Despite the fact we're already in the second week of the brand-new Year, I thought I could jump on the bandwagon and share some of my favourite marketing campaigns from 2023.

You’ve probably already seen loads of marketers and creatives share their 2023 favourites across LinkedIn, TikTok and Instagram Reels (or wherever you like to consume content). I was walking home from my yoga class (new year, new me) when I looked up at the billboards on the street when I realised, I hadn’t put in my two pence.  

Without further ado, in no particular order, and certainly not the full and extensive list... here are five of my favourite campaigns from 2023.  

Not Just A Nice to Have

So, I have decided I think it would be cheating if I gave you an example of a campaign that we worked on at BIG little London, so I'm not going to do that, but if I did have to give one...

I would say the ‘Not just a nice to have’ campaign that we ran with our client ALA Insurance. We were fortunate enough to walk away with a Global Influencer Marketing Award in the ‘Best Use of a Small Budget’ category, taking home the silver award amongst a list of worthy competitors.  

Want to find out how we can achieve BIGGER bang for your buck? Get in touch.

The Social Swap by Heineken

Heineken partnered with AI tool, Arwen, an AI powered social media moderator, to help reduce the amount of online toxicity and biased comments that live on social media. In their campaign, Heineken asked two ex-professional players turned pundits, Jill Scott and Gary Neville, to swap social media accounts and live narrate matches during the UEFA Champions League. Gary, posing as Jill, got replies such as "Get back in the kitchen babe", "You should probably concentrate on the girl's league", "Seems like your brain's gone misisng. Best leave the football to the boys then luv." and "save your opinion for what to make for dinner." Jill, posing as Gary, got "The most objective opinion I've seen from you."

If you haven't watched this ad, then you have to. Find out more about The Social Swap.

EE Hope United introduce GayVAR

We were first introduced to Hope United FC back in 2021, when BT launched a campaign to tackle abusive language and behaviour online. In 2022, during the EUFA Women's EURO, Hope United returned in an effort to raise awareness and tackle sexist language and behaviour online.

Last year, Hope United launched their newest initiative, GayVAR. A campaign to tackle the use of homophobia within football. The campaign encourages fans to take a stand when they witness homophobia in person or online.

The arrival of GayVAR comes as research commissioned by EE revealed almost three quarters (71%) of Brits agree homophobia is a problem in football, which rises to nine in 10 (88%) among LGBTQ+ respondents. Nearly half (40%) believe that social media exacerbates the issue.

A quarter of those surveyed have witnessed online homophobic hate firsthand in the past two years. However, worryingly, despite its prevalence few speak out against it; more than one in four (27%) witnesses to homophonic abuse took no action. Notably, the wider UK population is less likely to take action than respondents in the LGBTQ+ community if they witnessed hate (27% vs 21%), suggesting the need for more allyship from the wider UK population.

Heinz x Absolut Vodka Pasta Sauce

One of my ABSOLUT (wink wink) favourites of the year. Heinz partnered with iconic vodka brand, Absolut, to create Heinz x Absolut Tomato Vodka Sauce. This was a genius move by Heinz after launching their own pasta sauce line in 2022, and wanting to expand further into the market. Who better to collaborate with than Absolut?

Vodka pasta sauce became a viral sensation back in 2019 after supermodel, Gigi Hadid shared her very own vodka pasta sauce recipe online, with some now exclusively referring to the dish as 'Gigi Hadid Pasta'. The campaign artwork takes inspiration from the recognisable Absolut ads from the 1980s and 90s.

Harry doesn't want the limelight, but DASH Water does..

This is an office favourite at BIG little LDN. In a genius example of reactive marketing, DASH Water hijacked Prince Harry's high court appearance and used the televised opportunity to promote DASH Water. They even got featured on BBC News. Check it out below.

What do you think of Alice's list of favourites? Check us out on TikTok and join the conversation.