2008 ovation awards - winning entries - IABC/Toronto -

2008 OVATION AWARDSWINNING ENTRIES

2008 OVATION AWARDS WINNING ENTRIES 1

Table of Contents

OVATION WINNERS AND RECOGNITIONLetter from IABC/Toronto’s President ................................................................. 2 Complete list of the 2008 OVATION Awards Winners ............................................ 3 People’s Choice Award Winner .......................................................................... 10Business Award Winners .................................................................................. 11Bobbie Resnick Philanthropy Award Winner ....................................................... 11IABC/Toronto MAVERICK Student of the Year Winner .......................................... 112008 OVATION Awards Sponsors ...................................................................... 12Message from OVATION Awards Chair .............................................................. 142008 OVATION Awards Judges ........................................................................ 15 2008 OVATION Awards Gala Committee / Special Thanks .................................... 16

2008 OVATION WINNING ENTRIESPlease note that some award winning work plans have been modified to omit confidential information. The collection of work plans has graciously been provided by the 2008 OVATION Award winners and do not reflect all winning entries.

Community Relations ...................................................................................... 17Writing ......................................................................................................... 33Electronic/Interactive Communication ............................................................... 41 Publication Design .......................................................................................... 53Other Graphic Design ...................................................................................... 61 Photography .................................................................................................. 65Government Relations ................................................................................... 67 Media Relations up to 50K ............................................................................... 74Media Relations 51K to 100K ........................................................................... 102 Media Relations 100K and up .......................................................................... 123 Marketing Communications up to 50K ............................................................... 146 Marketing Communications 100K and up ........................................................... 150 Special Events up to 50K ................................................................................. 170 Special Events 100K and up ............................................................................. 174 Employee/Member Communications .................................................................. 185Economic, Social and Environmental/Third World Development ............................. 194Student of the Year Winning Submission ........................................................... 198

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Letter from the PresidentOur lives are so rich with activity and oftentimes so hectic that it is seems when we do find a moment to reflect we are astonished by how much can be accomplished – especially in a year!

The 2008 IABC/Toronto OVATION Awards lets us as a chapter pause and take stock of the immense talent, outstanding performances and steadfast service communications practitioners bring to their communities. It is our evening to celebrate and recognize excellent work and achievement within our field and do that in the company of our peers.

That we have much to celebrate is evidenced by the longevity of our awards program. Our long-time members might be surprised to realize we’ve been honouring excellence in communications for 22 years!

The sustainability of this program has been helped along with some fresh ideas that have also become part of our annual ritual. In 1997, we introduced our CEO of the year (now Communicator of the Year) award to recognize executive leadership in communication. Congratulations to Philip Blake, President & CEO of Bayer for his leadership and fine example. In 1992, we honoured the late Kay Staib by introducing student scholarship awards, and in 2004 another student award, the Maverick PR Student of the Year award. More recently we’ve added business categories to the OVATION lineup that allowed us to applaud successful agencies and last year, the Bobbie Resnick Philanthropy Award to recognize her leadership and (continuing) contribution to IABC, particularly the Toronto chapter, and her service to the community. This year we received more than 100 OVATION entries in a variety of categories from media relations to community relations. We thank our distinguished judging panel of accredited and senior practitioners who collectively can boast hundreds of years of experience. They donated their personal time to review, discuss and provide feedback for each and every entry. Judging by how high a demand there is for their help with evaluating entries for international, regional and other chapter award programs, we are fortunate to have such high calibre professionals in our company. I know they will continue to challenge us to pursue excellence and leadership.

Heartfelt thanks to the 2008 OVATION Awards committee led by Sara Feldman, APR and expertly supported by Gary Schlee, ABC and Mary-Ellen Hynd. There are many other volunteers who deserve our thanks for their tireless efforts in organizing and planning our awards evening. Our partners and sponsors also deserve a hand for their generous support. This tremendous spirit of volunteerism, enthusiasm, and commitment to our profession is what makes the IABC/Toronto chapter so vibrant and strong. Congratulations to all of the OVATION Awards winners and thanks again to everyone who has made this year’s accomplishments something to remember.

Best regards, Janet Comeau President, IABC/Toronto


Announcing the Winners of the 2008 OVATION Awards

Community Relations Award of ExcellencePresented to: Blair Peberdy, Jennifer Reynolds, Marina Leyderman Entrant Company: Toronto Hydro-Electric System LimitedTitle of Entry: Project REBUILD

Award of ExcellencePresented to: Catherine ParryEntrant Company: Toronto Hydro-Electric System LimitedTitle of Entry: Toronto Hydro’s Festive Light Exchange Program

Award of MeritPresented to: Julie O’Brien, Cathy-Anne O’Brien, Erin Brand, Jarred Katz, Sarah Hall Entrant Company: Bluesky CommunicationsTitle of Entry: A New Year, New Name, Same Commitment – DeafBlind Ontario Services

AudiovisualAward of MeritPresented to: Maureen Juniper, Lindsay Williams, Praxis Public Relations; Jeff Carrique, Dwayne Jennings, Manulife Investments Entrant Company: Praxis Public RelationsTitle of Entry: Manulife IncomePlus for Life Video

Writing Award of ExcellencePresented to: Guy W. GiornoEntrant Company: Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLPTitle of Entry: Coalition of Ontario Pharmacy: Bill 102 Campaign

Award of MeritPresented to: Janet Wile, ABC, APR, MC Entrant Company: Barrick Gold CorporationTitle of entry: “Keep Those Tires Rolling” feature article for employee newsletter

Award of MeritPresented to: Guy W. Giorno Entrant Company: Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLPTitle of Entry: SAVE OUR VOICE! Coalition

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Electronic and Interactive CommunicationAward of MeritPresented to: Jo Langham, ABC, Lisa Gilbert, Michelle DiRocco, Cathy Mitchell, Linda Heredia, APEX Public Relations; Nikki Gentles, Kellogg CanadaEntrant Company: APEX Public Relations / Kellogg CanadaTitle of Entry: Kellogg’s Pop Tarts Meet Têtes à Claques

Award of MeritPresented to: Karen JuryEntrant Company: IAMGOLD Corporation Title of Entry: IAMConnected Intranet

Award of MeritPresented to: Bernard Hellen, Traffic Marketing + Design Inc., Simon Browning, SeeThroughWeb; Isaac Lotz, Direct Image, Jim Murray, Onwords & Upwords Inc. Entrant Company: Traffic Marketing + Design Inc.Title of Entry: Total Access: Nielsen Key Account StoreView Event Launch Campaign

Publication Design Award of ExcellencePresented to: Bernard Hellen, Traffic Marketing + Design Inc., Maia Becker, Antony Marcil, Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Canada Entrant Company: Traffic Marketing + Design Inc.Title of Entry: ‘Change the world’ FSC XpertTM Booklet

Award of MeritPresented to: Wendy McLean-Cobban, The Canadian Payroll Association; Loreta Senin-Hume, Hume Imaging; Gerry Babins, All Things Cling Entrant Company: The Canadian Payroll Association (CPA)Title of Entry: The CPA’s 2007 Compliance Rate Sheet

Other Graphic Design Award of ExcellencePresented to: Tangie Hinds, Daniel Thamotharem, Danny Faria, Catherine Krever, Paul KilbertusEntrant Company: Smart Systems for Health AgencyTitle of Entry: GET CAUGHT!

Outdoor/3-DAward of ExcellencePresented to: Toronto Hydro-Electric System LimitedEntrant Company: Toronto Hydro-Electric System LimitedTitle of Entry: Toronto Hydro Talk Box


Photography Award of ExcellencePresented to: Strategic Objectives, Cadbury Entrant Company: Strategic ObjectivesTitle of Entry: Cadbury Chocolate Couture Collection Fashion Show

Award of MeritPresented to: Mike Abbass, Tracey Bochner, APR, Greig ReekieEntrant Company: Paradigm Public Relations Title of Entry: Mill St. Barley Wine

Government Relations Award of ExcellencePresented to: Jane Shapiro, Sarah Andrewes, Alison Orr, Fleishman Hillard; Bernadette Cox, Gregory Kampf, Canadian Egg Marketing AgencyEntrant Company: Fleishman Hillard Title of Entry: Canadian Egg Marketing Agency Eggscellent Breakfast on Parliament Hill

Award of MeritPresented to: Guy Giorno, Daniel Brock, Richard ButlerEntrant Company: Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLPTitle of Entry: Coalition of Ontario Pharmacy: Bill 102 Campaign

Media Relations up to 50K Award of ExcellencePresented to: Alison George, Daniel Tisch, APR, Kyla Thoms, Ashley BallantyneEntrant Company: Argyle CommunicationsTitle of Entry: Nestlé AERO: ‘Guys Just Don’t Get It’

Award of ExcellencePresented to: Suzanne Gold, Esther Buchsbaum, APR, Julie Lepsetz, Hind Ounis, Communications MECA; Nadège Kéléchian, Tracey Lavelle, Jarden Consumer Solutions.Entrant Company: Communications MECATitle of Entry: Sweet Dreams with Sunbeam

Award of ExcellencePresented to: Anik Gagnon, Isabelle Randez, L’Oréal Paris; Cathy Cowan, Margaret Batuszkin, Katherine Needham, Julie Leblanc, Cowan & CompanyEntrant Company: Cowan & Company Title of Entry: L’Oréal Paris Beautifies L’Oréal Fashion Week

Award of ExcellencePresented to: Paula Oreskovich, Diane Black, Lauren McConnell, Nichola Rochon, Hélène Reeves, Praxis Public RelationsEntrant Company: Praxis Public RelationsTitle of Entry: Report Card on Prostate Cancer in Canada

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Award of ExcellencePresented to: Kerry Gaetano, Matt Gierasimczuk, Margie McNeil, Carina RuasEntrant Company: RBC InsuranceTitle of Entry: RBC Insurance Survey Media Relations Campaign

Award of ExcellencePresented to: Strategic ObjectivesEntrant Company: Strategic ObjectivesTitle of Entry: Panago Pizza, Ontario Launch

Award of MeritPresented to: Nancy Fowler, Stephen Fowler, The Licensing Shop; Cathy Cowan, Katherine Clark, Sonja Andic, Julie Leblanc, Cowan & CompanyEntrant Company: Cowan & Company Title of Entry: Pokémon Peaks Again

Award of MeritPresented to: Julie Rusciolelli, Geoffrey Morgan, Annette Robertson, MAVERICK Public Relations; Serena Quaglia, The Remington GroupEntrant Company: MAVERICK Public Relations Inc.Title of Entry: Downtown Markham Launch: “A Sustainable Path to Prosperity”

Award of MeritPresented to: Tracey Bochner, Mike Abbass, Anne Adamson, Carolyn Abbass, Paradigm Public RelationsEntrant Company: Paradigm Public RelationsTitle of Entry: Are your breasts online? The launch of the Booby Wall

Media Relations 51K to 100K Award of ExcellencePresented to: Martine Lévy, Penny Savoie, Emily Ward, DDB Public RelationsEntrant Company: DDB Public Relations on behalf of the Ontario Science CentreTitle of Entry: Ontario Science Centre Presents…TITANIC: The Artifact Exhibition

Award of ExcellencePresented to: Mark Nusca, Maria Antonopoulos, Derek Baker, Shane Matte, Porter Novelli CanadaEntrant Company: Porter Novelli Canada Title of entry: Thermablade launches a revolution in hockey

Award of MeritPresented to: Jo Langham, ABC, Heather Hopkins, Karen McCullough, Lisa Gilbert, Cathy Mitchell, APEX Public Relations; Anna Datin, Second Cup LimitedEntrant Company: APEX Public Relations / Second Cup LimitedTitle of Entry: Second Cup Gives Canada a Cool Canadian Holiday

Award of MeritPresented to: Diana RobinsonEntrant Company: Diana Robinson & Associates Title of Entry: The Launch of Catelli Smart Pasta


Award of MeritPresented to: Paula Oreskovich, Karen Krugel, Jennifer Meneses, Praxis Public Relations; Misty Beazley, Service Inspired RestaurantsEntrant Company: Praxis Public RelationsTitle of Entry: Re-Invigorating a Winning Restaurant: reds bistro & wine bar (reds), SIR Corp.

Award of MeritPresented to: Maureen Juniper, Lindsay Williams, Lauren McConnell, PraxisPR; Jeff Carrique, Dwayne Jennings, Tom Nunn, Manulife InvestmentsEntrant Company: Praxis Public RelationsTitle of Entry: Turning Retirement Thinking on Its Head: The Launch of IncomePlus

Award of MeritPresented to: Marnie Campbell, Lisa Bednarski, ABC, Christina Alviano, Weber Shandwick Worldwide; Christine Cruz-Clarke, Kraft CanadaEntrant Company: Weber Shandwick Worldwide Title of Entry: A “Peek” at Sweet History - Celebrating 150 Years of Peek Freans Cookies

Media Relations 100K and upAward of ExcellencePresented to: Diana RobinsonEntrant Company: Diana Robinson & Associates Title of Entry: Beyoncé and the Canadian Launch of Deréon

Award of ExcellencePresented to: Jennifer Schipper, Kate Carroll, David Mircheff, Alison O’Mahony, Mary Beth Denomy, Jennifer Casey, Natasha Gouveia, Julie Deschambault, Yvon Desautels, Environics Communications Inc.; Allyson Hewitt, Denyse Boxell, Safe Kids Canada; David Swearingen, Shelley Kohut, Johnson & JohnsonEntrant Company: Environics Communications Inc.Title of Entry: Safe Kids Week 2007 – Splash Into Safety

Award of ExcellencePresented to: Deb Adams, Erin Morra, Lisa Lang, Megan Matthews, Harbinger CommunicationsEntrant Company: Harbinger Communications, on behalf of the Dove Self-Esteem FundTitle of Entry: Harbinger Presents the Dove Self-Esteem Summit

Award of ExcellencePresented to: Julie Rusciolelli, Leslie Hetherington, APR, Tamara Kaftalovich, Annette Robertson, MAVERICK Public Relations; Dee Enright, National Marketing CampaignEntrant Company: MAVERICK Public Relations Inc.Title of Entry: Look Up North! – Pan North National Marketing Campaign

Award of ExcellencePresented to: Strategic Objectives, CadburyEntrant Company: Strategic ObjectivesTitle of Entry: Trident Splash National Cannonball Championship

Award of MeritPresented to: Martine LévyEntrant Company: DDB Public RelationsTitle of Entry: Canadian Blood Services (CBS) National Blood Donor Week & World Blood Donor Day: Canada Hosts the World

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Award of MeritPresented to: Leslie Wood, Mario Taylor, Vanessa Principe, Nicholas Schulz and Dara WillisEntrant Company: Fleishman HillardTitle of Entry: Know Your Ratio

Award of MeritPresented to: Marilyn Short, Tara Grant, Catherine Santos, Harbinger CommunicationsEntrant Company: Harbinger CommunicationsTitle of Entry: Sunsilk – Canadian Launch 2006

Award of MeritPresented to: Joan Lister, Farah Tayabali, Scott Fry, HealthComm Inc.Entrant Company: HealthComm Inc.Title of Entry: Ontario Potato Board Public Relations Campaign

Marketing Communications up to 50K

Award of MeritPresented to: Christina Friend, Scouts CanadaEntrant Company: Scouts CanadaTitle of Entry: Our Vision for the Future

Award of MeritPresented to: Bernard Hellen, Traffic Marketing + Design Inc.; Simon Browning, SeeThroughWeb; Isaac Lotz, Direct Image, Jim Murray, Onwords & Upwords Inc.Entrant Company: Traffic Marketing + Design Inc.Title of Entry: Total Access: Nielsen Key Account StoreView Event Launch Campaign

Marketing Communications 100K and up Award of ExcellencePresented to: Janet Wile, ABC, APR, MC, Marion Gotts, Vince Borg, Bill Gray, Brendan Seale, Julie Winget, Barrick Gold Corporation; Gillian McArdle, Media ProfileEntrant Company: Barrick Gold CorporationTitle of entry: Unlock the Value

Award of ExcellencePresented to: Paradigm Public Relations; Real Interactive; Boom Marketing; Schick CanadaEntrant Company: Paradigm Public RelationsTitle of Entry: Are your breasts online? The launch of the Booby Wall

Award of ExcellencePresented to: Marko PerovicEntrant Company: Region of PeelTitle of Entry: Organics Recycling

Award of MeritPresented to: Jo Langham, ABC, Lisa Gilbert, Karen McCullough, Zoey Fiksel, APEX Public Relations; Diane Jubinville, Ultima FoodsEntrant Company: APEX Public Relations / Ultima FoodsTitle of Entry: The Launch of Yoplait Yoptimal immuni+


Award of MeritPresented to: Sharon HaywardEntrant Company: DDB Public RelationsTitle of Entry: Bosch Home Appliances: The 2007 Bosch Eco-Legacy Campaign

Award of MeritPresented to: Andrea Donlan, Adrienne Rand, Tracey Rees, Jim Diorio, Deborah Caprara, Manifest Communications Inc.Entrant Company: Manifest Communications Inc.Title of Entry: Good Shepherd – Faith in People

Award of MeritPresented to: Chris BainesEntrant Company: Virgin Mobile CanadaTitle of Entry: Virgin Mobile Canada creates Freedom Day for Canadians

Special Events up to 50K Award of MeritPresented to: Tracey Bochner, Erin Hardy, Melanie Dulos, Cathy Mitchell, APEX Public Relations; Jane Shaw, Nike CanadaEntrant Company: APEX Public RelationsTitle of Entry: Nike Runner’s Lounge Launch (Toronto)

Special Events 100K and up Award of ExcellencePresented to: Diana RobinsonEntrant Company: Diana Robinson & Associates Title of Entry: Beyoncé and the Canadian Launch of Deréon

Award of ExcellencePresented to: Jennifer Duggan, Nicole Paara, Frances Manlucu, Environics Communications; Mary Siemiesz, Jenine LaFayette, Nestlé Purina PetCare Canada Entrant Company: Environics CommunicationsTitle of Entry: Purina Animal Hall of Fame: Celebrating Canada’s Pet Heroes

Award of MeritPresented to: Martine LévyEntrant Company: DDB Public RelationsTitle of Entry: Canadian Blood Services (CBS) National Blood Donor Week & World Blood Donor Day: Canada Hosts the World

Award of MeritPresented to: Julie Rusciolelli, Stephanie Engel, Megan Goldwell, Colleen Uncao, MAVERICK Public Relations; Seema Varughese, Coca-Cola Ltd,; Claire Dean, MosaicEntrant Company: MAVERICK Public RelationsTitle of Entry: Diet Coke – 25th Anniversary National Celebration Event

Award of MeritPresented to: Strategic Objectives, CadburyEntrant Company: Strategic ObjectivesTitle of Entry: Trident Splash National Cannonball Championship

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Issues Management and Crisis Communication Award of ExcellencePresented to: Toronto Hydro-Electric System LimitedEntrant Company: Toronto Hydro-Electric System LimitedTitle of Entry: Summer Challenge for Business

Employee/Member Communications Award of ExcellencePresented to: Mercer (Canada) Limited: Dana Beatson, Isabelle Bigras, Steve Dimitri, Guy Groleau, Paula Krulicki, Carrie MacAfee, Robin Mailloux, Linda McGuire, Catherine Moussalam, Hana Osseiran, Sharon Vanderwerff, Tina Young; Rogers Communications Inc.: Tony Cimino, Michael Gass, Suzanne Jones, Anne Prybyla, Kathy Salazar, Karen WangEntrant Company: Mercer (Canada) LimitedTitle of Entry: Get in the Game - Creating Employee Engagement in Rogers Employee Wealth Accumulation Program

Award of ExcellencePresented to: Cynthia Wujek, Sun Life Financial; Bev Haines, AstraZenecaEntrant Company: Sun Life Financial (Client organization: AstraZeneca Canada)Title of Entry: Getting personal: Motivating the move to better investment choices

Award of MeritPresented to: Tangie Hinds, Daniel Thamotharem, Danny Faria, Catherine Krever, Paul KilbertusEntrant Company: Smart Systems for Health AgencyTitle of Entry: GET CAUGHT!

Economic, Social and Environmental/Third World Development Award of MeritPresented to: Bernard Hellen, Traffic Marketing + Design, Inc.; Maia Becker, Antony Marcil, Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) CanadaEntrant Company: Traffic Marketing + Design Inc.Title of Entry: ‘Change the world’ FSC XpertTM Campaign

People’s Choice Award WinnerMarketing Communications 100K and up

Presented to: Paradigm Public Relations, Real Interactive, Boom Marketing, Schick CanadaCompany: Paradigm Public Relations Title of Entry: Are your breasts online? The launch of the Booby Wall


Announcing the Winners of the 2008 Business AwardsMid-Size PR Agency of the Year Apex Public Relations

Freelancer/Independent Category Diana Robinson & Associates

Small PR Agency of the Year Cowan & Company

PR Agency of the YearApex Public Relations

Announcing the Winner of the 2008 Bobbie Resnick Philanthropy AwardDeloitte & Touche LLP IMPACT DAY 2007

Announcing the Winner of the 2008 MAVERICK Student of the Year AwardPresented to: Maricel Dicion School: Centennial College

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2008 OVATION Awards Sponsors

IABC/Toronto would like to thank the following sponsors:W O U L D L I K E T O T H A N K O U R S P O N S O R S :

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W O U L D L I K E T O T H A N K O U R S P O N S O R S :

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Message from OVATION Awards Chair

I would like to extend my sincere appreciation to everyone involved in the 2008 IABC/Toronto Awards: entrants, judges, advisors, sponsors and volunteer organizers.

Award programs provide a forum to demonstrate the level of professionalism among our members and their peers. The superior quality and impact of this year’s submissions reflects the increasing importance of communications in today’s marketplace. IABC/Toronto OVATION Awards represent a celebration of the achievements of IABC members and the Toronto area communications community. We are delighted that there are a significant number of Merit and Excellence winners that we honour this year.

The Communicator of the Year (COTY) Award recognizes a Toronto-based leader who strategically demonstrates excellence in communication. Congratulations to Philip Blake, President and CEO, Bayer Inc. who exemplifies exceptional leadership, management and communications skills.

The introduction in 2007 of the Bobbie Resnick Philanthropy Award and the IABC/Toronto Business Awards has extended the Chapter’s opportunity to recognize the significant impact of our members. First-time category entries, new participants and new winners are all a reflection of the increasing profile and perceived value the IABC Toronto Awards provide. . IABC/Toronto extends sincere appreciation to our two Directors of Judging, Mary-Ellen Hynd and Gary Schlee, and our entire team of judges who devoted many hours evaluating over 100 entries.

A special thank you to our sponsors and all of those who have contributed to making this year’s Award program a success.

Last but not least, my sincere appreciation to our volunteer Gala organizers, Katie O’Dell, Amanda Flude, Erin Jeninson and Joe Racanelli for their creativity, enthusiasm and hard work.

We hope you enjoy the celebration of the 2008 IABC/Toronto Award winners.

Best regards, Sara Feldman, APR VP Awards, IABC/Toronto


2008 OVATION Awards JudgesLinda Andross, ABCExecutive Vice President APEX Public Relations

Iliana Arapis Director, Communications & Public RelationsMichener Institute of Applied Health Sciences

Lisa Bednarski, ABCVice PresidentWeber Shandwick Worldwide

Alison Bing, ABCBusiness Communications Planner Bayer Inc.

Brent Carey, ABCDirector, CommunicationsDeloitte & Touche LLP

Ken Cherney, ABC, APR, MCPresident, Ken Cherney & Associates Inc

Janet ComeauManager, Corporate CommunicationsThe Canadian Depository for Securities Ltd.

Sheila CorriveauPartnerAgencyLink Inc. - Marketing Search and Performance

Roxanne CramerExecutive Search ConsultantCramer & Company

Jacqui d’Eon, ABC, P. Eng.Director, Executive CommunicationsDeloitte & Touche LLP

Sara Feldman, APRPrincipal, Feldman and Associates

Marie Fitzpatrick-Hall, ABCMarketing ConsultantCity of Mississauga

Cheryl FletcherManager, Organizational Change CommunicationsRoyal Bank of Canada

Mary-Ellen Hynd, MBAProfessor/Consultant, Humber College

Corinne LaBossière, ABC, APRConsultant, CGL Communications

W.D. LighthallCommunications Project ManagerMinistry of Health and Long-Term Care

Annette Martell, ABC, MC

Anna RelyeaAssociate Director, Strategic CommunicationsOntario Science Centre

Natasha Renaud, MBA Manager, Corporate CommunicationsGrand & Toy

Roberta Resnick, ABC, APR, MC, IABC Fellow, CPRS Honorary Fellow Principal, Roberta Resnick & Associates

David Rowney, APRVice President, Marketing CommunicationsAMEC

Linda SadlowskiAdvisor, Corporate CommunicationsRBC Financial Group

Gary Schlee, ABCProfessor/Coordinator, Corporate CommunicationsCentennial College

Felicia Shiu, ABC, APR Vice-President Weber Shandwick Worldwide

Sabita Singh, ABCDirector, Electronic CommunicationsSun Life Financial

Gary Williams, ABCTeam Leader – Executive CommunicationsCity of Mississauga

T. Rosemary Yeremian, ABC Manager, Market DevelopmentAtomic Energy of Canada Limited

Gerald CrowellAssistant Director, CommunicationsOntario Ministry of Health Promotion

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Sara Feldman, APRAmanda FludeErin JennisonKatie O’DellJoe Racanelli

Specials ThanksThe IABC/Toronto OVATION Awards Gala Committee would like to thank the following individuals for their assistance.Go to ManJohn Chagnon

Reception musicJoshua Goodmanpianist/[email protected]

Design of Gala ProgramRichard PonsonbyRichard Ponsonby [email protected]

Script WriterGeoff [email protected]

Logo CreatorMargaret Goodfellow

Printer of Gala ProgramBrown Book Company (BBC) Limited416.504.9696

AVEvent Services Group

Venue and CateringLiberty Entertainment Group

SignageMarshall Fenn Communicationswww.marshall-fenn.com

2008 OVATION Awards Gala Committee


Community Relations – Award of ExcellenceEntrant’s Name: Jennifer Reynolds Organization’s Name: Toronto Hydro-Electric System LimitedDivision: Division 1, Communications Management Category: CATEGORY 1, Community RelationsTitle of Entry: Project REBUILD Time Period: January 2007 – December 2007 Business Need/OpportunityApproximately 35 per cent of the electricity distribution system in Toronto has passed its expected life span. Without significant and staged investment, service reliability will deteriorate and power outages will increase. To address this, Toronto Hydro launched Project REBUILD, a 10-year electricity distribution system capital investment plan. Toronto Hydro will be investing over $1.2-billion to repair, replace and upgrade its power cables and transformers, primarily on residential streets.

The overall plan is to completely rehabilitate the system by removing all of the old cables and replacing them with new assets. This involves the open trenching of residential streets, impacting boulevards and driveways adjacent to private homes, apartment buildings and retail areas. In addition to locating new equipment on previously unencumbered street allowances, there may be damage to existing landscaping (trees, sprinkler systems, brickwork and other vegetation). Also, customers may be inconvenienced by the temporary blocking of driveways and sidewalks, as well as dirt, dust and heavy construction noise.

To educate the public and homeowners about the importance of this massive infrastructure upgrade and curb complaints that may result in work delays or stoppages, the Project REBUILD communications team has been carefully managing community outreach. Engaging local city politicians has also been critical in allowing us to mitigate potential issues, avoid community relations problems and build our brand through positive and proactive outreach and dispute settlement. Customer and government engagement has been achieved through various methods, all of which are founded upon openness, accessibility and transparency.

To help guide the community relations strategy development, research was undertaken. A focus group study indicated that customers considered the current state of infrastructure to be performing only at a “fair” level. They sensed that much of the infrastructure is aging or “crumbling” and was not designed to support rapidly growing neighbourhoods. Participants in every focus group identified the electricity distribution system as a key infrastructure priority. Most understood the importance of infrastructure repair but they were much less inclined to accept the installation of new equipment adjacent to their properties, saying they would like to be consulted about such installations beforehand

Based on this, and through extensive consultations with our engineers and design staff, the communications team launched Project REBUILD with the intent of building Toronto Hydro’s reputation for reliable service delivery, and strengthening our relationship and key brand attributes (reliability and trust) with our customers through proactive customer and government relations.

Entrant’s Role in the Project Jennifer Reynolds is the Manager of Community Involvement at Toronto Hydro-Electric System. Jennifer works together with all levels of management to assess the impact of Project REBUILD and develop a robust communications plan which includes identifying the need for dedicated communications staff. Jennifer also manages the execution of the customer communications strategy aimed at proactively informing customers and other stakeholders about Project REBUILD.

Marina Leyderman is a Communications Consultant for Infrastructure and Design at Toronto Hydro-Electric System. Marina works to implement communication strategies by building a strong relationship with design technicians, contractors, crews, customers and community leaders.

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Intended Audiences PRIMARY AUDIENCE

Toronto Hydro Customers. Residential and commercial customers in the construction zones are the primary target audience. Toronto Hydro customers are made up of various social, cultural and economic backgrounds. A customer satisfaction survey sent out in August 2007, revealed that most customers prefer addressed mail as a form of communication followed by direct, person-to-person contact with a Toronto Hydro representative. A focus group study conducted in early 2007 showed us that most participants understand the importance of infrastructure upgrades and insist on being informed of any changes to their landscape and living environment. This customer research shaped our communications plan.

Government. Maintaining a positive and transparent relationship with city councillors provides support for Project REBUILD. Councillors who are committed to improving the infrastructure in their wards support Project REBUILD but must be kept abreast of all construction work so they can readily deal with any questions or concerns that come into the constituency office. Ensuring that councillors understand the rationale behind Project REBUILD encourages their support of the program and consequently, allows Toronto Hydro to temper customer backlash.

Neighbourhood Associations. Advising local community groups and BIAs (Business Improvement Associations) of proposed construction work provides Toronto Hydro with an opportunity to build relationships with influential community leaders, winning their understanding and support of the program. Engaging active community groups and ensuring they are not only made aware of Project REBUILD but also understand the logic behind the program, builds our reputation within these communities and prevents work delays or stoppages caused by negative customer response.

Toronto Hydro Employees. Toronto Hydro employees are the face of our organization. Specifically, Toronto Hydro field workers maintain a constant presence in and around the city and play a key role in implementing Project REBUILD. Informing and updating employees about the progress of Project REBUILD will help them to act as positive corporate ambassadors, ultimately supporting Toronto Hydro’s reputation as a reliable, transparent and responsible organization.

Goals and ObjectivesToronto Hydro takes pride in managing its core business with excellence. Part of this commitment includes Toronto Hydro’s promise to provide safe and reliable electricity service to customers. In order to meet and exceed these expectations, Toronto Hydro unveiled Project REBUILD, a plan that will ensure safe and reliable service through the replacement and repair of the electricity distribution system. Due to the sheer scope of the project and the intrusive and disruptive nature of construction work, communicating with affected stakeholders and explaining the rationale of Project REBUILD is essential in order to ensure that projects move forward.

The Project REBUILD community outreach plan aims to:

• Inform and educate audiences about Project REBUILD and the site-specific construction work planned in their areas.

• Ensure that customer concerns are acknowledged within two business days of initial contact, 95 per cent of the time. Ensure customer issues are resolved within five business days of initial contact 95 per cent of the time.

• Ensure that no project delays occur as a result of poor customer relations.• Continue to improve customer relations and reinforce/strengthen Toronto Hydro’s brand. • Ensure, through research, that at least 70 per cent of customers are satisfied with communications

relating to projects in their neighbourhoods.


Implementation and ChallengesSolution Overview

Strategy• Launch a community-based, multi-faceted communications campaign to educate and inform customers,

councillors and community groups about Project REBUILD to gain support and ease negative customer feedback.

Description of the program The Project REBUILD community outreach program is based on proactive, transparent and consistent communications to all stakeholders. The communications infrastructure is built upon the idea that actively reaching out to and forging positive relationships with customers, city councillors and community leaders will ultimately allow the massive construction program to continue uninterrupted. Customers have been quick to respond to our campaign initiatives, opening the door to a solid two-way communication system that identifies problems before they escalate.

The plan also seeks to win the approval and acceptance of local city council members. By maintaining daily correspondence with affected councillors and keeping them up-to-date on the latest developments, Toronto Hydro has been able to work in solidarity with the community. Developing and fostering relationships has leveraged influential local government officials as allies and even advocates of the infrastructure investment.

This communications strategy is based on research which tells us that customers expect clear, concise and consistent communications regarding any proposed changes to their landscape and living environment. Focus group members explained that clear and open communication is key to minimizing tension regarding upgrades and the disruptions that could take place in residential neighborhoods. Most participants were willing to accept relatively large-scale disruptions due to work being done on the electricity distribution system, but only if:

• They were properly briefed ahead of time;• They felt they had appropriate resources available to them to get additional information prior to/during

work completion;• Workers repaired any damage to property, at Toronto Hydro’s cost;• Work was completed in a manner that demonstrated careful attention to the needs of residents (e.g. not

too early in the morning and minimizing the noise level);• Work seemed well-planned and efficient, as opposed to sporadic, and was undertaken in conjunction or

in a coordinated fashion with other utilities.

The communications team developed a communications plan based on the following principles derived from our research: • Diverse communications that are easily adapted to individual situations. • Proactive, direct and transparent messaging to communicate to and hear from customers.• Foster positive relationships with local politicians to sustain support for Project REBUILD.• Build robust, reactive communication procedures in response to complaints that encourage a strong

focus on customer service to strengthen our relationship and brand.

PartnershipsKeeping local politicians updated about construction work taking place within their wards has given the communications team an opportunity to maintain a mutually beneficial relationship with influential municipal interests. Politicians are viewed as actively promoting investment within their communities and in return, Project REBUILD has the political support needed to finish projects without delays.

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Toronto Hydro has forged a successful and effective partnership with one particular councilor who represents the community where much of the construction work took place in 2007. Working together to address customer complaints, the councillor became a partner and supporter of Project REBUILD. Complaints received by his constituency office were quickly resolved, in part, because of the clear, open, two-way communication dynamic established by Toronto Hydro.

Key messages• Toronto Hydro is planning to rebuild a section of the underground electrical system in your

neighbourhood.• The existing system is nearing the end of its life expectancy. • Toronto Hydro’s Project REBUILD will help to:

- Improve service and reliability; - Reduce the frequency of power outages; and - Accommodate future growth and electricity service demands.

• Visit www.torontohydro.com/rebuild for more information

Communications Tactics

PROJECT REBUILD GENERAL NOTIFICATION LETTER: At least 6 weeks prior to construction, all customers in the area are mailed a general notification letter. These letters outline the scope of the work, the construction process and provides contact information should they have any questions or concerns. See Appendix A for a sample of the General Notification Letter. PROJECT REBUILD SPECIALTY LETTER: A second set of specialty letters is sent to customers who will be particularly impacted by Project REBUILD. Customers who will be receiving new “lawn furniture”, such as above ground pad-mounted transformers or underground vaults on the City-owned public boulevard in front of their home, are given letters marked “Important Notice”. These are specially addressed to affected customers and include a graphic depiction that clearly identifies the location of the proposed equipment. Customers who may be unhappy with the location of the equipment are encouraged to contact the Project REBUILD hotline. A subsequent on site meeting with the homeowner determines whether or not the structure can be shifted to the satisfaction of the customer. The letters are printed on Project REBUILD branded stationary and arrive in Project REBUILD branded envelopes. See Appendix B for a sample of the Specialty Letter. PROJECT REBUILD VEHICLE (TOYOTA PRIUS): Maintaining an active and visible presence in Project REBUILD neighbourhoods involves frequent and ongoing visits to construction areas and meetings with homeowners on site. The communications team builds the Project REBUILD brand by travelling to work locations in a branded, hybrid vehicle. See Appendix C for a photograph of the Project REBUILD Vehicle. PROJECT REBUILD SAFETY MESSAGING: Given that most projects take place in residential neighbourhoods, child and pedestrian safety is a top priority. To draw attention to our work and encourage children to behave responsibly around construction sites, our communications team developed a flyer which provides tips on how to be safe around heavy vehicles and trenches. The flyer is delivered with all general notification letters and also comes with a flashing light reflector that children are encouraged to attach to their backpacks or bike spokes. The reflector flashes and features an animated image of the likeness of a child as a Toronto Hydro Sidewalk Safety Inspector. Most importantly, the reflector increases the visibility of the child when on the street and near our work crews. See Appendix D for a sample of the Project REBUILD Safety Messaging. TOWN HALL COMMUNITY MEETINGS: The communications team often participates in and initiates community town hall meetings in conjunction with local politicians and ratepayer groups. By proactively involving and informing community leaders and their constituents about intrusive civil construction work, we address concerns immediately.


PROJECT REBUILD WEBSITE: The Project REBUILD webpage features a description of all large-scale construction projects in Toronto, including work timelines, project maps and street names. The webpage also features an interactive, animated slide show which describes our construction procedures step-by-step from civil construction to restoration. The slide show features a voice over module and sound effects. It is located at www.torontohydro.com/rebuild. See Appendix E for a sample of the Project REBUILD Website.

INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS:Toronto Hydro has more than 1,600 employees. The majority of Toronto Hydro’s workforce is made up of trade workers who do their jobs outside of a conventional office. The Project REBUILD plan included an internal communications component aimed at informing and involving staff, specifically outside field workers, of the importance and magnitude of Project REBUILD. The unveiling of a 10-year capital plan map during the Project REBUILD Road Shows engaged employees by answering some of their most common questions. Employees often ask about where capital work is taking place and how much money will be invested in each project. The Road Shows gave employees the opportunity to meet the planning teams and become more engaged in the process. See Appendix F for a sample of the collateral used during the Project REBUILD Road Shows.

Time frameProject REBUILD took flight in January 2007. Toronto Hydro sends all general notification letters to customers at least six weeks prior to construction. Specialty letters are sent out four weeks prior to construction. Permit approval delays and last minute construction timeline changes can present a communication challenge when advising customers and councillors about projects. The communications team mitigates this challenge by reacting quickly and ensuring that customers are informed of changes.

Other Considerations• Although research has told us that customers understand the importance of infrastructure upgrades,

they are far less willing to accept new structures close to their properties. Early and repeated communication has helped mitigate this.

• Permit approval delays and last minute construction timeline changes can present a communication challenge when advising customers and politicians about projects. The communications team addresses this challenge by reacting quickly and ensuring that customers are informed of changes.

• Other utilities also perform civil construction work in Project REBUILD areas. Often, these other companies perform poor construction and restoration work and because Toronto Hydro has a high profile in the area, we are blamed. Working closely with the City of Toronto’s permit office enables the communications team to identify which utilities are actually responsible for poor work, then we contact them on behalf of the neighbourhood to repair shoddy work.

BudgetThe communications teams worked with a budget of $200,000 to reach all customers, communicate and work with councillors, develop the Project REBUILD brand, design the website and hire staff dedicated to campaign development and implementation. Most impressively, this budget supported a construction program valued at $120-million in 2007, clearly demonstrating the value that public and community relations brings to the core business of Toronto Hydro.

Measurement/Evaluation of OutcomesObjective: Communicate to and educate audiences about of Project REBUILD and any proposed construction work in their area. Ensure at least 70 per cent of customers are satisfied with

communication tactics.

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Result: In August 2007, a customer satisfaction survey was sent out to all affected customers that measured satisfaction levels of Toronto Hydro’s communication tactics and the quality of construction work. See Appendix G for a copy of the survey. Eighty-five per cent of respondents claim that they received notification that Toronto Hydro would be doing construction work in their neighbourhood. Seventy-seven per cent felt neutral, satisfied or very satisfied with how well the notification described the proposed work. See Appendix G for survey results.

Objective: Ensure that customer concerns are addressed within two business days of initial contact 95 per cent of the time. Ensure customer issues are resolved within five business days of initial contact 95 per cent of the time.

Result: Out of 104 complaints received to date, 100 have been resolved. Ninety-eight per cent of complaints are resolved within five business days or less.

Objective: Ensure that no project delays occur as a result of customer backlash. Result: Toronto Hydro completed 105 per cent of planned projects on time and on budget Other Evidence of Success:

• Internet: The Project REBUILD web site received 4,972 visits in 2007. With nearly 8000 customer affected by Project REBUILD, more than half that number visited the site.

• Third-party support: Toronto Hydro has been praised publicly for its investment in infrastructure by local councillors. Toronto Hydro has also been commended by community leaders. The President of the Heathwood Ratepayer’s Association stated that, “Attention to details reflects operational excellence. These guys should be commended for their excellent work.”


Community Relations – Award of ExcellenceEntrant’s Name: Catherine ParryOrganization’s Name: Toronto Hydro-Electric System LimitedDivision: Division 1, Communications Management Category: Category 1, Community RelationsTitle of Entry: Toronto Hydro’s Festive Light Exchange ProgramTime Period: November 8 – December 2, 2008Brief Description: To address the growing need to conserve electricity in Toronto, the Toronto Hydro Team implemented an innovative, community-based Festive Light Exchange conservation program that achieved megawatt savings and media attention.

Business Need/OpportunityToronto Hydro firmly and supports the concept that electricity conservation is one of the most efficient ways to decrease harmful emissions and smog, and to manage electricity load demands on power grids. As a summer-peaking utility (from June to September), massive strain is put on the electricity grid to supply power (mostly for air conditioning) to both businesses and residential customers. During this time, the electricity supply fleet (nuclear, hydro, fossil fuel and renewables) works at capacity. When demand exceeds supply, customers could experience brownouts or power outages. Because of this, the province must import expensive power from suppliers in other provinces or the United States. This imported power is often produced in coal-fired plants, which increase air pollution.

Toronto Hydro is committed to developing energy conservation programs that deliver kilowatt savings and educate customers about conservation. In 2005, Toronto Hydro set a goal to reduce the City’s peak load by five per cent, or 250 megawatts, by 2007.

In November, the City of Toronto hosts its annual “Cavalcade of Lights,” which involves the launch of festive energy-efficient neighbourhood lighting displays in various Business Improvement Areas (BIAs). Toronto Hydro saw the opportunity to collaborate with the City and leverage the established neighbourhood lighting displays by adding a Festive Light Exchange program, reaching out to customers in over 21 communities city-wide. Working with two key partners, Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas (TABIA) and the City of Toronto, Toronto Hydro was able to bring a conservation program into the event mix. TABIA is a non-profit umbrella organization representing the 64 BIAs, which in turn represent more than 20,000 business and property owners. BIAs are comprised of merchants and local businesses with the mandate to deliver programs that stimulate local business.

The Festive Light Exchange program was developed to encourage the switch from old, incandescent seasonal lights to energy-efficient seasonal Light Emitting Diode (LED) lights by giving customers an opportunity to try the new technology for free. Many people still use traditional incandescent lights when decorating for the holiday season. Incandescent bulbs use a great deal of electricity. LED holiday lights use up to 95 per cent less electricity than traditional holiday lights. Participants were invited to exchange two strings of old incandescent seasonal lights for one free string of energy-efficient LED lights. This gave customers the opportunity to dispose of their old lights in a responsible way, as Toronto Hydro recycles the materials. The light exchange was the hook to drive traffic to the events. When at the events, the Toronto Hydro representatives were able to engage the public and communicate tips and tools for customers to reduce their electricity use.

Toronto Hydro has held the Festive Light Exchange program for three consecutive years. In 2005, the program started with four community events and has experienced double digit growth in participation since then. It was decided that for 2007, Toronto Hydro would focus on ethnically-diverse neighbourhoods throughout the city that hadn’t been reached previously. Through TABIA, Toronto Hydro successfully engaged new BIAs to bring conservation to these neighbourhoods.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectCatherine Parry is the Director of Marketing, Communications and Public Affairs for Toronto Hydro-Electric

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System. From conservation communication strategy development to detailed tactical planning, Catherine oversaw the program execution and managed partner relationships.

Intended AudiencesPrimary Audience

Toronto Hydro customers. Residential customers were the primary target audience. Toronto Hydro serves a very diverse customer base and our research indicates that 42% of customers believe it’s the responsibility of Toronto Hydro to advise customers on ways to conserve energy.

Secondary Audiences• Local News Media. As a conduit to all audiences. Media like real life stories that are tied to specific

communities to localize the story.• Government. The municipal government and the provincial government (Ministry of Energy). Both of

these bodies have been active in supporting and promoting energy conservation.• NGOs. Non-Government Organizations recognition is paramount and many NGOs have supported and

promoted Toronto Hydro’s conservation programs in the past. They consider Toronto Hydro to be a leader in this field.

