EVENT specialists from Australia and the UK teamed up to deliver a “world first” for political party conferences by combining national and local sessions beamed live simultaneously.
Peter Pecotić, of Turning Point Solutions, along with Mark Lucas and Dom Minghella from London-based campaigners Lucas/Minghella were called in by the Australian Labor Party’s national secretariat for the 2021 Special Platform Conference.
“It was the first time an event of this kind has been held in Australia and in its use of tech and interactivity was the first of its kind in the world,” the trio said in a statement.
The conference featured live links across Australia, live online voting and the introduction of evening sessions combining real stories, passionate speeches and entertainment.
“Gone were the fixed platforms and dusty rooms. On came an energetic and modern format that combined real democracy with genuine local engagement. It allowed a real and immediate connection between political leaders, activists and the general public linked with the theme On Your Side.”
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Highlights included a speech from Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese. live dance from the NT dance company, music from the legendary Jimmy Barnes, up-and-coming singer Gordi, all hosted by TV presenter Samantha Lane. The conference also linked to UK Labour leader Keir Starmer.
The event reached more than 200,000 people with impressions across social media including 1.5 million mentions on Twitter, compared to 100,00 the previous week; Instagram likes up 300 per cent on the last conference.
Paul Erickson, the Australian Labor Party’s national secretary, said: “Labor has held more than 60 national conferences over our 130 year history, but none of them have been anything like this.
“Our Online Special Platform Conference demonstrated how Labor is ready to change and adapt for a new era.”
Pecotić has worked on online events for Labor in New South Wales the NSW Party and for political and corporate campaigns over the past 20 years.
Lucas has worked on over 20 national election campaigns around the world including three successive wins for Tony Blair, while Dom Minghella has written for major TV programmes as well as political campaigns.
Pecotić brought in leading TV director Todd Decker who had the task of linking the speeches, contributions from local members, international links, music and performances into one seamless show.
Gravity media was given the task of live linking to 150 delegates across Australia. Lumi Global managed the live real-time voting system while Campaign Edge, led by Dee Madigan, produced a series of compelling videos that took the event to a new level.
