Blacksmith Award Winners

2011 BLACKSMITH AWARDSCINCINNATI PRSA

#CincyPRSA

2011 Blacksmith Awards#CincyPRSA

2011 Blacksmith Co-ChairsShara ClarkBarbara Grimsley

Blacksmith CommitteeAndrew ShippGail MyersClaire GuapponeJennifer DexterCheryl BeslAnna HoganElliot Campbell

THANK YOU!

PLATINUM SPONSOR

SILVER SPONSORS

2010-2011 APR RECIPIENT

Ashley Walters

AMY SCALIA

Cincy ChicCincinnati Profile

Star 64

2011 BLACKSMITH AWARDSCINCINNATI PRSA

#CincyPRSA

TACTICS

MEDIA RELATIONSNews Conference / Publicity Stunt

BLACKSMITHgyro Public Relations

Get Back to Scratch at NRA

News Conference/Publicity Stunt

Back to Scratch at NRA

In support of the Get Back to Scratch movement, Buddy Valastro created and unveiled a custom cake creation for the Get Back to Scratch booth at the 2011 National Restaurant Association (NRA) Show. The cake’s design was kept secret, and Valastro formally unveiled the cake in conjunction with a brief press conference.

More than 30 registered media outlets were present for the press conference and unveil of the giant Hobart replica mixer cake.

gyro Public Relations

MEDIA RELATIONSPress Kit or Media Website

BRONZE AWARDNorthlich for Face:Meth

Face:Meth Kit Focuses on Education

Press Kit or Media Website

Face:Meth Kit Focuses on Education

Northlich’s strategic meth education campaign built a partnership between local law enforcement and retailers to increase awareness of the products used to cook meth and how to report suspicious meth-related purchases to ultimately increase meth tips and arrests.

Northlich created a meth education kit for law enforcement officials to distribute to retailers and pharmacies. The face:meth kit included: a video, information cards, a scavenger hunt, and a poster and cashier cards.

Northlich for Face:Meth

MEDIA RELATIONSBest Placement

SILVER AWARDGame Day Communications: Jackie Reau & Betsy

Flying Pig Marathon Photo Essay in Inc. Magazine

Best Placement

Flying Pig Marathon Photo Essay in Inc. Magazine

In 2011, the Flying Pig Marathon applied for and received green certification. This major effort became a primary theme in Game Day’s media relations outreach and was on their pitch list for the 2011 race.

The two-page photo spread appeared in the July/August issue of Inc. Magazine with 700,000 impressions and $764,500 earned media value.

Game Day Communications

SILVER AWARDgyro Public Relations

Cincinnati Bell/Taft High on ABC News

Best Placement

Cincinnati Bell/Taft High on ABC News

On March 18, 2011, ABC World News with Diane Sawyer’s Person of the Week was the principal of Robert A. Taft Information Technology High School. The school went from a graduation rate around 20 percent to receiving an “Excellent” rating on its state report card.

To promote the turnaround, professionals from Taft High School, Cincinnati Public Schools, Cincinnati Bell and gyro worked together to tell a comprehensive story with ABC News. The story sentiment was highly favorable resulting in positive nationwide exposure for Cincinnati Public Schools and Cincinnati Bell.

SILVER AWARDNorthlich for Buffalo Wings & Rings

Buffalo Wings & Rings Lands on Nation’s Restaurant News

Best Placement

Buffalo Wings & Rings Lands on Nation’s Restaurant News

As part of a communication rollout of new brand positioning to its franchisees, Buffalo Wings & Rings looked to Northlich for placement in a publication that would reinforce the brand story to current and potential franchise owners and investors. Northlich identified Nation’s Restaurant News as the top choice publication.

Following the successful interview with Nation’s Restaurant News, they announced the brand re-launch to all franchisees during the annual BW&R Franchise Meeting. During the first day of the meeting, Nation’s Restaurant News released the latest issue featuring the interview.

Northlich for Buffalo Wings & Rings

BLACKSMITHMary Beth Weaver & James Czar

Cincy Blues Society’s Winter Blues Fest Coverage in Metromix Cincinnati

Best Placement

Winter Blues Fest Coverage–Metromix Cincinnati

The Society’s Winter Blues Fest event is the organization’s primary fundraiser for the Blues in the Schools program, Having the Winter Blues Fest highlighted in Metromix Cincinnati was significant in raising awareness and excitement, as well as increasing ticket sales.

Metromix Cincinnati featured the Winter Blues Fest as the primary cover story, in a full-page article with photos and as the largest call-out event on the “Get Out” calendar section.

Cincy Blues Society

MEDIA RELATIONSOp-Ed/Bylined Article

BRONZE AWARDStrata-G Communications

Neace Lukens Financial Executive Article

Op-Ed/Bylined Article

Neace Lukens Financial Executive Article

As part of the public relations engagement with Neace Lukens, Strata-G was charged with the task of increasing Neace Lukens’ brand awareness and helping to position the company as a thought leader in the insurance and financial industries.

In the fourth quarter of 2010, as a result of a proactive thought leadership pitch, Strata-G secured a bylined article opportunity about Health Care Reform for Scott Heiser, president of Neace Lukens' outsourced employee benefits division, in Financial Executive magazine.

Strata-G Communications

EXTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS

Annual Report

BLACKSMITHTom Schick & Denis Orner for Mercy Neighborhood Ministries

Mission. Momentum. Results. 2010 Annual Review & Financial Report

Annual Report

Mission. Momentum. Results.