• Toronto Hydro Employees. Whether Toronto Hydro customers or not, employees are the face of the company and front-line ambassadors of its programs.

Goals and ObjectivesGOAL: Toronto Hydro aggressively promotes conservation to its customers and has an over-arching goal to reduce Toronto’s peak demand by as much as possible, and educate customers to help them reduce their electricity consumption. All the programs developed by Toronto Hydro aim to bring measurable kilowatt savings. The Premier of Ontario has called for a “culture of conservation” across the province and Toronto Hydro’s programs are developed with this provincial goal in mind.

OBJECTIVES:• Realize one megawatt in electricity savings, representing at least 8,500 strings of old lights collected or

4,250 Torontonians participating (based on two strings per participant)• Educate participants at the Festive Light Exchange events about conservation and energy-efficient

products, and encourage behavioural change• Continue to expand the program to include new Toronto neighbourhoods• Achieve substantial and positive media coverage, through both mainstream and ethnic media outlets• Position Toronto Hydro as a leader in conservation

Solution OverviewStrategy• Launch a community-based, multi-faceted communications campaign to promote the Festive Light

Exchange program at a grass-roots level to achieve maximum participation.• Leverage established program infrastructure and media vehicles, through the City of Toronto and TABIA,

to extend Festive Light Exchange program message reach and overall conservation messaging.• Capitalize on the seasonality and timing opportunity and execute a program late enough in the fall that

people are thinking about holiday lighting, but early enough to capture attention before they actually decorate.

• Promote other in-market conservation programs.

Torontonians were encouraged to bring in two strings of old incandescent holiday lights in exchange for one free string of efficient LED lights. The offer was extended to Toronto residents only, with one set of LEDs per household, for the first 500 participants. In total, Toronto Hydro held 22 exchange events.


The educational component of the program encourages customers to not only use their new LED lights, but to also purchase LED lights for all their holiday lighting needs. Coupons for $5 off the purchase of LED lights, from the Ontario Power Authority, were distributed at the events. A hand held kilowatt monitor, displaying the difference in real-time between electricity consumption from incandescent lights versus LED lights, was on display and event volunteers were trained to answer conservation-related questions.

Planning for the Festive Light Exchange started in early September 2007. The program had its first event on Thursday, November 8, 2007 and final event was Sunday, December 9, 2007. Final megawatt savings reports were filed by January 23, 2008.

Key messages• Join Toronto Hydro and your local BIA and exchange two strings of old incandescent seasonal lights

for one FREE string of energyefficient seasonal LED lights at the launch of your neighbourhood festive lighting display

• LED festive lights use up to 95 per cent less electricity than traditional incandescent lights and can save you money on your electricity bill

• Visit www.torontohydro.com/sled for more information• Conservation is important all year– there are programs you can participate in right now and tips for

year-round conservation

Tactical OverviewAdvertisingCommunity newspapers: Advertisements, developed in house, ran in community newspapers throughout the city, selected based on proximity to the exchange locations, and promoted the neighbourhood-specific event. All advertisements honed in on key messages: Toronto Hydro would like to give you a free string of seasonal LED lights, seasonal LEDs can help you conserve electricity and visit www.toronothydro.com/sled for more information. A number of BIAs also ran their own advertisements in community papers that featured the local lighting display launch and the FestiveLight Exchange.Radio: Radio ads ran on two Toronto-based stations (CFRB 1010 and 96.3 Classical FM) to promote the events and drive traffic to the Web site.Leveraging relationships: The Festive Light Exchange events were promoted in the City of Toronto’s “Cavalcade of Lights” brochure, on its Web site, in its news release and in its print ads.See appendix A for a samples of the advertising materials

powerWISE: Conservation NewsletterThe fall issue of Toronto Hydro’s conservation newsletter powerWISE featured the Festive Light Exchange program’s dates and details.See appendix B for a sample of powerWISE

Media RelationsTo generate awareness about the community events, weekly media advisories with specific information about event locations and LED technology were distributed to Toronto-based media on the news wire. Advisories were sent to Toronto Hydro Interest groups, Toronto Hydro stakeholders and the community newspapers where advertising space was purchased. The City of Toronto and TABIA each produced their own releases, with Toronto Hydro information, that were sent out to various media outlets. To promote the success of the program, Toronto Hydro also distributed a wrap-up release. See appendix C a Toronto Hydro media alert, the City of Toronto release and Toronto Hydro’s wrap-release

Government Relations: Events and SupportThe community-based events provide a great opportunity for City Councillors and Members of Parliament to talk about conservation and celebrate the season with their constituents. Toronto Hydro invited the

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City Councillors to attend events taking place in their wards. Along with the invitation, a tailored matte story was sent to the Councillor’s office so they could promote the Festive Light Exchange event in their community newsletter. The invitations were met with an overwhelming response.

2007 also saw an increase in participation from MPPs and MPs. MPP David Caplan approached Toronto Hydro to host his own event at a community centre in his riding. The newly-appointed Minister of Energy Gerry Phillips also requested an event in his riding, which was hosted at alocal community centre. Peter Love, Ontario’s Chief Conservation Officer, took an interest in all neighbourhood events and came out to support four events. In total, 13 politicians attended, which is an increase from last year’s five. See appendix D for the Councillor’s invitation letter

On-Site Expertise and Education While the draw to these community events was to exchange old technology for new, another important component of this conservation program was education. Toronto Hydro is committed to providing customers with the tools and knowledge to manage their electricity consumption. The Festive Light Exchanges provided an excellent opportunity to discuss conservation at the grass roots level. Toronto Hydro recruited and trained a group of “Toronto Environmental Volunteers.” Also at each event was at least one Toronto Hydro “conservation expert,” who (when possible) spoke the predominant non-English language in the area. This group of employees regularly delivers conservation information sessions and is trained to discuss conservation in-depth with the public.

Each event had a kilowatt monitor that proved to be a conservation conversation starting point. The device was on display to show the real-time difference in wattage between a traditional incandescent string of lights and a LED string of lights. The numbers spoke for themselves. Many participants wanted to know where they could get a kilowatt monitor to evaluate electronics used in their households, proving that our conservation message went beyond the LED lights. See appendix E for the training materials

The InfluencersInformation about the program was sent to various bloggers in Toronto with the intention to generate awareness for the program through alternative channels. Though blogging strategy is new for Toronto Hydro, sending “the influencers” information proved to be an important tactic for this campaign. BlogTO.com, a popular Toronto-based blog with an environmental column, wrote about the program, event dates and attended an event. The blog featured information about the events and photos of the old lights, new lights, the kilowatt reader and the participating MP Peggy Nash cutting a string of old lights. LivingGreenToronto.com also discussed the Festive Light Exchange events, linked to www.torontohydro.com/sled and communicated Toronto Hydro’s key messages. See appendix F for a samples of blog coverage

Web SiteA program-specific page (www.torontohydro.com/sled) was developed for the Festive Light Exchange program and all advertising material drove traffic to the page. Over the month that the page was live, it received 6,997 views. See appendix G for screen captures

Direct MailA direct mail piece was developed for targeted mail drops in participating neighbourhoods a few days prior to the event. The mailer was based on the advertisement to ensure consistency of message and creative. See appendix H for a sample of the direct mail piece

Internal CommunicationsToronto Hydro has more than 1,600 employees and its internal communications vehicles are well developed. The team took advantage of these vehicles to promote The Festive Light Exchange program


to Toronto Hydro employees, some of whom are customers. It’s critical that employees are aware of the programs that Toronto Hydro hosts as they are highly-visible brand ambassadors that are often asked questions about programs in market. Through the daily online newsletter, Watt’s Up, the printed newsletter, Spectrum, and internal message boards, the program was communicated to all employees. A custom Festive Light Exchange was developed for Toronto Hydro employees. The Communications Team set up stations in the various work locations (total of six) and employees could bring two old strings and receive on new LED string. See appendix I forinternal communications samples

Implementation and ChallengesChallenges• Winter is not the time of year when Torontonians, or the media, are thinking about conservation.

Usually, conversations around conservation occur in the summer as Toronto Hydro is a summer-peaking utility.

• People may not think of electricity consumption when decorating for the holiday season, as it’s a busy time of year.

• Conservation programs are not a tangible product or service. Giving out LED lights is a component of the Festive Light Exchange events, but the overall program calls for a behavioural change – people have to go home and actually use the lights.

• Coordinating and executing multiple events is challenging: There were many details to coordinate including hiring volunteers, training them to represent the utility appropriately and manage large crowds, determining event locations and logistics, timing the delivery and pick up of the new LED lights, timing the pick up of the old strings for recycling, and ensuring the old strings were separated and recycled responsibly.

• Toronto Hydro wanted to ensure its messages were prominent in the City of Toronto’s collateral materials.

• There was an overwhelming demand for last-minute events. Though Toronto Hydro, through TABIA, engages BIAs and City Councillors in early September, it still experienced requests for last-minute events from City Councillors and MPPs. Toronto Hydro anticipated this and successfully accommodated all last-minute requests.

• To ensure the old lights were removed from service, and to verify our numbers, event staff cut the plugs off and saved them for counting.

BudgetThe total budget for all aspects of the communications campaign was $71,000, which was primarily used for purchasing media space. This does not include the cost of the actual LED lights, which was approximately $5 per box. All of the creative development and writing was executed in-house.All event staff were volunteers, whether from Toronto Hydro or through Toronto Environmental Volunteers.

Measurement/EvaluationObjective: Realize one megawatt in electricity savings, representing at least 8,500 strings of old lights

collected or 4,250 Torontonians (based on two strings per participant)Result: The numbers speak for themselves. The Festive Light Exchange program delivered two

megawatts of electricity savings, doubling the primary objective. Toronto Hydro strives to develop effective conservation programs that deliver true megawatt savings, and this program delivered. The program collected a total of 17,903 old, inefficient strings, which were separated, recycled and disposed of responsibly.

Objective: Educate participants (4,250) about conservation and energy-efficient products, and encourage behavioural change

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Result: Based on the logistics of the program (two strings collected per person), the 17,903 strings of old incandescent lights represents a participation of 8,951 Torontonians, exceeding program objectives as well. Available at the events was information on other Toronto Hydro programs and general conservation tips. More than 5,000 pieces of these collateral materials were also distributed to participants. See Appendix J for samples of the collateral

Objective: Continue to expand the program to include new Toronto neighbourhoodsResult: Breaking into new communities (and ethnically-diverse communities) was an important

component of the 2007 program. By engaging new BIAs early in the process, Toronto Hydro successfully hosted events in nine new neighbourhoods, and some had primarily English-as-a-second-language residents. New events were held in: The Chinatown BIA, the Gerrard India Bazaar BIA, Wexford Heights BIA, Roncesvalles Village BIA, Emery Village BIA, Riverside District BIA, The Beach BIA, Downsview Park and Mimico-by-the-Lake BIA. It’s worth noting that the event in the Wexford BIA was the most-successful exchange to date, with more than 1,000 strings of old lights retrieved in 2 hours.

Objective: Achieve substantial and positive coverage, through both mainstream and ethnic media outlets

Result: The community events in ESL communities drew non-English media outlets, and resulted in media coverage in other languages. The Chinatown BIA event drew OMNI 2, a Chinese station. The event was covered in Chinese and an interview with a Toronto Hydro spokesperson was translated. The GreekTown on the Danforth BIA event drew Odyssey TV, a Greek television station that also broadcasts in Greece. A Toronto Hydro spokesperson (fluent in Greek) gave an interview with this international station. Chinese community newspapers, including one of the major Toronto-based Chinese dailies “Daily News,” covered the event in the Scarborough area.Toronto Hydro also received coverage from various print, broadcast, and online English media outlets including: Citytv, Global TV, Proud FM, www.blogto.com, www.livinggreentoronto.com, www.toronto.about.com, Inside Toronto: The Beach, Snap: Beaches, The Toronto Observer, and The Bulletin. See appendix K for samples of media coverage

Other Evidence of SuccessBehavioural change: Toronto Hydro customers have answered the call to conserve. In 2007, the utility did not reach a peak during some of the hottest days on record. Whether it’s switching to compact fluorescent lightbulbs, turning up air conditioners or trading in old incandescent lights for new energy-efficient LEDs, Toronto Hydro customers are contributing to the “conservation culture” that the province is creating According to the Globe and Mail, “Toronto Hydro has quickly become one of the leading conservation utilities in Canada.” Since 2005, Toronto Hydro has reduced peak demand in Toronto by 357 megawatts, surpassing its goal by almost 100 megawatts.

Third-party support: Toronto Hydro has been praised publicly for its conservation efforts by NGOs, through media coverage and in public forms. World Wild Life Fund Canada Climate Change Campaign Manager Keith Stewart said “The success of this program demonstrates that Torontonians are prepared to take action on global warming, and that is a holiday gift that will keep on giving.”


Community Relations – Award of MeritEntrant Names: Julie O’Brien, BlueSky Communications, Project Leader, Cathy-Anne O’Brien, BlueSky Communications, Project Tactical Support, Erin Brand, BlueSky Communications, Writer Jarred Katz, BlueSky Communications, Designer, Sarah Hall, BlueSky Communications, Media Relations Organization’s Name: DeafBlind Ontario Services (formerly, Independent Living Residences for the Deafblind in Ontario)Division: Division 1, Communications Management Category: Category 1, Community RelationsTitle of Entry: A New Year, New Name, Same Commitment – DeafBlind Ontario ServicesTime Period of Project: October 2006 – December 2007Brief Description: Independent Living Residences for the DeafBlind in Ontario required a new brand and communications strategy in order to generate more awareness and increase fundraising. BlueSky Communications created a new identity for the organization and implemented a multi-faceted communications plan to reach out to potential donors.

Business Need/OpportunityIf 95 per cent of what we learn comes from our eyes and ears, imagine how challenging it must be to not have either of these senses? Independent Living Residences for the Deafblind in Ontario (IRLDBO) is a not-for-profit organization that supports deafblind adults with community-based housing, trained intervention support, independent living skills, work experience and social programs.

In the increasingly competitive not-for-profit sector, the organization realized that its full fundraising potential was not being met and identified the need to refresh its brand for the following reasons:

• Name Recognition: The name ILRDBO was cumbersome to say and difficult for potential donors, partners, community groups and sponsors to remember.

• Growth Opportunity: Since 1989, the organization had grown from three homes in York Region and today it is the largest not-for-profit organization providing housing and 24/7 support services to deafblind adults throughout the province. The organization needed a new name to reflect this expansion in scope and services.

• Awareness and Understanding: Because deafblindness is a unique, relatively unknown disability, the organization needs to educate the public about deafblind people, the services they require and their ability to contribute to society.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectBlueSky Communications Inc. was selected to create and launch a multi-layered marketing communication project that included brand development, brand implementation, a holiday campaign, community media relations and strategic counsel.

Julie O’Brien was the lead and was responsible for the management of all components. Erin Brand and Jarred Katz created the new logo and were responsible for the creative development of all materials. Sarah Hall implemented the media relations campaign and Cathy-Anne O’Brien was responsible for tactical support on an as needed basis.

Intended Audience(s)In order to fully understand the needs of the audiences, the BlueSky team visited residences, interviewed stakeholders and residents, and researched competitive organizations.

Primary AudienceCurrent and potential donors, falling into two main categories:• Members of the community where the organization’s houses are located. Generally, IRLDBO finds that

many lack knowledge of deafblindness, which leads to inaccurate perceptions. Locations include:- York Region (population 892,712)- Simcoe County (population 266,100)

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- Middlesex-Oxford (population 69,953)- Tricities (population 209,000)

• Family and friends of deafblind individuals- More than 2500 individuals in Ontario are affected by deafblindness- Demographics such as age, gender and income are mixed as deafblindness affects families of all

backgrounds

Secondary Audiences• Government and sponsoring organizations that provide funding to the organization • Referring organizations (e.g. healthcare providers, educators) involved in the support and care of

deafblind individuals• Guardians/advocates/caregivers of deafblind individuals in Ontario

Goals/ObjectivesGoals• Raise awareness of deafblindness in Ontario• Build a stronger profile of the organization to increase fundraising opportunities

Objectives• Create a new identity with which the organization can grow and clearly communicate who they support• Secure media coverage in communities where houses are located• Increase December 2007 fundraising revenues from the Holiday Gift Guide by 50 per cent over that of

2006• Open two-way communication with stakeholders (employees, board members and deafblind people) to

ensure they are engaged in the new identity process and that it accurately reflects the organization

Solution OverviewBlueSky Communications Inc. was selected to create and launch a new brand that would resonate with the target audiences. To better understand the unique needs and culture of the organization, BlueSky toured residences, met with residents and researched competitive organizations.

A multi-layered marketing communications plan was then developed and included:

Brand Development:• In early 2007, ILRDBO created a task force to examine the values of the organization. They surveyed

and interviewed stakeholders from all facets of the organization and determined four common themes: Respect, Leadership, Trust and Team Work. BlueSky’s first step was to take these themes and create meaningful value statements for the organization. These would be used to establish brand values that needed to be reflected in the new name and identity

• BlueSky presented concepts, including names, logos and colours to the board of directors. With the majority in agreement, DeafBlind Ontario Services was selected as the organization’s new name, along with a new logo.

• The new logo (see work samples) symbolically conveys the many facets of DeafBlind Ontario Services. Look at it one way, and you see a house. Shift your focus and you clearly see a face focusing on the eye and the ear. Together, they represent a home that shelters the ability to see and hear.

Brand Implementation• Once the name and logo were approved, BlueSky then worked with the newly named DeafBlind Ontario

Services to implement the brand throughout the organization. This included the development of new fundraising materials, internal and external communications pieces and an overhaul of the organization’s website.

• A new name and brand also meant implementing a transition plan to ensure all internal and external stakeholders were aware of the impending name change. BlueSky developed a series of email tags, bill inserts and web banners to ensure all audiences were aware and excited about the transition.

• A series of six brochures were developed targeting different stakeholder groups, including potential


employees, potential donors, volunteers, community members, families of potential residents and referring organizations.

Holiday Campaign• DeafBlind Ontario Services was officially launched on December 4th, 2007, to coincide with the

organization’s peak fundraising period. BlueSky refreshed an existing fundraising approach by redesigning the organization’s annual Holiday Gift Guide and incorporating the new brand so that it made a strong emotional connection with potential donors and stood out amongst the holiday clutter.

Community Media Relations• A community-based media relations campaign with a holiday theme was implemented to build

awareness of deafblindness, launch DeafBlind Ontario Services, and generate interest in the Holiday Gift Guide. A press release was issued over a newswire and fact sheet was developed. All materials were uploaded to the website.

• Story ideas were developed and pitched to targeted media and interviews, photo opportunities and residence tours were secured for press.

Implementation and Challenges

Budget: Approximately $20,000 was spent on the entire project (excluding printing costs) over a 10 month period.

1. Fundraising was required to support the project and every dollar had to be used in the most effective way• The brand features two colours (blue and black) so materials could be produced in-house on a basic

office printer when necessary. • Marketing materials, such as the brochures, were designed as two-color versus four-colour to reduce

the cost of professional printing.• A discounted non-profit rate was negotiated for the newswire distribution of the press release.

2. Lengthy approval process• There were many layers of approvals required – including the organization’s executive director,

manager of fund development & volunteers, board of directors, members and the Ministry of Government Services.

• Diligent planning was required to ensure necessary approvals were obtained and timelines were met.

3. Media interviews had to be handled with care• Because most deafblind individuals rely on a trained “Intervenor” who act as their eyes and ears,

interviews had to be carefully arranged to make everyone involved feel comfortable. This usually included having at least a day to prepare the resident and Intervenor for the interview, which was often done in person. It also meant educating the reporter on ways to best communicate with the deafblind individual.

Measuring/Evaluation

Objective: Create a new identity with which the organization can grow and clearly communicate who they support Results:• The board of directors and members voted in favour of DeafBlind Ontario Services because it met all key

criteria: - The new name is shorter, easier to say and write, and more recognizable and memorable. - The new name has longevity because it captures the organization’s plans to further enhance its

services offered to deafblind adults, including adding another home to its collection of residences located throughout Ontario and developing innovative outreach programs to help deafblind individuals live more independently.

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- The name, DeafBlind Ontario Services, simply states who the organization is, what they do and who they support.

• The board of directors and members voted in favour of the logo because: - The Picasso-inspired icon symbolically represents a house that shelters the ability to see and hear.

(Picasso was chosen as inspiration because of his style of showing different perspectives at the same time; we thought this accurately conveys the different facets of the organization.)

- Traditionally, the colour blue is a happy, positive colour symbolizing trust, loyalty, wisdom, confidence, individuality, energy and independence* that reflects the spirit of the group. (* supported by various sources, including The Colour Marketing Group and The Poynter, organizations that are considered thought leaders in colour in advertising and design),

Objective: Secure media coverage in community where houses are located

Results:• Media hits were secured in outlets including:

- The Toronto Star - The Markham Economist and Sun- The Londoner- The Kitchen-Waterloo Record- SNAP Newmarket

• Each media hit included at least one photo, 50% included the url, deafblindontario.com, and 50% included a mention of the holiday gift guide.- Reporter Valarie Hill from the Kitchener-Waterloo Record said that this was one of the most touching

community stories that she had covered. She loved the holiday angle and said that it was something she would never have thought to write about until she was moved by the story pitch.

Objective: Increase December 2007 fundraising revenues from the Holiday Gift Guide by 50% over that of 2006

Results: • The same number of gift guides were distributed in 2006 and 2007

- Revenues increased in dollar value by 124% (from $1600 in 2006 to $3590 in 2007)- The number of donations received increased by 53% (from 15 in 2006 to 23 in 2007)

Objective: Open two-way communication with stakeholders (employees, board members and community) to ensure they are engaged in the new identity process and that it accurately reflects the organization.

Results:• Input was requested from stakeholders at almost every step to ensure the new identity met the needs of

everyone involved:- Brochures were edited by staff to ensure they best reflected the needs of that group.- Photos of residents were included in the new brochures to demonstrate how the organization has

helped them to lead more independent lives.- Stakeholders such as employees and volunteers were surveyed to identify value statements. - House leaders, who oversee each residence, were consulted when arranging media interviews to help

prepare the deafblind person for the interview.- Brand guidelines were developed as a tool to help employees, staff and volunteers understand the

new brand, and to ensure all are consistently communicating DeafBlind Ontario Services.


Writing – Award of ExcellenceEntrant’s Name: Guy W. GiornoOrganization’s Name: Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLPClient Organization: Coalition of Ontario PharmacyDivision: Division 2, Communication Skills Category: Category 12, WritingTitle of Entry: Coalition of Ontario Pharmacy: Bill 102 CampaignTime Period of Project: April 2006 to July 2006Brief Description: The Coalition of Ontario Pharmacy waged a successful government relations campaign to obtain amendments to Bill 102, the Transparent Drug System for Patients Act, that would protect the interests of retail pharmacies.

Business Need/Opportunity On April 13, 2006, the Ontario Government tabled Bill 102, the Transparent Drug System for Patients Act. According to the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, the legislation was intended to “ensure the viability of pharmacists, and secure better access to better drugs for patients.”

Unfortunately, the proposed law’s impact on community pharmacies could have been devastating. As originally drafted, the bill could have forced the closure as many as 300 pharmacies across the Province. It was also likely to have resulted in reduced services at pharmacies, fewer store hours, and pharmacy staff reductions, all resulting in less patient care.

These potential consequences flowed from proposals that would have cut approximately $500 million annually from funding for retail pharmacies through inadequate fee increases and by capping reimbursement for medications and prohibiting manufacturers’ support of pharmacy programs. Most of these support fees are relied upon by pharmacies in order to remain viable while providing front-line health care services to customers in every community in Ontario.

Fasken Martineau was retained to mount a campaign to amend Bill 102 to reduce or avoid the legislation’s potential damaging impact on community pharmacy.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectIn order to encourage the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care (and the Ontario Government) to amend the legislation, Fasken Martineau was responsible for developing and executing a comprehensive and extensive government relations campaign to impress upon officials the potential negative impacts, including diminished patient care, of the legislation. The campaign was conducted by a newly-created group called the Coalition of Ontario Pharmacy.

Fasken Martineau worked in collaboration with the firm Porter Novelli, which handled the parallel public relations campaign, consisting of paid media and earned media.1

Guy W. Giorno, of Fasken Martineau, wrote all materials used in the government relations campaign. These included (among many other products) regular communication updates sent to the Queen’s Park Press Gallery2 and (2) targetted news releases sent to the hometown newspapers of various MPPs.

Intended AudienceThere were three primary audiences for the government relations campaign:• Cabinet ministers and members of the governing (Liberal) Caucus.• Opposition MPPs including the two opposition leaders and the opposition health critics.• Other audiences whose views could influence or shape MPP decisions. These included: the Queen’s

Park Press Gallery, whose coverage greatly affects politicians; local newspapers in the constituencies of certain MPPs; and attendees to Liberal fundraising events that were targetted for information pickets.

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Goals and ObjectivesThe goal of the Coalition of Ontario Pharmacy and of the government relations campaign was to secure amendments to Bill 102 that would mitigate the potential damaging effect on retail pharmacy.

The strategic objectives were to convince politicians that community pharmacies were organized and motivated, to raise their awareness of the Bill’s potential negative implications for patient care, and to make them recognize the political consequences of voting against the interests of patient care and community pharmacy.

The strategy depended on the close association between patient care and community pharmacy: the government relations campaign was not waged on behalf of community retail pharmacy per se but on behalf of the patients who depend on community retail pharmacy.

Solution OverviewIn order to persuade the Government to amend the legislation, we settled on the following approach: First, all communication was based on a message about patient care, to avoid the subject being misunderstood as an economic issue of interest only to retail pharmacies. Second, we felt it was important to demonstrate — through the frequency, variety and persistence of our communication tactics — that the Coalition’s supporters were serious, committed and not going away. Third, we strived as much as possible to deliver communication that was specific and targeted to MPPs’ communities: the implicit message being that the Coalition was prepared to take its message to each riding and fight to amend Bill 102 based on local impacts.

Implementation and ChallengesFasken Martineau’s Guy Giorno wrote the following products used in the campaign:• Information handout for MPPs • Letters to MPPs• Regular communication series for MPPs called Community Impacts of Bill 102. Each issue of Community

Impacts of Bill 102 was also sent to the Queen’s Park Press Gallery. Please note that most of the text of Community Impacts of Bill 102 consisted of testimonials from pharmacists, patients and others. Giorno did not write these testimonials. However, he conceived and designed the Community Impacts of Bill 102 series, selected testimonials for publication, designed the layout, and edited each issue. He also wrote all articles in Community Impacts of Bill 102 not attributed to third parties.

• Open letters to the Premier and Minister of Health — shared with all MPPs and with the news media• Petition to the Legislature and instructions for those collecting signatures, in order to ensure that the

petitions would comply fully with the rules of the Legislature• Coalition presentation to the Standing Committee on Social Policy • Instructions for Coalition members and supporters to make their own presentations to the Standing

Committee • Bulletins to all MPPs (copied to the Queen’s Park Press Gallery) celebrating success at the Bill 102

committee hearings• Leaflets for distribution by information pickets outside a speech by the Health Minister and outside

fundraising events attending by senior Liberal MPPs• Bulletin for MPPs and Queen’s Park Press Gallery identifying MPPs who agreed to be listed as “Friends of

Community Pharmacy” • E-mail (sent by Rich Butler) to MPPs, urging them to reconsider saying “no” to being listed as friends of

community pharmacy• Template and actual news releases commenting on each MPP who said “no” to the invitation to be

named as a “Friend of Community Pharmacy”. Note that slightly different wording was used to deal with MPPs sharing the same media market.


• Template fax message to MPPs urging them to attend the rally and enlist as “Friends of Community Pharmacy”

• Letters inviting Minister and Opposition to the rally• Notice of rally, sent to Coalition supporters

The strategy faced three challenges: (1) Lack of time (the campaign was launched May 16 and the bill was likely to pass third reading within three or four weeks). (2) Entrenched Government position. (3) Dissatisfaction among many pharmacies with the position and strategy of the Ontario Pharmacists Association (OPA). The third challenge was overcome by creating a entity, the Coalition of Ontario Pharmacy, to wage a campaign and to adopt positions that the OPA would not or could not. The first and second challenges required a short, intense, creative campaign that ensured each MPP received repeated, multiple exposure to the Coalition and its messages.

In order to change the entrenched Government position, particular emphasis was placed on inappropriate and unacceptable statements made by Government representatives.

Government processes can be formidable to people unused to them. How-to instructions were designed to simplify the legislative processes for submitting petitions and delivering committee presentations.

Success also required that the Coalition take advantage of opportunities. The front-page article of the May 26 issue of Community Impacts of Bill 102 is a good example of this approach.

The Coalition was launched May 16, 2006, with a media conference at Queen’s Park. Simultaneously, the Coalition of Ontario Pharmacy website went online.

Measuring/EvaluationThe measure of success was whether the government would amend the legislation to mitigate the potentially damaging impacts on community pharmacy. The Government did agree to introduce amendments to the Bill and Coalition declared success.

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Writing – Award of MeritEntrant’s name: Janet Wile, ABC, APR, MC Organization: Barrick Gold CorporationDivision: Division 2, Communications Skills Category: Category 12, WritingTitle of entry: “Keep Those Tires Rolling” feature article for employee newsletterTime period of project: June 2007Brief description: This feature article for the company newsletter informed employees about the tire shortage and recognized employees’ achievements in prolonging tire life.

Need/Opportunity• Barrick Gold Corporation is the world’s pre-eminent gold mining company with 27 operating mines

and 20,000 employees worldwide. Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, Barrick's vision is to be the world's best gold company by finding, acquiring, developing and producing quality reserves in a safe, profitable and socially responsible manner. Barrick shares are traded on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges.

• The current global mining boom has generated strong demand and high prices for many materials used in mining, including tires. Large tires (with a price tag of $60,000), represent one of the largest single expense items for Barrick. Without tires, trucks and equipment cannot operate, and downtime is very expensive. Demand for large tires has more than doubled in the past several years, without a corresponding increase in production, driving prices higher and resulting in tire shortages. Tire producers have indicated the shortage will be on-going till at least 2011.

• In response to the tire shortage, Barrick has introduced a comprehensive tire management strategy. One part of this strategy was enhanced tire maintenance and repair initiatives at mine sites. In 2007, we wanted to increase employee awareness about the tire situation. We also wanted to recognize the efforts of those employees who are engaged in prolonging tire life. The message was conveyed in a number of ways during 2007 – sharing of best practices among site tire teams and a Global Tire team, Continuous Improvement department initiatives, and in executive presentations and speeches.

• We determined this message could also be effectively conveyed for a broad audience of employees through the company’s quarterly newsletter, Barrick News.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectI researched and wrote, “Keep Those Tires Rolling,” which appeared in the June of Barrick News.

Intended Audiences• The primary audience is Barrick’s 20,000 employees worldwide. This diverse group includes miners and

equipment operators, engineers, exploration geologists, and office professionals. Most employees work at the 27 operating mines located in Canada, the United States, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Tanzania, Peru, Chile and Argentina. Others work at remote exploration sites, or at regional or head offices in cities such as Toronto, Salt Lake City, Santiago and Perth.

• Employees in North America and Australia speak English; those in South America speak Spanish; and those in Africa speak Swahili. The company’s quarterly newsletter, Barrick News, is produced in each of these three languages to communicate effectively.

• The most recent newsletter readership survey found that Barrick News was among the top four most important sources of information for employees. About 30% of employees have computers and intranet access, and many of these employees read Barrick News online. Most employees work in mines without computer access and so they rely heavily on the hard copy newsletter as a key source of company information.

• Our newsletter readership survey and on-going input from employees indicates employees want stories about operations and operational issues. They also tell us they are very interested in reading about employee achievements, and want to see photos of other employees.

• Supplementary audiences include contractors who work at Barrick locations, as well as suppliers and other visitors who pick up copies of the newsletter when visiting Barrick locations.


Goals and Objectives• Inform 20,000 employees about the tires issue and why it matters to the organization • Recognize the efforts of specific employees and locations actively involved in tire strategy

Solution Overview• As indicated above, Barrick News is an important vehicle for informing employees about company news

and programs. It is an appropriate way to communicate the tires story. • I researched this topic, among others, during a scheduled visit to several mine sites in March 2007. I

conducted interviews with tire maintenance staff and took related photos. I further developed the story by consulting with Supply Chain and Continuous Improvement department staff, who provided additional information. A draft of the article was circulated to key individuals in these various departments for review and revisions.

• Key messages for the article included:- Rising tire costs and the tire shortage require that we take action to prolong tire life - Barrick people and teams at various locations are making a difference – they have implemented

innovative and effective ways to prolong tire life• The article takes a news report approach but treats the tire technicians as heroes. It provides a brief

overview of the tire shortage challenge, then outlines how various sites are addressing the issue. It includes direct quotations from several tire repair staff and photos of tire technicians in the repair shop.

Implementation and ChallengesThere was no budget specifically allocated to this article. Estimated time required for the research and writing was about 20 hours. The research was conducted while on a routine trip to mine sites, with follow up by phone. Additional information was gathered over the following weeks and submitted for the next upcoming issue of the quarterly newsletter.

Measurement/EvaluationObjectives Evalution and Follow-upInform 20,000 employees of Barrick Gold about the tires issue and why it matters to the organization

• Hard copy newsletter distributed to all employees • Electronic copy promoted to all employees with intranet

access• Article effectively conveys the problem and why it matters to

the organization. It enhanced morale among the tire teams and gave a boost to Continuous Improvement initiatives related to tires.

Recognize the efforts of specific employees and locations actively involved in tire strategy

Article quotes or references 5 individuals and three sites, noting measured cost savings where applicable

Other indicators • Given the response to this story, we have continued to track tire developments, issuing more internal and external stories in early 2008

• Newsletter survey conducted after the June issue found that:- 78% want these kind of operations stories (3rd most

popular topic); the tires story was specifically mentioned favorably in the comments. In response, we increased our emphasis on operations stories for future issues

- 63% said Barrick News does a good job recognizing employees

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Writing – Award of MeritEntrant’s Name: Guy W. Giorno Organization’s Name: Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLPClient Organization: SAVE OUR VOICE!Division: Division 2, Communication Skills Category: Category 12, WritingTitle of Entry: SAVE OUR VOICE!Time Period of Project: November 2007 to January 2008Brief Description: Written communication on behalf of SAVE OUR VOICE!, a coalition of newspapers, publishers and newspaper associations formed to lobby for an amendment to a sales tax regulation that unfairly treats community, ethnic and campus newspapers.

Business Need/Opportunity In November 2007, the owner of a community newspaper contacted Fasken Martineau for assistance in resolving a provincial sales tax issue with the Ontario Government.

In June 2006 the Ontario Government had amended the definition of “newspapers” in a regulation under the Retail Sales Tax Act in order to include many of the newly emerging commuter newspapers. However, changing the definition to include commuter newspapers resulted in the omission of many community, ethnic and campus newspapers. Since these newspapers were no longer considered “newspapers” they were required to pay provincial sales tax, effective January 2000. In the case of at least one newspaper, this resulted in a total tax bill of approximately $1 million.

Fasken Martineau determined that the best way for this community newspaper and others to protect themselves from unfair taxation was persuade the Ontario Government to amend the regulation to include community, ethnic and campus newspapers in the definition of “newspaper,” thereby restoring their sales-tax exemption.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectFasken Martineau’s Guy W. Giorno wrote the materials for the short (but successful) campaign. These included:• Launch news release (December 12)• Media backgrounder (December 12)• Speaking notes for Coalition launch news conference (December 12)• Frequently Asked Questions (for news media) (December 12)• News release applauding government action (same day – December 12)• News release responding to draft amendment (December 14)• Letter to Ministry (January 25) – Please note that Giorno edited this product but did not write it.

To persuade the provincial Government to amend the Retail Sales Tax Act regulation, Fasken Martineau developed and executed a comprehensive and extensive provincial government relations and public relations campaign strategy. The campaign told the story of local community, ethnic and campus newspapers forced to pay sales tax because they fell outside the new definition of a newspaper, while other, mainstream, English-language newspapers were treated as newspapers and exempt from taxation.

Intended Audience The primary audience for the overall government relations and public relations campaign was the Ontario Government. The Government, specifically the Ministry of Finance, was the only entity that could address the specific concerns of the coalition and amend the definition of “newspapers”.

However, the Ministry of Finance was not the sole audience inside the Ontario Government. The campaign targeted provincial politicians from all parties in an effort to raise awareness about the issue and ultimately to enlist their support.


Other targets of the campaign included:• other community, ethnic and campus newspapers, in order to raise awareness of the sales-tax issue and

to encourage their support, and possible membership in the coalition• the general public, in order to raise awareness of the unfair provincial tax rules that many community,

ethnic and campus newspapers are experience and that could result force them to stop publishing

Goals and ObjectivesThe goal of the overall government relations plan was to raise awareness of this issue and to put forward a convincing argument that the Ontario Government should amend the appropriate Retail Sales Tax Act regulation to change the definition of “newspaper” to include all Ontario community, ethnic and campus newspapers. The objectives of the strategy were:• to generate wide-spread support from the public in order to illustrate the importance that the unfair

provincial tax rule was having in various communities across the Ontario• to generate support and increased membership in SAVE OUR VOICE! from other community, ethnic and

campus newspapers, to illustrate the impact of the issue• to generate support from elected officials at Queen’s Park who would be willing to assist in achieving

the overall goal of the strategy by encouraging the Ministry of Finance to amend the definition of “newspaper”

Solution OverviewIn order to persuade the Ontario Government to amend its sales-tax regulation, we settled on the following approach to communication. First, it was essential to simplify the issue and ensure that communication did not get mired in arcane details of tax policy. We therefore characterized the exclusion of community, ethnic and campus newspapers from the definition as a Government decision that they were not real “newspapers.” Second, we needed to use language commensurate with the seriousness of the issue and of the consequences. We therefore described the differential treatment of community, ethnic and campus newspapers as “tax discrimination.” Third, while the economic impact on newspaper publishers was the root concern, we knew that it was important to focus on the readers: that is, the ethnic, geographic and campus communities who are served by the newspapers, and who would be most affected by the loss of what we called their “voice.”

The carefully chosen language — describing the issue as whether the papers would be treated as real “newspapers,” decrying “tax discrimination” and calling newspapers the communities’ “voice” — was accurate, persuasive and effective.

Implementation and ChallengesIn developing a strategic public and government relations plan that would be successful and generate sufficient media interest and coverage to convince the Government to amend the regulation, it became apparent that one affected newspaper could not accomplish this alone and be successful. The Government needed to be made aware that the definition not only affected more than one newspaper, it also affected rural, ethnic and university and college communities who rely on the affected newspapers as their sole source of information. Thus the strategy began by establishing SAVE OUR VOICE! This was coalition of individual community, ethnic and campus newspapers from across the Province, as well other existing newspaper Associations.

SAVE OUR VOICE! announced its formation at a media conference held in the Queen’s Park Media Studio on December 12, 2007. The launch materials included a media package and website. Attending the media conference, in addition to members of the Queen’s Park press gallery, were a number of community, ethnic and campus media, several coalition members, and Members of Provincial Parliament and staff.The entire media package was also emailed directly to all elected officials in the Ontario government as well as to individual media contacts.

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That same afternoon, during Question Period in the Ontario Legislature, the Minister of Finance responded to Questions from Opposition and Government MPPs regarding the media conference and the unfair tax issue. In responding to questions, Minister announced that he would address the issue by tabling amendments to the regulation to expand the definition of “newspaper” to include community, ethnic and campus newspapers.

Following this announcement, SAVE OUR VOICE! issued a news release recognizing the Minister’s comments as a positive first step.

On December 13 (one day after the launch of SAVE OUR VOICE!) the Ministry of Finance issued a Consultation Draft of the amendment. The coalition issued another news release congratulating the government for issuing the Draft and indicating that it would be providing a response.

As the campaign continued, the SAVE OUR VOICE! website became a useful tool for keeping the public, media and government officials informed on any new developments particularly any new coalition members joining the coalition. The site also contained regular news updates and releases.

The campaign faced three challenges. • The solution required the support and action of the Minister of Finance. While securing the support

of Government officials, in particular the Minister, was not a challenge in and of itself, the significant challenge was to ensure tat the issue was a high enough priority for the Government to respond with action.

• In order to demonstrate widespread support from across the province, all media outlets, particularly the community and ethnic media, needed to be made aware of and to report on the issue. This was a critical challenge, since the success of the government relations plan depended on how frequently the unfair tax story would appear in the rural and ethnic communities.

• The legal issue was technical and complicated, as most issues of tax policy are. In order to overcome this challenge, we simplified the issue so that it could be easily understood: A new government law said that many ethnic, community and campus newspapers were not real “newspapers.” The call to action was equally simple: We wanted the law changed to recognize ethnic, community and campus newspapers as real newspapers.

Measuring/EvaluationThe measure of success was whether the government would amend the regulation. The campaign succeeded, because hours after the campaign was launched the government announced immediate action.

Further, following the media conference, support from both the public and other ethnic and community newspapers was offered and there was a significant increase in membership in SAVE OUR VOICE!

The strategy was also successful in generating support from elected officials of all parties, as evidenced by their questions in the Legislature, letters of support and commitments to assist in ensuring passage of the draft amendment.

The unfair tax rules were a relatively unknown issue for many government officials, the public and even for many of the newspapers that would be affected by them. As a result of the execution of this strategy, awareness increased substantially as evidenced by the wide-spread media coverage, the increased membership in SAVE OUR VOICE! and support from government officials.


Electronic and Interactive Communication – Award of MeritEntrants’ Names: Jo Langham, ABC, Lisa Gilbert, Michelle DiRocco, Cathy Mitchell, Linda Heredia, APEX Public Relations; Nikki Gentles, Kellogg CanadaOrganizations: APEX Public Relations / Kellogg CanadaDivision: Division 2, Communications Skills Category: Category 13, Electronic and Interactive CommunicationTitle of Entry: Kellogg’s Pop Tarts Meet Têtes à ClaquesTime Period: May 2007 – June 2007Brief Description: In the fall of 2006 sales of Kellogg’s Pop Tarts began to increase dramatically due to the popularity of a skit on the Têtes à Claques web site in which Pop Tarts featured. To maintain the sales momentum APEX Public Relations executed an online contest to drive new and existing viewers to the skit.

Business Need/OpportunityJ’aime les Pop Tarts! These words became a catch phrase in Quebec in late 2006 due to a Halloween “skit” on popular French web site Têtes à Claques (www.tetesaclaques.tv), in which Pop Tarts were demanded by a pair of strange looking children while out “trick-or-treating”.

Kellogg Canada was able to link a dramatic rise in sales of Pop Tarts in Quebec to the time the Halloween skit first aired on the site in October 2006.

The quirky characters and web site are the creation of Michel Beaudet, and have captivated online viewers in Quebec with short animated cartoons displaying his unique sense of humour. Têtes à Claques was one of the Top 10 most visited websites in Quebec in 2006 with a reach of close to two million unique visitors. The click through rate of the site at 10 per cent is more than double that of any other in Quebec.

Kellogg’s challenged APEX Public Relations (its public relations agency of record) and its advertising agency JWT to develop a strategy and plan to ensure that Quebec continued to love Pop Tarts.

Entrant’s Role in ProjectKellogg Canada and APEX worked together to develop the Pop Tarts public relations strategy. APEX Public Relations was responsible for creating and executing the public relations strategy. At APEX, Jo Langham, ABC, provided strategic planning and program direction throughout. Lisa Gilbert was responsible for coordinating the contest, drafting all written materials for the program and providing day-to-day project management. Michelle DiRocco oversaw translated copy and conducted media relations in Quebec. Cathy Mitchell and Linda Heredia conducted media monitoring and reporting.

Nikki Gentles from Kellogg Canada was responsible for providing strategic counsel and approving communications materials.

Intended AudiencesGiven the huge success of Têtes à Claques and the knowledge that it was visitors to the site causing sales success, our target audience for the campaign was simple: Têtes à Claques visitors.

The Têtes à Claques audience is adults, 18-49, but with a sweet spot of 25-34. In order to maximize results from the campaign it was also decided that media relations could target francophones in Quebec of the same age.

Objectives• Maintain Pop Tarts sales spike in Quebec• Drive consumers to www.tetesaclaques.tv

http://www.tetesaclaques.tv

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Solution Overview

ResearchBased in Toronto, and unfamiliar with Têtes à Claques, APEX did online research with Quebec media to find out about the site, its creators and its audience. We trawled the site itself to get a feel for potential marketing opportunities and of course to view the Halloween clip.

