PR Week "broke with the tradition of awarding Campaign of the Year to a PRWeek Award category winner," instead, it awarded it to a communications team that "had been at the heart of the global story of the year: LOCOG," according to Kate Magee of PR WEEK. The Games "were the most-ambitious logistical exercise ever undertaken in the U.K. in peacetime." The "statistics were staggering -- there were around 800,000 spectators, more than 14,000 athletes and the capital was firmly in the global media’s spotlight as more than 21,000 journalists landed on British soil." The "campaign was highly focused and meticulously planned." From the Opening Ceremony’s "creative display of British eccentricity, to managing public transport expectations, to quickly responding to minor grievances," the communications team "was highly prepared, well briefed and responsive." LOCOG met its first objective, which was to "raise £2B ($3.2B) of private money." It "got the law changed, to give an unprecedented level of protection to the sponsors, something that is likely to be a blueprint for future Games." And "all of this was achieved with very little use of traditional advertising" (PRWEEK.com, 10/24).