Founded in 2007 through the merger of three previously existing social agencies, Mercy Neighborhood Ministries faced many communication challenges as it sought to bring the cultures and supporter bases of the predecessor agencies into a single organization. The 2010 annual report provides a modern professional approach.

Annual report donations for 2010 were18% more than the total of all those received in 2009, and the average gift was15.6% larger.

Tom Schick & Denis Orner

INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS

Internal Communications / Internal Magazine

BLACKSMITHSunglass Hut Communications Team

Fyi Magazine

Internal Magazine

Fyi Magazine

FYi Magazine is a monthly publication for Sunglass Hut used to make a connection about company culture. It is a fun way to provide insight on the overall brand strategy, career development opportunities, community events and recognize associates. In return, associates feel more connected to what's happening with the brand.

In an FYi Associate Satisfaction Survey polled earlier this year, more than 80% of responds noted that almost always the material provided content that was useful to connect with customers.

Sunglass Hut Communications Team

INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS

Employee Event

SILVER AWARDThe Eisen Agency

Stevenson Color: 85th Anniversary Employee Event

Employee Event

Stevenson Color: 85th Anniversary

To celebrate 85 years of successful business, Stevenson color launched a rebrand that included a new logo and website. To kick off their new look and thank employees, they hosted an employee event.

Out of the 150 employees that were invited to attend, 140 attended the event. As a result of the media relation efforts, the Cincinnati Enquirer wrote a Sunday Business Feature on Stevenson Color that covered their extensive history and success in business.

The Eisen Agency

SILVER AWARDNorthlich

Northlich “Lifts” Employees With Creative Storytelling

Employee Event

Northlich “Lifts” Employees With Creative Storytelling

Northlich leadership wanted to unite employees around the agency’s ability to differentiate itself in a crowded marketplace through its unique approach to creative storytelling. They transported employees for a day-long meeting to Aileron, a banquet center designed specifically for company events. The agenda included a facilitated working morning session as well as an afternoon awards ceremony. During lunch and scheduled breaks, employees enjoyed the beautiful grounds. The results of the post-event survey were overwhelmingly positive, with 64 percent of employees raving about the venue.

Northlich

BLACKSMITHLuxottica Corporate Communications Team

Luxottica Imagine Event

Employee Event

Luxottica Imagine Event

Luxottica held a company-wide event in downtown Cincinnati to celebrate its 50th anniversary and present new corporate Characteristics. Nick Clooney emceed the program. Clooney provided historical context and narration to go with a series of videos shown at the event.

Pre and post-surveys were sent to associates before and after the event. Among the results: 65 percent said they have a clear understanding of company direction and a compelling vision of the future compared to 54 percent before the event.

Luxottica Corporate Communications Team

INTEGRATED MARKETINGNon-Traditional Marketing

SILVER AWARDNorthlich for DSW

Where’d You Get Those Shoes Leg Installation

Non-Traditional Marketing

Where’d You Get Those Shoes Leg Installation

As part of an integrated campaign, Northlich applied non-traditional tactics to encourage conversations around the DSW brand for store grand openings. Northlich leveraged the unique geography of each market to fabricate and install playful art installations featuring DSW shoes from the spring collection.

Results in both locations included positive verbatim among venues and sites and grand opening day sales 57 and 54 percent above projections.

Northlich for DSW

INTEGRATED MARKETINGBrochure

BRONZE AWARDCincinnati USA Regional Tourism Network

Pocket Brochure

Brochure

Pocket Brochure

The Cincinnati USA Regional Tourism Network’s Pocket Brochures are a quarterly piece of collateral distributed by request regionally. Highlighting the region’s attractions and events by season, this piece is a resource to visitors planning their visit as well as helpful tool once they are in the market.

More than 500,000 brochures will be distributed this year to customers through online request as well as at Cincinnati USA signature events.

Cincinnati USA Regional Tourism Network

INTEGRATED MARKETINGExperiential Marketing

BRONZE AWARDEmpower MediaMarketing

Tailgate Tour Reminds Game Day Fans of Bush’s Baked Beans & Creates Fourth Grilling Holiday

Experiential Marketing

Tailgate Tour Reminds Game Day Fans of Bush’s Baked Beans & Creates Fourth Grilling Holiday

In fall 2010, Bush’s kicked off its Tailgate Research Institute (TRI) mobile tour, which visited NFL and college football game tailgates, NASCAR and retail all over the nation for 14 weeks. Bush’s Ultimate Tailgate Spot showcased how a “TRI Approved” space should be arranged.

After tailgates, Bush’s continued its emotional connection with consumers online by directing fans to the brand’s Facebook page where tailgaters could view event photos, find future tour stops, interact with event-related wall posts, and enter Bush’s Best Tailgate Contest.

Empower MediaMarketing

INTERACTIVE/DIGITAL PR

Website

BRONZE AWARDgyro Public Relations

Makino – Radical Departures

Website

Makino – Radical Departures

To meet audiences' desire for the latest, most relevant content, Makino looked to gyro to provide a unique digital experience that could offer new content without the need to increase print magazines. In June 2011, gyro created a new, mobile-platform-optimized Radical Departures website capable of automatically aggregating and publishing content from Makino's numerous web properties.

After just two months, the website has provided Makino with dozens of new sales leads and new subscribers to the magazine.