We discovered that the site had cult status in Quebec: that the Halloween clip was the most frequently viewed skit on the site, that plans were afoot to launch an English language site and that many of the clips on the site, but not Halloween, had sequels.

After a brainstorm to develop outline ideas we called Têtes à Claques to discuss what we might do together. Our call unearthed a long list of things that Têtes à Claques would not do:

• They would not readily accept ideas from outside parties because creator Michel’s ideas come “organically”. Our hopes for a Halloween sequel were swiftly dashed.

• Because Michel had already done lots of media in Quebec including broadcast media tours the company would not cooperate in media relations activities

• Despite plans for the English Canada site, which we saw as a potential opportunity to drive sales outside Quebec too, Têtes à Claques would not accept “assistance” or sponsorship of any aspect of this launch

• In short, Têtes à Claques would not do anything without an ad buy, but insisted that anything we did maintained the artistic integrity of the site.

StrategyIn light of the restrictions of working with Têtes à Claques, APEX’s strategy was two-fold:• Take advertising space and use it to run a consumer contest to drive regular visitors to Têtes à Claques

back to the Halloween clip and thus remind them about Pop Tarts • Use media relations to alert people who are not regular visitors to the site about the popularity of the

Halloween clip and the consumer contest and thus drive them site.


Implementation

Consumer Contest:APEX developed all contest details and drafted all copy for a quirky contest including a landing page, entry page, rules and regulations and thank you page. The contest questions, requiring Halloween clip views included:• How many times are Pop Tarts mentioned in the Halloween clip?• What colour is the man’s housecoat?• Is the light in the kitchen on or off?

In addition APEX arranged translation, coordinated appropriate approvals (Regie) and managed prize fulfilment.


Contest Promotion:APEX created a media alert and radio chatter sheet and distributed both to key media in Quebec.Media follow up was conducted to increase interest in the contest.

Contest Prizing:APEX determined all prizing, gathered merchandise, coordinated the contest and notified winners• Prizes included:

- First Prize (1): All expense paid trip for two for a week to Lac St. Jean (accommodation, travel and meals included)

- Secondary Prizes (3): Pop Tarts for a year and a high-end (Dualit) toaster

Challenges The challenge for the Pop Tarts program was the initial resistance from Têtes à Claques to conducting any kind of promotional activity with Kellogg’s. Once we had gained this understanding APEX worked closely with all parties, including Kellogg’s, Cyberpresse, Olive Canada Network, Têtes à Claques and Salambo Productions to negotiate the terms of a contest that would suit all parties.

BudgetAPEX Public Relations had a $21,000 budget, including fees and expenses to develop and execute the Pop Tarts public relations program. Expenses included: long distance; Regie costs; one grand prize based on one week trip for two to Lac St. Jean (accommodation, travel, meals); three secondary prizes based on one year’s supply of Pop Tarts and toaster; and shipping.

Measurement/Evaluation

Objective: Maintain Pop Tarts sales spike in Quebec

Evaluation:ü The Quebec region showed continued strong consumption growth during the month of the contest

(Total franchise +34 per cent) and year to date the brand is showing an increase of more than 20 per cent.

Objective: Drive consumers to tetesaclaques.tv

Evaluation:ü 19,291 Quebeckers entered the contestü 25,217 page viewsü 10,694 viral e-mails were sent (invite a friend)ü Media relations reach in excess of 9 millionü Cost per contact $0.002

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Electronic and Interactive Communication – Award of MeritEntrant’s Name Karen Jury, Director of Communications, IAMGOLD CorporationEntrant’s Organization IAMGOLD Corporation Division: Division 2, Communication Skills Category: Category 13, Electronic and Interactive Communication Title of Entry: IAMConnected IntranetTime Period of Entry: September 5, 2007 to December 31, 2007Brief Description: Develop and launch employee intranet for global mining company

Business Need/Opportunity: IAMGOLD is a mid-tier global gold mining company that acquired two additional gold mining companies in 2006. In one year, the organization dramatically expanded from a joint-venture company of 24 employees to a full-scale operating company with 3,200 employees. There was no Communications Department before or during the acquisitions and internal communications was administered by the Investor Relations Department.

Senior Management recognized the need for a Communication function with a primary focus on internal employee communications and subsequently hired a Director of Communications to spearhead the establishment of vehicles, programs and policies for enhanced employee communication. There was emphasis placed on a ‘quick-win’ to rapidly develop an effective vehicle to communicate to employees.

Prior to the establishment of the Communications Department, Senior Management had committed to the development of an employee Intranet. There had been no movement toward this goal. Through consultations with the newly hired Director of Communications, it was resolved that the creation of an employee Intranet was paramount to establishing a timely vehicle to carry company-wide information to employees. The opportunity arising from this business need was two-fold; deliver a quality Intranet by year-end to deliver on the company’s commitments and enhance its credibility with its employees and to lay the groundwork for establishing an employee culture of inclusion and connection.

The Director of Communications hired an Internet Design Company, MarketSpace Design Group to design and program the Intranet Site.

Entrant’s Role in the Project:Director of Communications, Karen JuryThe Director of Communications spearheaded all aspect of the Intranet development from strategy to design to adding a user-friendly Administration section for key individuals or ‘super-users’ to update the Intranet independently of a third-party supplier. The Director of Communications developed the theme, specifications for site, site architecture, features to be included and navigation and also selected, organized, categorized and wrote the content for the site. Each mine site volunteered one individual to assist in collecting content for their ‘mine site-specific’ web page and to update their own mine site web page once the Intranet was launched. The Director of Communications conducted stakeholder consultations and usability testing throughout the duration of the production of the Intranet site.

Intended Audience(s): IAMGOLD is a global organization with interests in Africa and the Americas. The company’s employee mix is comprised of full-time staff, union, non-union workers, nationals and expatriates. Issues around literacy, remote locations and multiple languages made a ‘one size fits all’ communication strategy difficult. Acknowledging that the Intranet was only one part of an integrated communication approach, the intended audience for the Intranet was targeted at key ‘influencers’ in the company who could disseminate the information being communicated to their own operations. The ‘influencers’ were defined as senior and intermediate level managers who had access to computers; had direct contact with employees (i.e. Human Resource Managers, Site Managers, Health & Safety Managers, Department Managers and Coordinators) and whose primary language was English.


Employee consultation was integral to the success of this project and the Director of Communications conducted phone interviews with people that the Corporate Human Resources Department had identified as key ‘influencers’. There were also two location visits to the company’s operations in Quebec and to the company’s largest mine site operation in South America.

Employee input played a key role in determining the content and the language of the site. The overwhelming response for employees interviewed was to launch the site in English first. The commitment was made to translate the rest of the site in French in Phase 2 and Dutch & Spanish in Phase 3. The rationale for a phased approach of translation was also based on employee demographics as only about one third of the employees preferred communication in French and one quarter of our employees have either Spanish or Dutch as their preferred language of choice.

Goals/ObjectivesIn the early stages of consultation, the initial goal of the Intranet was to develop a quick and accessible electronic vehicle to disseminate and access company-wide information. However, after employee consultations, a second objective emerged. Employees did not feel connected to the company nor to its various offices and mine sites.

The objectives were: • 80% registration of targeted senior & intermediate staff (our ‘influencers’) comprising 318 key

employees • Obtain a 70 % satisfaction rating on the site’s navigation and content• Ensure key web pages are regularly refreshed

Solution Overview Employee consultations were pivotal to developing the strategy around the creation of this site. Employees interviewed repeated the same themes; that due to the remote nature of some of our mine sites, employees needed to feel connected to the overall corporation and to other mine sites.

Connection was built into the site architecture and design was its guiding principle in building content; with every ‘click’ employees would be:• Connected to the company’s history, vision and direction• Connected to each other • Connected to the industry

Research Along with informal focus groups with employees through phone interviews and two site visits, the Director of Communications used the Nielson & Norman Group 10 Best Intranet Designs for 2007 (Appendix 1 Executive Summary) to learn about the best practices and trends in Intranet development. The Director of Communications also developed a test group of individuals to ensure usability of the site.

Governance Model It was critical to ensure the site would stay fresh and relevant post-launch. Senior Managers identified key individuals who would aid in delivering mine site-specific content to the Director of Communications during development; up-date their mine specific site pages once the Intranet was launched and act as ‘Intranet Ambassadors’ to support and encourage employees to access the site. An Administration section was added to the development of the site to allow ‘super-users” and ‘users’ to update specific portions of the site. This was also developed to minimize the need of updates being conducted by a third-party Intranet supplier which would decrease on-going maintenance costs. These individuals would also become part of the development of a Communication Advisory Committee, which would advise and provide feedback on the Communications Department overall communication strategy and vehicles.

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With a limited Communications Department, it was critical that the site develop opportunities for sections to be updated by any employee registered onto the Intranet. This strategy also worked well with the theme of inclusion and connection by building features that allow employees to submit content.

Content Development The Director of Communications developed the content based on employee interviews and consultations. For each of the mine-specific web pages, senior managers elected an individual to be responsible for the content and maintenance of the mine site-specific web pages.

Project UpdatesTo keep abreast of the Intranet’s progress, messages were distributed company-wide through a monthly President’s Message. The site was to be launched by year-end, December 2007. It was a four month project.

Site Launch & EvaluationThe Intranet had a weekly IAMFEEDBACK forum that solicited evaluation of the Intranet and its content. (Appendix 2) The Communications Department also received spontaneous feedback from employees regarding the Intranet’s content, design and navigation. (Appendix 3)

Site FeaturesTo cater to employees whose remote locations dictated a lower than average bandwidth, Communications kept the site architecture simple so it would be fast and easy to navigate. Key features and architecture were organized around the theme of ‘connection’. Connecting employees to the company’s direction and history and connecting employees to each other to build a culture of inclusion and feedback. The navigation of the site was intentionally built to ensure that employees were only one click away from ‘connecting’ with any aspect of the site.

Key features that contributed to the success of the site were:1) Unique URL: www.iamgoldconnect.com to underscore the connection theme (the preferred URL

iamconnected.com was taken)2) World Clocks & Weather: The world clocks and world weather linked to each mine site. This is useful

for employees communicating back and forth across time zones and allowed employees to view the weather in other mine sites connecting them to the IAMGOLD global family. A fun way to connect to each other.

3) Global Calendar: Cultural events are posted which aid employees in connecting to various countries and their traditions. This feature also helps employees be aware of satellite office closures due to country-specific holidays. Updates to the Global Calendar can be made by any employee allowing for quick sharing of information, not only of events but of project calendars, as well.

4) Photo of the Month: Employees are encouraged to submit photos that best illustrate the company’s values in action. In this way, employees learn about the company’s culture and share events and best practices at other sites.

5) Meet a Team Member: Each month, an employee is featured in the Connect Section of the Intranet to introduce individuals to the Global Team. An Employee Photo Album has been created for employees to view the collection of ‘Meet a Team Member’ submissions.

6) Discussion of the Month: A monthly discussion forum in which employees can add their feedback or comments to connect to each other’s situations, challenges and successes.

7) Real Time Polling: Obtain feedback on key topics connecting employees to each other- ‘this is what your fellow employees are thinking’.

8) Employee Directory List: A quick search in which only first name or last name or title is required to obtain employee information and connect to key contact information (no common directory, to date).

9) Video Messages: Videos can be more personal than reports or written messages so the President and Senior Staff present messages in a short video form for employees to feel connected to a real individual behind the Senior Management Title. Also, a Video section of the Intranet is available for employees to upload their own videos and share stories.


10) Country Fact Side Bars: Each mine site has a bulleted sidebar introducing employees to key facts about the country, i.e. geography, climate, language, religion…

11) Fun Gold Facts: To connect employees to the gold mining industry, as each page is loaded, a new fun gold fact appears that underscores gold relevancy to the industry and to the world.

Implementation and Challenges The budget was stretched to its maximum and to reduce costs, much of the navigation and many of the features were researched, as requested by the Director of Communications, well in advance of the design. (Appendix 4). Being organized and specific on the requests of the supplier meant reduced time and money through multiple concepts.

The Intranet project was a challenge for a myriad of reasons. Time was tight (4 months) and it was critical that the company delivered on its commitment to complete and launch the Intranet before December 31st so a delay was not acceptable.

Other challenges overcome were technological. The company operated on two platforms: Lotus Notes and Outlook Express, so multiple testing with the IT departments was conducted to ensure all features on the site could be accessed by both platforms. Another challenge was that some employees work in remote locations which dictated a lower than average bandwidth so the site architecture was simple so it would be fast and easy to navigate and, whenever possible, download times were taken into consideration.

Measurement/Evaluation:Goal: Develop an employee intranet by December 31, 2007, which would introduce employees to the company’s history, values, and direction; connect employees to each other and enhance IAMGOLD’s reputation as an organization that delivers on its commitments.

• The (unpublished) launch date was scheduled for December 14 but the actual launch date was December 20, 2007.

• ABOUT IAMGOLD section was introduced which communicated the IAMGOLD story, our direction and values. The site architecture and design ensured that employees were continually connected to IAMGOLD vision and values.

• Site features were constructed to connect employees to each other, i.e. Meet a Team Member, Discussion of the Month, IAMFeedback.

Objective 1: 80% registration of targeted Senior & Intermediate Staff (‘our influencers’) comprising 318 key employees • In the month tracked from January 1 to 31, 2008, the Intranet site had 401 employees registered.

Communications was able to view who the registrants were through the Administration section. The original 318 key influencers that Corporate Human Resources had identified were cross-referenced in the Administration Directory section of the Intranet site so Communications could view who was registered and who was still outstanding. If they were not registered, Communications was able to communicate directly by e-mail or phone to encourage them to register. Of the 318 targeted, as of January 31 we had 297, or 93%, registered. (Appendix 5).

Objective 2: Obtain a 70% satisfaction rate on the site’s navigation and content. • We allowed anecdotal feedback as part of our evaluation method for the site satisfaction and utilized

our IAMFEEDBACK weekly poll to gauge satisfaction with the site’s content and navigation. Utilizing both methods of feedback, we achieved a 76% satisfaction rate on the site’s navigation and content. (Appendix 2 & 3).

• For the month tracked, the Intranet site had as average per day click-through rate of 11, 811 page views which signifies great activity and movement throughout the site. Employees are navigating the site and being exposed to all the content.

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• Of 852 e-mails collected through the Corporate Directory, we had 401 employees register on the site within a one-month period tracked January 1 to 31, 2008. **

Objective 3: Ensure Key sites are refreshed regularly• Due to the addition of an Administration section we have designated employees submitting and posting

updates to their mine specific pages. • Without any marketing or e-mail solicitations in one month, the Intranet had 4 Photos of the Month, 3

Global Calendar entries and 2 video uploads from employees.

** There were 953 statistical visits to the site in one month although this is a skewed number, which is why it was not included as a proof of obtained objectives. At the time of Intranet usage tracked (Jan 1-31), the Intranet was residing on our supplier’s server to facilitate design/content edits during the production phase. All ‘visits’ to the site were logged through site-specific IP addresses, which means if two or more people from the same office/location call up our Intranet, they are counted only once so each statistical ‘visit’ may reflect multiple visitors from any particular IP address. Therefore our ‘visits’ should be viewed as a bare minimum as we know our actual visits exceeded the number quoted at this time. Once the Intranet is moved to our server on March 1, 2008, we will be able to accurately measure unique visitors separate from IP address.


Electronic and Interactive Communication – Award of MeritEntrant’s Name: Bernard Hellen Organization’s Name: Traffic Marketing + Design Inc.Division: Division 1, Communication Management Catetory: Category 13, Electronic and Interactive CommunicationTitle of Entry: Total Access: Nielsen Key Account StoreView Event Launch CampaignTime Period of Project: November 2006 to February 2007Brief Description: Traffic Marketing + Design Inc. was retained by ACNielsen Company of Canada to create a direct mail campaign and the associated web registration system for a new product launch. Nielsen wanted to effectively communicate the leading edge nature of Key Account Storeview™ – a revolutionary new offering. Traffic rose to the challenge and crafted a very effective multi-dimensional marketing strategy to drive recipients to a website in order to capture online registrations for the Key Account Storeview launch event.

Business Need/Opportunity[Please note: more detailed content was presented in workplan but has been removed to protect Client confidentiality]

ACNielsen (Nielsen) is the world’s leading provider of market research, information and analysis to the consumer products and services industries. Although store level data has been available in the form of databases for some time, the volume of data has made it difficult to use to find actionable insights in a timely fashion. Large opportunities existed for improvement in decision-making and management of stores; categories etc. if store level information could be utilized effectively to shed light on the store level business.

Key Account StoreView (KASV) represented the next generation of ACNielsen products. It was the leading edge, and a flagship product demonstrating where Nielsen wanted to move all of their products eventually in terms of ease of access, (over the internet in real time), and form and function.

Since KASV was the leading edge, showcase of the products and represents the direction ACNielsen was heading, the tone and feel of the marketing launch materials needed to reflect that Nielsen is a company that is on the technological leading edge, delivering innovative solutions to Nielsen’s client’s business issues. Traffic’s job was to communicate this.

Entrant’s Role in ProjectBernard Hellen, President of Traffic Marketing + Design Inc.: Overall campaign strategy, client management and creative direction.

Simon Browning, Principal of SeeThroughWeb: Web programming and design of TYPO3 Content Management System.

Isaac Lotz, President of Direct Image: Flash creative deign and programming

Jim Murray, Onwords and Upwords Inc.: Copywriting

Intended Audience(s)[Please note: more detailed content was presented in workplan but has been removed to protect Client confidentiality]

The targeted attendance for the KASV launch event was existing Nielsen clients plus the corresponding Business Managers from Nielsen (if their client was attending). It was very important that Nielsen had the right people at the event so that afterwards, they could quickly convert potential interest into confirmed, signed contracts.

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The Key Account StoreView product is aimed primarily at Canadian Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) manufacturers and will have applicability across the entire organization but the primary target is the CPG sales force and would have the greatest benefit to them and help them achieve Excellence in Execution. From the Consumer Packaged Goods manufacturers perspective likely users will include category managers, sales force, sales managers, marketing and sales analysts, as well as brokers.

Nielsen wanted at least 100 people to attend the launch event and targeted three key contacts from each of their top 50 CPG manufacturing clients to attend this event including the most senior sales associate responsible, and the person they report to that is authorized to sign the contract and pay for the service.

GoalGoal is to generate both awareness and then interest among target audience so that Nielsen will have the opportunity to present a more detailed presentation of capabilities, and ultimately secure a commitment to purchasing the service.

Objectives1. Nielsen wished to have at least 100 members of the target audience attend a launch party to hear

retailer endorsements and be provided with additional information and incentive to sign-up for the revolutionary new KASV offering.

2. Nielsen wanted ongoing communication to keep the service top of mind, and generate interest in contacting a Nielsen representative for consultation on issues KASV can solve in clients business.

Solution OverviewTraffic proposed a 2-prong approach to promote the launch of Key Account StoreView – a traditional printed direct mail campaign in combination with a sophisticated electronic marketing campaign. This would address the needs and characteristics of the target group and position Nielsen as a technologically superior supplier.

Traffic created the following integrated marketing strategy (please see Appendix A in the workplan):

1. Mail to a pre-qualified list of 250 recipients, a personalized and printed direct-mail piece inviting them to a viewing of an on-line Key Account StoreView Flash demonstration.

2. Include an exclusive and personalized (unique) ‘Executive Access Code’ that would allow recipients to logon to www.storeview.ca. Entering their ‘Executive Access Code’ they will be invited to verify existing data (name, address, etc.) and add their email address and other information deemed to be of value. A database content management system was implemented to support this activity.

3. After the login process and data validation/update by the responder, they were forwarded automatically to view a Key Account StoreView Flash presentation and then sign-up page for the launch event. Statistics were gathered online and realtime on a per recipient basis beginning at login.

4. Once online, responders were able to register for the upcoming launch event and view an Key Account StoreView demo flash presentation.

5. Immediate follow-up with those respondents who have viewed the on-line presentation/and or registered for the conference with a personalized e-mail offering information – including a sales call.

6. One week after the initial direct mail package drops, track those recipients who have not yet viewed the on-line presentation and/or registered for the launch event and send out a follow-up email reminder to visit the registration site at www.storeview.ca


Creative Execution and Key MessagingThe creative concept that Traffic chose to launch StoreView was Total Access. Total Access represented complete, unrestricted; special privileged admittance to a wealth of powerful insights from Nielsen. Total Access is the key to the www.storeview.ca website.

As a concept, Total Access combines elements of the elite with a) finding out in depth information about a new service from Nielsen and b) the implication that the service itself promises to be a breakthrough way of viewing information as well, (bearing in mind that the prospect will already be familiar with Nielsen and its range of services).

This was not meant to be a ‘teaser’ concept in any way. It was designed to create involvement with a very sophisticated and difficult to reach target group and work as hard as possible to achieve the objective of getting prospects to the www.storeview.ca website and to enter their Total Access Code. The way that the creative achieved this was by making the recipient feel that they were receiving a special pass that was a unique opportunity to gain new insights.

A direct response mailer was created that consisted of a printed envelope with Total Access messaging on the front. Inside was an actual plastic tradeshow pass sleeve with lanyard, into which was tucked a full colour 2-sided Total Access Pass Card (please see an example in the work samples). The front side had the prospect’s name, title, company and ‘Executive Access Code’. The back side of the card explained what the prospect was to do and hint at the promise of a new Nielsen product that would elevate their level of access to powerful business tools and intelligence.

To those who did not respond immediately, there was a follow up email sent to them reiterating this concept and hinting strongly at what they could be missing out on if they did not respond. This concept created a sense of ‘event’ for the prospects. It also provided the recipient with a cool identification device that they could wear to the launch event.

Implementation and ChallengesThe Storeview campaign was discussed in August of 2006 but the team did not receive a briefing from Nielsen and creative development didn’t then begin until late November 2006. The date for the launch event was already established for March 1, 2007 so the majority of the work needed to be completed in December of 2006 and January 2007. The direct mail drop date was January 24th, 2007. Holiday scheduling and the complexities of co-ordinating a multi-faceted approach added to the challenges. Frankly, the only way to complete the amount of work inherent in the design and programming of a website, including a proprietary backend tracking section, a flash presentation and the direct mail campaign was to have individual freelancers workingon each of the deliverables independently.

Another interesting development in the production of this job was the early January 2007 decision in mid-development of ACNielsen to refocus the business and adopt a new name (Nielsen) and corporate branding. All the creative being designed for print, flash and web needed to be quickly revised to adopt the new graphic standards. This was done in time to still make the direct mail drop date and within the established budgets. The budget of the StoreView campaign was under $50K [Please note: actual numbers were presented in workplan but has been removed to protect Client confidentiality]

Measurement / EvaluationNielsen was very pleased with the results of the campaign, as the number of visitors to the site and online registrations has surpassed the registration results with previous similar events. 76.9% of the target audience visited the conference registration website and of those who visited, 67.7% accepted the invitation and registered for the event. A table of total campaign results is included below.

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Traffic implemented a backend administration system that tracked all website user interactions in a database (please see Appendix B: Backend Reporting System document in the work samples). Nielsen had instant access to information on the direct mail campaign’s response rates, registrations, and was able to track logins and segment them into responders and non-responders. In addition, the flexibility of the backend administration system has allowed Nielsen to track visits and responses in near real time allowing Nielsen to adapt their event plans significantly faster than they have been able to historically. Other benefits of this approach included:• Increased awareness of Key Account StoreView;• Direct and ongoing communication with Clients;• Positioning Nielsen as being technologically up-to-date;• Ability to query Responders and collect valuable marketing information;• Control of non-responder follow-ups; and,• Effective marketing analysis and reporting of results.

As a result of the success of the campaign, Nielsen adopted the approach that Traffic proposed and implemented as a company ‘best practice’ for the way all event launches will be promoted in the future.

Results: Initial direct mail list mailed to 250 names as follows:Nielsen internal 048 Client Names 202

Logons to the Nielsen StoreView website:Visitors 279 76.9%Non-Visitors 084 23.1%Total 363 (greater than 250 mailed out due to the fact that recipients were able to invite colleagues)

Client registrations to the StoreView Launch Event:Acceptors 189 52.1%Decliners 077 21.2%Undecided 013 03.6%

Or put another way, 67.7% of all visitors to the StoreView website accepted the launch event invitation!


Publication Design – Award of ExcellenceEntrant’s Name: Bernard Hellen Organization’s Name: Traffic Marketing + Design Inc.Division: Division 3, Communication Creative Category: Category 14, Publication DesignTitle of Entry: ‘Change the world’ FSC XpertTM BookletTime Period of Project: October 2006 to October 2007Brief description: Traffic created the ‘Change the world’ booklet – a 32 page print demonstration and swatch book that highlights the connection between nature, design and print. The goal of this piece is to attract attention to the relationship between the environment and paper in the visual way, demonstrate the specific characteristics of fine FSC-certified papers and to raise understanding of the FSC Xpert program.

Project SummaryDesigners make the world’s most beautiful trash.Scott Ewen, Emigré Magazine

According to Design Can Change; an initiative that helps graphic designers encourage sustainable practices and make the environment a priority in their practices, paper accounts for 81 million tons of solid waste annually, which constitutes 40% of North America’s total. In the United States alone, designers purchase or specify $9.1 billion in printing and paper annually. Clearly graphic designers and other communications professionals have a role to play in minimizing the impact of their industry.

The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is an international non-profit organization, founded in 1993 to promote the environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial, and economically viable management of the world’s forest. The FSC accomplishes this through the process of forest certification, through which forests are independently audited to meet a set of strict environmental and social standards, and all producers along the supply chain are certified to guarantee that any product carrying the FSC label came from a forest friendly source.

More and more companies have been looking to FSC-certified products as a way of demonstrating their commitment to responsible sourcing of materials. Hundreds of companies now print their annual reports, sustainability reports, magazines, books, flyers, envelopes and letterhead on FSC-certified paper.§ Markets are looking for responsibly sourced materials, and clients are requesting their jobs to be FSC.§ As demand and recognition of FSC grows among the corporate audience, there is a strong need to

raise the awareness of FSC and environmental paper use among graphic arts and communications professionals.

§ Graphic art and communications professionals provide clients with a multitude of services and must respond not only to their requests, but understand the trends and demands of their markets.

§ There are currently no other designations or formalized programs that are targeting graphic design or communications professionals with the goal of taking the environmental message to market.

Bernard Hellen, President of Traffic Marketing + Design Inc. approached the FSC to inquire about becoming FSC-certified. As a graphic designer who was not directly involved in handling or taking possession of chain-of-custody certified paper; he was not eligible. This was the genesis of his work to create and to promote the FSC XpertTM program – a designation and educational initiative specifically created for graphic design and communication professionals that are committed to responsible forest management. As a graphic designer Bernard Hellen wanted to be able to approach his clients with the knowledge and tools, as well as a designation, demonstrating his commitment to making informed paper recommendations.

Antony Marcil, President and CEO and Maia Becker, Manger of Communications and Client Services, Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Canada worked to develop and design the FSC XpertTM designation program details.

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Traffic Marketing + Design was commissioned by the Forest Stewardship Council to design a print booklet to promote the FSC Xpert program.

Intended Audience(s)Graphic artists and communications professionals who exert a significant influence on the manner in which print communication and marketing materials are produced.

An interesting characteristic of this target group that was factored into the solution is the above average sophistication of the audience. When communicating to and designing for graphic design and communication professionals, messages need to be skillfully crafted and materials must be clearly and elegantly presented.

ObjectivesThe communications objectives of the creative campaign were to create and promote an appealing design piece targeted to the intended audience that will:§ Grab and hold their attention,§ Announce the details of the FSC Xpert program,§ Drive them to an online web site for more information; and, § Encourage them to start specifying FSC papers.

The goal of the FSC Xpert program is to provide graphic designers and other communication professionals with the knowledge and resources to help them successfully source and manage projects that use FSC-certified paper and with FSC-certified printers.

The near-future goal of the project is to gain a wide adoption of the FSC Xpert designation within the graphic design and communications industry and achieve 1,000 FSC Xperts within the first year of the program.

The overarching goal of the program however is that FSC Xperts generate increased demand for FSC-certified paper, which in turn will lead to more forests that are certified to FSC’s standards. More FSC-certified forests mean great protection of forests, waterways, wildlife and communities.

Key Messages/ThemeIn October 2007 FSC Canada launched the FSC Xpert program. In order to become an FSC Xpert, the candidate is required to undergo an online course and write an exam testing participants on their knowledge of the FSC certification process and requirements, responsible forest management and the steps in managing a project using FSC-certified papers. Upon passing the exam, designers receive the right to use the FSC Xpert designation. The key messages that the booklet needed to convey were ‘Promote – Purchase – Participate’:§ Promote the principles of FSC certification to colleagues, friends and clients. Encourage your clients to

use FSC-certified products on their next project.§ Print your business materials and stationery on FSC-certified paper, and work with an FSC-certified

printer.§ Participate as an environmental and social leader in business and the local community. Share your

knowledge of environmental and social issues and contribute to the discussion on issues related to sustainability.

Creative RationaleTo promote the designation to the intended audience, Traffic created the ‘Change the world’ book – a 32 page print demonstration and swatch book that highlights the connection between nature, design and print. Each sheet in the book is printed on a different FSC-certified paper and features the art of five outstanding international environmental artists reproduced using waterless printing technologies. The goal


of this piece is to attract attention to their relationship between the environment and paper in a visual way, demonstrate the specific characteristics of fine FSC-certified papers and to raise understanding of the FSC Xpert program.

Five myths that graphic designers identified in research conducted by Traffic are presented with corresponding ‘truths’ that serve to dispel any misconceptions that designers might have about FSC-certified papers. Printed swatches of each FSC-certified paper are available at the back of the book to demonstrate their excellence.

The launch of this piece took place at the DesignThinkers conference of the Registered Graphic Designers of Ontario (RGD Ontario), after which it was distributed nationally throughout the design and communications community. A print advertising campaign in five major publications (Applied Arts Magazine Design Annual, Design Edge Canada Magazine, PrintAction Magazine’s Buyer’s Guide, Print Me by Canadian Printer Magazine, and RGD Ontario’s Member Directory) directed readers to visit http://www.fsccanada.org/fscx

ResultsSince its introduction, the FSC Xpert program and promotional ‘Change the World’ book have been well received by the design and print industry. So much so that the book is being reprinted for broader distribution by Neenah Paper. Neenah http://www.neenahpaper.com only participates in a handful of commercial reprints each year. Neenah will be reprinting the brochures using various “green” papers that Neenah manufactures and will distribute approx. 10,000 of them as promotional material through their national sales team. This is an excellent opportunity for the FSC to get their message out as these brochures will be distributed to some of the largest corporations in North America and Canada! Neenah is very excited about the opportunity to work with Traffic, FSC Canada and all of the talented artists who participated in the brochure.

Since the launch of the FSC Xpert promotional booklet just three month ago, 150 design and communications professionals have registered for the program, and 83 have been officially designated as FSC Xperts (for full listing please visit http://www.fsccanada.org/fscxlist). As a demonstration of the high interest in the program, a recent workshop in Edmonton on the FSC Xpert initiative was sold-out with 150 attendees, and over 50 additional participants on a waiting list to attend the next event. Appendix A presents a testimonial letter from FSC Canada attesting to these results. The FSC Xpert program has been featured at seven tradeshows and in five major magazines (Applied Arts Magazine, Design Edge Canada Magazine, PrintAction Magazine’s Buyer’s Guide, Print Me by Canadian Printer Magazine, and RGD Ontario’s Member Directory).

While not solely attributable to the FSC Xpert program booklet, in 2007, there was a 102% increase in the number of FSC-certified papers, and a 143% increase in the number of FSC-certified printers in Canada, and certainly the creation of a program targeting design and communications professionals is getting the messaging out.

Other positive outcomes of the booklet include:1. FSC International is looking at the program for an international rollout.2. AIGA is interested in investigating the program with an eye towards adoption.3. The UK Design Council has requested more information about how FSC is involving graphic designers

in the paper decision process.4. The Society of Graphic Designers of Canada (GDC) has expressed interest in adoption.5. The Association of Registered Graphic Designers of Ontario (RGD Ontario) is including a lead story on

the FSC Xpert program in their Feb/March Sustainability issue of the RGD Review.

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A key success of the FSC Xpert program booklet was the collaboration between different individuals and groups within various sectors to create a compelling story that connects paper and printing choices with environmental responsibility.

The majority of the graphic design services, printing, FSC-certified paper and international artists’ works were donated by individuals and companies that recognize the importance of evaluating the day-to-day choices we make in our professions and how they impact nature. A pro bono project of this nature with non existent budgets required an amazing commitment and dedication by all parties – a testament to the importance of the message being communicated – ‘Change the world.’

The task of managing these disparate groups each with their own agendas and timelines fell to Traffic Marketing + Design and was a formidable task. In reality, the idea for the promotional book was launched in October 2006 and it took over a year to co-ordinate the various stakeholders and realize the vision of the final deliverable in time for the DesignThinkers conference in October 2007. Along the way the project lost the donated services of a printer and another generous supplier had to be found. Many thanks to Jay Mandarino of CJ Graphics who stepped into the void and provided flawless printing.

Paper had to be chosen from numerous FSC-certified suppliers and evaluated for a number of criteria including fairness of representation for the major producers and paper merchants, quality for reproduction, and suitability to the other paper included in the book. And then rechosen. And then again.

This was also an international project that involved 5 international eco-artists representing Canada, the United States, Germany and Switzerland and sourcing and managing original photographic materials of a quality suitable for print reproduction was a challenge.


Publication Design – Award of MeritEntrant’s Name: Wendy McLean-Cobban, CMP Organization’s Name: The Canadian Payroll Association (CPA)Division: Division 3, Communication Creative Category: Category 14, Publication DesignTitle of Entry: The CPA’s 2007 Compliance Rate SheetTime Period of Project: October 2006 – January 2007Brief Description: The 2007 CPA compliance rate sheet mailer project provided members of the association with a multi-purpose legislative information tool that they could use in their day-to-day responsibilities as payroll professionals within their own organizations. This tool was made available at no additional cost to the members.

Project Summary:

BACKGROUND

The CPA has grown significantly in the last eight years. Membership has grown from 6,430 in 2000 to more than 12,000 members in 2006. During this time, the Association has also been financially successful because of good planning and governance, hard work, and a solid team effort. This is a credit to everyone; the staff, board of directors, subject matter experts, and our supportive members.

Being compliant with the governments’ federal and provincial laws regarding taxes, wages, pensions and benefits is our members’ main purpose at their organizations, along with paying their employees correctly and on time. One of the most used member benefits at the CPA is the Payroll Infoline hotline service, where members can have any payroll-related question answered by phone or email. Last year over 22,000 inquiries were made to this service and the 10 most frequently asked questions (see below) dealt with some form of compliance or legislation: 1. Income Tax (over 2,100 inquires)2. T4 Reporting 3. Retiring Allowances4. Employment/Labour Standards Requirements5. Statutory Holidays6. Vacation Pay and Legislation7. General Taxable Benefits8. Record of Employment9. Canada Pension10. Legislative Requirements on Termination

Each year (December/January) the CPA publishes the next year’s legislative rates for taxation, pension and benefits along with other supplementary payroll information which is vital for our members in their day-to-day positions. This document has historically been a black and white text document that was posted on the website for our members to download. Every year our members call and email the association’s staff at the start of December to find out when this ‘rate sheet’ will be available. Generally, the document is posted in late December once the final rates have been confirmed by the government agencies. We know from our members’ feedback to staff, in particular the Payroll Infoline consultants that they refer to this document regularly throughout the year and likely post it on either a bulletin board or in a binder on their desk.

THE OPPORTUNITY

Members of the CPA are receiving less direct mail from the association due to the increased use of email. While the majority of our members (95%) prefer to be contacted by email, it is important to find other ways to enhance the bond of the association with each individual member beyond the larger mailed benefits such as the bi-monthly magazine and annual member card.

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Since yearly ‘rate sheet’ is an important member benefit from both the feedback of members and our staff, I pitched the idea of creating a mailed piece that contained both the important legislative information along with a reminder about all of the other CPA member benefits.

Intended Audiences(s): The rate sheet targeted the 12,500 CPA members and our three types of membership:1. Business Members – voting member and the additional communication(s) contact members from each

organization.2. Professional Members – certified voting members (individuals).3. Associate Members – voting members (individuals).

Objectives:A project proposal (standard for all new CPA initiatives) and budget was prepared for the board and management team and was approved at the October 2006 board executive meeting. The project had three key elements:1. Designing, printing and mailing the compliance rate sheet.2. Communicating to members about the compliance rate sheet member benefit.3. Evaluating the response from members.

EXECUTION AND TIMELINE

Project timeline was two months for elements 1-2 and ongoing for element 3. October 2006 Submitted and received approval for project proposal. November 2006 Wrote text for member benefits section and introduction letter. Worked with graphic designer and print company to design the piece.December 2006 Finalized all rates for 2007. Edited, finalized, printed and mailed compliance rate sheet. January 2007 Members received compliance rate sheet the first week of January 2007. New members received it in their January-February 2007 new member kits. Responsibilities:• Wendy McLean-Cobban, CMP, Manager, Marketing & Communications – idea creation, overall project

development and execution • Loreta Senin-Hume, Vice-President, Hume Imaging – design and mail compliance rate sheet• Gerry Babins, Cling-rite® – All Things Cling – print compliance rate sheet• Marketing & Communications staff – copyediting, translation, website posting, and email distribution• Vice-President, Compliance Programs & Services – confirmation of all rates for 2007

BUDGET

Design $ 2,000.00Print and Mailing • Compliance rate sheet > 15,300 (14,000 English / 1,300 French) at $1.15

each• 12,500 envelopes (9x12) at $.25 per piece• Mailing services at $5,000

$17,595.00$ 3,125.00$ 5,000.00

Postage• 12,500 members at $1 each

$12,500.00

Total: $40,220.00($2.62 each)


Measurement/Evaluation• To evaluate the reaction from members including the number of calls and emails received by CPA staff. It

was anticipated that members would react positively to the new compliance rate sheet since it contained information that members frequently download from the website and ask for from the CPA staff.

• To evaluate the number of requests for additional copies from member organizations. It was anticipated that there would be approximately 75 to 100 requests for additional copies of the compliance rate sheet.

KEY MESSAGES/THEME:One of the CPA’s strategies in its strategic plan is “retaining and attracting members by offering value-added services.” One way to retain members is to increase their awareness and use of CPA membership services and benefits.• The CPA as the source for payroll knowledge in Canada continues to provide new and value added

benefits for its members to aid in their daily payroll responsibilities.• The 2007 compliance rates sheet on Cling-rite® provides a useful list of important legislative payroll

requirements along with the names, emails and telephone numbers of key CPA contacts such as Payroll Infoline, certification, membership and professional development.

CREATIVE RATIONALE: The ‘hook’ for the CPA compliance rate sheet mailer was that the legislative information which members use regularly in their jobs would be printed on Cling-rite® which is an electrically charged, printed, film with an embedded static charge delivered on a fully printable paper backer. Cling-rite® printed film is removable, repositionable, reusable, erasable and no adhesives.

This would allow members to easily post the legislative rates for 2007 in their workspace to use for the entire year, while providing an additional outlet for the association to remind members about the other products and services that the CPA offers.

The overall design and look of the compliance rate sheet was based on the already existing design and branding of the membership materials such as the marketing brochure, advertising (Work Samples #4 & 5) and signage.

Results:The compliance rate sheet member dividend was completed on time and on budget and members received their copies the first week of January 2007. In the association’s December issue of its electronic newsletter the CPA E-Source an announcement about the new member dividend was published (Work Sample #1).

The staff at the CPA received over a hundred calls and emails about the compliance rate sheet and the use of the Cling-rite® film to print the piece. We sent out an additional 100 compliance rates sheets to members who wanted either an additional copy for their staff/supervisor or a copy in the alternate language (opposite to what they received).

MEMBER FEEDBACK

The following quotes are from emails that the CPA received from members across the country about the compliance rate sheet:

“Good morning. I just wanted to tell you how pleased I am with the format of this year’s rate sheet. It is so easy to access since it’s stuck to my filing cabinet! Thanks again for a spectacular job!”

[ENGLISH – Hello, A small word to say to you that I have just received the new format of 2007 rates. This format of sheet is really brilliant. Have a great day!]

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« Bonjour, Un petit mot pour vous dire que je viens tout juste de recevoir le nouveau format de taux 2007. Ce format de feuille de travail est vraiment génial. Bonne fin de journée! » “Wow, providing the rate sheet on cling film was a brilliant idea! Please forward my thanks and admiration to the appropriate genius.” “I hope that I am sending this to the right place. If not, please forward to the appropriate department. I just received the rate sheet in the mail today. I am trying to re-enter the payroll field but find it difficult when I go on interviews as I do not have the current information and government websites are not the easiest to get information from. Great idea and thank you. Please continue with this for all of those people like me.”

“Love the new sheets – what a great idea to have them as ‘cling sheets’ GREAT !!!”

“Patrick [CPA President]Just a short note of thanks for the 2007 CPA Rates Sheet on Cling-Rite. They will come in very handy.”

OTHER OUTCOMES FROM THE CPA COMPLIANCE RATE SHEET

With the success of the compliance rate sheet member dividend, the piece was made part of our 2007-2008 operations. After the President brought a copy of the rate sheet to a government relations meeting later in 2007, the federal government agency for taxation (The Canada Revenue Agency) asked if the CPA would be able to provide their customer services representatives with a copy. So for the 2008 year, 750 English and 350 French copies were sent for their use, which provides an increased profile for the CPA with its government partners and benefits the association’s strategic goal related to advocacy.


Other Graphic Design – Award of ExcellenceEntrant’s Names: Tangie Hinds, Daniel Thamotharem, Danny Faria, Catherine Krever, Paul KilbertusOrganization: Smart Systems for Health AgencyDivision: Division 3, Communication Creative Category: Category 15, Other Graphic DesignTitle of Entry: GET CAUGHT! Time Period: September 4 to December 1, 2007Brief Description: “GET CAUGHT!” an internal privacy and security awareness campaign was launched in September 2007 to promote and help develop a culture of privacy and security for all staff at Smart Systems for Health Agency (SSHA).

Project SummaryCreated in 2003, SSHA – an agency of the Government of Ontario’s Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care – is responsible for electronically connecting all public health care professionals and organizations across the province.

In a review in early 2007, Ontario’s Information and Privacy Commissioner (IPC) called SSHA to task to document and update its privacy and security program in a variety of areas. SSHA needed to quickly demonstrate it had fulfilled IPC recommendations – as changing its corporate culture was a business requirement resulting from this review.

The solution – an internal privacy and security campaign was designed to communicate new mandatory goals and behavioral practices. Using bold visual graphics that included print and interactive media, the “GET CAUGHT!” campaign was launched throughout all SSHA locations.

All SSHA staff was expected to “Get caught doing the right thing” including: • Understanding their personal responsibility for privacy and security • Demonstrating this new behavior daily • Achieving 90% or more on two mandatory online training courses to be completed by December 1,

2007

Intended AudiencesThe primary audience included existing staff – approximately 400 employees, and 150 consultants. Composed mainly of male IT professionals, employees and consultants are highly-educated individuals who consistently work on tight timelines with competing priorities.

SSHA staff is situated in four separate locations. Communicating a new global awareness campaign to a diverse multicultural audience all at the same time was a challenge. The key to reaching the audience would include sophisticated messaging that was visibly recognizable, repetitive, and easy to understand. To learn more, the team researched elements of successful internal campaigns to change employee attitudes. Research showed that positive, rewards-based approaches have a greater likelihood of success than punitive measures, as a result the campaign focus was on the “Do’s” rather than the “Don’ts”.

The secondary audience was the IPC. SSHA was required to demonstrate it had fulfilled the full range of mandatory privacy and security change initiatives including staff training recommendations, resulting from the IPC review.

Goals and ObjectivesThe creative objective was to create a memorable, positive, action-oriented campaign to heighten the importance of privacy and security within SSHA.

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The expected outcomes included encouraging 100% of the organization to:1. Be accountable with regard to privacy and security awareness;2. Adopt the featured privacy and security practices; and 3. Complete the mandatory online training within the specified deadline

The creative contributed to SSHA’s business needs by using humor to engage and motivate staff about the serious topic of privacy and security.

