Congratulations to the winners of PR Daily’s 2014 Media Relations Awards!

Media relation professionals know:

On top of a good professional relationship, it takes patience, hard work, and a great deal of skill to get your organization’s message in front of key reporters and bloggers—to say nothing of the public. 

This year’s entrants showed they ARE the front runners when it comes to capturing the media’s attention in order to accomplish their goals.

This year’s Special Edition showcases a 114-year-old toy company that made the leap into the digital age, an interactive website created to celebrate the 20th anniversary of an organization, a campaign to stop crime against wildlife and so much more!

Please join us in congratulating the winners of PR Daily’s 2014 Media Relations Awards!

Categories

Best Brand Messaging or Positioning

WINNER
Humane Goes Mainstream: Foster Farms Raises Public Consciousness of Humane Poultry Offering
Fineman PR for Foster Farms

Honorable Mentions

  • Cambia Health Solutions, Introducing Cambia Marketplace: Igniting Health Care Innovation in the Pacific Northwest
  • Cornerstone Public Relations for BitTorrent, BitTorrent is Not a Crime
  • HomeAway, One Million Vacation Rentals: a million to choose from, one to call home
  • IMPACT Communications Australia for Bulletproof, Using Public Relations to build trust in the lead up to IPO
  • The Abbi Agency for Offerpop, Offerpop Expert and Brand Positioning
  • The Horn Group for Forbes, Forbes Reestablished as 96 Year Old Startup

Best Executive Visibility

WINNER
WWF Executive Profile: Carter Roberts
World Wildlife Fund

Honorable Mentions

  • American Specialty Health, George DeVries Carmel Redevelopment
  • Identity for Bill Pulte Jr./The Blight Authority, Executive Visibility for The Blight Authority
  • Water and Wall Group, LLC for Rapid Ratings International, Brand Building through Executive Visibility
  • Weber Shandwick

Best Global Media Relations

WINNER
The Locust Effect
International Justice Mission

Honorable Mentions

  • Dubai Municipality, Your Weight in Gold
  • Southern Comfort, Whatever's Comfortable

Best Governmental/Public Affairs Media Relations

WINNER
How a Publicity Campaign Changed the Fortunes for Ireland
Padilla CRT for IDA Ireland

Honorable Mentions

  • Outreach Process Partners/IEMfor Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION TEXT ALERT AND NOTIFICATION SYSTEM PUBLIC AWARENESS AND EDUCATION MULTI-MEDIA CAMPAIGN
  • Widmeyer Communications, a Finn Partners Company for First Five Years Fund and Grow America Stronger Coalition, Making the Case for Early Education by Tapping into the Power of Mainstream Media

Best Integrated Marketing Communications

WINNER
Aflac Supports Small Business Owners in the New Health Care Reality
Aflac

Honorable Mentions

  • National Geographic Channel, Killing Kennedy Integrated Marketing Communications
  • Scholastic, Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge
  • StrategicAmpersand Inc. for TekSavvy, How Much TekSavvy Do you Need?

Best Issue/Cause Advocacy Campaign

WINNER
EXPOSED: The Race Against Tuberculosis
Aeras

Honorable Mentions

  • Edelman for American Heart Association, The Hands-Only CPR Campaign
  • HY Connect for Wahl Clipper Corporation, Dirty Dogs Shelter Makeover Campaign
  • Makovsky for The Jed Foundation, JedCampus: Encouraging Safer Campuses and Creating a National Authority
  • Pesel & Carr for St. Kilda Gatehouse, Violence doesn't discriminate
  • Ultimate Fighting Championship , Protect Yourself At All Times

Best Online Newsroom/Media

WINNER
The MasterCard Engagement Bureau
MasterCard

Honorable Mentions

  • Cherokee Nation Businesses, Anadisgoi.com
  • Wieck for Nissan North America , NissanNews goes mobile

Best Op-Ed

WINNER
DStreet Lands First Female Navy Fighter Pilot Carey Lohrenz Time Magazine Op Ed
DStreet for Carey Lohrenz

Honorable Mention

  • World Wildlife Fund, Foreign Affairs Opinion Editorial by Carter Roberts: It's a Jungle Out There

Best PR Innovation

WINNER
The My Job Chart “Work Across America” Campaign
Asylum Public Relations for Job Chart

Honorable Mentions

  • Dubai Municipality, Your Weight in Gold
  • Dubai Municipality, Car Free Day
  • Stein IAS for Trelleborg Marine Systems, Rubber stamped!