BRONZE AWARDTopic Design

MidPoint Music Festival Website

Website

MidPoint Music Festival Website

Topic has given birth to the MPMF (MidPoint Music Festival) brand and acronym, the MPMFer community, a twitter/text visualizer and more. The festival has surged on to the national scene, growing in all manner of scale – venues, bands, sponsorships, attendance and reputation.

MPMF.com is the official online resource for communicating all festival information. Among the results: festival attendance increased, 3-day ticket sales doubled over the prior year, and the festival had its first year of profitability in its 9-year history.

Topic Design

SILVER AWARDNorthlich for the Ohio Lottery

New Online Experience Reaches Future Gamers

Website

New Online Experience Reaches Future Gamers

The site, www.ohiolottery.com, was designed to enhance the player’s entertainment value of the Lottery and create a deeper, more engaged relationship with the brand. As part of the website redesign, a new mobile version of the site was also created.

One month after the site launched, unique page views increased by more than one million views. Pages viewed per visit increased more than 12 percent. The average time spent on the site increased by nearly one minute per visit and new visits increased more than 7 percent.

Northlich for the Ohio Lottery

BLACKSMITHThe Staff of the Greater Cincinnati Foundation

GCF Building a Foundation Online

Website

GCF Building a Foundation Online

In August 2010, The Greater Cincinnati Foundation launched its new website to better serve the Foundation’s three main audiences: donors, donors’ professional advisors and local nonprofits. To keep the needs of the audiences top of mind, an internal staff committee was formed to gain user insight.

From January – June 2011, website visits were up 33 percent over same period in 2010.

Greater Cincinnati Foundation

Get Back to Scratch

Website

Get Back to Scratch

The Get Back to Scratch website serves as an entertaining and engaging resource for professionals to share the importance of scratch baking and cooking. The website features an online directory, videos, a scratch baking blog, integrated Twitter and Facebook feeds, and tips from some of the industry’s top scratch professionals.

The initiative has already seen 500+ establishments registered in the Scratch Directory and averages 32,000 unique monthly visitors. User engagement is high with hundreds of comments in support of scratch profiles and blog posts.

Intranet

BRONZE AWARDTime Warner Cable – Cynthia Godby

“In the Community” Microsite

Intranet

“In the Community” Microsite

In a company-wide employee opinion survey, it was discovered that employees weren’t aware of TWC community support. The “In the Community” microsite was built to showcase the many ways TWC contributes to its communities; encourage volunteerism and to create a “one-stop spot” where employees could find information.

After the site was previewed at a regional meeting, all other Midwest Region divisions indicated they would be borrowing concepts to use on their intranets. Volunteer hours have increased by 25% and are expected to increase an additional 20% by Dec. 31.

Time Warner Cable-Cynthia Godby

Get Back to Scratch with The Cake Boss

Hobart, Traulsen and Baxter partnered with Buddy Valastro, star of the popular TLC show “Cake Boss,” to promote Get Back to Scratch, a movement highlighting the growing demand for high-quality goods made from scratch. They spent three days with Valastro and his crew in Hoboken, New Jersey to film the creation of the cake and discuss the movement.

The video built suspense for Valastro’s appearance at the National Restaurant Association show, increased awareness of the movement among the target audience and drove traffic to the NRA show booth.

Roto Rooter: Thanksgiving Video

Roto-Rooter Thanksgiving Video

The busiest day of the entire year for the nation's #1 plumbing and drain cleaning giant is Thanksgiving. As part of an orchestrated effort and media relations strategy to share with consumers across the country that Roto-Rooter service experts would like to enjoy a little time at home with their family this year, Eisen created a short video for homeowners to view and learn a few "do's" and "don'ts" when it comes to Thanksgiving and plumbing.

As part of the media relations push, the video has received more than 5 million views, and calls on Thanksgiving Day were down in 2010 for the first time in 20 years.

The Eisen Agency

BLACKSMITHNorthlich for Face:Meth

Face:Meth Video Shows Dark Side of Meth

Several tactics were identified to raise awareness of the dangers of meth through an educational campaign, including an informational video. Branded as face:meth, Northlich’s strategic meth education campaign aimed to build a partnership between local law enforcement and retailers.

The purpose of the face:meth video was to engage viewers and keep them interested while communicating a large amount of information. There were 350 videos distributed.

BRONZE AWARDStrata-G Communications

Neace Lukens Blog

To position Neace Lukens as a thought leader in the insurance industry and enhance its presence online, Strata-G partnered with Neace Lukens to develop a thought leadership blog. To meet the individual needs and interests of its customer base, Strata-G developed four blogs, one for each key division.

During the first six months of the blog, Strata-G worked to create 21 postings for the Employee Benefits blog, nine postings for the Property & Casualty 360 blog, three postings for the CORE Solutions blog and eight postings for the Personal Insurance blog.

Strata-G Communications

SOCIAL MEDIAFacebook

SILVER AWARDEmpower MediaMarketing

Research & Compelling Story Drive Successful Facebook Re-Launch

Facebook

Research & Compelling Story Drive Successful Facebook Re-Launch

Michaels Arts & Crafts set the goal of converting its Facebook page into a thriving craft community. Using paid ads, display advertising and tagged creative, the brand built awareness of the Facebook page and drove traffic. Once consumers were on the page, Michaels posted content that encouraged engagement and provided exclusive offers and information.

Over the course of five months, Michaels’ Facebook likes grew by 770% from 25,000 likes to more than 250,000. Total impressions were 182% over the previous year on a flat budget.