Key Messages/ThemesThe overall theme for the “GET CAUGHT!” campaign was “Privacy and security is your responsibility.” It was crucial to convey to all staff that they needed to be accountable; the onus was on them to “Get caught doing the right thing.”

These themes were heavily emphasized throughout the beginning of the campaign in a series of targeted posters.

Nine key messages were developed and adapted into a series of posters, Intranet banners and LCD kitchen display graphics. Each communication piece boldly emphasized behavior that all staff was expected to emulate.

Key messages included:• GET CAUGHT! Using a unique password (Not your pet’s name)• GET CAUGHT! Protecting data on laptops and BlackBerry devices• GET CAUGHT! Escorting visitors in the office• GET CAUGHT! Pressing Ctrl + Alt + Delete before you leave your seat• GET CAUGHT! Only wearing your ID badge at work• GET CAUGHT! Protecting confidential materials at all times• GET CAUGHT! Properly disposing of all print and electronic materials• GET CAUGHT! Asking for help with privacy and security• GET CAUGHT! Making privacy and security your responsibility

Creative RationaleThe in-house Communications and Public Relations team for SSHA created, designed, wrote and managed the internal awareness campaign to promote and communicate new mandatory privacy goals and behavioral practices.

The creative solution involved creating a paradoxical campaign that would get noticed by all staff in each location. The bulk of the campaign was driven by the posters, each piece exhibited positive behaviors which at a glance, appeared to depict conduct contrary to privacy and security. Coupled with whimsical color photography of what seemed to be criminal activity, each headline was boldly emphasized using a dominant black and white theme and linear graphics representative of “prison bars.”

The creative was successfully aligned with the gaps identified in the IPC report and was able to reinforce positive messaging with a twist, making it familiar and memorable for the intended audiences. All of the pieces were developed to reach and inspire staff to be accountable and aware of privacy and security.

Creative components of the internal privacy and security awareness campaign included:


Print• Ten copies of each of the nine 18” x 24” posters were printed and placed throughout all SSHA locations.

Posters were rotated on a weekly basis to keep the campaign visible, fresh and top of mind.

Multimedia • Banners were created to promote the awareness campaign on the Intranet• “GET CAUGHT!” LCD displays graphics were promoted in all seven of SSHA’s communal kitchens • To reach staff on a personal level through their laptops, an organization-wide “GET CAUGHT!”

screensaver was pushed out to each user• A customized e-mail template was created to streamline communications to all staff during the campaign

Privacy and Security Coffee Walkabout• “GET CAUGHT!” coffee mugs imprinted with the privacy and security hotline and e-mail address were

handed out during at a series of “walkabouts” by the Vice President of Privacy and Security giving staff the opportunity to discuss the topic of privacy on a one-on-one basis.

• A printed reminder was dropped on all desks one day prior to each walkabout to notify staff of the upcoming event.

Positive Rewards• “You’ve been CAUGHT!” tickets were designed to be coupled with a $2 gift certificate to a popular coffee

shop; used to reward staff for exhibiting positive privacy and security behaviors• “GET CAUGHT!” promotional computer monitor mirrors were designed as an incentive prize to staff that

achieved 90% or more on two mandatory online training courses at the half way point of the campaign

ResultsThe series of nine posters reinforcing privacy and security messages posted throughout all four SSHA locations were effective – a few went missing, particularly the “Cuddles” poster.

The campaign helped SSHA to begin to change its corporate culture by successfully raising awareness of privacy and security, and to motivate 100% of staff and consultants to complete the online training – as per requirements in the IPC report. 100% of staff and consultants successfully completed the mandatory online training one day in advance of the deadline. Additional results included the creation of a privacy and security hotline and a direct e-mail account that are now monitored on a daily basis.

The timelines were tight. Brainstorming started August 20/07 and the creative presentation to SSHA executives took place Aug. 24. Posters were produced, digitally printed and delivered a week later. The campaign was launched Sept. 4/07.

There was no fixed budget for the campaign. Creative costs were zero. The in-house creative team consisted of a Director, two communication advisors and two designers. Production costs for all components came in under $8,000 – posters being the most expensive item costing $3,150 for 90 ($35 each).

A ten question voluntary online survey (using a scale of 1 to 10) posted on the SSHA Intranet demonstrated the awareness campaign was largely successful in accomplishing its objectives.

87 responses were received (16% response rate). The survey showed that:• 94% were very aware of the campaign• 84% reported they now have the information and tools to be privacy aware and vigilant• 70% rated the campaign to be highly effective• 64% stated they were more aware of privacy and security due to the campaign

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Throughout the campaign, a lot of positive feedback was received including:

“We exceeded our expectations. Based on previous history, we anticipated a 90-95% completion rate. Achieving 100% was unprecedented in the Agency,” ~ Sarah Funston-Mills, Senior Privacy Analyst, SSHA, Jan. 30/08 commenting on mandatory online training

“I thought you would be interested to know that the awareness campaign would have cost $60-$80K if prepared by an external agency. I was showing it off to an associate partner at one of Canada’s leading full-scale advertising agencies. He was tremendously impressed by the integration between the different elements of the campaign and the innovative way in which we were presenting privacy and security concepts,” ~ Jane Dargie, Director, Privacy, SSHA, Oct. 10/07

“I am carrying photos of your posters around with me at a privacy conference in Vancouver to show to people,” ~ David Flaherty, Privacy Consultant for Ontario’s Information Privacy Commissioner, Sept. 20/07

“I thought the SSHA Privacy campaign was incredible… it was very comprehensive… from posters to screen savers … to the interactivity of the VP bringing coffee to my desk explaining the importance… I cannot think of any additional manner of connecting to me that was not used. The creativity of the message was unique and intriguing…for example ‘Get caught just wearing your ID’ was bold and arresting (no pun intended!!) for the culture of SSHA. As a former VP Marketing for The Coca-Cola Company I was extremely impressed with the overall campaign,” ~ Doug Humfries, IBM Global Business Services (on consulting assignment to SSHA), Feb. 5/08

Michael Power, SSHA’s new VP, Privacy and Security, SSHA was so impressed with the campaign, he authored a Case Study about building a culture of privacy and security for an international trade magazine: IEEE Security & Privacy, November/December 2007.


Photography – Award of MeritEntrant’s Names: Mike Abbass, Tracey Bochner, APR, Greig ReekieOrganization: Paradigm Public Relations Division: Division 3, Communications Creative Category: Category 18: PhotographyTitle: Mill St. Barley WineTime Period: November – December 2007Brief Description: Paradigm Public Relations was charged with finding a creative way to generate media coverage for Mill St.’s Barley Wine, which comes out once a year for the holiday season. Paradigm conducted a media relations campaign, in Ontario only, and used creative photography to position the product as a different kind of brew for the holidays.

Project Summary:Mill St. Brewery, an Ontario microbrewery that produces unique, premium beer, retained Paradigm Public Relations to help it raise awareness and increase sales of its innovative Barley Wine, a vintage beer available in Ontario for the holiday season. In addition to driving sales, the business need was to generate exposure for Mill St. Brewery and reinforce its premium position. Creative photography was used in the media relations program to differentiate Mill St.’s Barley Wine from other beers and clearly position Mill St. as the maker of premium, high quality beer.

Intended Audiences:• Beer lovers, legal drinking age and older• The general public (women and men) was also an audience as potential influence on the target audience

(e.g. friends and family who might buy the beer as a holiday gift item for the beer lover on their list)• For media relations, the key target audiences were short-lead media across Ontario (beer writers, gift

guides, news, lifestyle) and beer industry blogs as potential sources of immediate stories

Objectives:The creative objective of the project was to position Mill St. Barley Wine as a truly unique offering and the perfect holiday gift for beer loves.The public relations objectives were to:• Generate interest in, and boost sales of, Mill St.’s Barley Wine in Ontario leading up to the holidays• Generate exposure and awareness for Mill St. Brewery• Assert Mill St. as a leader among Canadian microbreweries• Differentiate Mill St. from other Canadian breweries through its unique offerings

Key messages/theme:The most important key message to convey was that Mill St. Brewery was bringing back Barley Wine just in time for the holiday season (Barley Wine is only available once a year). Using a creative twist on traditional holiday beverages, Paradigm positioned Barley Wine as “the year’s best holiday wine.”

This creative news release was used: “Want to give friends this year’s best holiday wine? Then steer clear of the vine. Mill St. Brewery, Toronto’s award-winning microbrewery, is bringing back Barley Wine just in time for the holiday season.”

Creative rationale:Paradigm planned for the media relations campaign to showcase two key messages:• The unique Barley Wine bottle – Barley Wine was sold in a handsome ceramic bottle designed and

produced in Germany • How Barley Wine was different than other beers out for the holidays – Mill St. ages its Barley Wine for

10 months, compared to a few weeks for regular beer. The longer process is reminiscent of a wine. The beer is meant for slow sipping and savouring its fruity, well-aged character.

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Paradigm worked with a photographer Greig Reekie to develop a creative editorial photo to accompany the news release. The editorial photo featured the bottle beside a crystal brandy snifter filled with Barley Wine. As Mill St. has a very limited budget for this campaign, the photo shoot took place on Paradigm’s boardroom table, which was transformed into a festive holiday set complete with velvet and Christmas decorations.

The brandy snifter was a key element in the photo as it was used to show that the beer is unlike any other beer Ontarians would taste that season and added a hint of sophistication. Brandy snifter glasses are used to highlight the “nose”, or smell, of the beverage. By placing Barley Wine in such a glass, it helped bring to life the spicy nose and lingering malt flavour. It also showed that Barley Wine is for sipping and savouring.

A red background and festive decorations were used to position the product as an ideal holiday gift. Paradigm also sent media an image of the Barley Wine bottle on a plain white background in the event the festive background was no suitable for certain media outlets.

Results:The budget for the program was $5,500. This includes news release, media relations, photography and product distribution. The budget was very tight, but the program was completed on time and on budget. • Barley Wine sold out at the LCBO during the holiday season• Ontario media coverage from the launch generated a total reach of more than 3.6 million (impressions

calculated using audited data from the CPRS Media Relations Rating Points system)• Mill St. Brewery had 55 per cent of the share of voice of all beer product stories in Ontario during the

holiday season• The cost per contact for the campaign was less than $0.01• The campaign generated a Media Relations Rating Points (MRP) score of 87 per cent with 100 per cent

of the coverage mentioning Mill St. Brewery, 100 per cent of coverage reinforcing the key messages and 100 per cent of print coverage featuring a photo of Barley Wine


Government Relations – Award of ExcellenceEntrant’s Names: Sarah Andrewes, Alison Orr, Jane Shapiro Organization’s Name: Fleishman Hillard Title of Entry: Canadian Egg Marketing Agency Eggscellent Breakfast on Parliament Hill Division 1/Category 2: Government Relations Time Period of Project: January to May 2007

Business Need/Opportunity:Throughout 2006 and early 2007, the Canadian egg industry faced several challenges which threatened its ability to continue providing Canadians with domestically-produced, high-quality, reasonably-priced eggs.

World Trade Organization (WTO) agricultural talks throughout the summer of 2006 resulted in an impasse as participants, especially the United States and the European Union, failed to reach a consensus on market access and domestic support. In October 2006, the Chairman of the Trade Negotiations Committee indicated that the window to move forward with the stalled negotiations was limited and that action must be taken between mid-November and the spring of 2007. By early spring 2007, it appeared that negotiations were picking up steam and that the agreement might not be consistent with Canada’s balanced trade position.

At the same time, the Canadian egg industry had been working hard to improve its readiness to manage a possible Avian Influenza outbreak and had participated actively in discussions with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency regarding the Health of Animals Act. The industry had also participated in government consultations on Production Insurance, pursuing the critical issue of compensation in the event of disease-related flock depopulation. In a letter to MPs in October 2006, the industry noted that “resolving the compensation issue is critical to establishing a national Avian Influenza surveillance program.”

Fleishman-Hillard Canada (FH) and the Canadian Egg Marketing Agency (CEMA), the national organization representing regulated egg producers, recognized the critical importance of acquainting or re-acquainting members of Parliament (MPs) and senators with the facts about the egg industry. Specifically, CEMA wanted to share the measures it takes to ensure the safety and quality of the food it produces and the benefits of supply management, a distinctly Canadian system of food production.

Entrant’s Role In the Project:FH team members included:• Sarah Andrewes – project supervisor providing strategic counsel on content and overall event

management, coordinated outreach to key politicians including the Minister and Parliamentary Secretary of Agriculture and Agri-Food and the Prime Minister, managed on-site logistics

• Alison Orr – event management and logistics including invitation design, distribution and follow up with MPs and senators before and after the event

• Jane Shapiro – strategic counsel on timing and content of materials, message development and coaching for CEMA representatives

Intended Audiences:Canadian members of Parliament (MPs) and senators including the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and members of House of Commons and Senate committees related to agriculture and agri-food and international trade. As WTO talks continued, it was important to secure the support of MPs and senators who are either responsible for developing Canada’s position, or could influence those who do, and convert them into advocates for supply management.

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Goals/Objectives:

Goals: 1) Make MPs and senators aware of the benefits of supply management for consumers, for local

communities and for the viability of the egg industry, while helping them understand the challenges facing egg farmers.

2) Convert MPs and senators into ambassadors for the industry.

Objectives: 1) Host a conveniently-located and appealing event where producers, MPs and senators would interact,

putting a personal face on the issues. Ensure proportional turnout from representatives of all parties, most especially government members.

2) Inform attendees about the benefits of supply management as a made-in-Canada solution, which provides stability for producers and consumers with a reliable domestic supply of high-quality eggs at a reasonable price.

3) Reinforce messages by following up with attendees and those unable to attend.

Solution Overview:FH worked on behalf of CEMA to organize an “Eggscellent Breakfast” on Parliament Hill on May 9, 2007. The breakfast was held in the Parliamentary Restaurant to ensure easy access for all invitees. The time was set to accommodate caucus meetings scheduled for later that morning. The following activities were integral to the success of the event:

• Endorsement from the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food: We secured the Honourable Chuck Strahl, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board, to sponsor the event. This added additional credibility and was important in influencing government MPs to attend.

• Invitation in a Pan: We created a bilingual invitation that would stand out from the typical mail MPs and senators receive. A brightly-coloured fried egg-shaped invitation was attached to the center of a mini frying pan and delivered to the office of each MP and senator. The visual appeal of the invitation was clear from the many requests we received from invitees and their staff for additional frying pans. We definitely broke through the clutter and got their attention.

• Encouraging Attendees: Follow up calls were made to all MPs and senators, and reminder invitation letters were sent to those with agriculture and trade-focused responsibilities to encourage their attendance. A bilingual toll-free RSVP line ensured ease of reply.

• Eggs with a Side of Issues: Six egg producers from across the country were trained in the art and skill of omelette-making and simultaneous lobbying. These producers prepared omelettes for the invited guests while chatting with them about the issues facing Canada’s egg industry and delivering CEMA key messages. Their colleagues from across the country joined parliamentarians at their tables, enjoying the food and pressing their points.

Cards with egg industry facts and figures were displayed on each table, educating guests while they ate.

Laurent Souligny, chair of CEMA, delivered a bilingual welcome address reiterating the industry’s key messages.

• On the Government’s Radar Screen: At the request of the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board, the Honourable Christian Paradis, Secretary of State (Agriculture) spoke at the breakfast, providing an update on the government’s activities in the agriculture sector and reiterating the government’s support for supply management.

• Keeping Eggs on the Brain: Attendees received takeaway packages including informational fact sheets and fun, CEMA-branded giveaways, such as egg recipe booklets, squeezable “exercise” eggs, magnets and grocery shopping lists.


• Staying Top of Mind: Thank you letters were sent to Minister Strahl for sponsoring the breakfast, to Secretary of State Paradis for speaking at the breakfast, to attendees for coming, and to non-attendees to provide them with additional information. All letters reiterated the importance of supporting supply management and the Canadian egg industry.

Implementation and Challenges:Challenges: The biggest challenge was timing. Planning and execution of this event were complicated by the uncertainty about when an election would be called, when Parliament would be in session and when the budget would be tabled. We had to continually adjust the timing of the event so that an appropriate day could be found that would fit with the parliamentary schedule. For example, the event was initially planned for March 21, 2007 but was changed when we determined that it would be too close to the tabling of the federal budget. We also adjusted the start time of the event to ensure maximum participation as MPs had caucus meetings later that morning.

In addition there are particular logistical challenges in hosting an event on Parliament Hill. All materials, including cooking supplies, must be cleared with House of Commons security. Security clearance must also be obtained in advance for all non-government attendees. Given the early morning start, clearances had to be secured and set up completed the evening prior. FH was able to accomplish this by working closely with House of Commons security and with vendors well in advance of the event so there were no surprises.

Measuring/Evaluation:Each of the objectives for the 2007 Eggscellent Breakfast on Parliament Hill were met; the event provided an excellent forum for CEMA to make its case directly to policy makers.

Objective 1: Host a conveniently located and appealing event where producers would interact with their local MPs and senators. Ensure proportional turnout from representatives of all parties, most especially government members.• The event attracted MPs and senators from across Canada to meet with local producers who provided

guests with facts, figures and their perceptions, keeping the issues facing the egg industry and supply management top-of-mind for parliamentarians.

• 121 MPs and senators RSVPed that they would attend the breakfast and 59 were represented at the breakfast including the agriculture critics from the three opposition parties, the Chairs of the House of Commons Agriculture and Agri-Food Committee (James Bezan, MP), the House of Commons International Trade Committee (Leon Benoit, MP) and the Senate Agriculture and Forestry Committee (Joyce Fairbairn), all of whom were targeted for their involvement in policy making related to supply management.

• Every province except Newfoundland was represented at the breakfast, including significant representation from Ontario (22 attendees), the province home to the largest number of egg producers in Canada. All political parties were represented.

• Secretary of State Paradis stayed twice as long as anticipated and was actively engaged with CEMA representatives.

Objective 2: Inform attendees about the benefits of supply management as a made-in-Canada solution, which provides stability for producers and consumers with a reliable domestic supply of high-quality eggs at a reasonable price. • In his bilingual address, Laurent Souligny, chair of CEMA, emphasized the importance of federal support

for supply management. He also described the steps CEMA has taken to prevent AI in Canada and the crisis management planning underway in the case of a Canadian outbreak.

• Secretary of State Paradis also spoke of the benefits of supply management and the importance of protecting it at the imminent World Trade Organization negotiations.

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Objective 3: Reinforce messages by following up with attendees and those unable to attend.• Letters were distributed to every MP and senator following the breakfast, either thanking them for their

attendance or expressing our regret they could not attend. MPs and senators that had expressed interest but had not attended the breakfast were sent a package of information about the egg industry that was distributed at the breakfast.

• In the days and weeks following the breakfast, comments were made about supply management during question period and committee debates. They were supportive of supply management and the Canadian government’s role in defending it on the world stage. Several reflect the messages articulated in Laurent Souligny’s speech at the event, as well as in the letters MPs and senators received following the breakfast, and demonstrate CEMA’s success in engaging government support for the egg industry.

For example:• “Just this week, the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food said that we would defend supply management

and that we would fight for it. We are not touching the tariff quotas and we are not touching tariffs. What language should I use to make this clear? What we are doing at the WTO is defending supply management. We support it and we will always defend it.” Hon. Christian Paradis (Secretary of State (Agriculture), CPC), June 15, 2007

• “Mr. Speaker, for the past 14 months, unprecedented measures have been taken to defend supply management, something that had never been done in the last 13 years: invoking article XXVIII of GATT, the regulations governing cheese composition standards. Again this week we could not have been any clearer on our intentions that we will defend supply management; we will support it; and we will not touch tariff quotas or the tariffs.” Hon. Christian Paradis (Secretary of State (Agriculture), CPC), June 15, 2007

• “What we have done is we have said we are going to protect supply management. We stand with supply management. When we negotiate, what would the member have us do, sell out supply management? What we do is we stand solidly with the producers and we say no change to over-quota tariffs, no tariff rate expansion. We are with supply management.” Hon. Chuck Strahl (Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board, CPC), June 13, 2007

• “While Canadian poultry producers, including those in Madawaska—Restigouche, provide a high quality product under supply management, the Minister of International Trade, without any reason, decided to allow an additional 8.7 million kilograms of chicken to be imported from other countries. How can this government claim to defend supply management and poultry producers when it is jeopardizing the very future of our producers, not to mention jobs that are very important to rural communities in Canada?” Mr. Jean-Claude D’Amours (Madawaska—Restigouche, Lib.), June 13, 2007

• “Mr. Speaker, supply management is currently being viciously attacked at the WTO negotiations. Quebec's agriculture minister and the UPA have joined forces to implore the federal government to defend Quebec producers at the WTO. It is time for this government to tell the truth. Is it true that our negotiators received strict orders from this government not to interfere in the process, meaning that they have an empty chair strategy? Will the government officially and firmly commit to supply-managed producers that they will not experience any tariff decreases in the short, medium and long terms?” Mr. Bernard Patry (Pierrefonds—Dollard, Lib.), June 20, 2007

• “I am always shocked when I see the Liberals and the Conservatives trying to set aside the supply management system put in place by farmers in Quebec and the rest of Canada for dairy products, poultry and eggs. This system balances supply and demand within the provinces and Canada. Yet the Liberals and the Conservatives are tempted to set aside this system, which allows us to meet our own needs for products as important as milk, eggs and butter. These are things we eat every day. They are tempted to set aside this system, because some countries would like to sell us their milk and other products over which we have no control. We have no control over what other countries produce.” Mr. Mario Laframboise (Argenteuil—Papineau—Mirabel, BQ), June 14, 2007


Government Relations – Award of MeritEntrants’ Names: Guy Giorno, Dan Brock, Rich ButlerOrganization’s Name: Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLPClient Organization: Coalition of Ontario PharmacyDivision: Division 1, Communication Management Category: Category 2: Government RelationsTitle of Entry: Coalition of Ontario Pharmacy: Bill 102 CampaignTime Period of Project: April 2006 to July 2006Brief Description: The Coalition of Ontario Pharmacy waged a successful government relations campaign to obtain amendments to Bill 102, the Transparent Drug System for Patients Act, that would protect the interests of retail pharmacies

Business Need/Opportunity On April 13, 2006, the Ontario Government tabled Bill 102, the Transparent Drug System for Patients Act. According to the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, the legislation was intended to “ensure the viability of pharmacists, and secure better access to better drugs for patients.”

Unfortunately, the proposed law’s impact on community pharmacies could have been devastating. As originally drafted, the bill could have forced the closure as many as 300 pharmacies across the Province. It was also likely to have resulted in reduced services at pharmacies, fewer store hours, and pharmacy staff reductions, all resulting in less patient care.

These potential consequences flowed from proposals that would have cut approximately $500 million annually from funding for retail pharmacies through inadequate fee increases and by capping reimbursement for medications and prohibiting manufacturers’ support of pharmacy programs. Most of these support fees are relied upon by pharmacies in order to remain viable while providing front-line health care services to customers in every community in Ontario.

Fasken Martineau was retained to mount a campaign to amend Bill 102 to reduce or avoid the legislation’s potential damaging impact on community pharmacy.

Entrants’ Role in the ProjectIn order to encourage the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care (and the Ontario government) to amend the legislation, Fasken Martineau was responsible for developing and executing a comprehensive and extensive government relations campaign to impress upon officials the potential negative impacts, including diminished patient care, of the legislation.

Fasken Martineau worked in collaboration with the firm Porter Novelli, which handled the parallel public relations campaign, consisting of paid media and earned media.3

The Fasken Martineau team consisted of Guy Giorno, Dan Brock and Richard Butler. Giorno was government relations project lead, responsible for strategy development — a strategy that included the creation of a new group, the Coalition of Ontario Pharmacy (a group of chain and independent pharmacies, as well as patient education and health care groups) — to run the campaign. He also prepared all MPP communication pieces (which were also sent to the Queen’s Park Press Gallery). Brock was responsible for direct outreach to provincial politicians, including the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care, members of Cabinet and other MPPs. Butler supported communication with Liberal MPPs and participated in outreach to MPPs generally. He also was responsible for organizing the May 31 rally and march on Queen’s Park.

The Fasken Martineau government relations campaign also included responsibility for two aspects of media relations: (1) regular communication updates sent to the Queen’s Park Press Gallery4 and (2) targetted news releases sent to the hometown newspapers of various MPPs. It also included helping to prepare stakeholders for committee hearings into Bill 102 and organization related to those hearings.

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Intended AudienceThe government relations campaign had three primary audiences:• Cabinet ministers and members of the governing (Liberal) Caucus.• Opposition MPPs including the two opposition leaders and the opposition health critics.• Other audiences whose views could influence or shape MPP decisions. These included: the Queen’s

Park Press Gallery, whose coverage greatly affects politicians; local newspapers in the constituencies of certain MPPs; and attendees to Liberal fundraising events that were targetted for information pickets.

Goals and ObjectivesThe goal of the Coalition of Ontario Pharmacy and of the government relations campaign was to secure amendments to Bill 102 that would mitigate the potential damaging effect on retail pharmacy.

The strategic objectives were to convince politicians that community pharmacies were organized and motivated, to raise their awareness of the Bill’s potential negative implications for patient care, and to make them recognize the political consequences of voting against the interests of patient care and community pharmacy.

The strategy depended on the close association between patient care and community pharmacy: the government relations campaign was not waged on behalf of community retail pharmacy per se but on the patients who depend on community retail pharmacy.

Solution OverviewOur solution centred around the creation of a new stakeholder group, the Coalition of Ontario Pharmacy. The new Coalition was intended to be seen as a fresh voice, distinct from existing stakeholder groups (an association of pharmacists and an association of drug store chains), but of course with many members in common, as well as patient advocates and others.

The solution included the following approach to communication: First, all communication was based on a message about patient care, to avoid the subject being misunderstood as an economic issue of interest only to retail pharmacies. Second, we felt it was important to demonstrate — through the frequency, variety and persistence of our communication tactics — that the Coalition’s supporters were serious, committed and not going away. Third, we strived as much as possible to deliver communication that was specific and targetted to MPPs’ communities: the implicit message being that the Coalition was prepared to take its message to each riding and fight to amend Bill 102 based on local impacts.

Through a number of effective communication and GR tactics, the Coalition delivered a unified and consistent message to Government that Bill 102 would severely, negatively effect community pharmacies.

Fasken Martineau was responsible for developing and executing the following tactics:• Information kit for MPPs• Letters to MPPs• Regular communication series for MPPs called Community Impacts of Bill 102. • Sharing Community Impacts of Bill 102 with the Queen’s Park Press Gallery• Open letters to the Premier and Minister of Health — shared with all MPPs and with the news media.• Petition to the Legislature and instructions for those collecting signatures, in order to ensure that the

petitions would comply fully with the rules of the Legislature• Coalition presentation to the Standing Committee on Social Policy• Instructions for Coalition members and supporters to make their own presentations to the Standing

Committee• Bulletins to all MPPs (copied to the Queen’s Park Press Gallery) celebrating success at the Bill 102

committee hearings• Organizing information pickets outside a speech by the Health Minister and outside fundraising events

attending by senior Liberal MPPs


• Creating the group “Friends of Community Pharmacy” and canvassing all MPPs to ask if they wished to be so identified. We explained that this did not involve joining the Coalition or endorsing its proposed amendments to Bill 102; it was simply a public affirmation that an MPP understood and supported the important contribution that pharmacies make to people in his or her riding. Names of MPPs who agreed to be identified as Friends were posted on the website and publicised by news release. MPPs who said “no” were given several opportunities to reconsider and eventually those who said “no” (as opposed to not taking a position) were singled out in targetted releases aimed at new media in their ridings.

• Rally and march on Queen’s Park. Fasken Martineau was responsible for booking the venue, inviting MPPs, maintaining liaison with police and security, ordering lab coats, marshalling the demonstration, and drafting notices. The rally was extremely successful.

Rather than develop a strategy that focussed on only one particular pharmacy and was executed by only one pharmacy, the Coalition created the visual impact and effective illustration that the legislation’s impact was far more reaching. The effectiveness of the strategy illustrated to the government that the law’s impact on community pharmacies could have been devastating and wide-spread.

Through creative and consistent messages to MPPs, the Coalition was able to demonstrate to politicians that community pharmacies were organized and motivated and their concerns were valid and serious. The Coalition was successful as well in raising awareness of the negative implications of the legislation, within budget and within a short-period of time.

Implementation and ChallengesThe strategy faced three challenges: (1) Lack of time (the campaign was launched May 16 and the bill was likely to pass third reading within three or four weeks). (2) Entrenched government position. (3) Dissatisfaction among many pharmacies with the position and strategy of the Ontario Pharmacists Association (OPA). The third challenge was overcome by creating a entity, the Coalition of Ontario Pharmacy, to wage a campaign and to adopt positions that the OPA would not or could not. The first and second challenges required a short, intense, creative campaign that ensured each MPP received repeated, multiple exposure to the Coalition and its messages.

The Coalition was launched May 16, 2006, with a media conference at Queen’s Park. Simultaneously, the Coalition of Ontario Pharmacy website went online.

Regular Community Impacts reports were issued on an almost daily basis. These reports contained impact statements from individual members or supporters of the Coalition, consisting of short 2-3 paragraph statements of how Bill 102 would affect their own patients. Fasken Martineau issued the reports to all MPPs and to the Queen’s Park Press Gallery.

The May 31 rally coincided with the public legislative committee hearings. The rally was held at Convocation Hall (close to the Legislative Building). Afterward, participants marched to Queen’s Park, circling the offices of the Ministry of Health and the Premier’s Office. Participating were hundreds of individuals from a variety of backgrounds, including pharmacy-store owners, pharmacists, health care advocates and professionals, patients and opposition MPPs.

The government relations campaign continued until the government announced amendments to Bill 102 and subsequently the Bill passed Third Reading. The amended legislation addressed many of the Coalition’s concerns. All MPPs received letters complimenting the government and urging passage of the amended legislation.

Measuring/EvaluationThe measure of success was whether the government would amend the legislation to mitigate the potentially damaging impacts on community pharmacy. The Government did agree to introduce amendments to the Bill and the Coalition declared success.

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Media Relations up to 50K – Award of ExcellenceEntrant’s Names: Alison George, Vice President, Daniel Tisch, APR, President, Kyla Thoms, Consultant, Ashley Ballantyne, Account CoordinatorOrganization’s Name: Argyle CommunicationsDivision: Division 1, Communication Management Category: Category 3a: Media Relations with budget up to $50KTitle of Entry: Nestlé AERO: ‘Guys Just Don’t Get It’Time Period of Project: July – November 2007Brief Description: Fuelled by original, newsworthy research, Argyle Communications’ media relations campaign supported AERO’s brand position through a whimsical ‘Guys Just Don’t Get It’ theme.

Business Need/Opportunity:Nestlé AERO is an established, well-loved confectionery brand. In 2007, AERO’s overall marketing objective was to become the number-one chocolate brand for women and achieve a number two brand ranking overall. The AERO brand team collaborated closely with its marketing partners, including Argyle Communications, to develop a unique concept: AERO: Guys Just Don’t Get It, around which all campaign strategy was to evolve. Public relations activities were a key component of the marketing mix, as an important driver in establishing this brand position among target markets and in cost-effectively extending the reach of the overall brand idea.

Before designing our strategic public relations plan, Argyle embarked on a comprehensive review of Nestlé’s proprietary research about AERO bars, including Print Measurement Bureau reports about AERO’s profile and penetration, and AC Nielsen historic sales data. This analysis provided the contextual perspective about AERO’s current and target users and helped crystallize the motivators to purchase. It also identified the need to create an emotional and more engaging brand experience for women – without alienating men.

Argyle also conducted a series of meetings with the AERO brand team and fellow marketing partners, including AERO’s advertising agency, promotional agency, media buying firm and on-line content provider. As a team we focused on how all marketing touch points would work together to build momentum for the campaign theme, AERO: Guys Just Don’t Get It. Because Argyle was so closely involved in these detailed strategic discussions, we were able to obtain a deep understanding of the brand theme and complementary marketing activities enabling us to design a strategic public relations campaign. With such clarity, all marketing partners were able to collaborate and develop a highly strategic approach, taking full advantage of the tools available within each of our individual marketing specialities.

Entrants’ Roles in the Project:• Alison George: Reviewed all available research in order to develop a strategic plan. Created program

recommendation and budget and led all communications with client. Led the Argyle team and oversaw the implementation of all program components, including original research survey design and implementation, written materials development and media relations.

• Daniel Tisch: Senior counsel to Nestlé and to the Argyle team.• Kyla Thoms: Provided support to the lead counsel on this project. Assisted with the survey research

and design, written materials development and media relations. Responsible for reporting the coverage to the team as well as to the client and assisted with any required media follow-up.

• Ashley Ballantyne: Conducted proactive media outreach and daily media monitoring Managed media coverage and reports.

Intended Audiences:• Primary audience: Women, ages 25-34. We established this target through our review of Nestlé

research that identified the need to create an emotional and more engaging brand experience for women. Further, we reviewed Nestlé’s historic sales data to identify priority regions. We learned that the largest volume of AERO bars are sold in Ontario and Quebec, and therefore (given our small budget) focused more of our media outreach efforts on those markets.


•Secondary audiences: National and community media/Food and lifestyle media/Online media. Women in this demographic seek information about food, lifestyle and trends from these outlets – and we considered them to be the conduit to our primary target audience. We also recognized the nature of our announcement had tremendous appeal to radio show hosts, who could use the data for amusing on-air chat.

Goals/objectives:Brand Goals:1. Grow from 3.4 to 4.0% share of marketing by December 2007, in part by creating an emotional

connection and more engaging brand experience for women, without alienating men.PR Objectives:1. Quantitative media measurement: Reach an estimated audience of between 3.5 million and 4 million

Canadians based on each media outlet’s audience reach.2. Qualitative media measurement: Establish the criteria to analyze our results using the Canadian Public

Relations Society’s Media Rating Points system (MRPTM). The criteria were: 1) company/brand mention; 2) key message delivery; 3) survey results mention; 4) product image inclusion; 5) headline/newscast positioning. The client reviewed and approved these criteria in advance of our campaign.

Solution Overview:Once we established our clear objectives, we developed the key principles of our strategy. These included:• Integrate public relations with AERO’s Guys Just Don’t’ Get It marketing campaign. We had to develop

compelling, newsworthy information that reinforced the campaign theme and would result in branded media coverage. This led us to develop a survey that explored the differences between men and women.

• Deepen the brand’s connection with women – without offending men. Gentle humour, coupled with fresh insights, would be critical to success.

• Connect to chocolate. In looking at the differences between men and women, we knew chocolate had to feature prominently in the research, to enable the shortest bridge back to the AERO brand message.

• Mix national and local media relations – to make every dollar go further. With a limited budget (see below), we had to be very focused in determining our list of ‘national’ and bilingual target media, while using local community media to achieve a controlled editorial message at a lower cost.

Tactics:Based on our audiences and objectives, Argyle developed and executed a national AERO: Guys Just Don’t Get It omnibus survey and maximized exposure and interest in the results through a comprehensive and cost-effective media outreach campaign.

Omnibus survey:Argyle’s vision was to explore differences between men and women across Canada by asking them engaging, clever questions that would resonate with women and reinforce the overall brand idea. At the same time, the questions had to be carefully crafted so as not to alienate men. Developing the questions proved to be a delightful process that involved creativity, input and comment from all Argyle consultants and the client, and admittedly, a lot of laughter. Some of the final questions included:

1. If I had to give up one the following, I would be least willing to give up: a) Chocolate b) Alcohol c) Sex.2. Which of these choices is your least favourite thing to do?: a) Bathing suit shopping; b) Writing thank

you notes: c) Going to a musical; d) Putting gas in the car.3. For a weekend getaway, how many outfits would you bring? a) Two or less; b) Three or four; c) Five or

six; d) Seven or more.

A total of 1,536 Canadian participated in the Leger Omnibus survey between June 28 and July 3, 2007. Results were considered accurate to within +/- 2.5 per cent, 19 times out of 20. Upon receiving the survey data, Argyle analyzed the results, extracting and comparing data to craft compelling, newsworthy media materials.

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Key messages:Through our survey research we were able to identify key messages to support our ‘Guys Just Don’t Get It’ campaign. These messages were created and client-approved before we crafted our media materials, and became the foundation of all communication materials. Here are the primary and supporting key messages:

Primary Message: The AERO: Guys Just Don’t Get It Survey playfully explores some of the quirky differences between Canadian men and women, including their fashion and grooming choices, likes and dislikes – and, of course, their love of chocolate.1. Women love chocolate, men prefer sex

• Survey shows more than six million women say they couldn’t survive without chocolate; that’s nearly half of all adult women in Canada! Only one in five men felt the same way.

• When asked what they would be least willing to give up – sex, chocolate or alcohol – men were very decisive. Sex was almost five times more important to men than chocolate, and four times more important than alcohol. Women were not so quick to choose; chocolate and sex were equally important at 40 per cent each. Only one in five women wouldn’t like to give up to alcohol.

2. Women like to keep their style options open• Four of five women (82 per cent) pack three or more outfits for a weekend getaway, while more

than half of all men surveyed pack two or fewer outfits. • 37 per cent of women think it is reasonable to own more than five pairs of black shoes. A mere 15

per cent of men agree.3. Women simply cannot have enough grooming products…

• A third of all women surveyed feel using more than four products to wash and style their hair is reasonable. Only one in ten men agrees.

• Women like to linger in the personal care aisle at the drug store: 81 per cent spend five or more minutes shopping there, with one in five saying they ‘just love it there.’ Men tend to grab and go, with two-thirds shopping for thirty seconds or less – and 11 per cent spending zero time in that section of the store.

4. Just say ‘no’ to bathing suit shopping• From a list of four choices: bathing suit shopping; writing thank you notes; putting gas in the

car; or going to a musical, 54 per cent of women say their least favourite activity is bathing suit shopping. One third of men said they don’t like that much either, but they equally dislike writing thank you notes.

Media outreach campaign:This involved:• Media list: Developing a list of highly targeted food and lifestyle journalists from newspapers, broadcast

radio, television and on-line media. To stay within our budget, we committed to completing one-on-one contact with 100 of the top priority media as well as distributing the release over Canada Newswire. In keeping with our priority markets, 25 percent of media contacts were from Quebec; 25 per cent from Ontario, and the remaining 50 per cent from leading national and regional media markets.

• Media materials: Creating the AERO: ‘Guys Just Don’t Get It’ news release that highlighted the results of our omnibus survey and included a specially designed a survey logo for all our media materials; survey results summary, highlighting all questions and results; and a fact sheet with AERO product information.


• Community newspaper campaign: Developing camera-ready stories for distribution to community newspapers. We developed three stories, each including mention of AERO:- Canadian women love chocolate, men prefer sex: Revealed results of the ‘Guys Just Don’t Get It’

survey, including what each sex would be least willing to give up, who can multitask better, men or women and what activities are their least favourite to do.

- From shampoo to shoes, the sexes don’t agree: Revealed results of the AERO: Guys Just Don’t Get It survey, including how many pairs of black is acceptable to own and drug store shopping habits.

- National survey says guys just don’t get it: Shared the highlights of the AERO: Guys Just Don’t Get It survey, including that statistic of 46 per cent of all women surveyed felt there are some days they just couldn’t survive without chocolate.

• Materials distribution: Sending materials and product to target media and placed release on Canada Newswire

• Media outreach: Conducting one-on-one media relations with the 100 target journalists and outlets, and responding promptly to interview requests.

Implementation and Challenges:Budget: The budget for the program was $26,000 in fees and $20,000 in out-of-pocket expenses.

Timeline:March through May, 2007 Need identification and solution developmentJune 2007 Survey question developmentJune 28 to July 3, 2007 Survey in marketJuly 6, 2007 Survey results analysis and key message

developmentJuly 2007 Community newspaper story preparationJuly 12, 2007 Media materials preparation and submission to clientJuly 27, 2007 Media kit approvals, translation and preparationAugust 12, 2007 Media kit distributionAugust 2007 Media outreach activitiesSeptember 2007 Community newspaper story distributionNovember 2007 Results analysis and reporting

Challenges:• Thorough results: Since we decided to structure our campaign around our survey results, we had

to make sure we had news to tell. Upon receiving the survey results, we had to comb through the numbers, compare and extract the data then develop intriguing, on-message results analysis.

• Inclusion, no exclusion: Since the campaign was called the AERO: Guys Just Don’t Get It survey, we had to be careful not to exclude men in our materials and outreach. The survey was meant to be playful and funny, so we made sure to use these types of questions in our survey as opposed to questions that may alienate the male population.

• No news: Public relations programs thrive when there is new information being presented (e.g., research results, product launch, and offer of an original perspective). Nestlé AERO bars were not new, so we needed to create our own compelling and newsworthy information.

• Tactical adjustment: Our initial recommendation included an audio news release. Upon reviewing the survey data we were so excited by what we judged to be a compelling, ‘break-through’ story that would allow for branded media coverage and interest beyond our target media list – and a story that would be intriguing for radio hosts. Therefore, we recommended to the client that we distribute the news release over Canada Newswire in order to maximize distribution, and that we distribute the media information kit and AERO samples to select radio morning show hosts. The client was pleased with this recommendation, and appreciated our flexibility. We used the budget allocated to the audio news release to fund these new initiatives – therefore were able to stay on-budget while achieving a greater reach with our campaign.

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Measuring/Evaluation:• Driven by the Guys Just Don’t Get It marketing theme, AERO had a successful sales year, generating

approximately $46M in retail sales, growing at greater than 4% in 2007 – therefore obtaining the stated sales objectives. (*Source: ACNielsen MarketTrack, National All Channel, AERO Everyday Chocolate, L52 weeks to Dec. 22, 2007.)

• The public relations campaign generated stories in 49 media outlets, achieving 16,078,351 million impressions – four times the goal established jointly between Nestlé and Argyle.

• The campaign scored 93% in the Media Rating Points system (MRPTM) with an average tone of 4.9/5.0 per story and an average rating of 4.4/5.0 indicating our success in meeting the set message measurement criteria.

- Highlights included:• Canada.com – a feature interview with Nestlé Canada that resulted in pick-up across the

country.• Metro Daily (Calgary, Edmonton, Montréal) – A feature article that highlighted the results of

the survey and included a branded image of a Nestlé AERO Singles bar.• 24 Hours Daily (Vancouver) – A front coverage feature story that highlighted the results of

the survey.• National Post – A brief that highlighted select results of the survey.


Media Relations up to 50K – Award of ExcellenceEntrant’s Name: Esther Buchsbaum, APR, Julie Lepsetz, Suzanne Gold, Hind Ounis – Communications MECA; Nadège Kéléchian, Tracey Lavelle – Jarden Consumer Solutions.Organization’s Name: Jarden Consumer SolutionsDivision: Division 1, Communication Management Category: Category 3a: Media Relations with a budget up to $50KTitle of Entry: Sweet Dreams with Sunbeam Time Period of Project: July through December 2007Brief Description: A media relations campaign designed to help Sunbeam change perceptions about the formerly dated heated bedding category, and to reposition its Warming Products as modern, contemporary accessories that contribute to a better night’s sleep.

Business Need/Opportunity:The Sunbeam brand has a rich history of offering families practical solutions for everyday living, with products ranging from kitchen and home appliances to bedding. In recent years, Sunbeam’s heated bedding line has transformed the category, by modernizing the traditional electric blanket product, and expanding into heated throws and mattress pads. With technical innovations—including improved timer and heat setting features, sleeker, easy-to-use controllers, and smaller, more flexible “micro-wires”—plus a trendy new colour palette, and sumptuous, machine-washable fabrics, Sunbeam has injected new excitement into their Warming Products, a previously lackluster, utilitarian category.

Heated bedding is traditionally a seasonal product, most often purchased in winter months. Internal research taken from Sunbeam’s Canadian Consumer Profile Report (see Appendix A), which analyzed data on product purchases, concurred that of all factors influencing purchase decision, cold weather was the most important, followed by brand reputation. As Sunbeam’s recent marketing strategy for its Warming Products emphasized the items’ coziness and the ability to help Canadians achieve a more restful sleep, Sunbeam had an opportunity to showcase the new bedding line and raise brand awareness by taking a leadership role, emphasizing and educating on the importance of a good night’s sleep during a critical sales period. Jarden Consumer Solutions, the parent company of Sunbeam, engaged Communications MECA to get things started.

