NERVO was the agency responsible for creating and producing the Prémios SAPO 2023, a competition that awards digital advertising works.

Prémios SAPO 2023 communication was based on the universe of the Portuguese Popular Saints, proverbs and traditions, but with the boldness of today and a wink to the digital advertising universe.

“Faz das boas e sobe ao altar” was the motto that challenged agencies, clients and media outlets to stop being saints and assume that good work deserves a prominent place. In this case, not being a good saint, but being a popular one.

More than the conceptual aspect, NERVO activated all communication phases of the event, having started with a trip to the agencies to launch an invitation for a Popular Sardinhada. A slightly different sardine game, in which, through a tournament, SAPO challenged creatives to put their hands into the fire for their work and enter their favorites in Prémios SAPO 2023 . The final of this tournament took place during the awards ceremony, in an inter-agency tournament that crowned the winner with a round of applause and a prestigious aluminum salver – also known as a platter – ready to serve sardines.

The structure, decoration, presentation, stage and concerts promised to involve all visitors to the space in the mood.

“The opportunity to integrate the award ceremony into the Popular Saints Holidays theme allowed us to bring back the fun tone that the Prémios Sapo had accustomed us to. There are several communication fronts, which allowed us to diversify our ideas for the various formats – even bringing back some of the lost traditions of the Prémios Sapo, such as launching a creative challenge to agencies, in which we delivered a blank banner ready to decorate to the finalists, so that they can convey their identity to the altar. It was also especially pleasurable to give some space to the guilty pleasure of any copywriting, using puns shamelessly in communication.”, says Miguel Pires, Creative Partner at NERVO.

“The main challenge was to integrate our ideas and Sapo’s identity into a space already designed for several brands. We sought to develop a moment that added value to the entire experience instead of creating entropy, so that this partnership would be beneficial for both Sapo and the Santos no Tejo festival.”, concludes NERVO’s Managing Partner, Tiago Tarracha.