Best Press Event/Media Tour

WINNER
Virgin America "Free Love Field"
Hill+Knowlton Strategies for Virgin America

Honorable Mentions

  • 451 Marketing for BAILEYS Coffee Creamers, Coffee Break with BAILEYS
  • H+K Strategies for Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, The Sandlot: 20th Anniversary Edition
  • IMPACT Communications for NESCAFE Dolce Gusto, NESCAFÉ Dolce Gusto: Michael Breach, ‘Coffee artist of the stars’ promotes #DolceGustoArt
  • National Geographic Channel, Killing Kennedy press trip
  • SanDisk Corporation, Extreme PRO SSD
  • Strauss Media Strategies for Best Buy, Best Buy Holiday 2013 Media Relations Campaign

Best Press Release/Story Pitch

WINNER
Zebra Study: Africa's longest land migration
World Wildlife Fund

Honorable Mentions

  • Robert Morris University Illinois, RMU Adds eSports to Athletic Program
  • NorthShore University HealthSystem, Breast Cancer Awareness Month
  • Bankrate, Inc., Educating Consumers About Personal Finance

Best Reputation/Crisis Management

WINNER
Inaugural Emerge Film Festival
Rinck Advertising for Emerge Film Festival

Honorable Mention

  • Borshoff for Community Hospital, MERS: Maintaining a hospital's reputation during an international crisis

Best Response to Breaking News

WINNER
Ice Slams Georgia, Georgia Power Communication Heats Up
Georgia Power

Honorable Mentions

  • LEWIS PR for Stericycle, ExpertSOLUTIONS
  • Marketing Elements for Domestic Violence NSW, Domestic Violence NSW Awareness Campaign
  • Markstein for Royal Cup, Inc., Waffle Wager
  • MGH, Inc. for Great American Cookies, MGH helps Great American Cookies capture headlines
  • The City of Calgary, 2013 June Flood; Communicating during a State of Local Emergency

Best Stunt/Special Event

WINNER
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Hill+Knowlton Strategies for Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment

Honorable Mentions

  • 451 Marketing for Amelia Rose Earhart, Fly With Amelia
  • FGL Sports Ltd. (Sport Chek), Sport Chek Presents the Quiksilver-Tony Hawk Tour
  • Hill + Knowlton Strategies for Virgin America, Virgin America "Free Love Field"
  • IHG, The Holiday Inn® Brand’s Change Your View Open House Events
  • Visit Sarasota County for Lynn Hobeck Bates, Visit Sarasota County / Nik Wallenda Partnership
  • World Wildlife Fund, U.S. Ivory Crush

Best Trade Media Relations

WINNER
Rubber stamped!
Stein IAS for Trelleborg Marine Systems

Honorable Mentions

  • 5W Public Relations for DigitalOcean, 5W Public Relations DigitalOcean Trade Media Relations Campaign
  • DStreet for Visual Intelligence, DStreet Creates Visibility for Visual Intelligence
  • IHG, The Holiday Inn Express® Brand’s new Prototype Reveal Media Event
  • LEWIS PR for STANLEY Healthcare, How Wearable Tech Can Improve Hospital Efficiency
  • SowGrow Public Relations for GSC Packaging, Raising the Bar on Food Safety
  • Trainer Communications for MemSQL, Establishing Market Leadership in an Industry Ruled by Oracle, SAP and Microsoft