SILVER AWARDNorthlich for Random House Children’s Books

Bringing the Emerald Atlas to Life on Facebook

Facebook

Bringing the Emerald Atlas to Life on Facebook

In April 2011, RHCB published “The Emerald Atlas,” the first book in The Books of Beginning series by John Stephens. To continue the momentum surrounding the first book in a planned trilogy, RHCB turned to Northlich to develop and execute a word of mouth campaign throughout the summer.

Northlich garnered more than 7,000 new “likes” in less than three months, a 300 percent increase in the number of fans; secured more than 80,000 social impressions, a 358 percent increase in engagement with fans on the Page.

Northlich for Random House Children’s Books

SOCIAL MEDIATwitter

Get Back to Scratch

Twitter

Get Back to Scratch

In March 2011, Hobart, Traulsen and Baxter launched “Get Back to Scratch,” a social media propelled movement highlighting the growing demand for high-quality goods made from scratch. When the movement launched, they established the @Back2Scratch twitter handle, created the profile and began to follow key influencers.

The Twitter account has seen amazing support, garnering hundreds of Twitter mentions, RT’s, “favorite” tweets and more than 500 Twitter followers specific to the precise target audience.

BLACKSMITHNorthlich for White Castle

Tweeting With a New Generation of Cravers

Twitter

Tweeting With a New Generation of Cravers

Research found that Twitter was an ideal communication channel for White Castle to reach its target consumer. The creation of a clear brand voice that leveraged opportunities to reinforce White Castle’s overall brand strategies led to the rapid development of the White Castle Twitter community.

Northlich was able to secure 4,921 Twitter followers, which was 53.78 percent above the goal, and 6,320 @ replies, mentions and retweets, which was 5.3 percent above the goal.

Northlich for White Castle

SOCIAL MEDIAYouTube/Vimeo

BLACKSMITHNorthlich

The Voice of a Generation

YouTube

The Voice of a Generation

In order to reach Gen Y, American Greetings created justWink, a quirky greeting card line that aimed to make its brand more relevant to this audience. The new card line was designed around the sarcastic, hipster and colorful expressions of this generation. Each headline is brought to life through a series of 15-second videos.

Twelve videos were uploaded to the “justdashwink” YouTube Channel, and the positive impact was seen immediately. In less than two months, these 12 justWink videos had a combined total of 20,053 views for the channel.

Northlich

SOCIAL MEDIABlogger Outreach

SILVER AWARDNorthlich for White Castle

Bloggers Enjoy Breakfast with White Castle

Blogger Outreach

Bloggers Enjoy Breakfast with White Castle

White Castle wanted to test featuring their breakfast items as a way to attract female consumers. A select group of influential food and lifestyle bloggers in the St. Louis market were targeted and invited to an invitation-only event. Bloggers were encouraged to tweet about the event using a specific hashtag, and share a coupon using a trackable URL. The event was hosted by White Castle’s executive chef.

Attending bloggers’ posts received 290,643 views, a 45.32 percent increase above the goal. The hashtag was tweeted 177 times; a 77 percent increase above the goal.

Northlich for White Castle

BLACKSMITHEmpower MediaMarketing

Rust-Oleum Pre-Launches New Product with Bloggers to Earn Credibility

Blogger Outreach

Rust-Oleum Pre-Launches New Product with Bloggers

Rust-Oleum was on the brink of launching a new product line, Rust-Oleum Kitchen Transformations, but research uncovered that consumers didn’t believe the product would work. Rust-Oleum took to the blogosphere and identified the nation’s top 10 DIY and design bloggers and invited them to attend a three-day, hands-on workshop to experience the products.

With more than 3,000 mentions of the new product line, the Bloggers drove significant buzz creating demand before the product even hit shelves. It drove 21,000 visits to the new website.

SOCIAL MEDIAOther Social Media

BRONZE AWARDWordsworth Communications on behalf of Verizon

Wireless

Verizon’s Gadget Play Date

Other Social Media

Verizon’s Gadget Play Date

Starting in December 2010, Verizon Wireless began activating its 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) network. WW conceptualized, planned and executed a Verizon Wireless 4G LTE “Gadget Play Date” in order to officially welcome the new network to local social media aficionados.

The event provided social media influencers and “gadget geeks” an opportunity to interact with the latest and greatest Verizon Wireless 4G LTE – essentially, serving as an interactive focus group.

Wordsworth Communications on behalf of Verizon Wireless

SILVER AWARDNorthlich for Schneck Medical Center

Leveraging Passionate Employees to Launch a Facebook Page

Other Social Media

Leveraging Passionate Employees to Launch a Facebook Page

While Schneck had a strong internal communications system in place to involve employees and share updates on the hospital system, Schneck was not active in social media. To officially launch the Facebook page, Northlich and Schneck planned an employee event at the hospital to excite employees about participating on the Facebook page and educate them on how to participate as necessary.

On the day of the employee Facebook launch event, the page added 210 fans in three hours and more than 250 fans within the next three days. In addition, employee-focused status updates have the highest engagement with an average of over 800 impressions and 5.5% feedback.

Northlich for Schneck Medical Center

EVENTSSpecial Event

SILVER AWARDGail Myers Public Relations & Bethany House

Services

Bethany House Services Ripple Effect Cabaret

Special Events

Ripple Effect Cabaret

As with many nonprofits, the funding of Bethany House Services has decreased, and Bethany House was looking for a new fund raising event. Susan Emerson Ansel, Vice President of Private Health News, is a professional singer-actress and a volunteer and friend of BHS. She agreed to create a cabaret performance to benefit Bethany House Services.

