public relations

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ACE Awards recognizes the best digital communications campaigns with NEW category
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By Barbara Loureiro

The CPRS Toronto ACE Awards submission deadline is just around the corner. This year there’s a new category recognizing full digital campaigns: Best Digital Communications Campaign of the Year.

As digital strategies have become integral to many communications plans, CPRS Toronto strives to recognize the excellent digital campaigns created and executed over the past two years. This category recognizes campaigns that inform engage and/or monitor targeted online influencers and communities to reach specified communications goals.

If you have a campaign that qualifies, the submission requirements are as follows:

The executive summary must describe the campaign, following the RACE (Research, Analysis, Communication and Evaluation) formula and outline key variables within those headings. Keep in mind the executive summary is limited to two pages and a 10 point font, so keep it concise!

The rationale must explain how the campaign exemplifies the definition of public relations as defined by CPRS Toronto. The second component of the submission is limited to 250 words.

All submissions also must include a completed entry form and online payment through the CPRS Toronto website.

The entry deadline is January 23, 2013. Click here for more information on ACE Awards entry guidelines.

Successful submissions in the executive summary phase will be invited to the second round of judging. We’ll request a “big binder” with a detailed outline of the campaign and a copy of the final product on a USB stick. Those who have advanced to this next stage will be notified by the judging team in February.

Information on the Best Digital Communications Campaign of the Year and other categories can be found on the CPRS Toronto website. If you missed last Wednesday’s informative “Enhancing Your ACE Submission” webinar, you can WATCH HERE.

Tweeting about ACE? Use hashtag #CPRSACE

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How to “ace” your ACE awards submission: Five things you need to know
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By Miranda Germani

Whether you’re wanting to add another trophy to your shelf, or just testing the waters and are new to entering awards, there are five not-so-secret things that you must know to put together a stellar ACE Awards submission.

In the interactive and informative “Enhance Your CPRS Toronto ACE Award Submission” webinar held on January 16, host and ACE Awards Judging Co-chair, Dave Scholz shared the must-know tips to ensure your submission stands out from the crowd. For now, the focus is on the first stage submission – the executive summary and rationale. Click here for more information on ACE Entry Guidelines.

Must-know #1 – Know your deadlines. Sounds simple, but that’s the first hurdle to pass. The entry deadline is January 23, 2013 (i.e. next week, so get your skates on!).

Must-know #2 – Use RACE. A simple acronym, but it can make a world of difference to your submission. RACE stands for Research, Analysis, Communication, Evaluation and all of these aspects are important to your submission. Think about RACE all the way through your submission.

Must-know #3 – Be clear on your evaluation. Don’t assume the judges know what you’ve achieved – you must spell it out and tie your goals to the outcome.

Must-know #4 – Get acquainted with the new Best Digital Communications Campaign of the Year category. If you’ve done a fabulous digital campaign that successfully engaged your audiences and inspired online conversation and/or media coverage, we want to hear about it! This is your opportunity to shine.

NOTE: Digital components to other campaigns must still be included in those separate submissions.

Must-know #5 – The judges will keep your submission to themselves. All submissions are confidential. Nothing will be shared publicly. If CPRS Toronto ever wants to share something publicly, we’ll be in touch in advance.

Bonus must-know #6 – Having details such as budget, or at least a budget range, really helps the judges consider your submission in context.

Hopefully that helps pull back the curtain on what the judging team needs from you so that you can get one step closer to receiving an ACE Award in April. For more information about the ACE Awards, please visit the CPRS Toronto Website or contact ace@cprstoronto.com.

If you missed Wednesday’s webinar, you can WATCH HERE

Tweeting about ACE? Use hashtag #CPRSACE

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Enhance your ACE Award submission!
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logos_colour_low_res-01Back by popular demand, CPRS Toronto invites you to join us on Wednesday, January 16, 2013 at 12 p.m. for an informative, free webinar on enhancing your ACE Awards submission, brought to you by CNW Group – the exclusive professional development sponsor for CPRS Toronto.

Dave Scholz, Executive Vice President at Leger Marketing and CPRS Toronto’s ACE Awards Judging Co-Chair, will pull back the curtain on the ACE Awards and share what the judging team will be looking for in a winning submission. The webinar will also provide insight in to changes made to the digital category.