Entrant’s Role in Project:The Communications MECA team was responsible for developing the overall media relations strategy (approved by Jarden) and media relations execution. Esther Buchsbaum provided strategic direction and planning, along with client counsel. Julie Lepsetz contributed strategic support, provided on-going client counsel and liaison, and was responsible for the day-to-day account management including media material development and media relations. Suzanne Gold contributed high-level media relations support, event coordination and logistics, along with material review and editing. Hind Ounis was responsible for the media list creation and management, media coverage tracking and analysis, and francophone media relations. Nadège Kéléchian and Tracey Lavelle were the primary client contacts at Jarden, providing industry insight and direction and serving as spokespeople for the brand.

Intended Audiences: Based on demographics gleaned from Sunbeam’s 2007 Canadian Consumer Profile Report, our primary audience consisted of Canadian women, in particular Ontarians, 55 years old and over. A secondary audience was identified as Canadian women, in particular Ontarians, between 35 and 55. Key media conduits identified to reach these targets: national and regional newspapers, and women’s, lifestyle and home décor magazines.

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Goals and Objectives:The overall goals of the campaign were to generate awareness for Sunbeam and its Warming Products during the key winter sales season, to reposition the products as stylish additions to contemporary home décor, and to align the Sunbeam brand with the concept of a better night’s sleep.

To evaluate the campaign, MECA and Jarden established the following measurable objectives:• To generate positive media coverage for Sunbeam Warming Products and the Sunbeam brand during the

key winter sales season- at least 10 million audience impressions across Canada- achieve a Media Relations Rating Points (MRP) score of 75% or higher, and a cost per thousand of less

than $5.- encourage the use of Sunbeam photography in product features / gift guides

• To introduce media directly to the new product collection- personally interact with five to 10 lifestyle / home décor media from influential magazines, dailies, e-

zines at a Toronto event- provide media packages to another dozen lifestyle / home décor media at influential magazines, dailies,

e-zines- demonstrate a change in media perception of heated bedding

• Client satisfaction (to be determined subjectively by the client)

Solution Overview:RESEARCH -- Prior to developing the campaign strategy, MECA and Jarden undertook a national sleep survey, commissioning Harris-Decima to conduct the research. The omnibus survey polled 750 Canadians on everything from sleep habits and quality of sleep, to the use of heated bedding. The survey results were extremely rich and diverse, on one hand providing meaningful statistics with health implications (e.g., Canadians did not get enough sleep on a regular basis), and on the other hand, offering lighthearted, quirky insights into Canadian sleep habits.

STRATEGY -- After a thorough analysis of the raw data, MECA determined the best approach would be to divide the survey campaign into distinct two phases (“sleep health” and “quirky habits”), so as not to trivialize or downplay any of the various statistics, and to maximize coverage during the winter months. For the “sleep health” angle, MECA suggested partnering with a recognized sleep expert to increase the campaign message’s strength and credibility, and position Sunbeam as an industry leader. MECA also decided to leverage the sleep data when planning a winter media event. The event, organized in Toronto to attract key regional and national outlets, would position the products as a chic “collection”, as well as a great way to aid in a better night’s rest.

TACTICSa) Two phased survey campaign: Phase I focused on the sleep health angle, emphasizing key research highlights including: just one in 10 Canadians sleeps soundly on a regular basis; three biggest “sleep stealers” included stress, uncomfortable bed or room temperature and insomnia; women experience sleep disturbances more strongly than men. To add credibility to the story, MECA identified and secured a recognized sleep expert – Dr. Eva Libman, Associate Director of the Behavioural Psychotherapy and Research Unit at the Jewish General Hospital in Montreal, to act as a spokesperson. MECA worked with Dr. Libman to ensure she had Sunbeam messaging and an understanding of the survey goals. The agency crafted a compelling news release highlighting the research findings, translated it into French, distributed the release on the newswire, and solicited media interviews with Dr. Libman on the importance of sleep during the month of October.


Phase II emphasized quirky sleep habits identified in the survey, including: Men like to sleep in the nude and cuddle more often than women; women talk in their sleep more often than men; and Quebecers are intimate more often than other Canadians. MECA drafted a creative news release around the survey findings, with humorous names for some of the sleep habits (e.g., Freight Trains for snoring Canadians, Bear Huggers for those who sleep with stuffed animals, etc.). MECA then secured an exclusive story—including an interview with Jarden spokesperson Nadège Kéléchian—with national news bureau Canwest News Service. The feature ran across Canada in early December, timed with the news release distribution on the newswire, and MECA solicited and coordinated additional media opportunities on the subject. Both survey initiatives tied the Sunbeam brand and the Warming Products in with the concept of a better night’s rest.

b) Exclusive Media Open House: MECA conceptualized and coordinated an exclusive media open house to preview the latest Sunbeam Warming Products Collection, showcase how the products help provide a more restful, comfortable sleep. The event—which took place in a posh, Zen-inspired downtown Toronto boutique hotel—introduced, and in many cases reintroduced media to the products first-hand, showcasing fabric colours and styles and key product features and benefits. The products were displayed in numerous real life-inspired settings, with models using the products in mini “scenes”: a mother tucking her daughter into bed with a Warming Mattress Pad, a father playing Scrabble with his son underneath a Warming Blanket, a couple watching television and cuddling under a Warming Throw (see Appendix B for photos). Media were individually toured through the venue by Jarden spokespeople (after extensive media preparation), who narrated and answered questions. A Toronto-area tea expert added the final touch, highlighting ways in which the beverage could also aid in a better night’s sleep.

The early November timing was carefully planned to reach regional and national short-lead media in advance of the holiday rush, and provided a timely springboard to reach out to holiday gift guide media. It also provided long-lead media an opportunity to review the collection for inclusion in future winter stories.

c) Post-event Media Campaign: Following the sleep event, MECA coordinated a holiday media relations campaign, including media drops for additional lifestyle and décor journalists in Toronto and across Canada. The packages, including product samples, fabric swatches in the shape of miniature pillows, and data from the sleep survey, were timed to coincide with gift guide deadlines.

Implementation and Challenges: The total program budget was $42,500 in professional fees, which included strategy development, material creation, media training, event coordination and support, and media relations execution from July through December. The omnibus survey and the Toronto event disbursements (including venue rental, catering and models) were handled under a separate budget.

The agency faced several challenges including:a) Delicate subject. As the omnibus survey questions would probe sensitive activities—including sleeping in the nude and intimacy with a partner—MECA had to strike a delicate balance, developing tactful questions that wouldn’t offend or embarrass anyone, while still soliciting meaningful results. The agency also determined that because of the sensitive subject matter, an online polling format would garner the most honest results.

b) Finding the right sleep spokesperson. With no budget for remuneration, and a small window of time in which to secure an expert, MECA faced a major challenge, especially because the agency preferred to find a source with some degree of media experience, to avoid the need for extensive media training. Through contacts with the Canadian Sleep Society and the Jewish General Hospital, the agency identified and secured Dr. Eva Libman, not only a passionate advocate for sleep health, but a nationally recognized speaker with diverse experience as a media resource.

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c) Client shyness: In developing the strategy for the media event, MECA believed strongly that its client contacts should play an important role, sharing with media their passion for and knowledge about the products. While they didn’t object to being spokespeople, MECA’s clients were nervous about speaking in front of a large crowd. MECA therefore organized the event to fit the client comfort level, by coordinating individual media tours. In addition to lending a conversational tone to the event—giving our client the confidence to speak effectively—the private tours also added an overall feeling of exclusivity.

Measuring/Evaluation:MECA’s targeted public relations program met all client objectives and exceeded expectations.

Objective: At least 10 million audience impressions across Canada, a Media Relations Rating Points (MRP) score of 75% or higher, and a cost-per-thousand of less than $5, as well as encouraging the use of Sunbeam photography in product features / gift guide coverage.Results: The campaign total reach was over 18 million, and achieved an MRP score of 87%, with a cost-per-thousand of $2.63. Media coverage included Style at Home, the Toronto Star and 50plus.com, all of which reached our primary and secondary audience targets. The survey media coverage went coast to coast between October and December, making a strong connection between Sunbeam and sleep during the crucial winter season. And photos were used in all product features and gift guide articles

Objective: Personally interact with five to 10 media at the event, and provide Sunbeam packages to another 10 to 12 targeted media.Result: The event attracted eight exceptional attendees, including journalists from Chatelaine, Canadian Living, Glow, 2: The Magazine for Couples, LouLou, The Toronto Star, and several freelancers. Packages were requested by and sent to nearly two dozen other influential lifestyle, home décor and holiday gift guide media across Canada, inspiring holiday gift guide coverage in several regional newspapers and e-zines.

Objective: Demonstrate a change in media perception of heated bedding.Result: Post-event feedback captured using SurveyMonkey.com, an online survey application, showed that media not only enjoyed the event, their product perceptions shifted from “dated and boring” to “upscale and contemporary”. Several media had admitted that previously, their knowledge of Sunbeam was limited to appliances, while now they were extremely knowledgeable about heated bedding.

Objective: Client satisfaction.Result: Overall, Jarden was extremely pleased with the campaign strategy, execution and results. Our client contact was applauded by Jarden’s U.S. senior management team for taking a compelling, creative approach to the bedding category (see Appendix C for client email). Our client’s Canadian team was commended for setting the public relations benchmark company-wide, and was even asked to present an overview of campaign strategies, results and key insights to Sunbeam’s U.S. division.


Media Relations up to 50K – Award of ExcellenceEntrant’s Name & Organization: Cathy Cowan, Cowan & Company Client’s Organization: L’Oréal Paris Division/Category: 3a: Media Relations with a budget up to $50KTitle of Entry: L’Oréal Paris Beautifies L’Oréal Fashion WeekTime Period of Project: February - March 2007

Business Need/OpportunityIn the beauty industry, it is just as crucial for a brand to be seen as glamourous and trend setting as it is to have great products. For this reason, it is a key element of L’Oréal Paris’ mass-tige brand strategy (delivering prestige products to the masses) is to personify the brand in order to develop a deeper connection with its consumers. L’Oréal achieves this through its affiliation with personalities and events that reflect the glamourous side of the brand – which is then backed up by the significant research and science behind the exceptional products that makes L’Oréal Paris the leader of the mass beauty brands.

In order to bring that touch of glamour with a Canadian angle, in 2002 L’Oréal Paris signed on to become the presenting sponsor of Toronto Fashion Week, Canada’s premier semi-annual fashion event organized by the Fashion Design Council of Canada. The event became an opportunity to showcase the artistry of the brand, through the onsite L’Oréal Paris beauty team who created the makeup looks on the runway and who have become the Canadian face of the brand. Sponsorship of the event also became a tangible demonstration of L’Oréal’s commitment to supporting the Canadian fashion design industry. In March 2005, L’Oréal Paris expanded its sponsorship and commitment to the event to become the title sponsor of the event which was renamed L’Oréal Fashion Week. Today, The Fashion Design Council of Canada’s L’Oréal Fashion Week is Canada’s premier fashion event and is attended by more than 15,000 designers, media, VIPs, industry and retail buyers.

Entrant’s Role in Project • Anik Gagnon, L’Oréal Paris – Integrated strategic direction, contract management, and overall project/

budget manager• Isabelle Randez, L’Oréal Paris – Co-development of media kit materials, managed graphic design of

media kit materials, media relations, coordinating product sampling opportunities• Eddie Maleterre/L’Oréal Paris - Artistic Director, Official Makeup Artist & Spokesperson• Eric Del Monaco/L’Oréal Paris – Lead Hair Consultant & Spokesperson • Cathy Cowan, Cowan & Company – Strategic counsel, project management, writing and editing, media

relations support, onsite support throughout week of event• Margaret Batuszkin, Cowan & Company – Media Relations including strategic planning, development

of story ideas, conducting outreach and pitching one-on-one interviews, co-development of media kit materials, onsite support and media relations

• Katherine Needham, Cowan & Company – Coordinated event logistics for media luncheon• Julie Leblanc, Cowan & Company/Girafe Communications – Media Relations with Quebec media,

onsite support at event

Additionally, the Fashion Design Council of Canada and its PR firms initiated media relations and communications for the event as a whole, generating extensive national and international media coverage.

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Intended Audience/Goals/ObjectivesThe objective of L’Oréal Paris’ title sponsorship of L’Oréal Fashion Week is to leverage the event to increase L’Oréal Paris brand preference and sales with consumers (men and women 18 – 55) by:• Generating media coverage showcasing L’Oréal’s artistry and products• Personifying the brand by creating a Canadian face• Creating buzz for L’Oréal Paris’ Fall 2007 collection – Timeless Seduction.• Generating brand penetration in overall event media coverage ChallengesAfter eight very successful seasons of conducting media relations around L’Oreal Paris’ involvement in L’Oreal Fashion Week, for this season’s event (our ninth) it was a challenge to “keep it fresh” and develop new approaches for generating media coverage and communicating the same messages to our target audiences without seeming repetitious in order to continue generating exceptional visibility for L’Oreal Paris.

In addition to the challenges noted under the Goals/Objectives, another key challenge in developing the media relations component of this program, which is largely where the success of the entire campaign is measured, is that sponsorships in and of themselves are not newsworthy. To counter this, each season we brainstorm pages of exclusive and specific story ideas to highlight L’Oréal’s key messages and the beauty team’s involvement in the week. From the beginning of Cowan & Company’s work with L’Oréal Paris and their involvement in fashion week (in March 2003) we adopted the strategy of leveraging fashion week to ‘unveil’ L’Oréal Paris’ next season’s beauty looks/new products – to complement the looks and collections of the designers – as well as generating as much media coverage of the beauty team at work as possible. We approach the media relations campaign as if we were journalists ourselves, looking at every facet to identify potentially interesting and fresh story ideas for our targeted beauty media.

On the media relations front, another challenge was working with media to ensure reference to the event by its full-name “L’Oréal Fashion Week” instead of the previous name “Toronto Fashion Week” – or other unbranded references as many media don’t like to give corporate ‘plugs’ in their coverage and some media even have corporate policies not to do so. We have proactively worked with the FDCC, sponsors and media to ensure proper use of the name wherever possible.

For L’Oréal Paris, one of its greatest focuses this season was to truly leverage the event, which is geared more for industry than for consumers, as a platform to connect with consumers in order to build brand affinity and ultimately increase sales. This is one of the reasons that it was so important for the team to breathe new life into the campaign as media coverage was seen as a key way of communicating our fashion messages to consumers – and after eight very successful seasons of media relations around L’Oréal Paris’ role in L’Oréal Fashion Week we were concerned that media might think they had said everything there was to say about it.

Solution OverviewTo achieve the objectives, Cowan & Company developed and implemented a media relations campaign to promote L’Oreal Paris’ involvement with L’Oréal Fashion Week, Fall 2007. The event took place March 13-17, 2007 at the Liberty Grand in Toronto and featured the Fall 2007 collections of leading and up-and-coming Canadian fashion designers. L’Oréal Paris’ beauty experts created all of the makeup and hair looks seen on the runway throughout the week.


The goal of the campaign was to communicate the following key messages:Ø L’Oréal Paris collaborates with Canadian designers to create all the runway beauty looks at L’Oréal

Fashion Week.Ø Just like the designers who are debuting their Fall collections, L’Oreal Paris is debuting its Fall collection

- Timeless Seduction – a romantic and sexy twist on metallics featuring shades of gold, silver, copper and black makeup.

Ø L’Oréal Paris is a global beauty innovator and trendsetter.

The budget focused on professional fees to maximize media outreach (including planning, story development, pitching, luncheon invitations, media kit materials, and onsite support at event) – in order to generate widespread coverage with key media – as well as spokesperson preparation and support (including key message and Q&A development, luncheon speaking notes development, and onsite interview support) in order to ensure that each and every media opportunity was maximized through effective message delivery.

Of the nine seasons Cowan & Company has worked with L’Oréal Paris to promote their involvement with this event, this campaign was the most successful securing 35 media interviews, 33 media in attendance at a ‘sneak peek’ media luncheon on the opening day of L’Oréal Fashion Week – ultimately resulting in L’Oréal Paris spokespeople quoted/mentioned in more than 37 media clips, generating more than 17 million impressions (including the long lead coverage that appeared after the event but was not included in the attached short-lead media reports completed a month after the event).

Below is an outline of the key elements of the media relations campaign for L’Oréal Fashion Week.

Implementation: Media Luncheon – Timeless SeductionTo launch and generate increased interest for this season’s media relations campaign, Cowan & Company and L’Oréal Paris planned, coordinated and managed the first-ever L’Oréal Paris media luncheon prior to the official start of L’Oréal Fashion Week. The luncheon was scheduled on March 13 and was themed around L’Oréal Paris’ Fall 2007 collection, Timeless Seduction – which would be the corresponding beauty look to the fashion designs seen on the runway that week. The lunch, held at the chic George restaurant in Toronto, featured engaging presentations by L’Oréal Paris’ Official Makeup Artist, Eddie Maleterre and Eric Del Monaco, Consultant Hair Artist and Colourist.

In addition to providing a fresh point of interest for the media relations campaign, the main objective of the lunch was to provide media with an intimate setting before the hustle and bustle of L’Oréal Fashion Week to provide media with a foundation about L’Oréal Paris’ predicted fall trends and products before seeing the runway shows and conducting their backstage interviews. During the lunch Eddie and Eric showcased the new Fall Timeless Seduction collection, as well as unveiling images taken at a special photo session led by the artists prior to the lunch depicting their ‘artistic’ and ‘urban’ visions inspired by Timeless Seduction and featuring three different types of seductresses – Miss Demure, Miss Rebellious and Miss Provocative.

The luncheon was a tremendous success as 33 media attended the lunch in total. At the lunch we conducted an exclusive interview with Canadian Press which resulted in the story being picked up by at least 9 newspapers across Canada and featuring insight from Eddie and Eric how everyday women can translate the high fashion beauty looks of the runway into their own looks.

Implementation: Story Idea Development & Media PitchingPrior to the event, Cowan & Company developed numerous exclusive story ideas to target specific beauty and lifestyle media to secure one-on-one interviews backstage during L’Oréal Fashion Week with Eddie Maleterre and Eric Del Monaco. Cowan & Company secured five exclusive opportunities with short- and long-lead media including Canadian Press, Canadian Living, Elle Canada, FASHION Magazine, and Flare Magazine.

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Exclusive interviews/media opportunities secured included: • Demystifying the High Fashion Beauty Looks of the Runway into Everyday Living. Eddie and

Eric discussed how everyday women can translate the exaggerated – but beautiful - high fashion makeup and hair looks as see on the runway into their everyday looks. (Canadian Press and Canadian Living).

• The Look of Fashion – Fashion Magazine co-created a beauty look for a designer’s runway show alongside Eddie, Eric and the designer. (Fashion Magazine).

• The Look of Fall Femininity – Identifying specific designer beauty looks that illustrate the different levels of femininity in women. (Flare Magazine)

• Backstage Star – Highlighting the 10th anniversary season for L’Oréal Paris’ Eddie Maleterre as the Artistic Director for L’Oréal Fashion Week and discussing why this Paris-native came to Canada to dominate the runways of this country with L’Oréal Paris. (Elle Canada)

In addition to the exclusives, Cowan & Company developed two standard story ideas to invite media to come backstage and report on L’Oréal Paris’ involvement in the event, and featured them in a media advisory which was distributed via email to the entire list of targeted print, online and broadcast media focusing on beauty, lifestyle and entertainment reporters and editors, to offer one-on-one interviews backstage with L’Oréal Paris’ beauty experts.

In an effort to keep things fresh in order to attract more attention and show the media there were fresh stories to tell about L’Oreal Paris’ involvement, we worked closely with L’Oréal Paris to dramatically change the format of our L’Oréal Fashion Week press kit from past seasons to provide media with an even more visually appealing and comprehensive information kit to spark their interest and visually demonstrate that we had new content to offer. The four-colour, brochure style L’Oréal Fashion Week press kit for fall 2007 was designed to tell a story to media

about the inspiration behind the season’s trends and ‘must-have’ beauty looks as predicted by L’Oréal Paris’ beauty experts. This was a dramatically different look and approach than the simple, illustrated Beauty Snapshots we had created for media for past seasons. The focal point of the new kit was a photo shoot featuring three different models showcasing two different beauty looks, created by L’Oréal Paris beauty experts, including a high fashion beauty look and an everyday streetwear look – to show how consumers can take the look from runway to reality. The kit contained valuable step-by-step information to media on how their readers/viewers/online visitors could achieve the looks, along with recommended L’Oréal Paris beauty products. Cowan & Company interviewed each of the L’Oréal Paris spokespeople to tap into their expertise and find out the inspiration behind these looks and trends for fall 2007 to develop a Q&A for the press kit that spoke to their thoughts and the creative process behind L’Oréal Fashion Week and the development of seasonal makeup and hair trends and colour selection. Included in the kit was also a corporate brand backgrounder and a media advisory highlighting interview opportunities available during the event. The main goal of the press kit was to not only serve as background to media but to also inspire editorial and further showcase the beauty expertise of L’Oréal Paris spokespeople.

Through Cowan & Company’s media relations efforts prior to the event, and with the use of our standard story ideas outlined in the media advisory and sent to media prior to L’Oréal Fashion Week, we secured and scheduled 26 media interviews with print, online and broadcast media with L’Oréal Paris’ beauty experts. Onsite during the week, we were able to secure an additional 9 interview opportunities with both print and broadcast for a total of 35 media interviews conducted by L’Oreal Paris spokespeople throughout the week.


Measuring/EvaluationThe most successful media relations campaign of all L’Oreal Paris’ fashion week campaigns in the past five years, we were successful in achieving all our goals:

Goal: Generate media coverage showcasing L’Oréal’s artistry and products• L’Oréal Paris spokespeople were quoted/mentioned in more than 37 short and long lead media clips,

alone generating more than 17 million impressions• L’Oréal secured strong message penetration in articles where its spokespeople were quoted. Of the

32 short-lead articles that featured L’Oréal Paris spokesperson mentions/quotes, the message about L’Oréal working with the designers to create the runway beauty looks was picked up (in some form) in approximately 26 articles

Goal: Personify the brand by creating a Canadian face• Of the non-designers quoted in the media coverage for the overall event, L’Oreal Paris’ spokespeople

were among the most frequently quoted with more than 28 quotes/mentions of Eddie and more than 21 quotes/mentions for Eric in the short-lead print coverage. (Note: these stats based on a per article and not per-quote/mention basis) Eddie was quoted in more articles than the event producer!

Goal: Create buzz for L’Oréal Paris’ Fall 2007 collection – Timeless Seduction.• L’Oréal secured strong message penetration in articles where its spokespeople were quoted. Of the 32

short-lead articles that featured L’Oréal Paris spokesperson mentions/quotes, the message about L’Oréal Paris’ new Timeless Seduction collection/metallic trend for Fall 2007 was picked up in approximately 19 articles.

Goal: Generate brand penetration in overall event media coverage• Through its title sponsorship, more than 50 million impressions were generated for L’Oréal in total

through media coverage resulting from L’Oréal Paris’ involvement in L’Oréal Fashion Week (including short lead and long lead media). L’Oréal’s brand penetration in the overall event coverage was 82% - which is the same brand penetration as the previous season (Spring 2007) but significantly higher than the 73% brand penetration achieved in the media coverage from the event in Fall 2006.

The Brand Communications Manager for L’Oréal Paris, Anik Gagnon, complimented the team’s work in creating innovative media pitches saying: “Your work with magazines in tremendously amazing! It’s the best I have ever seen. The twist of the stories, the presence of the brand, it is excellent.”

L’Oréal Paris’ innovative integrated approach to sponsorship activation was successful in extending the reach and ROI from this event – reaching more than 17 million consumers across Canada with its fashion messages through the resulting media coverage alone. This campaign succeeded in meeting all of its objectives, and proves that fresh thinking and creative execution can generate exceptional media coverage for event sponsorships – even on their ninth incarnation!

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Media Relations up to 50K – Award of ExcellenceEntrant’s Name: Kerry Gaetano, Matt Gierasimczuk, Margie McNeil, Carina RuasOrganization’s Name: RBC InsuranceDivision: Division 1, Communication Management Category: Category 3a, Media Relations with budget up to $50KTitle of Entry: RBC Insurance Survey Media Relations CampaignTime Period of Project: July 2007 to December 2007Brief Description: This entry covers the 2007 RBC Insurance Survey media Relations Campaign, which was part of a multi-faceted strategic program to build consumer awareness of the products and services offered by RBC Insurance.

Business Need/OpportunityIn 2007, RBC Insurance broadened its business strategy to increase sales in direct to consumer distribution channels, including retail insurance branches, call centres and online sales. This innovative ‘call, click or visit’ strategy marked an important evolution in our business strategy as RBC Insurance products and services were traditionally sold through third parties, including insurance brokers and travel agents.

Despite being the insurance operation of RBC Financial Group, RBC Insurance is not the largest insurer in the industry, nor do we have the consumer awareness of some of our competitors. In fact, 2006 proprietary research showed that RBC Insurance was not on the shopping list when it came to individual insurance needs, with overall unaided awareness of RBC specific insurance products being very low (below 10%). Additionally, RBC Insurance is not able to offer or promote its products or services through RBC Royal Bank branches because of the Canadian Bank Act, which restricts the sale of insurance in bank branches to a limited selection of authorized insurance products.

With this evolution in business strategy, the communication department shifted its focus from trade media to consumer media. The team expanded its media strategy to reach a broader consumer audience, build consumer awareness of RBC Insurance’s product base through increased media coverage and ultimately drive sales, with a particular emphasis on direct distribution channels.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectThe RBC Insurance communications team was responsible for developing and conducting the media relations campaign. Kerry Gaetano provided strategic oversight, alignment with key business strategies and executive counsel. Margie McNeil led the integration of our survey results into marketing collateral and paid PR material including print matte stories and radio news releases. Matt Gierasimczuk provided expertise on news release development and managed regional public relations activities. Carine Ruas was responsible for media analysis, tracking, measurement, project co-ordination and media pitching.

Intended AudienceWe targeted consumers who would purchase home, auto, travel and life insurance products through direct distribution channels, either through retail insurance branches or online. Following are the audience demographics for each area:

Home and auto insurance• Adults aged 30 to 55 with 10 + years driving and a household income of $50,000 plus. Consumers in

this demographic have multiple insurance needs – such as for mortgages, cars and second properties.Travel• Families and cross-border shoppers who take multiple trips each year to international and US

destinations. Research shows these groups often mistakenly believe they have adequate coverage through credit cards or employee benefits, and may not be aware of the ability to purchase insurance directly from RBC Insurance.


Life• Families with less than $75,000 of household income, who have mortgages and other loan obligations

and might be underserved by traditional broker-financial advisor channels. Industry research has shown that life insurance is not top of mind with this group as many believe they can’t afford it or already have enough coverage at work.

Goals and Objectives• Objective: Impact business results in direct to consumer channels – with a particular focus on ‘call, click

or visit’ channels i.e. retail insurance branch product sales, calls to the home and auto contact centre and online travel insurances sales – as a result of the media relations campaign.

Goals/measures:- Achieve a 15% increase in insurance branch product sales for the campaign period (July –

December 2007) vs. July – December 2006.- Achieve a 5% increase in calls to the home and auto contact centre for the campaign period (July

– December 2007) vs. July – December 2006.- Achieve a 25% year-over-year increase in direct travel insurance sales for the campaign period

(July – December 2007) vs. July – December 2006.

Note: goals/measures were based on business plans, which reflected market conditions, competition, business enhancements and market maturity.

• Objective: Enhance national consumer awareness of RBC Insurance products and services through increased consumer media coverage across all areas of the business.

Goals/measures:- Generate at least 100 media impressions in online and consumer publications, as well as a

minimum of 25 broadcasts on radio and cable television during the campaign period (July – December 2007).

- Attain a total editorial value of $500,000 for this campaign.- Generate a national audience reach of 25 million.

• Objective: Increase awareness of RBC Insurance’s products and services by driving traffic to www.rbcinsurance.com

Goal/measure:- Accomplish a 10% year-over-year increase in RBC Insurance web site visits for the campaign

period (July – December 2007) compared to the same period in 2006.

Solution Overview

ResearchResearch was a key component of this campaign. In May 2007, RBC Insurance engaged Ipsos Reid, a leading market research company, to help develop a survey that would provide insight on consumer awareness and understanding of different types of insurance products. We surveyed 2,000 Canadians (in our target audiences) as it was imperative to have a statistically relevant sample size that would allow us to use the results with regional consumer and media audiences.

Key finding included:• One in four (23%) of insured Canadians regularly review their insurance needs without prompting.• One-third (33%) of Canadians don’t know if they have the right amount or type of insurance.

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StrategyIn order to increase consumer awareness of our insurance products, we needed to first address the key findings of our research. Our research indicated that most consumers do not fully understand the various types of insurance and how insurance can impact their finances. Our strategy was to provide interesting and vital insurance information through an integrated educational campaign to:• Educate Canadians about the importance of insurance to a complete financial plan.• Provide them with a better understanding of the various types of insurance and issues around insurance.• Help them make well-informed decisions regarding their insurance needs.

The goal was to get consumers to consider RBC Insurance products and services.


ImplementationOur tactics needed to centre on providing information about various types of insurance coverage, particularly home, auto, travel and life insurance. Ultimately, we needed topics that would resonate with our target audiences.

The implementation focused on three key areas:• Strategically timed news releases• Print matte stories and radio news releases• Leveraging paid activities

Four unique consumer-friendly news release waves were planned to coincide with key seasonal trends and market occurrences:• Family travel – focused on summer travellers and profiling travel and auto insurance – July 16, 2007

– “Canadians on holiday may not be prepared for perils on the road”.• Students going back to school – geared towards parents with children going away to school

– highlighting home and auto insurance – August 14, 2007 – “Reality bites: timely tips for parents of campus-bound students, from RBC Insurance”.

• Avoiding medical check-ups – focused on the need for a regular medical physical and also referenced our life insurance products. This piece was sent toward the end of the year to allow for an opportunity as a New Year’s resolution story pitch. It was sent October 29, 2007 – “Canadians not checking in for check-ups: RBC Insurance”.

• Cross-border shopping – geared towards Canadians going to the U.S. in advance of American Thanksgiving and around the same time as the Canadian dollar was reaching a record high. The release was sent November 15, 2007, the week before the holiday and highlighted our home and auto and travel insurance business lines – “U.S. bargain-hunting could be costly without travel insurance”.

Partner with a news distribution service to develop print and broadcast matte stories• We worked with News Canada, a media placement service, to integrate survey stats in print matte

articles and radio news releases. We completed seven print matte stories, covering a range of travel, home, auto, life and general insurance planning topics. We also produced two radio news releases, profiling the need for travel insurance.

• This strategy provided an opportunity to reach smaller publications in key target markets across Canada and also offered a low cost, effective alternative to traditional advertising and other marketing tactics.

Leverage paid advertising opportunities by negotiating by-lined editorials• It was also important to leverage paid advertising by securing as much unpaid editorial space as

possible.• A key success included a Globe and Mail national by-lined article by RBC Insurance President and CEO,

Neil Skelding, located within its annual special insurance section.• We were also able to maintain strong editorial coverage in trade publications based on our ongoing

advertising buys in trade media.


Challenges• Development of questionnaire – It was not only difficult to accommodate all areas of business

through this process, but based on prior research, we knew that consumers do not clearly understand insurance terms nor do they view insurance products as separate purchases. It was a significant challenge to draft questions that clearly explained the different types of insurance, while using simple, non-industry specific terms and not focusing entirely on insurance products.

• No immediate ‘wow factors’ from the survey results and limited customer appeal – Our initial survey report did no yield as much interesting or newsworthy information as we would have hoped. This customized survey was expensive and there was a strong expectation from our internal clients that we generate good return on investment through positive media coverage. This communications team went through the detailed findings around each question to pull out the ‘hidden gems’ that formed the basis for our extremely successful media campaign and develop articles to spark consumer media interest.

• Dealing with survey ‘overkill’ – Surveys have become a very popular media relations tool, which has resulted in reporters being inundated with survey results. We needed to find unique and interesting opportunities to present our stats to reporters and ensure that they at least took the time to review our materials.

BudgetThe cost for the Ipsos Reid research came from our business partners’ budget. The communications team had a budget of $30,000 to cover media activity costs. With a limited budget, we needed to maximize our paid public relations activities by focusing on initiatives that would provide good return on investment. Our paid communications activities came in on budget. All other media relations activities were unpaid and handled by the internal RBC Insurance communications team.

Measurement/EvaluationThe 2007 consumer media relations campaign greatly exceeded our goals and represented a significant increase in the amount of media coverage over the previous year. This integrated campaign also continued to generate media coverage into 2008. We engaged the services of an external media measurement firm to assist with media evaluation.

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Media coverage highlights included:

“Many Canadian families travel without insurance: study” – City News at Six, Toronto, July 16, 2007“Travel Insurance” – CFRB-AM Radio, July 24, 2007“Your smartest cross-border-shopping buy? Travel medical insurance” – Globe and Mail, November 20, 2007“We avoid medicals, poll says” – Regina Leader Post, October 31, 2007

Objective Goals Results• Impact business results

in direct to consumer channels – with a particular focus on direct distribution ‘call, click or visit’ channels i.e. retail insurance branch product sales, calls to the home and auto contact centre and online travel insurances sales – as a result of the media relations campaign.

• Achieve a 15% increase in insurance branch product sales for the campaign period (July – December 2007) vs. July – December 2006.

• Achieve a 5% increase in calls to the home and auto contact centre for the campaign period (July – December 2007) vs. July – December 2006.

• Achieve a 25% year-over-year increase in direct travel insurance sales for the campaign period (July – December 2007) vs. July – December 2006.

• Retail insurance branch sales increased 27% during the campaign period (July – December 2007) vs. July – December 2006.

• Calls to the home and auto contact centre increased 12.5% during the campaign period (July – December 2007) vs. July – December 2006.

• Direct travel insurance sales increased 62% in July – December 2007 vs. the same period in 2006.

• Enhance national consumer awareness of RBC Insurance products and services through increased consumer media coverage across all areas of the business.

• Generate at least 100 media impressions in online and consumer publications, as well as a minimum of 25 broadcasts on radio and cable television during the campaign period (July – December 2007).

• Attain a total editorial value of $500,000 for this campaign.

• Generate a national audience reach of 25 million.

• Secured 149 total impressions in online and consumer publications across Canada, in addition to 74 broadcasts on radio and television.

• Generated over $1.7 million in total editorial value for this campaign.

• Attained a total national audience reach of over 139 million.

• Increase awareness of RBC Insurance’s products and services by driving traffic to www.rbcinsurance.com

• Accomplish a 10% year-over-year increase in RBC Insurance web site visits for the campaign period (July – December 2007) compared to the same period in 2006.

• Website traffic to the RBC Insurance webpage increased by 28% for the campaign period vs. the same period in 2006.

Significant return on investmentThe campaign resulted in over $1.7 million of earned media, which represented a significant return on investment for our $30,000 media relations spend.


Media Relations up to 50K – Award of MeritEntrant’s Name & Organization: Cathy Cowan, Cowan & Company Client’s Organization: The Licensing Shop Division/Category: 3a: Media Relations with a Budget up to $50KTitle of Entry: Pokémon Peaks AgainTime Period of Project: September – November 2007

Business Need/OpportunityAfter several retailers told The Licensing Shop, the licensing agency for Pokémon in Canada, that they were reluctant to buy Pokémon merchandise because they questioned its popularity, The Licensing Shop knew they needed to proactively change public perception in order to resurrect the brand and revenues in Canada.

The fact that the brand was currently doing exceptionally well in the United States and other international markets pointed to unrealized potential and revenues for Pokémon merchandise in the Canadian market. With anecdotal research pointing to approximately 80% of Canadians believing that the Pokémon brand was dead, The Licensing Shop was facing an uphill battle to change public perception and convert the naysayers into believing in Pokémon Pandemonium once again.

Entrant’s Role in Project • Nancy Fowler, The Licensing Shop – Strategic Direction• Stephen Fowler, The Licensing Shop – Strategic Direction• Cathy Cowan, Cowan & Company – Project manager, strategic counsel and planning, writing and

editing campaign materials. • Katherine Clark, Cowan & Company – Media relations including strategic planning, strategic counsel,

development of story ideas, conducting outreach, and development of media kit materials.• Sonja Andic, Cowan & Company – Media Relations outreach, demo pool management, account

administration.• Julie Leblanc, Cowan & Company/Girafe Communications – Media Relations outreach with Quebec

media.

Intended AudienceLeverage the media as a conduit to the following audiences:• Retail Buyers• Consumers – parents, grandparents and gift givers who largely believed the Pokémon brand to be dead

in Canada.

Objectives*• Create word of mouth buzz about the resurgence of Pokémon’s popularity. • Generate positive media coverage for the Pokémon brand to re-establish Pokémon as the hottest brand

for children.• Drive sales of all Pokémon branded products during the Fall/Holiday 2007 season.• Build sales and momentum for a red-hot 2008.*Please refer to page 3 for detailed overview and metrics associated with these objectives.

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Solution OverviewThe national media relations campaign focused on two key elements: Ø A news release announcing ‘Pokémon Pandemonium’ to address Pokémon naysayers head on. The

news release and a supporting Quote Sheet were designed to educate media about the Pokémon brand resurgence with quotes, stats and facts from a range of licensees and organizations involved with Pokémon in Canada to provide third-party credibility to the brand’s comeback.

Ø Secondly, once Pokémon’s resurgence had been documented in the news release to provide credibility and an interesting story for editors, a Holiday Gift Guide media advisory was created to pitch Pokémon toys for inclusion in Holiday Gift Guides to directly increase sales of Pokémon brand and products. We believed that the Holiday Gift Guides provided a perfect vehicle for profiling Pokémon merchandise and providing endorsement and credibility for the renewed popularity of the brand. The toys featured were selected based on price range, targeted age group, and visual appeal. To support the Gift Guide campaign, we coordinated a product demo pool of these key toys and pitched and sent Pokémon products to media to test and/or photograph for their Gift Guides as required.

Aggressive media relations was initiated in both phases of this campaign to create awareness of the message with the intention that once media knew about Pokémon’s incredible comeback story and renewed popularity they would be more likely to feature Pokémon products in their coveted Gift Guide features.

Implementation & ChallengesOne of the key challenges to the campaign was the lack of hard news to use as the basis for the media relations campaign which required ingenuity in order to create media interest and coverage without a specific “hard news” story.

Timing was a key constraint. As campaign work started in September, therefore missing the long-lead media gift guide deadlines and providing only a few weeks to prepare campaign materials in order to meet short-lead Gift Guide deadlines starting in late September. Because of timelines and budget constraints, efforts were focused on short-lead print media where we believed our story had the greatest shot at being picked up.

Working with seven licensees/companies in preparing the News Release and Quote Sheet under these tight timelines was also challenging as it created a prolonged approval cycle resulting in the release going out later than planned or desired. In the end we had to send out some of our Holiday Gift Guide pitches before the News Release went out so that we wouldn’t miss their deadlines – which was not ideal as it didn’t have the full impact with editors as if they understood the brand’s resurgence in advance of receiving the media advisory.

In addition to the tight timelines, the $20,000 budget ($15,000 in fees and $5,000 in out-of-pocket expenses) was also a constraint resulting in the campaign focus on targeted media relations with short-lead print media - and not employing any other communications tools to support the message.

Measuring/EvaluationFollowing please find a detailed analysis of this campaign’s results measured against the original objectives and metrics developed for this campaign:


Evaluation: Original Campaign Quantitative and Qualitative Objectives

Achieved Original Campaign Objective

Evaluation Details

√ Generate 10 million earned media impressions for campaign.

Reaching our stretch target, we were successful in generating more than 30 articles and more than 10 million impressions through this campaign.

√ Generate Pokémon media coverage with key media across Canada.

The campaign was successful in generating media coverage in most provinces and from coast-to-coast from Kelowna, British Columbia to Corner Brook, Newfoundland. Despite tight lead times, coverage was also secured in several national magazines including The Magazine, Tribute, Kidscreen and Famous Kids.

√ Drive store sell-thru for Holiday 2007.

During the time that Pokémon was featured in the gift guides, sales for Pokémon general merchandise increased threefold compared to the year before.

√ Generate media coverage and momentum that connects with key buyers – which will be reflected by orders for Spring 2008 as well as anecdotal comments.

The campaign successfully helped generate and increase orders. In fact, when one of the Canadian apparel licensees showed a major Canadian retailer the extensive media coverage demonstrating the renewed popularity of Pokémon, the retailer signed an order on the spot – giving the licensee a larger and more prominent location than in the past.

√ Secure key message penetration in at least 70 per cent of media coverage.

By reflection of the Gift Guide media opportunities primarily pursued for this campaign, 100% of media coverage directly or indirectly spoke to our key message that Pokémon is hot again. For example, some of the headlines generated by this campaign included: “Pokémon Pandemonium is hot again”, “Pokémon Toys Back” and “Retro Toys like Pokémon, Spiderman and Transformers Popular Once Again.”

√ Re-establish media relationships to set the stage for red-hot Spring 2008 for Pokémon.

More than 200 media were contacted during this campaign, and many were surprised to learn that the Pokémon brand was making a comeback. This contact will help lay the foundation for future communications about Pokémon in 2008.

√ Harness the power of individual Pokémon licensees in developing the campaign and creating momentum for future work together.

While challenging to secure feedback and approvals from the seven parties involved with the news release and quote sheet, the results of the campaign were very impressive and demonstrated the rewards that can be had when everyone with a common interest works together.

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As further proof of the success of the campaign, below please find some highlights of the media coverage demonstrating acceptance of our “Pokémon is hot again” message:

• “Now ranked in Top 5 action figures brands, Pokémon, the global pop culture phenomenon that created a frenzy when it hit Canada in 1998, is back, and it’s resurging with significant speed, with a new generation of fans.”

The Edmonton Sun, November 21, 2007

• “Pokémon popularity has resurged at a speed that has caught the attention of retailers, parents and children alike.”

The Windsor Star, November 21, 2007

• “Pokémania” headline on Kidscreen.com, November 1, 2007

• “If early sales and schoolyard banter are indicators, Pokémon toys will be under every Christmas tree and stuffed into every sock this year”

Toronto Star, November 22, 2007

• “Everything old is new again. Retro toys like Pokémon, Spider-Man and Transformers are back and a new generation of children is playing with them.”

Kitchener Record, December 13, 2007

In the words of The Licensing Shop’s Chief Strategist, Nancy Fowler: “…(Cowan & Company) immediately understood our business and were able to hit the ground running, quickly developing and implementing a campaign to promote Pokémon’s resurgence in popularity. Their fast action, smart-thinking and meticulous execution played a key role in making Pokémon one of the hot toys of Holiday 2007 – as clearly demonstrated by the exceptional Holiday Gift Guide coverage and more than 10 million on-message impressions their initiatives generated. In fact, the campaign was so successful that during the time Pokémon was featured in the gift guides, sales for Pokémon general merchandise increased threefold compared to the year before.”

In summary, the Pokémon campaign was extremely successful in achieving and exceeding its objectives. It is a testament to the exceptional business results that can be achieved through media relations. The Pokémon media relations initiatives enabled the campaign to achieve an impressive reach and credibility in communicating and demonstrating the ‘Pokémon is hot again’ message, in addition to helping to increase sales which would have been impossible to achieve through pure advertising/paid-media tactics within the campaign’s budget.


Media Relations up to 50K – Award of MeritEntrant’s Names: Julie Rusciolelli, Geoffrey Morgan, Annette Robertson, MAVERICK PR;

Serena Quaglia (client)Organization’s Name:

MAVERICK Public Relations Inc.

Division/Category: Communication Management, Category 3a: Media Relations with budget up to $50K

Title of Entry: Downtown Markham Launch: “A Sustainable Path to Prosperity”Time Period of Project:

April – November 2006

Brief Description: A PR campaign to launch North America’s largest mixed-use, LEED-registered development, drive sales locally and build The Remington Group’s environmental thought leadership nationally. The campaign also had to address Downtown Markham’s comparatively high prices by explaining the project’s sophisticated environmental design and positioning it as a luxury residence in the suburbs to potential buyers.

Business Need/OpportunityDowntown Markham is the most ambitious development in The Remington Group’s 60-year history. The $3-billion, 98 hectare, 20-year development is not only Canada’s first master planned community in more than fifty years, but also North America’s largest mixed-use, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) project. The Remington Group spent nearly ten years planning Downtown Markham by researching major European cities and understanding how its live-work-and-play model could be exported to Canada. The developer invited municipal and provincial governments as well as environmental advocates to participate in its planning process to ensure its mixed-use, environmental vision was sound. Downtown Markham also had the distinction of being Remington’s first condominium development. Until this project, the company had been best known for its suburban single-family dwellings.