The theme was “The Ripple Effect: One Person Can Make a Difference.” In 2010, The Ripple Effect’s second airing raised $50,000 for Bethany House Services, a 50 percent increase over the previous year’s proceeds.

Gail Myers Public Relations & Bethany House Services

Fashion Gives – A DSW Grand Opening

Special Events

Fashion Gives – A DSW Grand Opening

DSW tapped Northlich to design and execute an eight-week integrated local store marketing campaign to support two DSW grand openings A grand opening event called Fashion Gives was executed to help create buzz around the new stores. Northlich leveraged 50 local fashion influencers tapped as Agents of Chic to spark word of mouth recommendations around the brand.

Between the two sites, there were more than 100 active and engaged Agents of Chic and more than 1,800 attendees to Fashion Gives as a result of Agents of Chic.

Northlich for DSW

SILVER AWARDWordsworth Communications on behalf of

The Kenwood by Senior Star

A Grand Affair at the Kenwood by Senior Star

Special Events

A Grand Affair at the Kenwood by Senior Star

The Kenwood by Senior Star is a new, luxury retirement community located in Cincinnati. In March of 2011, Wordsworth began planning three grand opening events to officially unveil it to the community. The objectives of the events were to increase awareness and generate sales leads.

There were approximately 355 guests across all three events. The Kenwood’s sales lead database doubled. Wordsworth secured 19 total media placements about the grand opening, more than triple the number expected.

Wordsworth Communications on behalf of The Kenwood by Senior Star

BLACKSMITHStrata-G Communications – Rob Foster

Husqvarna R&D Event

Special Events

Husqvarna R&D Event

Strata-G recommended conducting a hands-on media event to support the grand opening of Husqvarna's North American R&D facility to provide the media with a deeper understanding and appreciation of Husqvarna's brand culture and personality and to reinforce Husqvarna's position as an industry thought leader. The media experienced the brand's various outdoor products first-hand.

Husqvarna received nearly a dozen online article postings, blog postings and e-newsletter article mentions, totaling more than 3.7 million media impressions.

Strata-G Communications – Rob Foster

EVENTSTradeshow

Tradeshow

Get Back to Scratch partnered with Buddy Valastro, star of the popular TLC show “Cake Boss,” to promote Get Back to Scratch at the NRA show. In support of the movement, Valastro created a custom cake creation and unveiled it at NRA.

More than 30 registered media outlets and more than 500 individual NRA attendees attended the unveiling of the giant Hobart mixer replica cake and press conference. 102 establishments added themselves to the Scratch Directory.

Luv the Nug at NAFEM

Tradeshow

Luv the Nug at NAFEM

At the 2011 North American Food Equipment Manufacturers (NAFEM) show, Scotsman Ice Systems launched the “Luv the Nug” campaign, a digital community that unites passionate ice chewers everywhere. The Nug Truck, a mobile food truck serving nugget ice, was parked in the Scotsman NAFEM booth with “chew-in events” throughout the show. Hundreds of attendees stopped by the Scotsman booth to engage with the Nug Truck.

An interview with Scotsman president Mark McClanahan detailing the Luv the Nug campaign was published in the NAFEM Daily. Trade media meetings and press release distribution resulted in 10 articles.

WRITINGArticle/Feature Story

BRONZE AWARDGail Myers Public Relations

Lance Corporal John Droody: Finding Strength to Recover

Article/Feature Story

Lance Corporal John Droody: Finding Strength to Recover

“Lance Corporate John Doody: Finding Strength to Recover” was written for Hill-Rom’s 2010 Annual Report to Shareholders. The theme of the annual report was to be “Portraits of Innovation.”

The purpose of the article was to show how Hill-Rom’s innovative products make a difference in an individual’s quality of life.

Gail Myers Public Relations

BRONZE AWARDGail Myers Public Relations

Rex Healthcare: Collaboration, Innovation and Finding New

Solutions

Rex Healthcare: Collaboration, Innovation and Finding New Solutions

“Rex Healthcare: Collaboration, Innovation and Finding New Solutions” was written for Hill-Rom’s 2010 Annual Report to Shareholders. The theme of the annual report was to be “Portraits of Innovation.”

The purpose of the article was to show how Hill-Rom’s partners with customers to develop product improvements. Hill-Rom wanted the article to demonstrate how Hill-Rom and Rex Healthcare worked together to improve Hill-Rom’s products for all customers.

Gail Myers Public Relations

TechSolve: Collaboration Raises the Bar of Customer Service at Bethesda North

TechSolve: Collaboration Raises the Bar at Bethesda North

This bylined article was written to illustrate how lean process improvements are effective in both aligning physician leadership and nursing staffs in providing better service and ultimately increasing patient satisfaction ratings in a hospital setting.

Group Practice Journal is a publication of the American Medical Group Association with a circulation of 69,207, reaching a large, influential audience of decision-makers critical to the client's health care division. The article is also available on the client's website.

The Eisen Agency

SILVER AWARDRumpke Consolidated – Jonathan Kissell

“Hauler Heroics” from Waste Age Magazine

Four Rumpke workers in Cleveland helped evacuate 10 people from a burning building. Waste Age Magazine, a trade publication for the waste and recycling industries, requested a feature article about the heroic deeds. The goal of the article was to tell the story from the perspective of the garbage workers and convey how they followed safety procedures as closely as possible.

It was published in the October 2010 issue of Waste Age Magazine. The magazine reaches more than 36,000 waste industry professionals.

