#PRAwards 2021 spills: WhiteLabel PR sees the silver lining through adversities of 2020

PR agency, WhiteLabel, secured a place as a finalist for best PR Campaign: Fashion & Apparel at MARKETING-INTERACTIVE's recent PR Awards. The agency successfully expanded its client's depth of appeal to a younger audience and worked very closely with its client to identify what influenced youth and young adults when it came to their sartorial choices.

It discovered that both groups relied heavily on online sources and social media for fashion inspiration, seeking out visual references from influencers’ Instagram feeds for style tips and the hottest fashion trends. This led to its decision to move forward with launching new fashion labels with an online campaign, enabling its client to reach its technologically savvy audience directly, and at the same time strengthen its digital presence through social media. 

In a conversation with MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, director and co-founder of WhiteLabel PR, Freda Yuin shared the proudest achievements of the agency in 2020 and what can be expected of the agency in the year 2021. 

This interview is done as part of MARKETING-INTERACTIVE’s winners and finalists’ interview series for PR Awards 2021. To find out more about the awards, click here.

What would you say was the biggest accomplishment for the whole PR/communications community in 2020?

Yuin: 2020 was undoubtedly a year fraught with many unprecedented challenges, especially for many at the forefront who suffered the repercussions of the global pandemic. However, it was also at once a year of remarkable compassion and humanity. Many of us in the PR industry banded together in our efforts to spread words of encouragement, support, and gratitude for those who needed to be heard and appreciated. Through our campaigns, we enabled others to reach out and lend a hand to those in need. 

What would you say was your proudest achievement of the year?

Yuin: I am immensely proud that as a small and relatively young outfit, we were able to secure the trust and opportunities to work with some of the most established industry players, one of which included BHG Singapore. Their trust and support for our work gave us the exhilaration of successfully executing and fulfilling our creative vision. For that, I am deeply grateful. 

What are some communications trends you see carrying on post-pandemic?

Yuin: 2020 was the year that forced brands to move away from large-scale engagements to smaller and more intimate ones with media and key opinion leaders. The last year saw brands grow more accustomed to intimate authentic campaigns that offered an authentic human touch.

This growing need for human connection continues in our ongoing experiments with alternative forms of media such as podcasts. Such platforms offer the chance for sharing not just the stories told through a rose-tinted  lens, but more arrestingly, the authentic and unfiltered stories of real people and real struggles. 

How will the role of communications professionals evolve as we move into a rather uncertain future?

Yuin: We have to recognise the importance of proactive brand management that requires communications professionals to move upstream and play a bigger role in management and decision-making functions to identify and manage the ever growing spectrum of sensitivities at every step of the way.

To the same end, communication professionals should also realise how great an influence we could have over positive changes resulting from our campaigns. We should thus take a more purpose-driven approach to communications as opposed to a primarily performance-driven one. 

What can we expect from your company in 2021?

Yuin: I would say, expect more of the unexpected! We love to try new things, especially when it comes to purpose-driven campaigns. We will continue to challenge ourselves to discover more innovative means to tell authentic stories, sometimes hidden right under the surface, on behalf of our clients and our communities!