CPRS Toronto held its first ‘ACE the ACE Awards’ event on February 6, at the Weber Shandwick Toronto office. Last year’s winners from Weber Shandwick and DDB Public Relations gave the more than 40 guests key insights on how to come out on top at this year’s ACE Awards.
We’re kicking off the ACE the ACE Awards event! Excited to hear from @DDBCanada, @WSCanada and @lisacovens about how to rock the submission process ✔️ pic.twitter.com/jD5TM8Qtx7
— CPRS Toronto (@CPRSToronto) February 6, 2020
ACE Awards judging Chair Lisa Covens spoke first, giving an overview on how to apply for awards, as well as the desired submission format for entries. She also explained the judging process, giving key tips to potential entrants. Lisa explained that entries are judged based on completion of the R.A.C.E formula, writing quality and overall visual presentation. She also highlighted three important dates for this year:
- February 23 –early bird submission deadline
- March 15 –final submission deadline
- May 21 – the ACE Awards Gala
After Lisa, both Weber Shandwick and DDB PR presented their ACE Award case studies which landed them their awards.
Weber Shandwick was honoured as the winner of Best Creative PR Campaign of the Year for their creative flair and passion behind #BuickStyle: The Ultimate Driving Shoe.
Rachel Hlinko, Senior Manager, Integrated Media and Melissa Graham, Senior Vice President and Deputy Head of Client Experience, explained Buick’s desire to appeal to younger women – an audience not traditionally familiar with automotive media.
Weber Shandwick’s award winning campaign linked Buick’s innovative design background with a growing appetite for design among the target audience. Influencers were invited to an event at a shoe making academy to participate in design conversations while creating custom shoes. Guests were chauffeured to and from the event in Buick vehicles.
Weber Shandwick and Buick also built a micro-site where people across Canada were able to create their own pair of shoes. They encouraged influencers to send their audiences to this microsite, creating a call to action which put the Buick brand in areas it hadn’t been before. As a result, the campaign surpassed its objectives and -drove engagement among the target audience.
In 2019, DDB Public Relations/DDB Canada took home the trophy for Best PR Campaign of the Year for their memorable work on Digital Poppy Launch.
Julia Stein, Group Account Director of DDB Public Relations, presented the Royal Canadian Legion’s digital poppy campaign. DDB focused on creating a highly shareable campaign and leveraged Influencers to increase donations.
DDB Public Relations takes us through the digital poppy campaign and explains how they kept a 100 year old tradition thriving in the digital age. pic.twitter.com/Af1QauPwzJ
— CPRS Toronto (@CPRSToronto) February 6, 2020
DDB built MyPoppy.ca, giving people the option to purchase a digital poppy online and share it on social media. This highly engaging campaign encouraged donors to share their stories and start conversations. The average rate per donation through the digital system was ten times higher than with traditional donations.
With three weeks left in poppy season, DDB encouraged a number of high-profile Canadian influencers and celebrities to explain their personal connection to the poppy. Overall, the campaign was quite successful, shattering engagement expectations and growing the Poppy Fund exponentially.
MRP’s Jenny Cruxton made closing remarks, encouraging entrants to use MRP to evaluate their submissions. She believed it would be a small but crucial part of the submission process.
Think you’ve got what it takes to win an award this year? Apply now!
Written by: Vince Guglielmi, Volunteer, CPRS Toronto