To register for the webinar, visit:

http://event.on24.com/r.htm?e=564540&s=1&k=EF7CD45C16009CBD8A6618A8C4A085E6

For more information about the ACE Awards, please visit the CPRS Toronto Website or contact ace@cprstoronto.com.

If you are unable to join us on Wednesday the webinar will be available in archive following the live event.

Tweeting about ACE? Use hashtag #CPRSACE!

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PR grads: Show employers your stuff; write the PR knowledge exam Jan. 26
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You can now bring tangible evidence of your knowledge and readiness for the workplace to future employers. Be part of the FIRST official cohort of students writing the Public Relations Knowledge (PRK)™ exam.

All exams in Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto and Halifax will take place on Saturday, January 26.

In Toronto, students will be writing at 12:30 p.m. (Eastern time zone) at Humber College.

The last day to register is Friday, January 25 at noon EST. Only pre-registered applicants will be permitted to write the exam. Register with the PDF or Word form.

Any questions can be directed to Tracey Baker, Director of Education at CPRS National via email at tbaker@cprs.ca.

More info on the PRK exam

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Case Study: How Fleishman-Hillard Toronto won a prestigious ACE Award in the Best Use of Media Relations Under $50,000 Category
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Liza_photoBy Liza Butcher

On April 26, 2012 the Canadian Public Relations Society Toronto (CPRS Toronto) celebrated the PR industry’s elite at the annual Achieving Communications Excellence (ACE) Awards gala.

The ACE Awards gala was full of celebration for winning campaigns, where Fleishman-Hillard Toronto won a prestigious ACE Award in the Best Use of Media Relations Under $50,000 for “The National Garage Sale for Shelter” media relations campaign.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Teresa Cugliari, Associate Consultant at Fleishman-Hillard Toronto, to understand more about the success around the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation: The National Garage Sale for Shelter.

Can you tell me about your winning campaign? (What was the objective and why was it so successful?)

Royal LePage is the only Canadian real estate company to have its own charitable foundation, known as The Royal LePage Shelter Foundation. The Royal LePage Shelter Foundation is Canada’s largest public foundation dedicated exclusively to supporting women’s shelters and ending violence against women and children. Each year, the Shelter Foundation hosts The National Garage Sale for Shelter – a one-day charitable garage sale which takes place in more than 120 communities across Canada. Royal LePage brokers and agents volunteer to host the garage sales, which are often held outside Royal LePage offices. One hundred per cent of the funds raised are distributed to local women’s shelters in each community.

To help raise awareness and drive participation in The National Garage Sale for Shelter, Fleishman-Hillard (FH) developed and executed a community relations strategy under $50,000 CDN. FH was engaged to support all communications activities around the event including research, planning, materials development and media relations. At the core of the strategy, Royal LePage brokers and agents who volunteered their time to participate in the event were identified as excellent community champions given their passion and dedication to supporting the cause.

While the media relations strategy called for FH to conduct national media relations, a plan was developed to empower Royal LePage volunteers to conduct their own local media relations to generate awareness and drive event participation in their communities. FH supported this strategy by developing media toolkits for all designated spokespeople consisting of local release templates, interview tips and other marketing materials for use in Royal LePage offices. In addition, FH held a media coaching session with all regional spokespeople via conference call where tips were shared to maximize local media coverage and community engagement while ensuring strong key message penetration.

What inspired you to submit for an ACE Award?

The FHteam felt that this campaign was worthy of an award submission since the media results and overall funds raised exceeded initial goals. Overall, the 2011 National Garage Sale for Shelter generated a total of 369 media stories – a 77 per cent increase over 2010’s total – and 35,833,867 media impressions, an 84 per cent increase over last year. FH was successful in generating coverage in national, major regional and local media outlets, with 21 per cent of all coverage appearing in Tier One outlets.The mix of media coverage shows that messaging developed for the Shelter Foundation resonated with both local communities and larger metropolitan areas alike.

The increased amount of media coverage for the 2011 National Garage Sale for Shelter also led to increased participation in the event, which resulted in a record-setting fundraising total. In 2011, The National Garage Sale for Shelter was successful in raising more than $417,000 for the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation – a 32 per cent increase (and counting) over 2010’s fundraising total.

