Agency Awards Approved puts the spotlight on this year’s Conference News Agency Awards winners – the teams, campaigns and ideas that rose above the rest. This series goes beyond the trophies to explore what set these agencies apart, from the strategies that delivered results to the decisions that defined their success, alongside insight from the judges on why these entries stood out. Each feature dives into the work that earned industry recognition, offering a closer look at what it really takes to win.
In this edition we speak to Gareth Bright, director at Woodcote Events and Jo Atherton, director at Woodcote Events. Woodcote Events won the award for Event of the Year, automotive for their work on the Ducati Roadshow 2025.
Speaking on how they felt when they found out that they had won the award, Bright said: “Well, we were shocked. We were honoured to be selected, and just make it to the final, so to win it blew our minds.”
Bright added: “The other two finalists were representing car manufacturers, whereas most of our clients are motorcycle manufacturers, so we didn’t think we would be winners against those kinds of finalists.”
Woodcote Events have been working on The Ducati Roadshow for three years. For Ducati, it is an experiential event where they can showcase their different bike models by taking them on the road to different venues, such as dealerships or biker hangouts. At the venues they run demo rides throughout the day. The 2025 roadshow brought the experience directly to riders across at total of 15 locations.
Woodcote Events were responsible for organising everything for the event from the Ducati branded mobile showroom and trailer that could contain up to 10 biked in total. The agency also had to kit out the mobile showroom with on brand furniture, to make it a premium experience for customers attending the event.
The agency was also responsible for organising where the roadshow was going to go, as well as organising staffing and health and safety. The agency also created a bespoke online booking system so that customers could have a seamless experience when booking their demo ride. Through the system customers were able to book their ride and select what model of bike they wanted to try out.
As well, the agency was responsible for reporting to Ducati UK every week, giving them updates on how bookings were going, and providing leaderboards to see which venues and dealerships were getting the most bookings.
Atherton said: “This meant they could review what the most popular products, venues and dealers were, and that allowed them to tailor their marketing as to whether they needed to do a bit more promotion or not, so much because they were fully booked, and then at the end of each event, so after we delivered each event at each different place. We gave them all the customer data, so we handed over all the booking data, so that they could then do follow-ups with their sales team.”
Creating the Ducati roadshow to be a mobile event meant that they were able to take the products into the riders’ communities, to places such as cafes or venues that are popular with bikers. Atherton said: “They are more comfortable in those places. They don’t feel like they are going to get sold something, so you are taking the products and lifestyle to where they are.”
Bright added: “There’s less sales pressure and more about getting people to have real riding experience on a bike that they might not have had the chance to ride before.”
One judge praised the submission for being detailed. The judge said: “A detailed submission which shows the expansion of the roadshow and that client KPIs were achieved.”
Another judge said: “The Ducati Roadshow 2025 delivered a nationwide, premium test ride programme that successfully re energised rider engagement following a multi-year hiatus. Woodcote Events executed a 15 location, 25-day touring experience with a fully branded mobile showroom, expert rider teams, and a seamless digital booking system, ensuring consistent quality at every stop. The event generated exceptional measurable results, including 1,140 test rides, 1,035 qualified leads and 18 immediate sales, alongside universally positive customer sentiment and multiple 5-star online reviews.”
The judge added: “Testimonials from Ducati UK and regional Ducati clubs highlight the team’s professionalism, operational rigour, customer first approach and deep category expertise, reinforcing their role as a trusted experiential partner. Overall, the programme demonstrated strong strategic alignment, operational excellence and clear commercial impact for Ducati UK.”
The most complex operational part of the event was the bikes themselves and keeping on top of the maintenance of the vehicles. They had to be checked over by Ducati UK at Silverstone, meaning that there were a lot of logistics involved with getting the team there, such as hotel bookings, working with suppliers, bringing everything together, so that all was delivered at the same time.
In terms of the feedback from customers, there was a lot of positive feedback about the riding routes that were picked. Customers said that the routes allowed them to really experience the bike.
Atherton said: “Ducati is a premium brand, so customers expect a premium level of service to match the brand, so our clients expect us to deliver something premium as well.”
“We’ve set a standard in how road shows are delivered. I think we’re constantly developing those standards and improving them and keep pushing them away from our competitors that may want that kind of work. The key for us is continued improvement and ensuring that our clients are getting the best that we can offer.”
Bright added: “The win is a great recognition for the motorcycle industry, to win an award like this against some huge car brands. Motorcycle sare normally overlooked when it comes to the automotive industry, so to have that recognition for a motorcycle event was great for us, and a great tick for the industry.”