Downtown Markham therefore presented a major business opportunity for the developer to expand its real estate capabilities into the lucrative condo market and position itself as a thought leader in sustainable development. But Downtown Markham also required considerable financial commitment and was fraught with significant financial risk. The Remington Group faced stiff competition for residential buyers from long-standing, traditional condominium developers such as Tridel and other less expensive developments just west of Downtown Markham’s Warden Avenue boundary. Ongoing development of any project is dependent upon capital financing, and The Remington Group needed to sell Phase One of the Rouge Bijou condominium development to fund further development. Sale of the first phase’s 193 units would eventually fund Phase Two; sales from Phase Two would fund Phases Three and Four, and so on. In order to sell Phase One, Downtown Markham needed to build its profile and stand out from the competition in a cluttered and competitive market.

This profile also had to justify Downtown Markham’s investment value to home buyers. At $350 per square foot, Rouge Bijou’s condominiums and town houses were more expensive than the competitor’s equivalent condominiums in the surrounding area, which sold for $250 - $300 per square foot. The appeal of the Remington Group’s condos was further challenged by their close proximity to the 407 highway.

A successful launch of Downtown Markham would elevate The Remington Group’s corporate reputation from suburban residential developer to an innovative builder of luxury, environmentally friendly homes. Moreover, Downtown Markham was Remington’s chance to redefine the North American suburban living experience and lead the new urbanism movement in not only the GTA, but Canada.

Having invested so much time, money and reputational stake into this project, it was crucial for The Remington Group to drive sales of Rouge Bijou so that it could parlay that success into the rest of the Downtown Markham development. Relying solely on traditional real estate marketing would not be enough. The Remington Group understood that advertising alone was insufficient to generate sales given Downtown Markham’s competition and intricate environmental story. The developer determined that a full scale public relations campaign was needed to generate the sales momentum crucial to the development’s realization.

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Entrant’s Role in the ProjectRemington Group hired MAVERICK PR to launch Downtown Markham and generate significant pre-sale interest in Rouge Bijou. MAVERICK President Julie Rusciolelli was responsible for communications strategy, media training and senior counsel; Account Supervisor Geoffrey Morgan created media materials and managed media relations strategy and execution; Account Coordinator Annette Robertson managed media monitoring and evaluation; and client Serena Quaglia was the project manager. MAVERICK also worked closely with the client’s advertising agency and real estate broker to execute the launch, broker event and related media relations campaign.

Intended AudiencesThe Remington Group property is sold to residential buyers through real estate broker channels:• Primary - Commercial and residential real estate brokers; specifically those located in the Markham,

Ontario area.• Secondary - Age 50+ couples looking to downsize from current homes of 2,500-3,000 sq/ft size; age

25+ young urban professionals, male and female, working in Markham’s Silicon Valley North• Influencer audience - Online, print and broadcast media as a conduit to governmental and

environmental stakeholders:- Consumer/lifestyle, homes/real estate, environmental, architectural and business editors and

reporters at the Toronto Star and Canada’s two national daily papers, the Globe and Mail and National Post.

- Real estate trade publication editors and reporters.- Ethnic media in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).- Broadcast media outlets within the GTA.- Real estate blogs and online media.

Goals/ObjectivesCommunications Goals• Create immediate awareness of Downtown Markham and its unique green-urban design vision.• Ensure receipt of key message: “a new type of suburban living, a place to live, work and play, where

residents can ‘settle for everything,’” among intended audience (with outtakes/outcomes).• Neutralize competitors’ lower pricing by explaining that LEED’s higher upfront costs represent a long

term savings investment through energy efficiencies, among other virtues of sustainable building.• Cut through traditional real estate clutter and media fatigue of yet another new condo project by

establishing new urbanism trend and linking this to Downtown Markham’s grander mixed-use vision• Generate significant positive coverage in relevant GTA media, including news coverage in the local real

estate publications; feature articles in the real estate sections of at least three of major daily papers: the Toronto Star, National Post and Globe and Mail.

• Generate media coverage hits at a cost of no more than 10 cents per impression.• Put Remington on the map as a leader in creating “sustainable” living communities

Business Goals• Drive traffic to a pre-sale website, www.downtownmarkham.ca, within one month of initiatives to

encourage potential buyers to pre-register for condominiums. (Note: Pre-sale registrations were sluggish before the PR campaign).

• Sell the Downtown Markham residential properties within a sufficient time to fund Phase Two.• Generate demand for the Rouge Bijou residential properties in Downtown Markham, supporting the

corporate sales goal of selling out Phase One of the residential condominium development.

http://www.downtownmarkham.ca


Solution OverviewAt the outset, MAVERICK conducted primary research to further understand the long-term social and economic vision the Town of Markham had for its centre; the scope of the mixed-use development from a developer’s perspective; and the rationale for Smart Growth Development in the GTA as envisioned by the Government of Ontario. MAVERICK also used this research to determine what set Downtown Markham apart from a potential buyer’s perspective.

MAVERICK conducted in-person and phone interviews with:

• Director of Economic Development, Town of Markham• Vice President of Land Development, Remington Group• CEO of Markham District Energy• President and Director of Sales at Baker Real Estate Corporation

MAVERICK also conducted a competitive analysis of other residential developments in Markham and previous LEED-certified projects. Additionally, MAVERICK conducted significant research into the environmental impact of housing development, and urban sprawl as a social and environmental issue. The Remington Group also did proprietary environmental impact, sustainability and economic research.

Strategy• Leverage media interest in green building and economic development to reach buying audience with

Downtown Markham messages.• Build thought leadership in green development for commercial and residential properties.• Use media as a third-party endorser of green messages: much more credible than delivery through sales

and marketing materials.• Elevate status of Downtown Markham by securing dignitaries and municipal government officials for

launch events.

Tactics• Develop news hooks that are compelling to media, such as density, urban sprawl, green building as an

environmental cause; economic growth in Markham; the economic benefits of green building, and the possibility of urban living in a suburban environment.

• Create media kit materials relating to each issue, including the long-range economic vision of Downtown Markham and the importance of green buildings (see Media Kit tab).

• Secure political and economic dignitaries for June launch at the Downtown Markham build site.

BudgetMAVERICK had a budget of approximately $40,000 to develop and execute the media relations program. This budget included all fees and expenses and had to cover strategic counsel, writing all marketing collateral, key message development and media training, media outreach, monitoring and on-site support.

Implementation and ChallengesImplementation:The Rouge Bijou quality luxury building messages and Downtown Markham quality of life messages were ripe for piquing interest in real estate media. However, to reach homebuyers through business and mainstream media required a stronger thought leadership platform. While the Town of Markham’s economic development messages entice business media, they don’t sell homes.

MAVERICK chose to reach potential buyers by seeding proactive media outreach focused on the value of green building in urban development, and economic and environmental improvements in the Markham region with quality of life in Downtown Markham and quality luxury building of Rouge Bijou messages. This established a sound thought leadership platform from which MAVERICK could pitch multiple angles tailored to diverse media targets.

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Working within the set budget and limited timeframe, MAVERICK:• Generated compelling economic, urban development and green building key messages, and created

pitches and support materials to secure diverse media interest.• Developed key message documents to be used in media and speaking opportunities. • Media trained The Remington Group principals in advance of media outreach campaign, including CEO,

Rudolph Bratty. • Secured interest from business media (non-real estate) with angle of “green” building for commercial

properties as a potential revenue generator. This is particularly noteworthy as mainstream media do not typically cover commercial real estate stories, but important to our strategy to position Remington as a thought leader.

• Built saturation coverage with real estate and lifestyle media in the Greater Toronto Area for Downtown Markham and Rouge Bijou.

• Further elevated buyer interest and overall profile with a high-profile launch event on June 22, 2006, followed by two broker events.

• Completed all activities on time and on budget.

Challenges:1) Short timeline – There were only six weeks from the time MAVERICK was awarded the business to

the launch event and broker sale of Downtown Markham’s first residential properties.2) Tight Budget – MAVERICK had only $40,000 to execute a multi-faceted media relations campaign,

and provide comprehensive PR support including media training and broker event material creation and support.

3) Media News Hook – When MAVERICK won the business, the sale of Rouge Bijou condominiums lacked a compelling news hook. This was potentially a non-story about another developer with yet another suburban development.

4) Competition – At $350 sq/ft, Rouge Bijou is more expensive than the competitor’s condominiums in the surrounding area that sell for $250-$300 sq/ft and hindered by close proximity of Highway 407.

5) Client inexperience with PR – Neither the Remington Group nor Baker Real Estate had experience doing PR or working with a PR agency. MAVERICK needed to educate them as the project progressed and gain sufficient “buy-in” to execute the strategy.

6) Scope Creep – In addition to media relations and event planning, MAVERICK was tasked with multiple last-minute projects, including creating broker sales presentations from scratch and drafting speeches for Remington executives and the brokers participating in the event (see Broker Event tab).

7) Diverse Media Targets – Distinct messages were needed to entice real estate, consumer/lifestyle, environmental and business media.

Measurement/EvaluationMAVERICK far surpassed The Remington Group’s expected results for every objective laid out in business and communications plans:• Coverage exceeded expectations and positioned Downtown Markham as a new, unique community

and Rouge Bijou as desirable residences. Message receipt was demonstrated through website traffic spikes and increased inquiry calls to the sales office.

• Demand for Rouge Bijou condominiums sold out the first day they went on sale and coverage referenced Downtown Markham as a community for sustainable living.


Media coverage outputs, outtakes and outcomes met or surpassed communications objectives:• Total program reach was 31,267,207 impressions from April to November 2006; Downtown Markham

was positively portrayed in two or more feature stories in each of the Toronto Star, National Post and Globe and Mail dailies, in addition to positive features in every real estate publication, and top-tier broadcast, major dailies, ethnic dailies and almost every residential real estate trade publication (see Sample Coverage tab).- Globe and Mail headline mimicked key message: “A project’s bow to the new suburbanism”

• Media hits averaged one cent per impression – much lower than the ten-cent objective. • Traffic was driven to www.downtownmarkham.ca and spiked dramatically each time an article relating to

the development ran in advance of the initial sale, boosting valuable pre-registrations.- There were 800 extra web sign-ups processed alone after the Toronto Star “New in Homes”

feature article ran on June 24, 2006.• The Remington Group is now recognized as an innovative builder with an environmental conscience, and

its executives are regularly interviewed for “green” building articles.• Nearly two years after Downtown Markham’s launch, media coverage continues to appear as a

result of the strong foundation this program laid for Remington. Since launch, Downtown Markham has garnered more than 51 million impressions and an additional half dozen full length features in mainstream media. Its groundbreaking in May 2007 generated substantial media interest (more than five million impressions) and was attended by two Ontario cabinet ministers in addition to the entire Markham town council. This momentum still shows no signs of flagging, which is extraordinary in the context of traditional real estate coverage.

Sales measurements met or surpassed business objectives:• The first two Rouge Bijou buildings sold out on the very first day they were released to the public.• The second phase, buildings three and four, sold out the first weekend they were offered for sale.• The Remington Group sold more than 90 per cent of its 431 Rouge Bijou condominiums in Downtown

Markham in only four months and generated revenue in excess of $100 million.• These sales funded accelerated plans for Phases Three and Four, far ahead of original projections

and has shortened Downtown Markham’s overall timelines substantially.• Rouge Bijou was Remington’s very first condo, and its success has allowed the developer to expand

development activity from GTA to Toronto. Remington is now on its seventh condo in Downtown Markham, and about to build its first in Toronto.

Client feedback:“Not in the history of Remington have we sold out properties this fast. We couldn’t keep up with the land permits….it happened so fast!” - Serena Quaglia, The Remington Group

http://www.downtownmarkham.ca

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Media Relations 51K to 100K – Award of ExcellenceENTRANT’S NAME: Martine Lévy, Managing Director, DDB Public RelationsORGANIZATION’S NAME: DDB Public Relations on behalf of the Ontario Science CentreDIVISION/CATEGORY/SUB-CATEGORY: Division 1: Communication Management, Category 3: Media Relations, Sub-Category 3b: Media Relations with budget from greater than $50K to $100KTITLE OF ENTRY: Ontario Science Centre Presents…TITANIC: The Artifact ExhibitionTIME PERIOD OF PROJECT: January 2007 to February 2008BRIEF DESCRIPTION: Ontario Science Centre Presents…TITANIC: The Artifact Exhibition is a public and media relations program conceived, designed and executed by DDB Public Relations to launch this unique exhibition in Toronto via maximum editorial coverage and direct-to-consumer channels. Through our creative and innovative PR programming and approach, DDB PR helped the Ontario Science Centre (OSC) to build awareness of the exhibition and encourage increased ticket sales and attendance among the OSC’s core and loyal audiences as well as with new target audiences.

Business Need/OpportunityThe Ontario Science Centre (OSC) was hosting TITANIC: The Artifact Exhibition from June 2007 to January 2008 (due to the exhibition’s great success, it has now been extended to March 2008). This world-famous exhibition had already been produced successfully at nine international locations and 20 cities across the United States. It used cutting-edge technology, featured authentic room recreations and offered stunning full-scale dramatic installations that gave visitors a chance to emotionally experience an historic moment – making them feel as though they were actually part of the TITANIC maiden voyage and adventure. The highly popular documentary IMAX film TITANICA was also going to run concurrent to the exhibition. The OSC retained DDB Public Relations (DDB PR) to conceive and implement a creative, strategic media relations program that would generate excellent editorial publicity of this exhibit over the full course of its run. The program would also have to support the Centre’s ongoing Agents of Change initiative to position OSC as the public centre for innovative thinking, creativity and collaboration in science and technology.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectPenny Savoie, Account Manager, DDB Public Relations and Emily Ward, Consultant, DDB Public Relations were both equally and integrally involved in every aspect of the 2007/2008 Ontario Science Centre media relations program for TITANIC: The Artifact Exhibition. Their roles included, but were not limited to: research, strategy, budget and program development; event planning and coordination; on-site media and client liaison at events; writing and development of all communications materials; media training of key spokespeople; media relations; team leadership; and day-to-day project management and client liaison to bring this media relations program to life. Martine Lévy, Managing Director, DDB Public Relations, was responsible for senior level strategic counsel and expertise on the program to guide the team (Penny Savoie and Emily Ward) in leading the day-to-day project management and program implementation.

Intended Audience(s)This public relations program was designed to use media relations as a strategic communications vehicle to reach the OSC’s target visitor audience. The OSC’s visitor audience profile was defined as: • 40:60 male/female ratio• Parents aged 25-45 with children from 5-12 years of age• Young single men and women• An older demographic of couples without children• History and arts/culture aficionados• Ethnic communities with an emphasis on the Chinese community

DDB PR targeted its public relations efforts to media who communicated directly with the target visitor audience. Accordingly, the primary target media included those serving the Greater Toronto Area and Southwestern Ontario. Media outlets included: daily, community and regional newspapers (e.g., Toronto Star, 24 Hours, Town Crier Newspapers, etc.), broadcast shows (e.g. CP24 News, Breakfast TV, Global News, Daily Planet on CTV, CFRB, Proud FM, etc.), key online portals (e.g. canoe.ca, insidetoronto.com, canada.com, where.ca, etc.), magazines (Today’s Parent, City Parent, etc.), ethnic media (e.g. Sing


Tao, Ming Pao, Fair Child TV, etc.), social media outlets and blogs, and podcasts (e.g. YouTube, blogs on blogspot.com, Facebook, etc.). Media beats that were covered in this public relations program included: news/business, women’s/lifestyle, city, parenting/family, travel/culture/history, science, and government.

Goals/Objectives• A number of quantifiable objectives were set out by DDB PR as part of the planning process for this

program: - Using the Media Relations Rating Points (MRP) evaluation system, the total audience reach

should be at least: 10,000,000, and the cost-per-contact should be less than $0.009- Under the Media Relations Rating Points (MRP) evaluation system, the rating criteria was pre-

determined to include: 1) OSC mention, 2) photo/image inclusion, 3) key message inclusion, 4) headline/newscast positioning, 5) call to action inclusion; the target MPR score was set at 75 per cent or higher

- The media relations program would also be deemed a success if visitor numbers to the exhibition reached at least 90,000 by January 2008 (to indicate that the editorial publicity assisted the integrated marketing campaign in attracting visitors to the exhibition)

Solution Overview• Research: DDB Public Relations used a number of research tools to collect background information,

gather stakeholder and general public insights, and leverage key learnings from previous TITANIC exhibition showings to build a sound, strategic media relations program for the OSC. Research efforts included:- A thorough audit of local, national and international editorial coverage on TITANIC: The Artifact

Exhibition and other similar exhibitions, the Ontario Science Centre and other like-minded agencies, general topics of interest related to the TITANIC, the science of artifact preservation, etc.

- An audit of various relevant social media outlets, blogs and podcasts – to capture a snapshot of the on-topic dialogue taking place within the public domain, and among OSC stakeholders

- Detailed consultations with Lowell Lytle, Dive Recovery Specialist, and Conservationist, Fiona Graham, from Premier Exhibitions, Inc., a division of RMS Titanic Inc., the company that developed this exhibition – to translate their experience and learnings into this upcoming public relations program

- Interviews with relevant professional experts and interest groups including: Kim Adlard, Development Officer, Heritage Toronto; Stephen Low, Director of the IMAX film TITANICA; Canadian TITANIC Society; teachers from the Toronto District School Board, etc.

Based on DDB PR’s research findings, we developed an overarching campaign theme for the media relations program: “Science Reveals the Stories”. Strategically, DDB PR had to create multiple newsworthy initiatives in order to sustain editorial publicity throughout the exhibition’s 14-month run. This also meant the program would have to outreach to the same media outlets several times to generate different stories and coverage of the same exhibition. Accordingly, the program built editorial coverage and buzz by leveraging the 95th anniversary of TITANIC’s maiden voyage on April 10 for a Media Teaser Event (see tab in Work Sample). An exclusive Media Preview Event (see tab in Work Sample) was then held on May 29 once the complete exhibition and artifacts were set up in their entirety. A sustaining campaign then included media relations outreach to support the first annual Innovators Ball - a TITANIC-themed fundraising event gala in support of the OSC (see tab in Work Sample) -, a contest to search for Descendents in Toronto who had a connection to the TITANIC (see tab in Work Sample), a Holiday Gift Guide program (see tab in Work Sample), a January ceremony to celebrate the induction of some new Toronto-based artifacts into the exhibition (see tab in Work Sample), and a Family Day media event leading up to February 18, 2008 (see tab in Work Sample).

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• Public Relations Program Tactics

- April Media Teaser Event: On April 10, the 95th anniversary date of the maiden voyage of the TITANIC, DDB PR held a Media Teaser Event at the Ontario Science Centre. The event was designed to have the media announce the upcoming exhibition and to promote advance ticket sales. Media in attendance at the event previewed nine unique artifacts recovered from the Ship’s wreckage and were able to interview John Zaller, Director of Design of the TITANIC exhibition. To build word-of-mouth promotion of the event, opinion makers, influencers and interest groups were also invited such as Heritage Toronto, Underwater Council, diving clubs, etc. This event alone generated over 50 articles and TV and radio interviews for the OSC.

- May Media Preview Event: On May 29, OSC hosted an exclusive Media Preview Event and gave the media their first opportunity to view the complete TITANIC: The Artifact Exhibition in its entirety. Several spokespeople were on hand for interviews to encourage niched editorials including OSC CEO, Leslie Lewis; Dive Recovery Specialist, Lowell Lytle; the exhibition’s education director Cheryl Muré; The Honourable Monte Kwinter, Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services; and, award-winning TITANICA Director, Stephen Low. Over 35 media attended the event and media highlights included: live on-location broadcasts, top-of-the-news features and national coverage on Canada AM.

- Descendant’s Search: A contest to search for descendants in Toronto and across Canada who had a connection to the TITANIC was also undertaken to generate additional editorials of the OSC and the exhibition and resulted in coverage on Global Television’s Global Morning, Town Crier Newspapers and Mirror Newspapers.

- Innovator’s Ball: On Thursday, June 14, more than 1,000 of Toronto’s style-makers and influencers joined together for a night of Edwardian glitz and glamour at the OSC’s first annual Innovator’s Ball. Proceeds raised from the gala event fundraiser went towards continuing to keep the OSC affordable and accessible to all members of the community. The inaugural ball launched with a “voyage” on the TITANIC and “passengers” arrived adorned in white ties and tiaras as they were escorted through the evening and exhibition by characters from the Ship’s maiden voyage. DDB PR developed all media materials, facilitated all media relations outreach and conducted all on-site media management to secure media coverage and attendance at the event. This resulted in positive, branded editorial coverage in Society pages of Globe and Mail, National Post, HELLO! and the Toronto Sun.

- Holiday Gift Guide: A holiday gift guide program continued to build awareness of the exhibition in the fall/winter. DDB PR developed a creative news release targeted at media gift guides that featured TITANIC-themed gift ideas from the Ontario Science Centre. Supported with media relations outreach to long and short lead media, the Holiday Gift Guide campaign generated branded media coverage in Movie Entertainment Magazine and METRO.

- New Artifacts Induction Ceremony: In January 2008, DDB PR issued a media advisory and held a photo opportunity where the OSC, in partnership with the Toronto Transit Commission, came together to unveil a new TITANIC artifact and partnership for the New Year. The event marked the induction of 12 Toronto trolley tickets into the exhibition that were found in the depths of the ocean alongside the famous wreckage, and also announced the extension of TITANIC: The Artifact Exhibition through to March 16, 2008. In addition, to mark this special occasion, the OSC and the TTC announced a special promotion for Metropass subscribers whereby by showing their card they could qualify for a 20 per cent discount on TITANIC/OSC combo tickets. The media event generated copious amounts of media attendance and media coverage across all major GTA media outlets, including: 24 Hours Toronto (front page news), METRO Toronto, Toronto Star, National Post, SNAP North Toronto, Ming Pao, CTV Noon News live on location, CBC-TV, Radio-Canada, OMNI-TV, Citytv and CFRB.

- Family Day Media Event: On Tuesday, February 12, 2008, the Ontario Science Centre and the Toronto Public Library, joined together with The Honourable Aileen Carroll, Minister of Culture and more than 30 Grade 5 students from Grenoble Public School to celebrate Family Day (Ontario’s new statutory holiday) and officially kick-off the OSC’s participation in The Sun Life Museum + Arts Pass Program. The program ensures that children and families living in priority neighborhoods have the opportunity to experience the city’s greatest arts and cultural institutions at no cost. Renowned


Canadian children’s author and TITANIC enthusiast, Hugh Brewster, was on hand to share the story of TITANIC with students and guests, one that stemmed from his extensive knowledge of the ill-fated ship and numerous collaborations with famed TITANIC explorer, Robert Ballard. Following the performance, Brewster treated all those in attendance to a guided tour of TITANIC: The Artifact Exhibition. The event generated excellent media attendance and coverage from 24 Hours Toronto, Toronto Community News, Courriere Canadese, Tandem News, Diver Magazine, Inside Toronto, and SNAP North Toronto.

Implementation and ChallengesBudget: The Ontario Science Centre and DDB Public Relations worked with a total budget of $90,000 including both agency fees and disbursements for the complete 14 month-long media relations program. The OSC’s internal media relations team and DDB Public Relations worked in tandem throughout this program in order to leverage efficiencies and maximize resources wherever possible. (PLEASE NOTE: budget figures in this Work Plan were submitted for the purposes of this award entry and have not been released for public broadcast or distribution)

Limitations and Challenges: There were numerous challenges with the task of developing a highly effective media relations program for this exhibit. First, this was not the first run of this exhibition in Toronto. It was also produced in 1999 at the Better Living Building to less than stellar reviews and publicity. Moreover, the admission fee for TITANIC: The Artifact Exhibition was also higher than the average ticket price at the Ontario Science Centre. Secondly, the exhibition was also showing in Victoria, B.C. almost simultaneously from April to October 2007. While the exhibition at the OSC would feature 300 artifacts up-close, only six new pieces had been added from the last expedition to the TITANIC. Furthermore, a crisis communications strategy also needed to be developed in preparation for the launch. Even though the exhibition honoured the true stories of the TITANIC’s passengers and crew with dignity and respect, the OSC needed to manage objections from people who might feel these initiatives disturbed an historic grave-site. DDB PR, again, worked in tandem with the OSC’s media relations team to address the above challenges, implement effective and strategic solutions, leverage efficiencies and maximize resources wherever possible.

Measurement/Evaluation • The editorial coverage that was generated over the course of the 14-month media relations program

far exceeded many pre-set quantifiable objectives. Based on the results from various evaluation tools, the Ontario Science Centre was positioned as an innovative agency with a key leadership profile in the media. Top line results include: - According to the Media Relations Rating Points (MRP) analysis, the total audience reach blew the

program projections out of the water at more than 131 million versus the projected 50 million. Over 300 media hits/stories were recorded with many national features and front page news in publications such as 24 Hours Toronto, Toronto Sun, METRO Toronto, Toronto Star, National Post, Globe and Mail, Ming Pao, Canada AM, Citytv, CTV, Global TV, to name only a few.

- Outreach to the ethnic media proved to be very fruitful with key features in Chinese print and broadcast outlets.

- The subsequent cost-per-contact was far less than originally forcasted: $0.00068 versus $0.009.- With stringent qualitative criteria that included headline/newscast positioning and call to action

mandates, the editorial messaging via a qualitative measurement score was excellent at 77 per cent, surpassing its 75 per cent target.

- Visitor numbers also surpassed the 100,000 mark as of January 2008, again reflecting very positively on the media relations program.

- In order to ensure this program continued to interact with its audiences via two-way communication, visitor satisfaction surveys were also conducted at the OSC and results have indicated that TITANIC: The Artifact Exhibition has received the highest satisfaction rate among all recent exhibitions featured at the OSC – another great reflection on this media relations program’s success.

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Media Relations 51K to 100K – Award of ExcellenceEntrant Name: Mark NuscaOrganization Name: Porter Novelli Canada Division/Category: Communication Management/Media Relations (3b. budget to $100K)Title of entry: Thermablade launches a revolution in hockeyTime period of project: April to December 2007Brief description: Porter Novelli’s PR Program to launch a new Canadian product and brand to the media and to the consumer marketplace with maximum North American exposure.

Business Need/OpportunityCanadian startup company Therma Blade Inc. (TBI) of Quebec approached Porter Novelli Canada in April, 2007 to launch a new Canadian invention – a heated skate blade called Thermablade – to the North American marketplace. Beyond several investors – plus the few amateur hockey players and NHL professionals who helped test the heated blades during lengthy product development – Thermablades were virtually unknown in Canada and the U.S. But after six years and $8 million spent on product development – and with key investor Wayne Gretzky and the expertise of Porter Novelli behind it – TBI was ready to unveil, in time for the October start of the 2007-2008 hockey season, a product it believed would literally advance Canada’s game with its performance benefits.

Entrant’s Role in ProjectTBI account leader Mark Nusca, the agency’s VP and Regional Director, oversaw and directed all aspects of TBI’s challenging PR program, including strategy and plan development, timing of the N.A. launch event, the choice of venue, corporate messaging, press release and media kit development, media training for spokespersons, scripting of the launch event presentations and speeches, co-ordination of key interviews with various U.S. media following the launch event and follow up with media. Consumer VP Maria Antonopoulos and Director Derek Baker managed logistics and staging of the launch day event, with support from Consultant Shane Matte.

Intended AudiencesTBI’s target audience included recreational, amateur and professional hockey players across North America. In addition to consumers and competitive athletes who would instantly recognize the value in spending several hundred dollars for a product that would immediately improve aspects of their skating performance by up to 10%, TBI set out to excite and inform retailers across N.A., so as to drive interest in its product and create buzz while building its retail network in Canada and the U.S.

Goals/ObjectivesTBI’s product launch and resulting media coverage needed to make a huge splash in the consumer and sporting goods marketplace and, in doing so, impress upon target audiences that its new technology did indeed represent “the next step in the evolution of hockey.” Given the product’s unique, multi-patented electronics technology and its premium price of $399 a pair, it was crucial to create and sustain market awareness and, simultaneously, to educate the public and media in terms of this unprecedented new technology’s tested and proven science and benefits. To “Inform, Excite and Educate” the market was TBI’s objective, thereby establishing the brand and riving interest among retailers and sales among consumers, including NHL players and their teams.

TBI’s extensive market research revealed wide interest among players – from affluent recreational players of all ages to amateur and professional hockey players – for a reliable heated blade that could increase user performance by roughly 10%. TBI ultimately wanted Thermablade to be viewed as a product that players would consider indispensable in their endless efforts to improve their game.


Solution Overview:Porter Novelli developed a colourful and high-profile launch event/media relations program designed to truly resonate with the media and generate huge excitement in the marketplace. Putting Thermablade, an unknown product and brand, “on the map” quickly and powerfully was our goal and we were confident that the best approach was launching on a N.A. basis, in an iconic venue such as the Hockey Hall of Fame, while capitalizing on the Wayne Gretzky name. The challenge of launching a brand without the key player attending the event in person – Wayne Gretzky – could have proven a setback. But the multimedia presentation, using videotaped comments from Gretzky predicting that a revolution in hockey was indeed underway, met our needs and gained massive media interest and coverage. We delivered the project on time and within budget and our client was largely in disbelief over the extent of coverage generated and the interest created among consumers and retailers: More than 200 million impressions were generated, and more than 40 retailers in Canada and the U.S. has since signed on to market the product, which is in high demand in all marketing regions and among NHL players.

Implementation and ChallengesThe pressure was on the Porter Novelli Canada team to deliver on the clients’ gameplan to reach key audiences via a single, major North American launch event that would drive extensive media coverage. The client’s budget was set at close to $100,000 for the agency to deliver and lead extensive round of in-depth planning and strategy development, media kit and PR tool development, launch event planning, scripting and execution, media outreach and follow-up media relations. Target media included top-tier News, Sports, Tech, Trade and Consumer media across print, broadcast and Web outlets in Canada and the U.S.

Porter Novelli devised an imaginative and powerful launch strategy and event designed to meet the client’s need to generate extensive coverage, build solid brand awareness and drive interest, brand acceptance and sales across North America for this exciting new hockey technology. PN researched numerous venues as an appropriate launching pad for the product but with Thermablade being positioned as the latest step in the evolution of hockey, we saw no better venue choice than the “crossroads of hockey history,” the Hockey Hall of Fame (HHOF) in Toronto.

This venue was seen as offering credibility, status and a touch of prestige to this unknown product, as well as providing an extremely engaging setting that placed the revolutionary Thermablade against a colourful backdrop of priceless memorabilia, iconic awards and legendary names that constitute the entire history of Canada’s revered national game.

With the Hall of Fame and its elegant Molson Theater chosen as the launch venue, Porter Novelli suggested that Thermablade consider contributing to the Hall itself the product’s original and unique prototype – a heated skate blade complete with blue electrical extension cord attached. Calgary inventor and entrepreneur Tory Weber handing over the prototype to the Hall during our launch event would add a colorful and newsworthy touch in addition to being a suitable contribution to the Hall’s extensive display of skates from the past and present. The HHOF agreed and Hall of Fame curator Phil Pritchard – known to Canadians as the white-gloved keeper of the Stanley Cup – graciously agreed to participate in a special launch day ceremony in which the Thermablade prototype was donated by its hockey-loving Canadian inventor to the Hall of Fame.

The launch day event was planned with the live participation of Wayne Gretzky, who was to receive a Thermablade bearing production serial number 99 from. But there was no guarantee that Gretzky would attend the Toronto event, despite his stated desire to do so amid repeated inquiries from invited media asking if the Great One was going to help launch the product live.

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As a contingency plan, should Gretzky be unable to squeeze in a Toronto appearance due to his travel schedule as coach of the NHL’s Phoenix Coyotes, a video crew was dispatched to Phoenix to videotape Gretzky skating on the blades, discussing the technology and predicting that Thermablades would “quickly gain popularity throughout the National Hockey League.”

The HHOF’s Molson Theatre was jammed with media on launch day and a simulcast of the launch event was held in the HHOF’s nearby Esso Theatre for the overflow crowd of friends, investors and retailers. The multimedia presentation highlighted Thermablade’s design features plus the science, testing and development behind the new product. Media heard a fascinating explanation of how inventor Tory Weber, a hockey nut from Calgary, first came up with the idea of a heated blade and then worked so hard over several years to develop and test numerous working prototypes before finally gaining the interest and eventual endorsement of Gretzky himself.

We learned the night before the Hall of Fame event that Gretzky would not – despite his best efforts – be able to attend the event live. But with our Gretzky videotape in hand we were able to feature for the assembled media his on-ice product demo and his comments that hockey was taking a step into the future on this day. These elements all combined to create immense interest for the gathering of 45 print, broadcast and online media. In addition to the giant screen that was central to the presentation, the stage featured a dramatically spot-lit display called “The History of the Hockey Skate,” showing several ancient blades and some modern-era examples along with the new Thermablade itself.

Measurement/EvaluationThermablade’s launch generated exceptional coverage right across North America. Interviews with Thermablade’s inventor, images of the colourful History of the Hockey Skate display, videotaped comments from Gretzky, highlights of the presentation – all were featured in media coverage that dominated the sports/news agenda for the next 24 hours. Coverage was carried on every major TV news and sports broadcast across Canada; print and online coverage was featured by key news and sports publications right across North America, including USA Today, Associated Press, Sports Illustrated, New York Times Magazine, Popular Science, Reuters, Canadian Press, the Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, National Post, Canadian Business, Report On Business Magazine, Hockey News, CBC, NBC, CTV, TSN, ESPN, Sportsnet and others. The product launch generated more than 200 million media impressions.

CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada featured the product during a Saturday night Maple Leaf game broadcast. The Toronto Star and Globe and Mail dedicated a half-page each in their news section. New York Times Magazine featured Thermablade in it annual “The Year in Ideas” Issue. Sports Illustrated called Thermablade a must have product for competitive players. NBC’s TODAY Show named heated blades in its Top Six Trends for 2008 list. The impact of the coverage was to drive immense interest in the product among elite players, consumers and retailers.

More than 40 retailers in Canada and the U.S. have since signed on to market the product, which is in high demand in all marketing regions; the heated blades are currently being tested in game conditions by a total of 22 players on 13 NHL teams; about 50 NHL players are currently on a waiting list to obtain the blades; 16 NHL team shave expressed interest in obtaining Thermablades, including the Edmonton Oilers, Montreal Canadiens, Ottawa Senators, Toronto Maple Leafs, Anaheim Ducks, Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins. The product has been endorsed by Hockey Canada and the IIHL, and the NHL is expected to approve the blade for league-wide use during the current NHL season.

In summary, TBI set out to launch its brand with a high-profile event and media relations program that would generate wide media coverage and public excitement and acceptance. The client was astounded by the agency results and plans are underway to partner with Porter Novelli as Thermablade makes its way into the European marketplace, including Russia and Eastern Europe, later this year.


Media Relations 51K to 100K – Award of MeritEntrants’ Names: Jo Langham, ABC, Heather Hopkins, Lisa Gilbert, Michelle Di Rocco, Karen McCullough, Cathy Mitchell, APEX Public Relations; Anna Datri, Second Cup LimitedOrganizations: APEX Public Relations / Second Cup LimitedDivision/Category: Division 1, Category 3: Media Relations with budget from greater than $50K to $100KTitle: Second Cup Gives Canada a Cool Canadian HolidayTime Period: August 2007 – December 2007Brief Description: To increase awareness of Second Cup as a premium holiday shopping destination among media and consumers, APEX Public Relations developed and executed the Cool Canadian Holiday media relations campaign.

Business Need/OpportunitySecond Cup is traditionally known as a place to go for a good cup of coffee. But this Canadian coffee company is about more than just beans, especially during the holiday season.

APEX has worked with Second Cup to promote its trendy holiday merchandise since 2005. And in the past two years media coverage and sales had shown that Canada is beginning to see Second Cup as a premium holiday shopping destination. However, the café chain knew it needed to keep up the promotions momentum to ensure sales success for its franchisees.

It was also important to Second Cup to generate strong local coverage in cities across Canada, while maintaining a national presence. In past years, coverage in long-lead publications had been strong, but Second Cup particularly wanted to demonstrate franchisee support by gaining coverage in markets where its local café owners operated, particularly Edmonton and Calgary, Second Cup’s largest markets after Toronto and Montreal.

In June 2007, Second Cup challenged APEX Public Relations not only to increase the amount of press coverage generated over the 2006 holiday period, but also to significantly increase the amount of coverage in short-lead publications.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectSecond Cup and APEX worked together to develop the Cool Canadian Holiday media relations strategy. APEX Public Relations was responsible for developing and executing the Second Cup Cool Canadian Holiday public relations program. Jo Langham, ABC, provided strategic plan development and program direction. Karen McCullough and Lisa Gilbert provided overall project management and client counsel, conducted media relations in English Canada and were responsible for managing the Cool Canadian Cocktail Party. Michelle Di Rocco conducted media relations in Quebec and managed media briefings in Montreal. Cathy Mitchell managed product placement and assisted with media monitoring and reporting.

Anna Datri from Second Cup was responsible for providing strategic counsel, presenting the product line to media at the Toronto event and approving communications materials.

Intended AudienceIn 2007, the holiday product line-up was not only distinctly Canadian, but offered access to gift solutions for everyone, from children looking for a thoughtful gift for their parents or teachers, to adults looking for a great gift for a colleague or hostess. Understanding that mothers were usually the ones helping children select and buy gifts and knowing from research that the café audience skewed to women, APEX and Second Cup chose:

• Females 18 – 49 years of age• Major Second Cup markets including: Toronto & GTA; Montreal; Calgary; Edmonton; Ottawa• Lifestyle, food, consumer and special section print (short and long lead), broadcast and online media• Print, online and broadcast gift guide editors

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Goals/ObjectivesBusiness Objective• Generate total same-store sales growth of seven per cent

Communication Objectives• Increase media relations reach to 29.5 million, generate an MRP rating of seven out of 10 on all media

coverage, and a cost per contact of less than $0.04• Position Second Cup as a premium gift destination • Increase short-lead coverage by 25 per cent over 2006

Solution Overview Strategy:• Increase short-lead print and broadcast coverage from 2006 by selecting the top five Second Cup

markets for special focus• Conduct media relations tactics that provide both long-lead and short-lead media with the tools

necessary to include the Second Cup collection in holiday features

Research:APEX reviewed 2006 media coverage of holiday gift items and examined ongoing and upcoming 2007 trends to identify areas of focus within the gift line.

Additionally, APEX consulted with editors and editorial calendars at long and short-lead publications to determine deadlines, interests and needs. In particular, APEX contacted writers at the major dailies in focus markets to ascertain holiday gift guide preferences and if there would be opportunities to supply merchandise for photography.

Analysis:Analysis of the results gathered during research showed that one of the top 10 trends for the 2007 holiday season was Canadiana, and that many of Second Cup’s Holiday collection items could be positioned within this theme. Research also confirmed that as in previous years August would be a prime time to reveal holiday gift collections to long lead journalists to meet deadlines for December issues.


IMPLEMENTATION

Cool Canadian Cocktail PartyTo further establish Second Cup as a premium gifting destination, APEX invited long-lead, short-lead and broadcast media to preview Second Cup’s Cool Canadian Holiday collection at an exclusive event at Toronto hot spot, The Spoke Club. Second Cup’s National Merchandising Manager, Anna Datri, answered questions while presenting the group of attending journalists with headlining merchandise within stylized displays of the gift items. Journalists were served holiday inspired cocktails and food in a room decorated in accordance with Second Cup’s Canadiana theme, providing a trendy holiday setting. Journalists representing 15 media outlets attended the event, including Canadian Living, CityLine, Style at Home and Glow Magazine.

Montreal Media BriefingsAPEX also hosted media at an exclusive preview of the Second Cup Cool Canadian Holiday collection at the trendy Le Germain hotel in Montreal. Interested journalists were booked into private, 20-minute, one-on-one briefing sessions with APEX’s Michelle Di Rocco (Second Cup have no approved bilingual media representatives) to review and discuss the holiday gift collection. Six of Montreal’s most influential magazines attended the preview event, including Canoe.qc.ca, Pure, Adorable and LOU LOU.


Media Relations To generate awareness of Second Cup’s Cool Canadian Holiday collection nationwide, APEX distributed a press kit containing a release and a fact sheet highlighting the top 10 holiday items under $25 from Second Cup. In addition, a café locator list was sent to media in the top 10 cities across Canada as identified by Second Cup. Media also received images of all products in the collection on a DVD. Long-lead materials were distributed in August and short-lead materials in early November. The release was also distributed on Canada News Wire in November. Through follow-up, APEX offered additional high-resolution photography, product samples for photo shoots and interviews with National Merchandising Manager Anna Datri. As an additional reminder to media, APEX distributed an e-mail blast containing Second Cup’s top 10 under $25 list to contacts across Canada three weeks before Christmas.

CHALLENGES

Accommodate all media sample requests with a limited sample line to share. Unfortunately Second Cup was only able to provide one product sample line to APEX. APEX politely but strictly monitored a database to track media sample loans and journalists proved to be very accommodating in returning items promptly. APEX also took special care to ensure that sample items were well packaged and delivered with trusted courier suppliers to ensure the items remained in prime condition.

BUDGETAPEX had a $76,000 budget, including fees and expenses, from Second Cup Limited to develop and execute the Second Cup Cool Canadian Holiday public relations program. Expenses included: venue fees, catering, décor, media gifts, translation, DVDs, CNW, long distance and couriers.

Measurement and Evaluation:Business Objective• Generate total same-store sales growth of seven per cent

Evaluation:ü Same café sales growth for cafés in the Royalty Pool for the fourth quarter and the year ended

December 31, 2007 is expected to be 0.7% and 3.0% respectively.

Communications Objective: Increase media relations reach to 29.5 million, generate an MRP rating of seven out of 10 on all media coverage, and a cost per contact of less than $0.04

Evaluation:ü The total program reach to date is more than 33.8 million ü Media coverage was very positive

o 64 stories appeared§ 36 print§ 27 online§ 1 broadcast

ü Cost per contact was $0.002ü Average MRP rating was 71 per cent

Communications Objective: Position Second Cup as a premium holiday gift giving destination

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Evaluation:ü The preview events held at the exclusive Spoke Club in Toronto and the trendy Le Germain hotel in

Montreal positioned Second Cup as a high-end brandü Second Cup items were featured in gift guides among other premium brands and products, such as

Holt Renfrew, Pottery Barn and Crabtree & Evelyn ü 64 per cent of the overall media coverage appeared in tier one media outlets

Communications Objective: Increase short-lead coverage by 25 per cent from 2006 Evaluation:ü 22 stories appeared in short lead publications across Canada, a 625 per cent increase over 2006ü Coverage appeared in top tier publications such as the Calgary Sun, Edmonton Journal, Toronto Sun

and Winnipeg Free Press ü Three separate features appeared in the Edmonton Sun

Coverage also appeared in local commuter publication Metro in Toronto, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver and Ottawa; and a half page in commuter publication 24 heures in Montreal


Media Relations 51K to 100K – Award of MeritEntrant’s Name: Diana RobinsonEntrant’s Organization: Diana Robinson & Associates Organization’s Name: Ronzoni Foods CanadaDivision & Category: Division 1, Communication Management, Category 3B: Media Relations Time Period of Project: May 2007 to December 2007Brief Description: A media relations program designed to launch Ronzoni Foods Canada’s innovative new Catelli Smart Pasta with inulin.

Business Need/OpportunityRonzoni Foods Canada Corporation hired Diana Robinson & Associates in May of 2007 help them launch their new Catelli Smart Pasta. Ronzoni Foods Canada Corporation is Canada’s largest pasta maker with more than 280 employees. Catelli products have a long and distinguished history in Canada and a heritage of being innovative, but pasta sales have taken a beating over the past couple of years as people have become more concerned with eating healthier. There are two predominate types of pasta – white and whole grain/wheat. White pasta is perceived as less healthy, but better tasting than whole grain pasta; many consumers just don’t like the taste, texture and appearance of whole wheat pasta, especially those with fussy eaters in their households. Ronzoni felt there was an opportunity to introduce a product that would offer the best of both worlds. The result: Catelli Smart Pasta. Smart Pasta is an industry first, a delicious white pasta with the fibre benefit of whole wheat that uses inulin as one of the key ingredients to achieve this goal, a new use for this fairly new food ingredient. But Ronzoni also recognized the potential for confusion amongst consumers about the relevance of this new product: how was it different from whole wheat pasta, was it really as nutritional and more importantly, did it really taste good?