What are the benefits of winning an ACE Award?

Awards help set you apart from the competition. Not only do they build your agency’s reputation but they also help recognize the hard work put in by your colleagues. FH purchased additional copies of the award for each team member as well as our client. It’s a symbol of success as well as the memories of both the campaign and the gala ceremony. It was a very fun evening that we look forward to each year.

Winning the 2011 CPRS ACE Award for Royal LePage’s Shelter Foundation validated the great results we achieved throughout this campaign and also shows FH’s clients that we are willing to go above and beyond to get them the recognition they deserve.

Do you have any tips for others submitting for Award consideration.

Be sure to get a head start on the submission process and be mindful of submission deadlines. It can be somewhat of a challenge juggling client work as well as your agency’s marketing and promotional needs. Be sure to loop in team members to help with the process so you can submit a high quality award that reflects your team’s hard work.

Also, if you know you are working on an award-worthy campaign, start taking notes during the campaign for your submission. As time passes, you will find these notes invaluable since almost a full year can go by before you start pulling together your submission binder.

What did you make sure to include in your binder submission?

FH’s submission binder included a range of media materials (press releases, social media releases, media advisories, as well as the volunteer media outreach toolkit and interview best practices) and supporting metrics (MRP reports and coverage samples) that allowed the judges to get a better understanding of how the FH team met and exceeded our measurable objectives.

In addition, the FH team also included a sizzle reel highlighting national Tier One broadcast coverage secured with their key spokespeople throughout the campaign. This multimedia addition is a more personal touch that allows the judges to visualize the campaign and give a sense of depth to the quality and variety of coverage FH secured.

How did it feel to receive your award at the gala?

Receiving the award at the gala was extremely meaningful for both the FH team and our client, who was in attendance that evening as well. Lots of hard work and effort was put into the campaign and it was great to share this experience with fellow communications professionals.

Fleishman-Hillard Team Members: Sarah Louise Gardiner, Teresa Cugliari, Michael Gotzamanis

Royal LePage Shelter Foundation Team Members: Shanan Spencer-Brown, Tammy Gilmer, Royal LePage spokespeople

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ACE Awards submissions reminder!
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By Natasha Nitsopoulos

Awwh, the feeling of a fresh new year. It’s time to set your goals higher and reach for the stars! Why not improve your professional status with an ACE Award? It’s not too late to apply, though the deadline is fast approaching.

The annual ACE Awards recognize communications excellence in the public relations industry. Winning an Award is a great way to display your hard work in front of an audience of industry pros, give you and your company a competitive edge and strengthen your strategic planning skills. Not to mention it’s a fabulous social event with all your friends and colleagues.

Get started on your entry today and be sure to make that early bird deadline on January 9. Also, don’t forget to pencil April 24 into your busy agendas for this year’s gala!

More information on eligibility, submission requirements and campaign entry categories is available on the CPRS Toronto website.

Important Dates and Deadlines:

Early Bird Entry Deadline: enter at a discounted rate by January 9, 2013

Entry Deadline: January 23, 2013

Leadership Awards Deadline: February 24, 2013

Enter at www.cprstoronto.com!

Questions? Tweet #CPRSACE or e-mail ace@cprstoronto.com

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Bilingual PR student? This scholarship may be for you
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The Communications + Public Relations Foundation awards the Torchia scholarship annually to a student who best exemplifies the spirit and practice of bilingualism in the Canadian communications and public relations profession.

Inspired by the career of Armand Torchia, who cofounded The Houston Group with Stan Houston, and Torchia Communications with his son Jean-Claude, the $1,500 scholarship is awarded by September 15.

Apply in English or French by April 30, 2013.

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#Volunteering
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Fantastic news everyone, it looks like volunteering is trending! Over the past five years volunteer rates among Canadians have increased. But after digging a little deeper, I discovered that it is the 19-24 year-olds who are doing the majority of the work. On average, they are donating 20 per cent more of their time versus the 25-34 year-old demographic. We have all been made aware of the benefits of volunteering, so why is it that the numbers start to drop as we age?

