinct and its partners, drove visitation and in-precinct spending and activated an underutilised stretch of the Brisbane River.

The non-traditional opportunity saw Aruga engaged to conceptualise and deliver a solution to a business challenge rather than promote an existing campaign or event. 

Aruga’s campaign remit included event ideation, brand development and creative, media partnerships, marketing and PR promotion and content production.

Aruga built the unique event from the ground up, liaising with the Queensland Police Service, Maritime Safety, commercial boat operators, media and precinct partners to bring the idea to life. 

Read more about the campaign here.

Shout-out to our incredible clients who we get to work with every day and who trust us with their most valuable asset – their brand. 

Please join us in crossing our fingers and toes for an Aruga win at this year’s Mumbrella CommsCon awards on 11 May but truth be told, being recognised in these categories among other inspiring campaigns and creative is a win in itself. 

In the meantime, if you need a little help generating award-winning marketing and public relations campaigns, feel free to reach out. 

Time to pop the champagne and celebrate the nomination and the great work being done right across the industry!