In development for several years, the new Catelli Smart pasta is the first pasta product in Canada to use inulin. Inulin is a naturally occurring carbohydrate, extracted from chicory root. It is recognized by Health Canada as a natural, plant-based source of soluble dietary fibre. Inulin is a prebiotic fibre, meaning that it is not digested in the stomach or small intestine and reaches the large intestine intact. There it stimulates the growth and metabolic activity of Bifidobacteria and other probiotic bacteria, promoting good digestive health. But the biggest advantage of adding inulin to Catelli Smart pasta is that it has the same great taste as traditional white pasta, and provides three times as much fibre. Although the new product provided an opportunity for consumers to gain great health benefits, many would never have heard of inulin. Consumers would need to understand and appreciate the true nutritional benefits it offered in a simple way, and all copy would need to meet Health Canada’s strict nutritional claims regulations. Consumers would also need to understand that the product tasted great and that the fussy eaters in their households would actually eat this pasta. And all of this needed to be done in a way that would be sensitive to Catelli’s other product lines that would still be sold by their retail customers: traditional white pasta and whole grain pasta. Smart pasta would be on grocery shelves in June 2007 with full distribution by October. At that time, it would be officially launched with a TV ad campaign and a consumer web-driven promotion, both of which were still in development with no creative finalized at the time the PR campaign was created.

A review of the company research done to support the product development provided highly technical information about the product and the use of inulin. Intensive web, magazine, newspaper, and broadcast research again revealed little awareness of inulin and its benefits amongst the average consumer. The research revealed that one of the biggest challenges facing consumers, especially parents, was that many children are fussy eaters. We decided to find out exactly what Canadians thought about eating healthier and just how many Canadians were fussy eaters. We hired Harris Decima Research to conduct a national survey of 1,000 Canadians to find out how hard it was to get families to eat healthy today and what obstacles they needed to overcome. These answers would provide sound, statistical information to both media and Canadians and provide a platform for the media relations program.

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Entrant’s Role in the ProjectDiana Robinson & Associates is an integrated marketing sole proprietorship agency, owned by myself, Diana Robinson. As such, I was responsible for all the initial research, client liaison, strategic development, management and execution of the program. I bring in suppliers as required, for example, creative designers, photographers, and research companies.

Intended Audiences:The target audiences for the program included:• The general Canadian public, especially females 25-54, skewing with kids over the age of 6. While Moms

generally are the gatekeepers to what a family eats in their home, family likes and dislikes will dictate what she actually buys. And Moms are always looking for fast and cost-effective ways to get their family to eat healthier. Balancing work and family puts time at a premium for these consumers. Weekday meals are difficult to manage as she is short on time but wants to ensure her family is getting something nutritious while not willing to sacrifice taste. She is aware of what products are out there that have health benefits but is concerned about whether the kids will make a fuss if they know it’s healthy and not like the taste. She looks for quality products that are delicious and healthy. Her current belief is that white pasta is delicious but essentially “health neutral” while whole grain pasta is healthy but perceived to be not tasty. Our goal was to get them to think that with Catelli Smart pasta you get the best of both worlds – great tasting white pasta that is better for you.

• National consumer media including print, radio, and television news media, especially journalists that cover food, health, wellness and lifestyle issues. The Media are a conduit of information for Canadians and they play a key influencer role with all Canadians as they are able to provide third-party endorsement through their editorials.

• Grocery trade media. Trade media can help to generate industry awareness and motivate the grocery trade to list a product.

Goals/Objectives:The goal for the program was:• To develop an integrated communications strategy to inform Canadians about Smart Pasta and its

benefits; one that would dovetail with the planned fall launch of the TV and web promotion campaigns and result in media coverage.

The objectives for the program were to:• To motivate the public to search out Smart Pasta in their local grocery store and try it, generating a 10%

trial;• To position Ronzoni Foods and Catelli Pasta as experts in the industry, dedicated to providing Canadians

with the most up-to-date knowledge about the development of healthy, nutritious, great tasting food like utilizing inulin as a key innovative ingredient;

• To ensure that the media receive accurate, complete and timely information about Smart Pasta and generate national, positive media coverage that generates brand awareness, mentions the brand name and its benefits with a target of 15,000,000 impressions.

• To create and deliver a thought-provoking, innovative, educational program on time, and on a very tight budget of less than $90,000, delivering a cost per impression of $0.00 and a return on investment of two to three times the cost.

Solution Overview: The strategy developed was to create a creative, thought-provoking communications program that would generate awareness, develop support for and create an understanding of the benefits of Catelli Smart pasta. We wanted to layer the program to reach and educate consumers in various ways: about the health benefits of the inulin in the pasta, about how easy it was to integrate eating healthy into their every day lives and how great tasting the new pasta was.

Research: We hired Harris Decima Research to conduct a national statistically sound survey of 1,000 Canadians to find out how hard it was to get families to eat healthy today and what obstacles needed


to be overcome. We used the results from the national omnibus consumer survey to provide us with statistical information about the obstacles for Canadians to eating healthier every day. We discovered that 67 per cent of Canadians say there are obstacles to eating healthier, more nutritiously and that 2.1 million Canadians say it’s just too hard to incorporate healthy food into meals. More than 61 per cent of Canadian households with children say their children are fussy eaters; in fact, 11 per cent of adults say they are fussy eaters. And 20 per cent of Canadians say they have no time to look for ways to add healthier foods to their meals. This information provided good solid facts and a reason for introducing the new pasta to fussy eaters and time-starved families.

Theme: As the launch date was set for September-October, we developed the theme, “It’s back to school time and it’s not just the kids getting Smart™…We’re getting Smart about our pasta.” With August, September and October seen as the start of the school year, it’s the time when the whole family gets back into the busy, hectic routine of scheduled school hours, activities, appointments and the such after the more relaxed days of summer. The theme allowed us to play on the back-to-school timing inherent in most media coverage at that time of year. In addition, an especially prevalent topic is the need to get back to making family dinners, and preparing, fast, but nutritious dinners. Our theme reflected both of these angles.

Key Messages: Key messages we wanted to communicate through the program were:• Catelli Smart Pasta is a delicious white pasta with the fibre benefit of whole wheat pasta.• Smart eating means combining great taste with nutrition. Good nutrition begins with eating more fibre

and Catelli Smart Pasta is a delicious way to do it. • Catelli Smart Pasta offers 3x the fibre of traditional white pasta with no trade-offs in taste, texture and

appearance.• Catelli Smart Pasta offers the best of both worlds — great tasting white pasta that is nutritious.• Catelli Smart Pasta was designed with fussy taste buds and finicky eaters in mind.• Catelli Smart Pasta is a part of The Heart and Stroke Foundation’s Health Check™ program. It meets

specific nutrient criteria based on Canada’s Food Guide to Healthy Eating and is an excellent source of fibre, fulfilling one-third of the daily requirement for adults.

• Catelli Smart Pasta uses inulin, a naturally occurring form of sugar produced by plants, as one of its key ingredients to achieve this goal. It is a new use for this relatively new food ingredient.

• Catelli Smart Pasta Macaroni, Spaghetti, Spaghettini, Penne Rigate and Rotini are available in the pasta section of your local grocery store and retails for less than $2.00 on average.

National Consumer Awareness Media Relations Campaign: We researched the marketplace to determine current media stories and trends, researched the key audiences, identified the most appropriate and newsworthy angles and created a media kit. The kit was packaged in an innovative way to attract the attention and interest of the journalist receiving the package. Each media person was sent via courier a box that was personally addressed and had a sticker that said “It’s back-to-school time and it’s not just the kids that are getting Smart…” Packaging the media kit this way allowed us to breakthrough the clutter and encouraged the media to actually open the package. Inside, media found a custom-created purple backpack embroidered with the Catelli Smart Pasta logo. In the knapsack was a sample of each of the five types of pasta and a media kit was tucked into the front pocket.

The generic purple media kit was customized with a sticker on the front cover that said “It’s back-to-school time and it’s not just the kids that are getting Smart…” and included a main feature release about the launch of the product and how inulin was an innovative, ground-breaking industry ingredient, a release on tips for creating fast, family friendly, kid-approved dinners from a registered dietician/nutritionist, a fact sheet on survey results, a fact sheet on inulin, a fact sheet on the product and a Catelli company backgrounder. It also included 5 recipes, three of which had a focus on being kid-friendly. We also included a CD-ROM that included a group product shot, recipes for each photo and a shot of a chicory root, the source of inulin. We utilized existing photography to keep costs low. All materials were produced in English and French.

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Industry Expert Spokesperson: To ensure that the inulin story was communicated clearly, we sourced an industry expert, Rob Kowal, who agreed to be a spokesperson on behalf of the Smart Pasta product. Rob is President of his own company, Kriscor & Associates, and is the exclusive Canadian agent for the Sensus Frutafit Inulin being used in the Smart Pasta product. We included quotations from him in all of the media materials and used him in media interviews where appropriate. On-Air Giveways: In addition, we created Catelli Smart Pasta gift baskets worth more than $120 retail and sent them out to the top breakfast morning shows across Canada to give away on air to their viewers. We also contacted select national radio and television media to promote October 25 as World Pasta Day and encouraged them to give away a basket on that day.

Community Newspaper Matte Stories: Community newspapers are an effective vehicle for reaching Canadians, especially in smaller communities. Although their circulation is often smaller than dailies, community newspapers are excellent tools for market penetration because they are more thoroughly read and shared. Since staff and funding is relatively limited at community publications, editors often look for credible, relevant information, creating an excellent media relations opportunity. To capitalize on this opportunity, we wrote six News Canada matte articles to support the program initiatives and provided all liaison with News Canada. We utilized Rob Kowal an industry spokesperson within several of these articles.

News Canada Radio, Digital and Video News Release & B-Roll: We also created News Canada radio, digital and video news releases to send out to media across Canada. Developed as an editorial story, it provided a complete story, journalistic style for broadcast and web media to use. It included interviews with Rob Kowal and Director of Marketing Karen Scicluna, footage of chicory root being harvested, talked about results from the survey and the scripts were adapted for use by local stations. The stories were sent out via satellite in September.

The theming and key messages were layered through the five key media relations components and led to a very successful program that achieved at least three times its goals and objectives.

Implementation & Challenges:

In planning and implementing the program, we faced four key challenges:

1. The budget for the program was $89,972 including all fees and expenses, with the largest single costs being the News Canada matte stories and radio, digital and video news release that Ronzoni Foods had previously committed to doing in October. There was no room for movement in the timing of the program or the budget. The program needed to be conceived and delivered around these pre-determined components. Expenses included all couriers, long distance, survey costs, media monitoring, kit development and reproduction of components, etc. Initially we planned to do a spokesperson tour with a registered nutritionist, but the timing of the program conflicted with media openings due to the short timeframe, so that part of the program was cancelled.

2. The technical nature of inulin needed to be simplified and made easy to understand and digestible to consumers so that they would actually recognize and appreciate the benefits of the new pasta. We also needed to ensure all messaging met Health Canada’s strict product claim regulations. Sourcing Rob Kowal allowed us to work with a third-party expert that could provide the technical background in an easily, understandable, credible manner. He also could advise us on appropriate health claims.

3. We needed to cut through the plethora of back-to-school and food launches that happen in September and October. We were confined by when the product would be in full distribution –October—so we actually created the programming theming to reflect the timing and we designed the media kit to stand out from the clutter.


4. We needed to create news beyond just the usual “another new food product”. Food journalists receive thousands of new products every year and we wanted to break out of the clutter. The survey allowed us to create more newsworthy information as did identifying inulin as a key information piece for the program. We also developed the program with an eye to providing different kinds of media with the resources they would personally find most appealing: recipes and photographs, especially kid-friendly ones, innovative industry news, and product-oriented news.

Measurement/EvaluationThe program was an overwhelming success both in terms of the way the product was portrayed, the coverage of the product, the goodwill it generated amongst the trade, the favourable impressions it left with media and consumers and the business it has generated. • The program dovetailed with the advertising campaign and consumer web-site campaign in terms of

timing and carried similar messaging as per the corporate mandate.• More than 48,764,117 impressions were generated across Canada; more than 3 three times than target. • More than $589,320 in editorial coverage was generated; an ROI of seven times the total budget; and

triple the goal.• Major, Tier 1, national media have carried stories, resulting in more than 99 positive stories, and all

mentioned the brand by name. Coverage included local, regional, national, mainstream and alternative, print, broadcast and the web media outlets. Note: we know there are a number of articles/hits that we were not able to pick up.

• The program did establish Ronzoni Foods as an industry expert and they have been called upon to comment on other industry issues as a result.

• Each story was dedicated to Catelli Smart pasta.• All key messages were communicated.• All 28 newspaper and magazine stories were accompanied by photographs provided in the media

materials. • Colour pictures ran in several newspapers.• There was more than 45 minutes of radio and television coverage. • 25% of articles included recipes.• 60% of articles included mentioned of inulin.• 60% of articles included interviews with experts Rob Kowal and Karen Scicluna. • 75% of articles included web site address, www.smartpasta.ca• 90% of articles discussed the increased fibre benefits of the new product. • The cost per media impression is $0.00.• The cost per media value dollar is $0.00.• The cost per message point is $0.00.• The program is credited with helping the brand grab 40% growth in velocity.• The program was implemented on time, and $5,000 under budget, at $84,972.• The program was sensitive to Catelli’s other product lines and did not disparage either traditional white

pasta or whole wheat pasta.• All messaging met Health Canada regulations for product claims.• Media loved the new pasta and told their readers so. “Two thumbs up is how we’d rate new Catelli Smart

Pasta.” “I was pleasantly surprised with this and would use it again.” “Inside the press kit were some fabulous recipes.”

• Trade sell-in was amongst the easiest ever for Ronzoni sales reps. Media coverage was used during the selling cycle to indicate public pick-up of the brand.

http://www.smartpasta.ca

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Media Relations 51K to 100K – Award of MeritEntrant’s Name: Marnie Campbell – Account Director, Lisa Bednarski – Vice President, Consumer, Christina Alviano – Assistant Account Executive, Weber Shandwick Worldwide, Christine Cruz-Clarke – Associate Product Manager, Adult Cookies, Kraft CanadaEntrant’s Organization: Weber Shandwick Worldwide (WSW)Client Organization: Kraft Canada Division and Category: Communication Management (1) - Media Relations with a budget from greater than $50K to $100K (3b)Title of Entry: A “Peek” at Sweet History - Celebrating 150 Years of Peek Freans CookiesTime Period of Project: May – October 2007Brief Description: This public relations communications program was designed to create awareness of the Peek Freans special edition commemorative tin by highlighting the last 150 years of the brand. The program generated more than 10 million impressions and combined the brand’s history with product awareness to tell the story about a popular sweet treat loved by millions of Canadians.

Business Need/OpportunityIn 2007, Kraft’s Peek Freans cookies celebrated 150 years and issued a limited-edition commemorative tin to mark the occasion. Recognizing this significant milestone was important in helping the brand maintain its position in the market place; it would also play an integral part to help the mature brand compete in a crowded cookie category. Named after the founders, James Peek and George Hender Frean, Peek Freans has been providing distinctive quality biscuits since 1857. Today, the menu of flavours continues to grow and includes 18 different varieties, but in a marketplace where words such as healthy and nutritious resonate louder than delicious and tasty, creating ‘buzz’ around a trusted brand that has been on store shelves for well over a century would be a challenge.

Research conducted by Kraft outlined target audience and consumer opinions - Peek Freans was a delicious cookie loved by millions that triggered fond memories of childhood visits with Grandmas. Weber Shandwick Worldwide also conducted an informal poll amongst staff, family and friends to gauge further opinions of the brand. This reinforced the sentiment that it was a grandmother type of brand. Unfortunately, due to competitive issues, Kraft Canada could not share the research however, it was important to incorporate the nostalgia associated with Peek Freans cookies and recognize the last 150 years of success reminding consumers about its timeless qualities.

After reviewing target audience and objectives, Kraft determined that a media relations program focusing on the brand’s history would remind consumers that Peek Freans was a “classic treat”. A successful media relations campaign would bring attention to the anniversary and commemorative tin, but a creative solution was necessary to leverage the brand’s history and provide more than just a product awareness campaign. It is important to note that the 150 commemorative tin was not supported with any other initiatives. It is also important to note that in order to drive sales of the tin, it was important that a fun new angle was created to ensure the program wasn’t just about introducing a new cookie tin.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectThe Weber Shandwick team conducted an internal brainstorm to develop program tactics and together presented their recommendations to Kraft Canada. Marnie Campbell, Account Director at Weber Shandwick managed the overall program and conducted daily client and team counsel for the duration of the program as well as program execution. Lisa Bednarski, Vice President of the Consumer Practice at Weber Shandwick provided senior counsel on an ongoing basis. Christina Alviano, Assistant Account Executive at Weber Shandwick, provided ongoing administrative support and execution during the program. Christine Cruz-Clarke, Associate Brand Manager at Kraft Canada was the daily client contact for the team during the program


Intended AudiencesThe target audience for the Peek Freans 150th anniversary program was made up of the following:• Primarily female, 35-55 years of age, working professionals and stay-at-home moms with hectic

schedules, basically Canadians who are looking for a brief “me” moment in their busy day• National food and lifestyle media - print and broadcast in major Canadian markets (excluding Quebec)

were the conduit to reach the program’s target audiences

Goals and ObjectivesThe program’s goal was to shed new light on the Peek Freans brand, bring its history to the forefront and remind Canadians about the timeless classic treat as it continues to make history. Due to corporate confidentiality policies, sales objectives and targets were not provided at the start of the program however, as outlined by the client, business objectives were to:• Generate consumer awareness of the 150th anniversary of Peek Freans and of the overall brand to

maintain brand awareness• Showcase the Peek Freans commemorative tin and celebrate 150 years of distinctive quality biscuits to

maintain brand market share

The program’s communications objectives were as follows:• Generate media coverage in key Canadian markets (excluding Quebec) highlighting the 150th

anniversary of Peek Freans and the limited edition commemorative tin in order to drive sales• Generate coverage in key markets that highlights the program’s key messages:

- 2007 marks the 150th anniversary of the Peek Freans brand- To celebrate 150 years of cookies, Peek Freans has issue a limited-edition commemorative tin,

inviting Canadians to be apart of the history- Peek Freans is a well known brand that is known around the world for the hundreds of historical and

collectible treasures that are still available today

The program’s goals were as follows:• Generate strong media coverage results in English Canada focusing on four key markets – Vancouver,

Calgary, Hamilton and Toronto • Incorporate the commemorative tin message in media coverage whenever possible

Solution OverviewA public relations program was designed to celebrate the 150th anniversary and shed new light on an old classic by sharing the history of Peek Freans and how they have evolved to become a favourite in Canada and around the world. Although Peek Freans is a recognizable name in cookies, it is often perceived by consumers as a more mature, slightly “older” brand so it was essential to better understand these consumer opinions prior to program execution. Program elements worked together to provide a comprehensive program to celebrate 150 years of quality biscuits and remind consumers of the Canadian heritage behind the brand. Following research and findings, Weber Shandwick Worldwide developed a targeted public relations program for the Peek Freans 150th Anniversary within the set budget of $55,000 including professional fees and expenses. Weber Shandwick Worldwide came up with the creative solution to highlight the commemorative tin by playing up the collectible aspect of the tins. The program included the following elements and/or activities:

Building the Peek Freans CollectionTo create a visual of the Peek Freans history, Weber Shandwick researched and purchased more than 40 Peek Freans vintage tins and collectibles from eBay. With a few additional vintage tins provided directly by Kraft, the collection grew substantially to include items dating back to the late 1800s. Expanding on this initiative, research was conducted on each item to gather historical facts to expand on the brand’s history. The collection played an integral role in telling the story of the brand during media interviews.

Spokesperson Identification and TrainingTo provide third-party credibility to the program, an Antique & Collectibles Expert was researched and secured. Identifying a suitable candidate for the program took longer than anticipated as it was essential

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to find someone who had both the expertise on vintage collectibles and the capability to deliver a strong media interview. In the end, Conrad Biernacki, Programs Manager at the Royal Ontario Museum was approached, interviewed and secured. Conrad was a very a positive ‘ambassador’ for the program as he brought the knowledge and expertise of antiques as well as a personal passion for collectibles. He was able to deliver strong program messaging while incorporating his experience and extensive background for credible support. Key message and Q&A documents were developed for the program and a half-day messaging session was conducted with Conrad, in preparation for media interviews, to ensure he was comfortable with key message delivery and to address any questions that could arise.

Media TourTo spread consumer awareness of the 150th anniversary of Peek Freans, Conrad travelled to Vancouver, Calgary, Hamilton and Toronto (the key target markets identified by Kraft) and conducted media interviews to generate awareness of the 150th anniversary of the brand and its commemorative tin. Interviews with Conrad showcased the vintage tins and collectibles and highlighted the brand’s anniversary. Weber Shandwick Worldwide worked with regional offices to provide local media outreach and on-site support during Conrad’s visit and as a result, the media tour generated positive TV, radio and print coverage in all four key markets.

Media Materials A comprehensive media kit was developed to mark the 150th anniversary of Peek Freans. The materials focused around the brand’s history and the completed kit was comprised of the following:• Celebrating a Moment in History - lead release announcing the 150th anniversary of Peek Freans and the

limited edition commemorative tin• A Bite of Cookie History - a history of the cookie and an overview of the brand’s history• A “Peek” at Cookies in the Making - the Peek Freans timeline• Peek Freans Flavour Fact Sheet• Product PhotographyMedia kits were distributed to long lead and short lead publications across the country and included a commemorative tin. Upon distribution, aggressive outreach was conducted and many media made note of the tin and how much they loved the cookies.

A camera-ready mat story was also written to mark the 150th anniversary and highlight the commemorative tin. Content focused around the history of the cookie, the history of Peek Freans and the announcement of the 150th anniversary commemorative tin. The final mat story was then distributed to local and community newspapers across the country via News Canada, garnering positive coverage.

Radio DropsIn timing with the commemorative tin reaching store shelves, Weber Shandwick arranged “drops” to key radio stations in the Toronto and surrounding area. Afternoon on-air hosts were presented with a basket filled with everything needed for tea and cookies. A “chatter sheet” was developed for on-air personalities highlighting historical facts and product information to use as a script. Each basket included a commemorative tin, boxes of additional Peek Freans cookies, tea pot, mugs, tea and napkins and was personally delivered to each station resulting in on-air mentions on radio stations with a strong reach to the program’s target audience including: CHUM FM 104.5, CHFI FM 98.1 and CING FM 95.3 (The New Country).

Implementation and ChallengesThere were a number of challenges during execution that were overcome as a part of program implementation including:• Product Photography – product photography was not available at the start of the program and had to be

created. Weber Shandwick worked with a reliable photographer to create editorial-friendly images of the commemorative tin. As a result, all but one media hit included a product image.


• Spokesperson Identification – it was important that the program’s third-party spokesperson brought credible knowledge of antiques and collectibles combined with the personality and presentation skills required for speaking with media. Many candidates interviewed had a strong knowledge of antiques, but were not strong enough to act as the brand’s “ambassador”. The timeline for securing the best possible candidate was longer than originally forecasted and created some anxiety amongst the client and team, which had to be managed.

• Restoring the brand’s history – due to a recent change in brand ownership, the history of Peek Freans was not complete and was left with many gaps. Weber Shandwick conducted additional research, working with the program spokesperson and Kraft’s archives to fill these gaps and ensure the timeline was as detailed as possible,

• Collecting the collection – the research and purchase of each vintage item started at the beginning of the program to ensure all of the items arrived at Weber Shandwick’s Toronto office well before the media tour. Since the majority of items came from overseas, timing and logistics around the “Collection” had to be coordinated across different parts of the world.

Measurement/EvaluationThe Peek Freans 150th Anniversary program generated positive results with extensive print, radio, television and online coverage. Quantitatively, the program delivered national media coverage with impressions totalling more than 10,300,000 including print, television, radio and online outlets. Qualitatively, the response and ‘tone’ surrounding the Peek Freans anniversary program was very positive. Media outlets appreciated the strong visual of the brand’s history along with the spokesperson’s expertise.

Due to corporate confidentiality policy, Kraft Canada was not able to provide sales figures following the campaign. They were pleased with the results and the program did generate the following:• 57 total media hits including: 16 television, 12 radio, 17 print and 12 online print hits

- Positive coverage in outlets targeted towards the program’s key audience• More than 10,300,000 impressions• Cost per impression: $0.005

Additional program highlights included:• 100% positive brand mention and mention of the commemorative tin in all media coverage• Strong coverage in all four target markets – Vancouver, Calgary, Hamilton and Toronto – including the

Toronto Star, CHTV At Home, Calgary’s Breakfast Television and Vancouver’s North Shore News• Strong coverage in other Canadian markets including London, Ottawa and Winnipeg• Strong awareness in media outlets targeted towards the program’s key audiences• Visual of the commemorative tin all but one media hit• Strong emphasis on the brand’s long-standing position as one of Canada’s favourite cookies creating a

strong connection to the brand’s history and current status in the marketplace• Feedback direct from two key journalists after their full-page anniversary features ran:

- “My Peek Freans cookie tin article got a lot of interest!” – Toronto Star- “I’ve been receiving a lot of emails from across Canada – all positive! And they’re all looking for the

tins!” - Toronto Sun• Client feedback following the wrap meeting was very positive including email feedback from the

Associate Director for Kraft’s Canadian Corporate Affairs:- “Thanks for sharing the results with us today. We are thrilled at how well the program was received

and the coverage it generated.”

Additional Program Result InformationToronto Reference Library ExhibitDue to the media exposure and the relationship established with the program’s spokesperson, the Peek Freans vintage collection - created specifically for this program - was recognized by the Toronto Reference Library as a strong tangible depiction of the brand’s history and Canadian heritage. The Reference Library,

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one of the largest in the world, with over a million visitors each year, showcased the collection as a special exhibit during the 2007 holiday season providing yet another solid form of brand exposure. The library also hosted a special “Tea & Cookies” event where Peek Freans cookies were served and guests were able to discuss the brand’s display with the program spokesperson.

Kraft Corporate Lobby LaunchTo continue the momentum around the anniversary, Shandwick assisted Kraft Canada in generating excitement and awareness at their Toronto office with an on-site event for their 800+ employees. The entire vintage collection was displayed and included black & white photos of the bakery in the early 1950s as well as a silent film dating back to 1902 playing throughout the launch. The ROM expert was on-site to provide curious staff information about the brand and various collectibles. Eye-catching baskets were created as draw-prizes and included a tea pot, mugs, the commemorative tin and an array of other Peek Freans flavours.

The complete collection is now stored at the Kraft Archives Department in Illinois.


Media Relations 100K and up – Award of ExcellenceEntrant’s Name: Diana RobinsonEntrant’s Organization: Diana Robinson & Associates Client Organization: Multiprint Ltd. - DeréonDivision: Division 1, Communication Management Category: Category 3C, Media Relations over $100KTitle of Entry: Beyoncé and the Canadian Launch of DeréonTime Period of Project: July 18 – October 29, 2007Brief Description: A media relations program designed to launch superstar entertainer Beyoncé’s family-run fashion business, Deréon, in Canada.

Business Need/Opportunity:On July 18, 2007, Multiprint Ltd, a Montreal-based clothing manufacturer and distributor, received agreement from superstar entertainer Beyoncé to launch her new, junior fashion line, Deréon, in Canada. Deréon had been launched in the U.S. in August 2006, and was targeted to sexy, sophisticated, empowered women between the ages of 18 and 30. Now, Canadian women would be the first to purchase the line outside of the United States.

Diana Robinson & Associates and Multiprint identified that there was both a need and an opportunity to generate tremendous excitement and awareness about the line. Beyoncé was willing to spend one hour attending a launch event, but it would have to be held just three weeks later on August 15th, 2007 when she was in Toronto on tour. Beyoncé would be joined by her mom, Tina Knowles — the co-founder, creative director and designer behind the Deréon brand — and her sister, Solange Knowles.

A previous line, the House of Deréon had received bad publicity in the U.S. and there were concerns that the negative perceptions would affect the launch of the junior fashion line in Canada. There had also been recent articles in the fashion press about the glut of celebrities dumping “fashion” lines in the marketplace, cashing in on their popularity. There was a need to show the Canadian fashion industry trade, the target demographic, consumers and the general Canadian public that the line was legitimate, successful, and fashionable. There was also a need to reinforce that the business was a “family” business, and that Tina and Solange both played active roles in the company. Both women were often overshadowed by the superstar celebrity circus that surrounded Beyoncé. The family wanted to see a stronger family presence in media coverage. Introducing Canadians to the designer and inspirations behind the brand -- Tina, Béyonce and Solange -- would bring fresh attention to the clothing line, ensure Multiprint as the new licensee would be able to sell-in the brand to potential retailers in Canada and generate additional awareness amongst the demographic groups.

Despite the extremely tight timeline, we conducted man-on-the-street interviews in Toronto, interviews with key retailers and intensive web, magazine, newspaper, and broadcast research into the current junior fashion industry to gain insight into how the brand was currently perceived. We also researched how Beyoncé and her family were portrayed in the press. The research showed how articulate the target demographic audience was and how aspirational both the brand and Béyonce were to the target demographic.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectDiana Robinson & Associates is an integrated marketing sole proprietorship agency, owned by myself, Diana Robinson. As such, I was responsible for all the initial research, client liaison, strategic development, management and execution of the program. I bring in suppliers as required, for example, designers, photographers, and security companies. I was actively involved in every step of the program, from presenting the concept to the client, researching the audiences, sourcing and coordinating all aspects and suppliers for the program including security, liaising with clients at all levels, designing the look and feel of all elements right through to venue floor plans and floral designs, coordinating all media and guest lists, interviews and RSVPs, coordinating and conducting the media tour including briefing Béyonce, Tina and Solange and timing each interview and overseeing and executing all aspects of the event.

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Intended Audiences:The target audiences for the program included:• The Canadian fashion industry including retailers, executives and buyers that could potentially carry the

Deréon lines, from independent one-off retail shops to larger retailers. At one end of the spectrum, this group can be somewhat jaded and cynical about industry events given the number they attend each year, in addition to the ones they may host; at the other end are owners of small shops in small cities across Canada who have never been invited to any type of event by their licensee/designer before.

• Canadian fashion, lifestyle, business and fashion trade media as gatekeepers to the end consumer and purveyors of what is hot, trendy, in fashion and successful in business. This is a group used to being wined and dined, courted and schmoozed by the world’s biggest, trendiest, hottest designers and retailers. They think they’ve seen everything and can make or break the public’s image of a designer and their line.

• Women, 18-30, the primary demographic of the Deréon brand, especially women who are fashion conscious, up on trends and styles and wanting to be at the forefront of fashion. It is a diverse group, with diverse interests, but they tend to be early adopters, ready to try new things, confident in their choices and a leader amongst their friends. The age demo crosses various life stages: from high school where they have plenty of disposable income, to college and university where they become more strapped for spending money unless they are living at home and then more is spent on fashions and discerning their fashion taste, to their first years on their own and in careers where they start buying more career clothing to an age when they are starting to be more established in their careers and willing to invest in more expensive clothing. Our research showed that they were articulate, comfortable with who they are and very aware of the fashion scene and who and what Beyoncé, Tina, Solange and Deréon are.

• The Canadian general public as influencers of public opinion. Canadians love to hear about celebrities and their latest adventures, and while this can be perceived as gossip, it can also influence retail sales.

Goals/Objectives:Our overall goals for the program were to create awareness of the Deréon fashion line in Canada, generate interest in the line and position it as a family business amongst the general public, the target demographic and the fashion industry. Our objectives for the program were to:• Create an exciting and exclusive event – one that would be heralded as a major event – that would be

attended by the who’s who of the Canadian fashion industry and media, approximately 500 guests.• Generate national, positive media coverage of the brand that generates brand awareness, mentions the

brand name and establishes the credibility of Deréon as a fashion line — in both the news and fashion sections of newspapers, TV and magazines — and includes two articles in and at least one front page picture in a major daily newspaper.

• Reach 15,000,000 Canadians through the media coverage and generate a return on investment of two to three times the cost of the program, approximately $475,000.

• Communicate that the business is a family business and have Tina and Solange included in the coverage.• Deliver the program on time with only three weeks to turn the event around, and on a very tight, very

“un-celebrity-like” budget.• Generate interest in the line so that Multiprint could arrange meetings with retailers.

Solution Overview: We identified an opportunity to create an exclusive, “By Invitation Only” event for trade and media. It would allow an inside look at the “sexy, sophisticated, empowered lifestyle” character of the brand which was in keeping with Beyoncé and Tina’s design approach. They are well known for their celebrity lifestyles. It is a key element of the brand and one of the reasons that the target demographic purchases the line: the opportunity to have a taste of the lifestyle. We would bring that taste of the high life to Toronto and show the trade and the media that Deréon was a strong, growing, sexy and exciting brand. Our strategy was to utilize Beyoncé’s Toronto tour date to develop an event that would generate media awareness of the launch and the line. However, as Beyoncé would only be available for one hour, we also wanted to


utilize the family aspect of business to extend awareness beyond Beyoncé and generate additional media opportunities. Key messages we wanted to communicate through the program were:• Beyoncé, Tina and Solange Knowles launch their junior fashion line, Deréon, in Canada.• Deréon is a family business.• The line is distributed by Montreal-based Multiprint and available at specialty retailers across Canada.

Program Tactics:• Create an exciting “by invitation only” event that would dovetail with Beyoncé’s tour date on August 15, 2007.• Develop and deliver a memorable invitation to event that would initiate buzz.• Develop an invitation delivery schedule that would deliver invitations with live flowers to Montreal, NY

and Toronto VIPs quickly and efficiently.• Invite select Canadian media to interview Beyoncé (2 interviews only), her mother Tina, and her

sister Solange and coordinate key media interviews to generate awareness of Deréon line, and family approach.

• Integrate brand theme: Where the Sidewalk and Catwalk Meet into event.• Develop media kit to provide media information on fashion line.• Coordinate fashion show to give key media and retailers opportunity to see fashions.

The key: do it all in three weeks, over the long August 1st weekend, and during industry summer shut-downs.

The budget for the program was presented as $215,804.29 for all expenses including AV, tents, rentals, venue, food, police, security, photographer, media walls, limo invitation delivery, florist/décor, production of invitations, Westin Harbour Castle fashion show staging area, fashion show production and cost of parking lot, and including $18,750 in fees for handling all the event planning, execution and creative development and coordinating the media relations.

We rented the entire Ultra Supper Club venue, a chic, happening dinner club with rooftop lounge in downtown Toronto, and begun actual on-site planning for all aspects of the program. This included working with the chef to create a dynamic, exciting menu with a nod to Tina’s Creole heritage; devising a decorating theme; arranging for valet parking and a red entry carpet; lighting; staging with video walls showing Beyoncé’s music and fashion videos; sourcing decorations including flowers, renting furniture; hiring a designer and florist; the development and delivery of the invitations; making hotel arrangements for the entire entourage team including areas for media interviews; creating a live fashion show at the event; and coordinating all media arrangements in Toronto.

One of our biggest challenges was working with Beyoncé’s schedule. She was performing the night before in Montreal, needed to travel to Toronto and was performing that evening. Therefore, the event would need to be held from 4-7 p.m., not the usual time for this type of event and not a great time for media schedules. We recommended key one-on-one media interviews through the day with Beyoncé, Tina and Solange instead of a press conference to provide insight into the fashions, in a more intimate setting and communicate the family nature of the business. Eight days before the event, we received approval to execute the media relations plan.

With only three weeks to the event, we needed to generate buzz right from the delivery of the invitations. Over the long holiday weekend in August, we sourced and printed navy blue embossed invitations, with a special hang tag that told the story of the family heritage that is Deréon. These tags were hand applied to live white Casablance lilies. Each lily was place by hand in a clear plexiglass box, with the invitation just prior to delivery. Each VIP invitation was hand-delivered by two stretch limos and drivers wearing white gloves and carrying the invitations on sliver trays. When each box was opened, the scent of the Casablance lily wafted out. The buzz about the event started immediately.

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Implementation & Challenges:The challenges for this program were constant and the biggest one was the short timeline. The plans for our program changed continuously to accommodate client schedules and demands and needs. The guest list changed daily; the demand to attend the event swelled the list with the addition of celebrities and fashion industry executives and media. Given that Beyoncé is well known for the million dollar events that she throws, our budget was well below what she would normally spend, and yet, we recognized that expectations for the event would be just as high.

Initial plans to close down a major street in front of the venue to hold an outdoor fashion show that could be attended by the public were quashed by the city as there wasn’t enough time to get the permits. Two alternate plans to hold the fashion show on a side street and in a private parking lot met a similar fate. We had to abandon the idea of literally bringing the catwalk to the sidewalk and allowing Beyoncé’s fans to see the show and move it inside. That created a whole host of other logistical issues including where the dressing rooms and runway would go.

Days prior to the event, we were advised that the interviews we were coordinating could no longer be done through the day and must be done on-site at the event. This required us to rework the schedule and advise the appropriate journalists. For two days, we juggled the needs and politics of various media outlets while trying to accommodate as many interviews as possible. To provide as many journalists as possible with an opportunity to talk to Beyoncé, Tina and Solange, we coordinated a short red carpet and media wall in front of the venue. As media arrived for the event, we lined them up on either side of the red carpet, beside screaming fans. I met Beyoncé, Tina and Solange as they exited the cars at the foot of the red carpet and then escorted them up the red carpet, stopping to allow key journalists an opportunity to do quick one minute interviews. A media wall just at the entrance way allowed for a photo opportunity. Once inside, another media wall and red carpet had been set up to accommodate the two key one-on-one interviews that Beyoncé had agreed to do: Fashion Television with Jeanne Beker and Entertainment Tonight Canada. One other key one-on-one interview was done with the Toronto Star during the fashion show and Canada AM was given an exclusive interview with Tina, Solange and Beyoncé’s father, Matthew, on the rooftop of the club after Beyoncé had left to prepare for the concert.

We were required to handle all security arrangements for the visit and given the level of celebrity that Beyoncé is, there was a very exacting list of requirements. This required us to source off-duty policy officers, bodyguards and a security team of more than 30 people and to have all the security arrangements arranged and in place as they stepped out of the car. Toronto police and the city had been extremely concerned about the safety of the public in front of the venue and it required major negotiation to get their approval to hold the red carpet media interviews in front of the venue. Final approval was received less than 24 hours before the event.

As our immediate client, Multiprint, the licensee was based in Montreal and the Beyoncé head office was located in New York, it was imperative that we stay in close contact with both of them throughout the planning and execution of the event. In addition, the Knowles family is very hands on and approved all elements of the program, which was challenging given their very busy schedules.

Having a successful outcome to this program required us to be adaptable, flexible, identify what would turn on the jaded fashion industry trade and media as well as appeal to the target demographic, live with almost no sleep, work very closely with the client, be reachable at all times, think beyond the mundane and usual and meet the exacting standards of both the Multiprint and Beyoncé clients.


Measurement/Evaluation of Outcomes:The program was an overwhelming success both in terms of the way the event was portrayed, the coverage of the event, the goodwill it generated amongst the trade, and the favourable impressions it left with all the guests.• We created an exciting and exclusive event -- one that would be heralded as a major event -- that

was attended by the who’s who of the Canadian fashion industry and media, more than 500 guests. Invitations were in hot demand. 118 media and their guests from Canada’s key media RSVP’d.

• We generated national, positive media coverage that generated brand awareness, mentioned the brand by name and established the credibility of Deréon as a fashion line — in both the news and fashion sections of newspapers, TV and magazines — and included two articles in and at least one picture on the front page of a major daily newspaper. The amount of coverage generated is outstanding given that our opportunity to conduct one-on-one interviews with Beyonce, Tina and Solange was very limited.

• We reached 163,358,368 Canadians through the media coverage and generated a return on investment of 42 times the cost of the program. In fact, the media coverage was seen internationally, reaching into the U.S. and Latin America.

• The program was delivered on time and on the agreed-to budget. • The supplier team I sourced and coordinated delivering the program was top notch and overcame many

challenges including working on very tight turnaround times, working to coordinate invitations over the long August 1st weekend, working around summer shutdowns and vacations and city bureaucracy.

• The program generated 163,358,368 impressions, 11x our goal.• The editorial value of the program is $9,075,050.16, which represents a return on investment of

approximately 42x the budget.• The cost per contact was $0.00, the cost per media value dollar is $0.00 and the cost per message point

is $0.00.• There were 107 stories generated.• There were 36 newspaper stories generated.• There were 18 television stories generated resulting in 44.03 minutes of airtime.• There were 5 radio stories generated resulting in 3:05 minutes of airtime.• There were 42 Internet stories.• All articles mentioned the product by name.• The tone of the articles is positive. • Beyoncé is quoted in 59 articles.• Tina Knowles is quoted in 46 articles.• The family connection was mentioned in 71 articles.• A photo accompanies 43 articles.• 11% of headlines mentioned “family”. Deréon is mentioned in 11 headlines.• 50% of photos used were taken in front of media wall.• 12 of photos used showed models in fashions.• 15 of photos used were the family shot. • We generated three front page cover stories – The Toronto Sun and two different Metro stories; the

timing of the event made it more difficult to gain front page coverage.• The demand for interviews with the media was so intense that we had to turn down more interviews

than we were actually able to set up.• Photographs shot by our hired event photographer were used by media outlets across the country and

on People.com.• All key messages were communicated.• Canada’s premier television fashion show, Fashion Television conducted one of the two exclusive

television interviews that resulted in a 6-minute piece that ran 6 times. Fashion Television is carried by satellite in more than 40 countries around the world. (not included in our evaluation numbers)

• Guests stopped to personally thank members of the Diana Robinson & Associates team for the amazing event.

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• Many media sent thank you emails to Diana Robinson & Associates for the opportunity to attend the event and/or interview Beyonce, Tina and Solange. Major media outlets like Canada AM, Entertainment Today Canada and eTalk all commented on how well organized the event was and how smoothly the media aspect was being handled.

• Any major issues the day of the event were handled smoothly and effectively. For instance, the 1 hour late appearance of Tina and Solange for their interview with Canada AM was handled by shifting the interview to after the fashion show and other scheduled interviews, after Beyoncé had left, but still ensuring that Canada AM crew could meet their deadlines.

• The program ignited interest in the brand and the Multiprint sales team was able to book sales meetings while still at the event. Sales numbers are confidential, however there was a % increase over projected sales.


Media Relations 100K and up – Award of ExcellenceEntrants’ Names: Deb Adams, Senior Vice President, Harbinger, Erin Morra & Lisa Lang, Account Directors, Harbinger, Megan Matthews, Account Manager, HarbingerOrganization’s Name: Harbinger Communications, on behalf of the Dove Self-Esteem FundDivision/Category: Category 3c. Media Relations with budget greater than $100kTitle of Entry: Harbinger Presents the Dove Self-Esteem SummitTime Period of Project: February 2007 to December 2007 (Summit event held on October 1, 2007)

Business Need/OpportunityAs a brand with a strong corporate social responsibility mandate, Dove launched the Dove Self-Esteem Fund in 2005 with a two-pronged mandate: develop and distribute free resources that enable and empower women and girls to embrace a broad definition of beauty and provide needed resources to organizations that foster a broader definition of beauty, like the National Eating Disorder Information Centre.

By 2007, research conducted by Dove found that while awareness of Dove’s overall Campaign for Real Beauty was extremely high, only 37% of consumers had any awareness of the Fund or its activities. Couple this with additional findings that demonstrated that when consumers knew about Dove’s self-esteem activities, they were more like to purchase the brand (50% of women said a message on Dove’s packaging about the Dove Self-Esteem Fund would make them more likely to purchase the product) and we knew we had an important story to tell.

The launch of a new set of online interactive self-esteem activities (the Girls’ Only Interactive Self-Esteem Zone) provided the perfect opportunity for us to generate mass awareness of the tangible work that the Dove Self-Esteem Fund does to promote self-esteem.

To generate national media coverage and drive consumer awareness of these tools, specifically, and the Dove Self-Esteem Fund, generally, Harbinger conceived of, developed and executed The Dove Self-Esteem Summit.

Entrants’ Roles in the ProjectDeborah Adams was the agency team lead on this project, providing ongoing senior program counsel. She was the final set of eyes on all materials. As a long-time Dove team member, Deborah was able to ensure all messaging was consistent with the brand and Fund key messages from a global and Canadian perspective.

