PR Diary – A day of fools, influencer insights, and award-winning celebrations
- PR
From tricking the nation on April Fools’ Day to building real-life Minecraft hopscotch trails, it’s been a busy April for the team. Oh, and did you hear we’ve won an award or two? Here’s a peek at some of our recent highlights…
A Bright Idea: how We fooled the nation with 4lite
April Fools’ Day is like Christmas for PRs, and this year we went ham for lighting brand, 4lite.
We sparked the idea of launching the very first ‘big light remote’, to give families the control to banish harsh lighting with ease – putting an end to the age-old battle over whether to keep the big light on or off.
We drafted a press release to announce the launch of this innovative new product, landing very suspiciously on April 1st, and our in-house studio team pulled together a fool-proof and intriguing creative image.
As a result, we achieved national coverage including The Sun, Mirror, Daily Star and Indy100 and a total reach of 19M.
A Minecraft Hopscotch
To celebrate the release of A Minecraft Movie, we created an immersive, blocky adventure zone for visitors at Bluewater, Westgate Oxford, Xscape Milton Keynes, and White Rose shopping centres.
Bringing the world of Minecraft to life, we designed and installed a vibrant pixel-art stepping stone hopscotch trail, featuring beloved in-game elements such as squids, lily pads, and more. Guests of all ages were challenged to make their way across the course without “falling in,” adding a playful and interactive twist to their visit.
To ramp up the excitement, we invited participants to share their hopscotch adventure on social media using a dedicated hashtag, offering them the chance to win an exciting Minecraft bundle worth over £200. The installation not only brought a touch of adventure to the centres but also created shareable moments that captured the spirit of the game.
A scroll-stopping kind of day at Influencer360
Danni headed to PRWeek’s Influencer360 in April for a jam-packed day of insight, honest conversation, and creative thinking around all things influencer marketing.
The event brought together brands, agencies, and creators to explore what’s working, what’s changing, and what’s next in the influencer space, covering topics like long-term partnerships and ROI to trust, transparency, and the power of co-creation.
One of the biggest takeaways? That much of what Umpf is already delivering for clients is exactly what industry leaders are championing – a reassuring nod that the team’s instincts (and hard graft) are paying off 👏🏻
Highlights from the day included conversations around the rise of niche creators, how to build meaningful relationships between brands and influencers, and why authenticity still rules when it comes to driving real impact.
Danni left with a phone full of notes, a brain full of ideas, and plenty of inspiration to bring back to the office 💭
Oh, just a little award win or two
Oh, what’s occurrin’? Our work on Nessa’s Grand Arcade at St David’s won two awards at the PRMoment Awards North on 3rd April!
Umpf and St David’s were crowned:
- Gold for Event of the Year (Live, Virtual, or Hybrid)
- Silver for Health, Beauty, Retail, & Fashion Marketing Communications Campaign of the Year
The judges called it “a simple yet powerful creative that was extremely fun and brought together a number of different demographics” and said “this is just brilliant. I especially love the detail that went into the prizes. A great reactive campaign that exceeded KPIs”.
Crackin’ teamwork.
It doesn’t stop there…
In even more awards news, we’re celebrating six shortlist spots at this year’s national CIPR Excellence Awards, representing the best of the best in UK PR🏆
From organising the world’s biggest Santa skate in Somerset, recreating Nessa’s Slots in Cardiff, making a shopping outlet the ‘top dog’ in the country, to serving up energy-saving low-budget recipes for success, we’ve pulled off some Farke-ing great PR campaigns and stunts in the past year – and we’re chuffed to be recognised alongside some of the best in the industry. Watch this space for more news.