It could be argued that the benefits of volunteering are far greater for the individuals aged 19-24; these are the people trying to gain experience, enhance their skills and develop their professional network. This is all very true, and I couldn’t agree more. But I also think I would be hard-pressed to find a career-oriented individual, between the ages of 25-34 who isn’t chasing after the exact same things.

If you are looking to advance your career, develop your personal and professional connections and help out the community, why not make time in your calendar to volunteer. The sense of accomplishment coupled with the fact you are helping out others will help you move your career forward and will most definitely make you feel better than sucking up to the boss, or taking on a ridiculous work load. (Not to say that being polite and offering to help out when it is busy should be ruled out)

Let’s take a look at few scenarios…

Scenario #1

Meet Erin, she is 26, has a degree in English and a certificate in PR. Erin has worked in a few different intern roles and is now doing media monitoring full time for her company. As much as Erin likes her job she really wants to be writing, but unfortunately there is a team of writers on staff and not much of an opportunity for her to get involved.

Well Erin, instead of getting frustrated and letting those writing skills go to waste, consider volunteering. There are numerous opportunities out there for you to get involved in, and the CPRS would be an excellent place to start your hunt! There are opportunities to write copy for marketing material, blog posts and member communications, all of which are excellent ways to keep your writing skills up to date and expand the reach of your work. Erin, before you know it you will be SWAMPED with requests because of your newly-found writing expertise!

Scenario #2

Meet James, he is 31 and has a business background with a focus on strategy development. James has recently been promoted to national PR Manager. Congratulations James! In his new role he will be managing a team of seven and of those seven two make up the national events team. James has worked for his company for five years, has been to many of the events but has never planned one. Needless to say, he is a little nervous about overseeing all national events.

Volunteer suggestion; get involved with one of the planning committees for a CPRS event such as the CEO Awards or the ACE Awards. The only credentials needed here are a positive attitude and the willingness to learn. James, this will give you the opportunity to brush up on your event management skills and leverage some of your past strategy work. You are going to be a superstar before you know it!

You can greatly benefit from volunteering with CPRS Toronto, no matter the stage of your career. By taking the time to give back you also have the opportunity to develop strong networks, work portfolios and discover new employment opportunities.

In closing may I suggest, the next time you are feeling a little restless in your job, or would like to learn a new skill, consider volunteering as a viable option. To find out how to get involved with CPRS Toronto e-mail Parm Chohan or read more online.

“Not everything that counts can be counted. And not everything that can be counted, counts.” Albert Einstein

Geoffrey MacNeil is a marketing and communications professional with a background in financial sales, currently studying public relations at Ryerson University.

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Call for submissions for CPRS Toronto 2013 ACE Awards
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By: Natasha Nitsopoulos

ATTENTION PR mavens!

Would you like to be the star of the hottest PR event of the year, while gaining industry recognition, raising your organization’s profile and being noticed by Toronto’s top public relations gurus?

Well, this is your chance to ‘shine bright like a diamond’ (as Rihanna would say) with a 2013 CPRS ACE Award!

Every year, CPRS Toronto recognizes communications excellence in public relations with the ACE Awards. Winning an Award is a great way to give you and your company a competitive edge in the industry and strengthen your strategic planning skills. Not to mention, you’ll be able to celebrate your success with all of your peers and colleagues at the chicest PR event in Toronto!

More information on eligibility, submission requirements and campaign entry categories is available on the CPRS Toronto website. So if this sounds like the opportunity you have been waiting for, then get ready to submit your campaign!

Save the date! Make sure you clear your schedules for this premier event that you don’t want to miss. The Gala will be held on April 24. More details to come.

Important Dates and Deadlines:

Early Bird Entry Deadline: enter at a discounted rate by January 9, 2013

Entry Deadline: January 23, 2013

Leadership Awards Deadline: February 24, 2013

 

Enter at www.cprstoronto.com!

 

Questions? Tweet #CPRSACE or e-mail ace@cprstoronto.com

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Helping new practitioners transition to work
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If you are entering the public relations and communications job market, you may want the think again about the value of membership in your professional society.

It can be helpful to be matched with a professional mentor during this transition, for example. Networking with professional members can help you tap into the hidden job market. Participation in your professional association can also help to differentiate you as a job candidate.

CPRS helps students, new grads and new practitioners transition to work. We’re here to help.

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