Rumpke Consolidated – Jonathan Kissell

SILVER AWARDGreater Cincinnati Foundation – Julia Mace

Weathering the Economic Storm

In 2009, as our economy hit a downward spiral, GCF took the lead in creating a community-wide response to help families and the nonprofit sector, convening the Weathering the Economic Storm Partnership. The feature article's summary of the partnership’s large body of work not only made it interesting for audiences, it served as a tool for staff as well.

Print copies made it easy to explain this funding partnership as the work continued.

The Greater Cincinnati Foundation – Julia Mace

BLACKSMITHGreater Cincinnati Foundation – Julia Mace

Time to Start Over

The Greater Cincinnati Foundation uses stories to inspire donors to give, to put a “face” on the sometimes-complex work and to explain why community foundations are important. The feature story, “Time to Start Over” appeared in the Annual Report. It tells the story of LaGracia Guice-Williams, a college-educated woman in her 50s who lost her job during the recession. Thanks to the Workforce Network, she received training and embarked on a new career.

This story made LaGracia a GCF superstar. E-mails notes and phone calls received about the story and report were positive.

The Greater Cincinnati Foundation – Julia Mace

WRITINGSpecial Purpose Publication

Cincinnati USA 2011 Official Visitor Guide

Special Purpose Publication

Cincinnati USA 2011 Official Visitor Guide

Once determining a Visitor Guide redesign would occur, the Cincinnati USA Regional Tourism Network decided that a successful redesign would need to increase Visitor Guide requests and elevate its perceived value while also lengthening its shelf life. The new guide included pertinent “driver events” and was also entertaining.

The Regional Tourism Network ordered 300,000 Visitors Guide copies to keep up with demand and that number was exhausted by mid-October.

Cincinnati USA Regional Tourism Network

SILVER AWARDNorthlich for Cincinnati Northern Kentucky Airport

CVG Soars With Report to Community

With a declining economy negatively impacting the airline industry, a reduction in the flights available and higher prices than desired, people were not aware of the positive developments within Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport. Northlich recommended the development of key messages that culminated in a community report to educate and inform key audiences about CVG operations and the benefits to the community.

Approximately 100 key stakeholders, including Ohio legislators, attended a reception at the airport and the messages in the report were positively received. The community report also helped drive positive news coverage.

Northlich for CVG

BLACKSMITHNorthlich

Telling Northlich’s Health & Wellness Story

Northlich offers a unique approach to servicing its clients – otherwise known as the “village” structure with members who specialize in every discipline. Northlich created a leave-behind book that housed the unique Northlich approach as well as multiple case studies to showcase the expansive range of work that Northlich has managed in the health care space.

Since the final production of the book in January 2011, Northlich’s health and wellness team has experienced a 50 percent conversation rate from the initial presentation into a new client.

Northlich

SPECIAL PROJECTResearch

SILVER AWARDGame Day Communications:

Jackie Reau, Betsy Ross, Michael Farris

A Community Analysis of the Tate & Lyle Championship

Research

A Community Analysis of the Tate & Lyle Championship

Game Day Communications was contracted by the LPGA to conduct a Community Analysis of the Tate & Lyle Players Championship during the 2011 tournament. The intent of the research was to assist the new leadership of tournament with positioning and enhanced awareness on a year-round basis and to seek and solicit new financial sponsors.

Currently, the local organizing committee is pressing two key recommendations into action – creation of the Jennifer Song Community Spirit Award and research and promotion of the tournament’s history with co-branding efforts in association with the host golf course.

Game Day Communications

Luv the Nug

Research

Luv the Nug

Social media monitoring for Scotsman Ice Systems identified an untapped group of consumers who are passionate about chewing ice. Research of social media properties showed these ice chewers were expressing their love for chewable ice, specifically the distinctive Scotsman nugget ice found.

Insights from the research led to development of the successful “Luv the Nug” campaign. The campaign resulted in 40 media placements, including the Houston Chronicle, Newsday, Local TV in Nashville and Birmingham, and key third-party blog posts.

SPECIAL PROJECTPartnership

BLACKSMITHBeth Reiter Benson & Dacia Snider

Soapbox Media & The Greater Cincinnati Foundation

Partnership

Soapbox Media & The Greater Cincinnati Foundation

The Greater Cincinnati Foundation wanted to help the non profit sector be more visible, while also increasing the Foundation’s profile and recognition of its role in community change. Soapbox Media wished to better cover civic affairs and innovation stories. In early 2011, GCF provided a two-year sponsorship of Soapbox’s new “For Good” section to cover our region's nonprofits and key community issues.

“For Good” launched in February 2011. Since launch, 115 “For Good” stories have run in Soapbox. Dozens of these have been shared by the featured nonprofits on their websites, blogs or Facebook walls.

Beth Reiter Benson & Dacia Snider

CAMPAIGNS

COMMUNITY RELATIONS CAMPAIGN

BRONZE AWARDCristofoli-Keeling, Inc.

Ault Park Concours d’Elegance 2011 Public Relations Plan

Community Relations Campaign

Ault Park Concours d’Elegance

The Ault Park Concours d’Elegance relies heavily on media relations to heighten awareness to drive day of show attendance, and provide parity messaging with events in other US cities. Year-round social media strategy was executed to maintain high level of awareness and visibility.

Media measurement far exceeded with over 175 stories, and Facebook traffic activity goals were met. The 2011 event was the most attended show to date, with 5,330 in attendance.

Cristofoli-Keeling, Inc.