Best Use of Celebrity or Personality

WINNER
The Robot Project
FamiljenPangea for KTH Royal Institute of Technology

Honorable Mentions

  • IHG, The Holiday Inn Express® Brand’s Stay Smart® Campaign
  • PadillaCRT for U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council, Energizing the Face of Blueberries: From “Just Another Health Food” to Dynamic Lifestyle Staple
  • PadillaCRT for Wilsonart LLC, Changing Perceptions of Laminate with Eco-lifestyle Expert Danny Seo
  • ShopPR for George Foreman Grills, George Foreman Grills Weight Loss Challenge

Best Use of Social Media

WINNER
#EsuranceSave30: A Giveaway That Made History
Leo Burnett for Esurance

Honorable Mentions

  • FGL Sports Ltd. (Sport Chek) and North Strategic (agency), Sport Chek - Toronto Blue Jays’ Father’s Day Surprise Video
  • IHG, The Holiday Inn Express® Brand’s Stay Smart® Campaign
  • World Wildlife Fund, Earth Overshoot Day 2013

Best Use of Video

WINNER
Nikon D810 HD-SLR/Every Moment Counts Campaign ALCHEMYcreative for Esurance, Esurance Presents: Why I Ride
StrategicAmpersand (SA) for Nikon Canada

Honorable Mentions

  • 451 Marketing for HP Hood, Hanging Out with Hood
  • MediaSource for The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Medical First: Man Moves Paralyzed Hand With His Own Thoughts
  • Peabody Energy, Advanced Energy For Life
  • Stein IAS for Trelleborg Marine Systems, The LNG Webinar
  • Trainer Communications for Qylur Security Systems, Qylur Company Launch – a YouTube Hit and National Business Press Headlines

Best Website

WINNER
UFC 20th Anniversary
Ultimate Fighting Championship

Honorable Mention

  • Peabody Energy , Advanced Energy For Life

New Product/Service Launch

WINNER
Lionel Trains: Chugging Full Steam Ahead Without Derailing
SHIFT Communications for Lionel Trains

Honorable Mentions

  • 451 Marketing for Mom Meet Mom, Mom Meet Mom Launches Nationwide
  • 5W Public Relations for Cold-EEZE® Cold Remedy, Cold-EEZE® Cold Remedy Plus Natural Immune Support QuickMelts® and Cold-EEZE® Cold Remedy Plus Natural Immune Support QuickMelts® with Natural Energy Product Launch
  • BISSELL Homecare, Inc., BISSELL Gives the Gift of Time with Introduction of CleanView with OnePass Technology
  • Kirvin Doak Communications for Palms Casino Resort, 24-Hour Checkout
  • Lippe Taylor for FaceCake Marketing Technologies, Inc., FaceCake Virtually Makes Over the Media
  • Ultimate Fighting Championship , UFC FIT

Grand Prize

Under $10,000

GRAND PRIZE
IHG

Honorable Mentions

  • American Institute of CPAs, AICPA: Certified Public Accountants Outlook Index/Chartered Global Management Accountants Survey
  • Qorvis MSLGROUP for Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, “The fist bump: A more hygienic alternative to the handshake.”
  • Rinck Advertising for Emerge Film Festival, Inaugural Emerge Film Festival
  • Sensei Project for Accor Hotels, Pullman Paris Blogger Outreach Program
  • Strut Creative for Tilley Endurables, Hats off to Tilley

Under $100,000

GRAND PRIZE
World Wildlife Fund

Honorable Mentions

  • 451 Marketing for Amelia Rose Earhart, Fly With Amelia
  • Fineman PR for The San Francisco Marathon, The SF Marathon sets "Personal Record" for public relations, brand awareness and race registration
  • Mercy, Mercy Breaks Ground on World's First Virtual Care Center
  • Porter Novelli for Indexed Annuity Leadership Council, Fixing the Fixed Indexed Annuity Perception
  • Ultimate Fighting Championship , UFC 20th Anniversary Media Tour