BRONZE AWARDCristofoli-Keeling, Inc.

Architreks/Cincinnati Walks Public Relations Campaign

Architreks/Cincinnati Walks

Offering educational, historic guided walking tours of local neighborhoods, Architreks/Cincinnati Walks wanted to increase awareness of the organization. The campaign involved social and digital media and promotion, as well as media relations. A social media editorial calendar was developed and maintained throughout the campaign, including weekly trivia questions, event postings and photos from tours.

Within the first month of activity, the Facebook page had 455 monthly active users and posts were viewed 17,024 times. In the second month post feedback increased by 45%, and there were a total of 14, 309 post views.

Cristofoli-Keeling, Inc.

SILVER AWARDGreat American Financial Resources– Shara Clark,

Becky Marrington, Donna Carrelli

Great American Classroom Makeover

The goal was to reach educators and schools to show that Great American supports educators while giving agents a tool they could use to build relationships and stand out from competitors. Teachers submitted a photo and essay about their classroom needs, and gifts were given to the classroom and the school. Winners were chosen by the public through an online vote.

Nearly 40,000 votes helped determine winners in three local markets. There was a 652% increase in website visits and a 1,500% increase in page views over normal website traffic.

Great American Financial Resources

SILVER AWARDTime Warner Cable Southwest Ohio Division –

Wende Wright

Time Warner Cable STEM Explorers – The Show

STEM Explorers – The Show

In February 2011, Time Warner Cable STEM Explorers—The Show premiered, a four-episode, 30-minute video program featuring a high-energy host and high school students motivating fourth through eighth-graders to get more excited and involved in STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and math).

The three STEM Explorers episodes that are appearing on Local OnDemand have received more than 850 views since they’ve been available on channel 411. STEM Explorers Teachers Kits were requested by and distributed to more than 500 schools.

Time Warner Cable – Wende Wright

BLACKSMITHNorthlich for Face:Meth

Face:Meth Teaches the Community

The Ohio Attorney General’s Office decided to tackle meth production in Ohio. The goal of the pilot campaign was to decrease the amount of meth production in four Ohio regions. Northlich was brought in to help implement a retailer awareness campaign. The campaign objective was to increase the amount of meth tips, resulting in more meth-related arrests.

Clermont County reported the data and their results were overwhelmingly positive, including a 300 percent increase in meth tips and a 200 percent increase in seized labs.

CORPORATE IDENTITYCAMPAIGN

BRONZE AWARDNorthlich for Long John Silver’s

Long John Silver’s Tells the Nation “We Speak Fish”

Corporate Identity Campaign

Long John Silver’s Tells the Nation “We Speak Fish”

After 40 years of serving traditional battered fish and declining sales, Long John Silver’s needed to re-evaluate its entire experience to ensure future growth. Northlich led the brand’s revitalization and designed a strategy to meet the objectives of establishing LJS as the seafood expert reaching a new target and increasing sales.

“We Speak Fish” became the champion headline for the entire brand campaign. The brand received a 50% improved image rating, which was a full five points higher than the brand average.

Northlich for Long John Silver’s

INFLUENCER RELATIONSCAMPAIGN

BLACKSMITHEmpower MediaMarketing

Getting Moms to Go Bananas for Chiquita Bananas

Influencer Relations Campaign

Getting Moms to Go Bananas for Chiquita Bananas

How do you get a product that’s a staple in homes all over the world used more often and make it interesting and emotional enough to talk about? Objectives were to create a network of 75 influential moms bloggers; increase quantity and quality of online conversations about the Chiquita brand and create an exciting online experience for moms to enjoy.

Results included a network of 130 mom bloggers, more than double the articles goal and 7,635 comments about Chiquita Moms.

INTEGRATED MARKETINGCAMPAIGN

BRONZE AWARDTime Warner Cable Southwest Ohio Division –

Wende Wright

Time Warner Cable in the Community

Integrated Marketing Campaign

Time Warner Cable in the Community

In a company-wide employee opinion survey, one of the findings was that employees in the Southwest Ohio Division weren’t well informed about volunteer opportunities. The “In the Community” microsite within the existing intranet that would serve as one location employees could go to for all community and volunteer information.

On the day of the site launch, 85% of the Intranet traffic was to the “In the Community” microsite; 231 Wright Connection forms, representing 10 percent of division employees, were submitted in the first month.

Time Warner Cable – Wende Wright

Grand Openings Reach Shoe Lovers in Hillsboro and Allentown

DSW tapped Northlich to design and execute an eight-week integrated local marketing campaign to support two DSW grand openings. The objective was to drive a constant flow of traffic to the new stores over the eight-week campaign, increase conversations around the brand within both markets and test scalability of programs. The caveat – integrate DSW’s national campaign message, Where’d You Get Those Shoes?

Northlich strategized a highly-effective campaign applying its award-winning “mass and grass” approach – integrate the tried and true paid opportunities to reach the masses with grassroots programs that encourage residents to ask the question, “Where’d you get those shoes?”

Northlich for DSW

SILVER AWARDTopic Design

Over-the-Rhine Holiday Campaign

Topic was hired by a coalition of non-profits and small business associations to create a campaign that would attract new shoppers and visitors to Over-the-Rhine. The coalition was particularly interested in drawing new shoppers to the neighborhood.

Stores reported new shoppers and increased sales during the 2010 holiday season. Media coverage was obtained in the Cincinnati Enquirer, as well as e-zines, radio and television. Nearly one million impressions were generated.

Topic Design

Luv the Nug

There are legions of fans of chewing ice, specifically the nugget ice found at Sonic and many other restaurants, convenience stores and bars. Through numerous social media properties, these ice chewers have been expressing their love for chewing ice. Scotsman Ice Systems, had the opportunity to leverage consumer passion for nugget ice to increase interest and ultimately sales for its nugget ice machines.

The Scotsman Luv the Nug campaign resulted in a double-digit year-over-year increase of unit volume for Scotsman nugget ice machines from February to May, 2011. The campaign earned 40 media placements.

MEDIA RELATIONSCAMPAIGN

and Cincinnati Reds

Cincinnati USA & Reds Radio Network Campaign

Media Relations Campaign

Cincinnati USA & Reds Radio Network Campaign

Coming out of an impressive 2010 season for the Cincinnati Reds, the Cincinnati USA Regional Tourism Network wanted to take advantage of its partnerships with the Cincinnati Reds Radio Affiliate Network and other major Cincinnati USA attractions to launch a campaign that would reach a broad audience base.

Ultimately, the numbers of this campaign best illustrate its success. They include a 426% media relations increase and 332 interviews in relation to the program, compared to 26 the previous year.

Cincinnati USA Regional Tourism Network & Cincinnati Reds

BRONZE AWARDTopic Design

ERA Media Relations Campaign

Media Relations Campaign

ERA Media Relations Campaign

ERA, an organization specializing in human resources, hired Topic to position the organization and its leadership as HR thought leaders in local and national media outlets.

ERA experts and content were quoted and included in 45 news articles/broadcasts by local, regional and national publications targeting business and HR leaders. During the period from July, 2010 through June, 2011, Topic generated 21,499,396 impressions for ERA.

Topic Design

MULTICULTURAL PRCAMPAIGN

BRONZE AWARDEmpower MediaMarketing

Evolving Relationship from Serving to Hispanic Moms…to Cooking with Them on their Terms and

Multicultural PR Campaign

Evolving Relationship from Serving to Hispanic Moms… to Cooking with Them, on their Terms and Turf

Bush Brothers embarked on a mission to become the beans that every Hispanic mom “knows, chooses and loves.” Empower MediaMarketing developed a holistic and meaningful brand experience that brought Bush’s brand promise and points of difference to life on the Hispanic consumers’ terms and turf. Customized per-market approaches were taken based on retail distribution and consumer awareness levels.

Results included 10.2 million total WOMM impressions garnered by the entire campaign, 1.8 million experiential impressions delivered by the mobile tour alone, $545,262 in broadcast added value secured to support the tour.

SOCIAL MEDIACAMPAIGN

Get Back to Scratch

Social Media Campaign

Get Back to Scratch

“Get Back to Scratch” is a social media-propelled movement to unite the passion that comes from those who support food made with fresh ingredients and hard work. The program has quickly built a community, earning praise from bakers and culinary professionals. The initiative has seen amazing social media support, engagement and promotion.

@Back2Scratch regularly engages with key influencers, with a total reach of well over 300,000 individuals. Likewise, the Facebook page receives an average of 30,000 monthly post views and has garnered more than 600 “likes.”

SILVER AWARDEmpower MediaMarketing

Bloggers Connect Consumers with Smart Touch Gloves to Meet Big Sales Goals at Launch

ISOTONER® created a new glove that combined its signature stretch fabrics with a conductive thread designed to work with most modern touchscreen devices. The brand planned to launch this glove line – named smarTouch® gloves for its touchscreen functionality – in October 2010 amidst increasing competition making similar claims.

ISOTONER compiled a list of influential, relevant bloggers for outreach. The integrated smarTouch launch campaign helped the brand achieve its goal of increasing ISOTONER retail sales by 16 percent by the end of December.

BLACKSMITHWordsworth Communications on behalf of Protect-

Going “Potty Pro”

In 2011, Protect-A-Bed® identified potty training as the strategic focus of its business activities. Wordsworth Communications was charged with developing the social media strategy and tactical executions that would support the potty training theme within a target audience of mothers of toddlers. Social networks were used to increase awareness of the potty training products and refer sales leads to the company’s website.

Facebook was the main vehicle for the campaign. A twitter party increased Twitter followers to 2,030 individuals.

Wordsworth Communications on behalf of Protect-A-Bed

PROFESSIONAL RECOGNITION

PR PROFESSIONAL OF THE YEAR

BLACKSMITHAmanda Pratt, APR

Rumpke Consolidated Companies, Inc.

Director of Corporate Communications

YOUNG PROFESSIONAL OF THE YEAR

BLACKSMITHChristine Demeropolis

Wordsworth Communications

COMMUNICATIONS TEAMOF THE YEAR

BLACKSMITH

Luxottica Corporate Communications /

Internal Media Team

SMALL/MID-SIZE AGENCY OF THE YEAR

BLACKSMITH

Wordsworth Communications

BEST OF SHOW- TACTIC -

BLACKSMITH

Mary Beth Weaver and James Czar:

Cincy Blues Society Best Placement

BEST OF SHOW- CAMPAIGN -

BLACKSMITH

gyro Public Relations:Luv the Nug

CONGRATULATIONS & THANK YOU!

2011 Blacksmith Co-ChairsShara ClarkBarbara Grimsley

Blacksmith CommitteeAndrew ShippGail MyersClaire GuapponeJennifer DexterCheryl BeslAnna HoganElliot Campbell

THANK YOU!

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