Erin Morra was part of the initial Harbinger team that developed the Summit idea. She was responsible for selling the idea to the client and ensuring they were as excited about it as Harbinger was. She made the pitch to all spokespeople to encourage their involvement and negotiated their contracts and level of participation. Upon Erin’s departure for maternity leave,

Lisa Lang stepped in to take over as daily counselor on all fronts. She was responsible for ensuring consistency with the overall event vision and managed the team and client throughout all approval processes and steps leading up to the event. Lisa also continued to liaise with the spokespeople throughout the project, and was a key problem solver when various challenges arose.

Megan Matthews was responsible for working with a team of account coordinators at Harbinger to plan and carry out the logistics for the event, including approving and liaising with outside suppliers. She was also in charge of the media relations strategy and execution for the project, including approval of media list development, pitch development, timing of pitches and managing potential media relations challenges as they came up.

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Intended Audiences• The Dove Consumer: Sarah. This consumer is female, aged 25-55. Research conducted by Dove in

March 2007 found that three-quarters of women in this age range identified the self-esteem cause as important to them. - Mothers and female mentors are an important sub-set of this audience. Dove research tells us

that these women are concerned about their daughter’s self-esteem. They want to arm their girls to deal with mounting beauty pressures, and grow up confident and secure. The launch of these new online tools provided an opportunity to Dove to be the “solution provider” to these women.

• Young girls. All of Dove’s self-esteem resources, including the new online activities, are developed for girls ages 8 – 16. We know that these girls are high consumers of media that communicate the unrealistic definition of beauty perpetrated by Hollywood. These girls are in need of positive education and role models in order to accept a wider definition of beauty.

Goals/ObjectivesBecause our objective was to drive consumer awareness of the Dove Self-Esteem Fund, media impressions was the primary way we measured success.

Our goal was to generate 18 million media impressions, with each hit also measured on the following; • 70% of coverage must mention the Dove Self-Esteem Fund• 75% of coverage must use Fund key messages• 70% of coverage must include the campaignforrealbeauty.ca/girls URL • 55% of coverage (where applicable) must use a key image from either of the viral videos created by

DSEF titled ‘Amy’ and ‘Onslaught’ or a screen grab of a ‘Girls Only’ web activity

Further to this, we aimed to have 25 separate media outlets attend our Dove Self-Esteem Summit.

Our final objective was to contribute to the overall Dove Self-Esteem global goal of positively affecting the lives of 5 million young girls by the year 2010. We set a goal in Canada to positively affect the lives (through use of the online tools and resources and participation in other DSEF programs) of 100,000 girls in 2007.

Solution OverviewHarbinger was aware that to generate the coverage that we needed to reach our target, we had to provide media with more than just a self-serving story about Dove’s new online activities. Harbinger had to consider the needs of the media – to build a story they would cover. It was determined our overall messaging around this story would need to cover three topic areas, providing rich content for a variety of media outlets:• The current state of self-esteem in Canada• What moms and mentors could do to impact the self-esteem of the girls in their lives• What Dove is doing to positively impact the self-esteem of girls in Canada and around the world

Since the launch of the Dove Self-Esteem Fund, extensive research had been done into the state of self-esteem in Canada and around the world (did you know, for example, that only 2% of women globally consider themselves to be beautiful?). While in the past, this information had been parceled out to media, it had never before been discussed in its totality. The launch of the new tools seemed to provide a perfect opportunity around which to frame this broader discussion.

It was therefore determined that this information would be presented at an interactive event in Toronto: a Self-Esteem Summit called Real Beauty School. The Summit was built as a meeting of the minds on self-esteem, with young girls, key stakeholders and media participating in a two-way dialogue with a panel of experts (high profile American self-esteem expert, Jessica Weiner of askjess.com and the Tyra Banks Show, Harvard University professor Dr. Nancy


Etcoff, Canadian self-esteem expert Lisa Naylor, media literacy expert Debbie Gordon and Merryl Bear, President of the National Eating Disorder Information Centre).

Harbinger also enlisted help from the global Dove team to leverage their relationship with the US-based Step Up Women’s Network to secure a Hollywood celebrity to join our Summit panel to further attract the attention of Canadian media.

In addition to launching the new online “Girls Only” activities (which you can access at www.campaignforrealbeauty.ca/girls), we also decided to use the event to unveil two new viral videos created by Dove’s ad agency, Ogilvy. After the highly touted success of Dove’s first short viral film, ‘Evolution’, these new films were much-anticipated and helped us attract additional interest.

To showcase how two parts of a young girl’s life – Hollywood and the school environment - can come together to impact self-esteem, Harbinger hosted the event at a schoolroom movie set at the Toronto Film Studios. The studio was transformed with large movie lights and props mixed with traditional schoolhouse items, including desks, chairs and red apples, communicating through the event set-up these diverging worlds and the pressures young girls face from Hollywood and pop culture.

More than 150 event invitations were sent to media covering a variety of topics – including news and health, parenting and education, youth and beauty. The invite was designed in the form of a backstage pass inviting them to ‘Enroll in Real Beauty School’. Upon arrival at the event, media received a binder covered in a kids sticker collection, mixed with facts about body image today and were then led through the schoolhouse setting, complete with a ‘Hollywood Hallway’ – literally a hallway plastered with images from Hollywood to vividly depict the pressures facing young girls.

Following the Summit, extensive national media relation outreach was undertaken to generate coverage from coast-to-coast – not just among media who attended the event.

Despite various challenges (see below), the program was implemented on time and on budget (total budget for event planning and execution, including media relations outreach was $107,000 in fees and $113,000 in expenses). Expenses had to cover many components, including venue, catering, media kit production, set dressing, flights, accommodations, spokesperson fees, flights and accommodations for Quebec journalists flown in for the event, audiovisual equipment, photographers and videographers. Fees covered a team of nine Harbinger employees organizing the logistics of the event, creating media materials, writing speech points, briefing and training the spokespeople, liaising with the global Dove team and local clients, plus pitching the story vigorously to journalists leading up to and following the event.

Implementation and Challenges: Several challenges came up during the planning and implementation of this program.

While Harbinger was working towards an early September event (offering media a timely “back to school” hook), the Dove global team approached us in August regarding timing. All countries around the world were expected to launch both the tools and the online films on one day, and other countries couldn’t be ready by early September. As a result, our date was shifted to October 1. This resulted in renegotiations with our many suppliers, including the venue, changes spokespersons’ schedules and travel details, as well as the need to reprint invitations right before they were to go in to production.

In September, we received further word from the global team that they had been unable to secure a celebrity to participate in our Summit event. We re-focused our media materials and press kit to highlight the expertise of the self-esteem experts and showcase Jessica Weiner’s celebrity connections. We also increased the focus on the ways that moms and mentors could impact the self-esteem of the girls in their lives, building a stronger story for parenting and women’s publications.

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We ran into a further challenge with our set. When a Hollywood studio requested an extension of the use of our planned space for a production, our event was bumped to a new set. Harbinger had to recreate the schoolhouse feel using this new set (an old Brownstone house) within the same budget originally allocated. This included seeking out schoolhouse backdrops and contacting endless prop companies to find desks and chairs we could afford to make this new set feel like the schoolhouse we had envisioned.

The final challenge occurred the day before the event when Dr. Nancy Etcoff, our Harvard expert for whom we’d scheduled many media interviews, contacted us to say there had been a death in her family and she would not be attending the Summit. This resulted again in changing our media materials (over 200 press kits had to be reprinted), re-writing the Summit speaking remarks to reflect Dr. Etcoff’s absence and re-pitching journalists on some of our other available experts.

Efficient use of budget was key in this event. For example, media kit swag was something the client was interested in having, however our budget was getting tight. As a solution we discovered an abundance of DSEF jackets leftover from a retail promotion and were able to use these for media swag bags.

Measuring/Evaluation To evaluate the project’s success the Harbinger team was careful to examine each piece of media coverage for both the qualitative and quantitative media objectives that were set out.

Objective: 18 million media impressionsResult: More than 19.5 million media impressions, including a Breakfast Television Live-Eye and coverage in every major daily newspaper in Toronto: the Globe and Mail, National Post, Toronto Star, Toronto Sun, 24 Hours and Metro Toronto.

Objective: 70% of coverage must mention the Dove Self-Esteem FundResult: 70% of coverage achieved mentioned the Dove Self-Esteem Fund – which helped to further awareness of the Fund and its mission.

Objective: 75% of coverage must use Fund key messagesResult: 75% of coverage achieved used Fund key messages including our statistics on the current state

Objective: 70% of coverage must include the campaignforrealbeauty.ca/girls URL Result: 68% of coverage included the URL driving the public to the ‘Girls Only’ online tools, helping attraact

Objective: 55% of coverage (where applicable) must use a key image from either of the viral videos created by DSEF titled ‘Amy’ and ‘Onslaught’ or a screen grab of a ‘Girls Only’ web activityResult: 50% of coverage (print, online, TV) included a key image from the Dove Self-Esteem Fund


Objective: 25 separate media outlets at the eventResult: 29 separate media outlets at the event

Objective: To touch the lives of 100,000 young girls in Canada in 2007Result: The awareness for the new tools and online resources generated by the Dove Self-Esteem Summit drove girls online – helping us reach a total of 140,000 young girls in 2007 (up from 55,000 girls in 2006). In fact, we had so much success in letting people know about the online tools that as of December 10, 2007, Canada had reached more girls online than any other country – including the US.

In addition, we saw a dramatic increase in the number of visits to cfrb.ca following our Summit – from an average of over 19,000 in August 2007 to almost that many (16,000) in a single day in early October.

In addition to achieving or exceeding our pre-established targets, the Dove Self-Esteem Fund Summit – one of Dove’s major marketing initiatives – played a significant role in the brand’s overall success in 2007. While exact numbers are confidential, Dove realized a significant volume growth and a significant increase in household penetration in 2007.

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Media Relations 100K and up – Award of ExcellenceEntrant’s Name: Julie Rusciolelli, Leslie Hetherington, Tamara Kaftalovich, Annette Robertson, Dee Enright (client) Organization Name: MAVERICK Public Relations Inc.Division: Division 1, Communication Management Category: Category 3c, Media relations with budget greater than $100,000Title of Entry: Look Up North! – Pan North National Marketing CampaignTime Period of Project: September 2006 to June 2007Brief Description: A national public relations program to promote tourism, economic development and the 2007 Canada Winter Games for the three territories: Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut

Business Need/Opportunity:The 2007 Canada Winter Games scheduled for February 23 to March 10, 2007 in Whitehorse, Yukon, was to break new ground as the first Canada Games ever held north of the 60th parallel and expected to attract more than 3,600 athletes, coaches and managers from across the country, as well as a viewing audience through its broadcast on TSN/RDS, CBC/SRC and APTN. The Games were particularly significant as they marked the last major Canadian competition for many athletes on their way to the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver.

To leverage the 2007 Canada Winter Games, the three territorial governments, Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, joined together to launch a multi-faceted Pan-North National Marketing Campaign (NMC), which included advertising, promotions and public relations, designed to promote the North as a great place to visit, invest and live.

Prior to the NMC, southern Canadians in the provinces held a somewhat negative perception of the North, which posed huge marketing challenges and roadblocks. Preliminary research, conducted by K2 Discovery Inc. in June 2006 (3,000 surveys), revealed that pre-campaign, the North was perceived as:• Not a beautiful part of the country• A place with not much to do or activities to pursue• Unsophisticated, lacking in innovation, as well as modern conveniences• Great for extreme adventurers, but too cold and remote for anything else• Lacking in business opportunities, beyond diamond mining and related industries• Negligible infrastructure, communications, services and access to meet business needs and burdened by

unresolved land claim issues

The overarching goal of the NMC was to dispel these misconceptions and drive interest in the North as a tourist destination and centre of opportunities for economic development by positioning it as an innovative, dynamic, culturally diverse and stunningly beautiful place that is welcoming and filled with wonder and energy.

Entrant’s Role in the Project:MAVERICK PR was entrusted to conceive and implement a PR and media relations campaign that had to seamlessly align with the NMC strategy, themes, tactics and timing implemented by various agency partners (advertising, media buying/promotions, research and northern advocacy). MAVERICK PR team accountabilities were divided as follows: Julie Rusciolelli directed creative strategy and planning, overall budget management, senior account liaison and media training; Leslie Hetherington handled project management, messaging, partner liaison, senior writer and editor, strategic counsel and event planning; Tamara Kaftalovich served as senior media strategist and managed event execution, media relations, media tour, executive tours and briefing books, measurement and analysis; Annette Robertson provided media relations, event execution, media monitoring and wrap-up reports; and Dee Enright was the front-line client interface for the NMC. Intended Audience(s):Two very distinct groups in the target markets of Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto and Ottawa:


1) For Tourism and Canada Winter Games Strategies – One of the following:• Baby-boomer adults, aged 40 – 60 years, with household incomes of $75k or more and post-secondary

education. They use the Internet extensively to get information, plan and book trips and spend $3 – $8k annually on travel.

• Generation ‘X’ adults, aged 35 – 44 years, with household incomes in excess of $75k and post-secondary education, who are prepared to travel without children.

• Early retirees, aged 60 – 75 years, who are very active.• Travel industry influencers – Including government officials, prominent businesses and hotels, travel

organizations and agents, travel trade media, tourism marketing agencies, and travel business associations.

2) For Economic Development Strategies – Meet one or more of the following criteria:• Entrepreneurs, owners/managers or SMEs and professionals • Part of the Canadian investment and business community• Northern and Canadian opinion leaders• Other governments and NGO’s

Plus, print, broadcast and online media as key influencers and a conduit to target audiences, including: news media; tourism, travel, recreation, lifestyle and food reporters; business reporters; and vertical trade reporters in oil & gas and other sectors.

Goals/Objectives: Communication Goal (distinct for each of the three focuses - economic development, tourism and the Canada Winter Games):• Stimulate economic development and investment in the North by piquing the interest of potential

business people and entrepreneurs (in the target markets) seeking innovative joint partnerships and investments that foster technology/expertise transfer.

• Raise awareness and enhance perceptions of the North as a desirable tourist destination, among the priority high yield audiences.

• Drive overall viewership of the 2007 Canada Winter Games and interest in the North.

Communication Objectives:• Generate 20 million media impressions overall - divided between the tourism, economic development

and Canada Winter Games focuses.• Achieve a Media Relations Rating Points (MR2P) score of at least 80% for meeting five specified criteria

in each of the three mandated focus areas (in terms of key message pick-up, story visual, spokesperson quote, tier 1 media pick-up and target market exposure), as well as a positive tone on average.

• Trigger increases in www.lookUPnorth.ca website traffic and page views to coincide with the implementation of key program tactics and events.

• Attract a combined audience of at least 100 influencers and media to attend each of the banner events: Northern Lights breakfast and Wonder event.

• Change negative perceptions of the North and increase awareness of the North, as an attractive tourist destination and place for business opportunities, according to anecdotal feedback and post-campaign research.

Solution Overview:To meet the triple-focused communications mandate to promote tourism, economic development and the 2007 Canada Winter Games within the North to the rest of Canada, we developed a multi-faceted program to deliver maximum exposure through each tactic treating each as a separate yet integrated strategy. Specifically our PR plan was to:• Implement a proactive news bureau to leverage newsworthiness of the 2007 Canada Winter Games in

the south and enlist athletes to tell their stories for enhanced authenticity.

http://www.lookUPnorth.ca

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• Create special events to showcase the innovation, arts, culture and culinary fare of the North, as well as its business opportunities to media and key influencers conveniently staged in Toronto, the hub where key stakeholders, as well as regional and national media reside.

• Communicate the welcome, wonder and energy of the North and counter misconceptions through proactive media outreach, comprehensive collaterals and feature articles.

• Leverage the www.lookUPnorth.ca website to reinforce public interest in economic development, tourism and the Games, as well as boost media support by developing an online media room portal.

• Profile business opportunities in the North that blatantly countered misconceptions through proof-point case studies communicated through media channels.

These strategies were addressed with the following diverse program tactics:1) Drive Canada Winter Games Viewership -

• Athletes Media Tour - Enlisted a northern Canada Winter Games athlete from each territory for pre-games interviews with national media. see WS 2007 Athletes

• News Bureau - Proactively disseminated information and outreach to media to promote events leading up to the 2007 Canada Winter Games. see WS 2007 Athletes

2) Raise Awareness of North as Desirable Tourist Destination -

• Wonder event - Staged a dynamic tourism-focused “Wonder event” in downtown Toronto as an experiential marketing vehicle for media and key stakeholders. Event featured the three northern premiers, three vignettes to showcase each territory, a world-class northern chef with delicacies from the North and northern performers, including popular throat singers, Juno award winning artist, Leela Gilday, and drummers from the Northwest Territories. see WS Tourism

• Developed and disseminated a hard copy and online media kit featuring: Tourism Media Backgrounder; Jet Travel to the North Fact Sheet (featuring time, costs and options for “how to get to the North” via different airlines to dispel distance and cost misperceptions); and North Quiz (consumer quiz highlighting little known positive facts to counter misconceptions and enhance the North’s profile). see WS Tourism

• Matte Articles - Developed and disseminated community newspaper features with photos on unique northern activities, such as Northern Lights viewing, dog sledding and Flo-Edge excursions, to dispel conception of “nothing to do” in the North. see WS Tourism

3) Stimulate Economic Development –

• Northern Lights Breakfast - Spearheaded sponsorship of a business breakfast, featuring all three Northern Premiers to highlight economic opportunities and successes to the Economic Club of Toronto members, guests and media. see WS EcDev

• Profiled Northern Successes - Developed northern business case studies and media trained spokespersons from each; proactively pitched case studies to media. see WS EcDev

• Developed and disseminated a hard copy and online media kit featuring: Northern Industry Sectors Media Backgrounder (profiling infrastructure, innovation, and industrial investment with key business advantages to each sector); and Economic Development Fact Sheet (quantitative facts and statistics about the North to dispel misconceptions and reinforce investment potential). see WS EcDev

Implementation and Challenges:We had a “coalition of clients” to please, which included the 2007 Canada Winter Games Host Society, Government of Yukon, Government of Northwest Territories and Government of Nunavut. They were divided into: a front-line client team for day-to-day contact, and a working group who reviewed details only at stringently scheduled meetings and reported to a steering committee. Although the individual territories had unsuccessfully attempted similar initiatives in the past, the Pan-North NMC was the first to be pursued as a joint initiative involving all three territories. It had aggressive goals and multiple stakeholders with diverse backgrounds, which were in many cases, outside the marketing/PR realm.



It was a highly collaborative effort in which the three levels of stakeholder committees had to unanimously agree on every strategy, objective, budget and minuscule detail of the campaign including media collateral, case study companies, matte article themes and copy, spokespersons, media and influencer lists, venues, partners, logos and performers. This caused considerable strain on the project team to meet deadlines and move through fluctuating work-back schedules, while gaining consensus at each point. MAVERICK PR also had to gain buy-in and approvals from its agency partners at each stage of the campaign.

Although the initial premise was to leverage the newsworthiness of the 2007 Canada Winter Games, the client advised four months into the program that the two cornerstone events could not be staged until after the Canada Winter Games and without its sponsors’ support.

Several other restrictions were also placed on the program. For example, the client prohibited us from proposing familiarization or “Fam trips,” a proven approach for garnering Travel section coverage, as they had been abused by reporters in the past. And there was also a strong aversion against including southern Canadians as spokespersons or relevant links in any tactics, making it next to impossible to give regional media the local angle they need to warrant coverage. For example, the athletes’ media tour in southern Ontario could only include northern athletes and not an Ontario athlete.

MAVERICK PR worked within a tight budget of $230,000, including all taxes. It was restricted to $129.5k in fees for MAVERICK PR, a northern advocacy partner, its affiliates in the target markets and a northern entertainment consultant, and $100.5k for out-of-pocket expenses, including travel, catering, northern performers, rentals, invitations etc. As a cost-effective but logistic risk, both showcase events were implemented on the same day. The project was executed within budget, with $10k in earmarked expense allocations leftover.

Measurement and Evaluation:• By June 2007, the campaign had generated 106 media stories and a reach of 38.8 million impressions

— almost doubling the 20 million goal set by the client. see WS Results• Media coverage included prominent broadcast features on CTV Canada AM, BNN, Breakfast TV (City TV-

Toronto) and print articles in the Toronto Star, as well as a Canadian Press story picked up by more than 20 outlets, including the Calgary Herald and Edmonton Journal and a photo in the Globe and Mail’s TV guide during the opening weekend of the Games. It generated MR2P ranging from 87.33 per cent for economic development coverage to 89.12 per cent for tourism media coverage. see WS Results

• The Northern Lights round-table breakfast with the Economic Club of Toronto was attended by 109 C-level executives, government officials and media. see WS Results

• Wonder event at the Design Exchange in Toronto, featuring the three northern premiers, northern performers and chef, was attended by 44 journalists and a select audience of 62 tourism and business influencers. see WS Results

• Web site traffic to www.lookUPnorth.ca exceeded expectations during the campaign: 65,562 visitors to the site with more than 61,000 of those being unique visitors. Most of those visits came from key target markets: Ontario, B.C. and Alberta. see WS Results- On the day of the round-table breakfast and Wonder event, the lookUPnorth website had some 1,010

unique visitors – almost double its regular volume of traffic.• Quantitative and qualitative research was conducted by K2 Discovery Inc. at the end of the NMC campaign

in June 2007. The lookUPnorth campaign was successful on ALL measures.- Economic goals achieved – Willingness to relocate to the North for business increased from 5 per cent

- 16 per cent; negative perception of the north as having inadequate infrastructure lessened by 9 points to 24 points.

- 2007 Canada Winter Games goal achieved – Awareness of the 2007 Canada Winter Games increased overall from 25 per cent in 2006 to 43 per cent in 2007.

- Tourism goal achieved – Likelihood of future travel, has increased from 28.9 per cent in 2006 to 41 per cent in 2007.


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Media Relations 100K and up – Award of MeritEntrant’s Name: Martine LévyOrganization’s Name: DDB Public RelationsDivision: Division 1, Communication Management Category: Category 3c, Media Relations over $100KTitle of Entry: Canadian Blood Services (CBS) National Blood Donor Week & World Blood Donor Day: Canada Hosts the WorldTime Period of Project: April 2007 to July 2007Brief Description: This media relations campaign was developed for Canadian Blood Services/Héma-Québec, a national, not-for-profit charitable organization that manages the blood supply in Canada. It generated media coverage through innovative “Live Public Service Announcements” to thank blood donors across Canada during National Blood Donor Week. It also brought high-profile celebrities and artists together in a “song of inspiration” during a precedent-setting international media event in Ottawa on World Blood Donor Day, where Canada hosted the world on behalf of the World Health Organization.

Business Need/OpportunityCanadian Blood Services/Héma-Québec (CBS) is a national, not-for-profit charitable organization that manages the blood supply in Canada. Their mandate is to build awareness of the importance of voluntary blood donation. CBS was facing a looming challenge based on the impact of an ageing population. Their established “boomer” donor base would inevitably face a rapid decline and correspondingly, blood product demand would escalate over time. These two trends were expected to intensify in the long run. To overcome this challenge, from 2006 onwards CBS set its sights on initiating social change in Canada – to connect a new younger generation of Canadians with the blood donation cause, encouraging them to actively and regularly support the blood system. The overarching communications platform was: “Share your health and vitality with someone in need” and it targeted both committed donors (who donate blood, though not regularly), and prospective donors (who would be willing to donate blood if the right opportunity presented itself).

Each year the World Health Organization (WHO) selects a country to host World Blood Donor Day, a worldwide celebration to help raise awareness for the universal and ongoing need for safe blood and blood products - and to say thank you to donors for their selfless gift. In 2007, the WHO selected Canada to host World Blood Donor Day based on its long and proud history of volunteer blood donation. On June 14th, 2007 all eyes of the world were on Canada as it hosted World Blood Donor Day. Canadian Blood Services had the challenge of creating an event worthy of international attention, as it simultaneously rolled out its annual Canadian event, National Blood Donor Week that took place from June 11th-16th, 2007. Each year, this designated week supports the recruitment of new blood donors in Canada.

As the world would be watching, there was a tremendous opportunity for Canada and CBS to take a leadership role in the cause of donating blood. It would also provide the optimal opportunity to inspire and move a new generation of Canadians to become regular, committed blood donors. DDB Public Relations leveraged the extensive research conducted by CBS including public surveys on CBS awareness levels, blood donation awareness levels and attitudes, past performance in terms of total units of blood donated year over year, etc. to establish its strategic approach for the development of these media relations campaigns. The agency conducted a thorough media audit to create a snapshot of the editorial dialogue that was taking place in the Canadian landscape on blood donation and other competing charitable giving outreach. In addition, several existing blood donors, and prospective blood donors were interviewed in order to gain a deeper qualitative understanding of the target audience’s insights, motivators, and the context of their lifestyle in general.

The research findings indicated that for CBS’ new younger target audience, the need for blood donation was often connected with times of major disasters or catastrophes, and that’s when it would become a top-of-mind priority. On an everyday basis, blood donation would often take a back seat to their time-starved lifestyle with thoughts like “I can only do so much.” Among this group, while giving blood was seen


as “the right thing to do”, the deep impact of even one donation (how one blood donation can save up to three lives) was not realized. CBS had to illustrate this impact of giving blood, stressing how making time to donate blood on an ongoing volunteer basis had the potential to turn anyone into an everyday hero. Research suggested the key behaviour-changing factor would be inspiration.

Factoring these insights and findings into the programming process, DDB Public Relations established two unprecedented media relations campaigns that would maximize the incredible opportunity that lay before CBS to really make its mark among its target audience in 2007. By celebrating and thanking blood donors, both initiatives would build awareness of Canadian Blood Services, would showcase importance and the impact of ongoing voluntary blood donation, and would encourage more people to become regular voluntary blood donors.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectWorking hand-in-hand with the national and regional CBS offices, DDB Public Relations developed and managed the execution of both the World Blood Donor Day and National Blood Donor week media relations campaigns. Martine Lévy and her team provided strategic direction and client counsel, managed both budgets and project details, outreached to and secured celebrities and influencers for the campaigns, coordinated event details, conducted media relations and provided program evaluations.

Intended Audience(s)The primary media audience for this program was local, national and international media including news, health and lifestyle at regional and national dailies, weeklies and community papers as well as key broadcast and on-line outlets. They were to be used as the conduit to communicate with CBS’s target public audience.

The public audience that these media relations campaign would reach included committed and prospective blood donors in Canada. CBS wanted to thank committed donors and encourage them to donate blood regularly, and wanted to inspire prospective donors to make the commitment and donate blood. Additional audiences included influencers and third party spokespeople such as the international blood donation community including the WHO, other countries’ counterparts to CBS in Canada, and well-known and recognized Canadian athletes, on-air television and radio personalities, dignitaries, community leaders, government representatives and local celebrities.

Demographic and psychographic profiles of the target public audience are as follows.

Committed and prospective donors: with a 50-50 ratio of men and women, this target audience is 35-55 years old. They tend to live in the suburbs, and often tend to donate blood through work, or at permanent blood donor clinics. They feel fortunate for the opportunities they’ve had in life, are financially secure and well-educated, and they feel it is important for them to share their good fortune and health by “giving back” to the community.

For committed donors: though they are busy and pressed for time, they find a way to “make time” for things that are important to them. In terms of insights, they believe donating blood is most important and rewarding. They feel it is a unique social contribution and that the personal investment is significant. They are proud blood donors, and feel this giving is a type of insurance for the day when they or their families may need blood. They appreciate being recognized for their contributions, but don’t expect or need to receive any incentive to donate.

For prospective donors: their key priorities in life are family, career and community, for the most part in that order. They try to be involved in their communities, for example, by attending church, participating in activities for their kids (e.g. soccer, Boy Scouts, swim lessons, etc.), etc. They try to help out when they can, but given their current commitments, they feel they need to be “selective” - they can only do

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so much. They have never donated blood before (or they donated blood a long time ago). They feel that donating blood is the “right thing to do” and they intend to give blood sometime in the near future. They just haven’t had the opportunity to actually do it yet. Often they don’t really know where they could go to donate or know what is involved. They may not be sure what organization manages the blood system, and feel if there is an urgent need, they would make the time and give blood.

Based on these target audience descriptors, DDB Public Relations concluded that the target audience needs to feel inspired and appreciated – to know that blood donation recipients are truly thankful for their gift. They need to see the impact of donating blood and how it literally saves lives. By doing so, this audience will strengthen their commitment to this cause and will start donating blood.

To reach these committed and prospective blood donors, the agency used media relations as a strategic communications vehicle. Based on research and consultation with CBS’s media buying agency OMD, the agency targeted media outlets who directly serviced CBS’s target audience of committed and prospective donors.

Goals/ObjectivesThe overarching goal of these media relations campaigns was to support CBS in attracting 80,000 new donors to the blood donation cause over the course of the year. This goal directly addressed CBS’s business need in terms of expanding its target donor base to maintain an ongoing supply of safe blood and blood products across Canada. It would also proactively address CBS’s concern in sustaining its donor base in the long term by reaching new generation of Canadians in the blood donation cause.

To spread the word and inspire the target audience, DDB PR’s task was to have the celebration and awareness events reverberate through maximized media coverage across Canada. As such, the media relations objectives were based on previous years’ benchmarks and included:

Media Relations: quantitative objectives:• Media impressions to exceed 5 million• Cost-per-contact of less than $0.05

Media Relations: qualitative objectives:• Minimum Media Relations Rating Points (MRP) score of 75% • Based on CBS’ business need as outlined above, the MRP criteria included: company mention (to

increase CBS name recognition and awareness among prospective audiences and re-affirm it among committed blood donors), image inclusion (for inspirational impact), prominence of editorial (to capture the audience’s attention), key message inclusion (to educate the target audience), and call-to-action inclusion (to move the target audience to joining the “movement” of blood donation)

Solution OverviewThese CBS campaigns were designed to promote the organization’s unique selling proposition: donating to someone in need through Canadian Blood Services has a direct impact on someone’s life. The agency’s goal was to recognize and celebrate those who give of themselves selflessly, and to inspire and motivate others to join the blood donation movement – to compel them to want to become everyday heroes as well.

In approaching this communications challenge, DDB PR worked in tandem with DDB Canada, CBS’ advertising agency of record to thoroughly review the target audience response to the event concepts, key messaging etc. This was done through focus groups to test of the creative concepts and message impact. This process helped immensely in developing the innovative, creative concepts of the “Live Public Service Announcements” or PSAs (for National Blood Donor Week), the strategic approach for World Blood Donor Day and to determine what would resonate most with the target audience. In addition, the agency worked closely with CBS to identify moving donor and recipient stories.


National Blood Donor Week: recipient stories needed to touch the hearts of potential and committed donors to drive home the importance of ongoing voluntary blood donations, but competing amongst so many other Canadian charities, the message had to be communicated in an innovative way.

The creative concept consisted of “Live PSAs” where a recipient could treat a donor to a public thank-you celebration for their gift of life with the support of a local community VIP member (e.g. media personality, artist, etc.). Media, photographers and videographers would be on hand to capture in-the-moment images, videos and sound bites that could then be used for locally relevant media coverage. For example, in Calgary, to celebrate the vitality of life, a blood donor and recipient went skydiving together; in Toronto the entire cast of the show “We Will Rock You” serenaded a blood donor and recipient in Trinity Park. In total, 15 innovative “Live PSAs” were coordinated across Canada.

World Blood Donor Day: the creative concept for this initiative needed to leave a lasting impression on a national and international audience. The agency enlisted artists to donate their time and talent to create a song of inspiration, as they raised their voices together thanking blood donors around the world. With the participation of these high profile Canadian influencers, the world would see Canada’s commitment to the cause of blood donation. The result was an exclusive taping and then live performance of an uplifting and soulful commemorative song entitled “We Shine as One” that made its debut in Ottawa for the World Blood Donor Day event. Moving, heartfelt recipient stories were also shared to bring the blood donation message to life. Health Minister Tony Clement, various dignitaries from across Canada and WHO representatives also provided motivating speech remarks.

Implementation and Challenges For National Blood Donor Week, the agency and Canadian Blood Services worked in partnership to implement 15 highly successful “Live PSAs” with the participation of high profile personalities. In Niagara Falls, a donor and recipient joined ET Canada host Rick Campanelli on the Maid of the Mist; in London, Transport Minister Donna Cansfield gave an 800-time donor a personalized license plate; in Halifax, the Maritime band McGinty hosted an ‘open house kitchen party’; in BC, the BC Lions met with a donor and recipient at their training practice. Local media relations activities were conducted throughout resulting in unprecedented local and regional media interest. There were many challenges in coordinating the schedules of the various parties including the high profile personalities, the blood donation recipient and the blood donor and making sure the “Live PSAs” could be held during a time that would also be convenient for the media. Finding creative backdrops and activities for each “Live PSA” also meant liaising with several suppliers and venues to ensure flawless execution. Finally, the national and regional CBS offices and the DDB PR team had to be in constant contact and work seamlessly over a very short period of time to ensure consistency in the roll-out of the campaign, and to make sure all the activities took place in time to promote National Blood Donor Week effectively. Clear communication, updates and reporting became pivotal tools in ensuring campaign success.

For World Blood Donor Day, the agency assembled an impressive list of leading artists to produce the “We Shine As One” song including: double Juno-award winner Liberty Silver, singer Giorgia Fumanti, Latin jazz singer Amanda Martinez, altrock singers Edwin and Mista D (the Salads), 16-year-old jazz sensation Sophie Berkal-Sarbit, leading R&B, hip hop vocalist Dru (In Essence), the cast of the hit musical We Will Rock You and the Renee Rowe Singers. The commemorative song was written and produced by renowned lyricist and producer Eric Mercury (Stevie Wonder, Roberta Flack), co-produced and arranged by Juno award winner Eddie Bullen and co-written by Broadway sensation Brenda Russell (The Colour Purple). The song also featured instrumentation by Thelonious Monk III on drums, Canadian jazz heavyweight Bill King on the organ, bassist Etric Lyons (Kush), percussionist Joaquin Nunez Hidalgo (Hilario Duran) and guitarist Elliott Randall (Steely Dan). Artist relations over the course of this campaign was vital in ensuring CBS left a positive and lasting impact among this audience, and that the end product would truly inspire not only the end user – the target audience, but also the artists themselves. Each artist was asked to volunteer their time, so remote tapings, coordinating individual schedules and accommodating their technical requirements was key to success.

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The agency also managed numerous tactics to promote World Blood Donor Day event including a multimedia presentation that featured international footage and clips from the “Live PSAs.” While this was presented at the Ottawa event, a webcast, b-roll was disseminated via satellite to broadcast outlets, a strategic, comprehensive media kit, national media relations follow-up and all aspects of event coordination and management in Ottawa.

Copies of the “We Shine As One” song were included in the media kits, distributed to event attendees, and a shorter version of the song was also sent to target radio stations as part of the event strategy. The song was also available for download on the Canadian Blood Services website.

The total budget for this program including agency fees and disbursement costs was $196,000. This budget included planning and research, program development and management, implementation and evaluation. To implement the 15 National Blood Donor Week ‘live PSAs’, was met with numerous challenges including: liaising with CBS regional offices across Canada to ensure the creative concept was on strategy; ensuring that tight timelines were met, VIPs were confirmed, and donors and recipients were briefed and secured.

Measurement/EvaluationThe sheer magnitude of the local Live PSA events and the highly successful event in Ottawa were reflected by the quality editorials and broadcast segments that were generated. Pre-set communications objectives for the program were blown out of the water:

Quantitative objectives:• Total media impressions: 19,671,292 (target was to exceed 5,000,000)• Cost-per-contact: less than $0.01 (target was to be less than $0.05)• Coverage breakdown: (221 hits in total)

- 168 broadcast hits: 11,463,100 reach- 40 print hits: 2,813,041 reach- 13 online: 5,395,151 reach

Qualitative objectives:• MRP score of 85% (target was to be higher than 75%)

The editorials influenced consumer behaviour as well. Visits to www.blood.ca were up an astounding 53% over the previous year. Moreover, the World Health Organization proclaimed that the Canadian launch of World Blood Donor Day was the most successful country launch to date. They are considering sending a CD of the song to all member countries using it as the music behind a new recruitment video.

These campaigns did ultimately contribute to changing behaviour for CBS, as its goal in 2007 of generating 80,000 new donors to its blood donation movement was met. This was a huge accomplishment that ultimately proved these media relations campaigns were highly effective.


Media Relations 100K and up – Award of MeritEntrant’s Name: Leslie Wood, Mario Taylor, Vanessa Principe, Nicholas Schulz and Dara WillisOrganization’s Name: Fleishman HillardTitle of Entry: Know Your RatioDivision 1/Category 3c: Media Relations greater than $100KTime Period of Project: April 2006 – December 2007

Business Need/Opportunity:Heart disease is the leading cause of death in Canada. Despite its deadly impact, awareness of risk factors including the Cholesterol Ratio, among the best indicators of long-term cardiovascular risk, is low among Canadians. In fact, at the infancy of the campaign, quantitative data was collected by Leger Marketing surveying 1,404 Canadians with high cholesterol and found that 36 per cent of respondents had never heard of this important measurement, and only one per cent could accurately identify the two components of the Cholesterol Ratio.

Furthermore, a key differentiator between cholesterol medications is that AstraZeneca’s (AZ) is indicated for the reduction of the Cholesterol Ratio. As a result, a key business objective for AZ was to highlight to consumers the importance of the Cholesterol Ratio and encourage them to speak to their physicians about this important measurement. This objective along with the quantitative research provided the impetus for the Know Your Ratio campaign strategy.

To help educate Canadians about the Cholesterol Ratio, Fleishman Hillard (FH) and AZ launched the Know Your Ratio campaign. Know Your Ratio focused on www.KnowYourRatio.ca/www.ApprenezVotreRatio.ca, an education web site for consumers who suffer from high cholesterol and are looking to make healthy lifestyle changes. KnowYourRatio.ca/www.ApprenezVotreRatio.ca is the first integrated food and nutrition, exercise and wellness site focusing on the Cholesterol Ratio as a total approach to managing cholesterol. In consultation with a multi-disciplinary panel of experts including cardiology, primary care, psychology and nutrition, the site provides information in four key areas: cholesterol and heart health, diet, physical activity and motivation. Numerous media vehicles were put in place to drive people to the web site and increase awareness of this critical wellness measurement.

Entrant’s Role In the Project: FH managed all aspects of the web site development and promotional tactics. FH worked with iStudio Canada to develop the technical framework and creative for the web site and consulted with the Know Your Ratio Expert Assembly for content development. FH key responsibilities included developing program strategy, web site copy development, approval coordination with the Advertising Standards Council, launch strategy, development and implementation of promotional tactics and metrics reporting.

Intended Audience(s):• Women and men 45+• Healthcare professionals including family physicians and dietitians• Healthcare and consumer media

Goals/Objectives:The communication goals for the campaign were:• Introduce Canadians to the Cholesterol Ratio and its importance as one of the best indicators of long-term

cardiovascular risk• Drive traffic to www.KnowYourRatio.ca/www.ApprenezVotreRatio.ca and demonstrate the relevance of the

site content• Encourage cholesterol patients to talk to their doctor about the Cholesterol Ratio and their current treatment

regimen

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Solution Overview:FH was determined to help AstraZeneca own the term “Cholesterol Ratio” and knew their target demographic was online for health information. This was the foundation behind www.KnowYourRatio.ca/www.ApprenezVotreRatio.ca - the first integrated food and nutrition, exercise and wellness program focusing on the Cholesterol Ratio as a total approach to managing cholesterol. The web site was written in conjunction with an Expert Assembly and encouraged visitors to ask their physicians about their Cholesterol Ratio. A multi-pronged communications strategy was implemented to drive people to the web site, including: 1. News releases: General news release targeted at health and lifestyle media; food release targeted at

food and lifestyle media leveraging profiles of dietitians and respective recipes.2. Long-lead pitching: Targeted pitching was made to long-lead print publications highlighting the

Cholesterol Ratio, KnowYourRatio.ca and Expert Assembly members.3. Print matte stories: Developed in both English and French, 5 matte stories were developed and

distributed through New Canada. These stories were by-lined by members of our Expert Assembly focusing on three pillars of the web site – diet, motivation and exercise.

4. Video News Release (VNR)/Audio News Release (ANR) – Developed in both English and French, the VNR/ANR leveraged two physicians from our Expert Assembly communicating messages about the Cholesterol Ratio and introducing the web site.

5. Rogers Media Online Advertisement Buy: Online banners and big box advertisements ran on several Rogers Media web sites, including Macleans, L’Acutalité, Chatelaine (English and French) and Glow. Clicking on the advertisement directed cholesterol patients directly to the www.KnowYourRatio.ca/www.ApprenezVotreRatio.ca.

6. Body Break segment: FH worked with Body Break to produce a 90-second segment that was distributed to 135 network and cable stations across Canada. The segment featured Body Break’s Hal Johnson and Joanne McLeod discussing the importance of understanding one’s Cholesterol Ratio and encouraged viewers to ask their doctor about this measurement.

7. Email blast: Interactive email developed in English and French and sent to 30,500 cholesterol patients to introduce them to www.KnowYourRatio.ca/www.ApprenezVotreRatio.ca.

8. Healthy Summer Eating Media Tour: 4-city media tour with cookbook authors, Greta and Janet Podleski. Discussing the Cholesterol Ratio Greta and Janet visited media in Vancouver, Calgary, Halifax and Toronto. They also created a recipe that was exclusive to the web site and announced this in all their interviews. A VNR was developed featuring Greta and Janet as well as 5 print matte stories discussing healthy summer eating.

9. Quebec Summer Eating Media Tour: Quebec cooking sensation and nun Soeur Angele visited media in Montreal and Quebec City and discussed the Cholesterol Ratio.

10. Dietitian mailing: 7,500 letters plus business-size eating out cards were mailed to dietitians across the country driving interest to the web site and encouraging dietitians to refer the web site to their patients.

11. World Heart Day Media Tour: Toronto media tour with Dr. William Hughes. Dr. Hughes visited media in his mobile screening unit and administered a carotid ultrasound on interested media which detects cardiovascular blockage. Dr. Hughes encouraged viewers to visit the web site for additional information.

Implementation/Challenges and Budget:Our biggest challenge was being restricted by the Advertising Standards Council regulations in terms of interactive functionality of the web site. Web sites featuring social media tools such as blog postings and chat rooms have continuously updated content which enhanced their ranking on search engines and makes them easier to find. As a means to address this set-back, FH developed regularly updated seasonal features, by-lined by members of the Expert Assembly as a means to offer expert advice on diet, exercise and motivation, while enhancing the search engine optimization rankings for the web site.


The budget for the web site was $419,000, including content development, technical framework and maintenance. The budget for the supporting tactics was $811,000.

Measuring/Evalution:

Objective 1: Introduce Canadians to the Cholesterol Ratio and its importance as one of the best indicators of long-term cardiovascular risk.

Results: To date, the campaign was garnered over 70 million impressions in print, broadcast and online outlets across the country with significant hits on Canada AM, Global, City-TV, Canadian Living and CTV. Furthermore, coverage garnered was on message with a MRP rating between 74 and 94 per cent.

Objective 2: Drive traffic to www.KnowYourRatio.ca/www.ApprenezVotreRatio.ca and demonstrate the relevance of the site content.

Results: The web site has received over 53,000 unique visitors and approximately 800,000 site visits to date. Visitors are engaged and on average spend approximately 10 minutes on the web site.

Objective 3: Encourage cholesterol patients to talk to their doctor about the Cholesterol Ratio and their current treatment regimen.

Results: The “Working with Your Doctor” page, a document to help facilitate discussion with your doctor, has been viewed 4,235 times and the PDF was downloaded 2,502 times from the web site. In addition, 23,848 people have used the risk calculator to see whether or not they should speak with a doctor.

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Marketing Communications up to 50K – Award of MeritEntrant’s Name: Bernard HellenOrganization’s Name: Traffic Marketing + Design Inc.Division: Division 1, Communication Management Category: Category 4A, Marketing Communications up to 50KTitle of Entry: Total Access: Nielsen Key Account StoreView Event Launch CampaignTime Period of Project: November 2006 to February 2007Brief Description: Traffic Marketing + Design Inc. was retained by ACNielsen Company of Canada to create a direct mail campaign and the associated web registration system for a new product launch. Nielsen wanted to effectively communicate the leading edge nature of Key Account Storeview™ – a revolutionary new offering. Traffic rose to the challenge and crafted a very effective multi-dimensional marketing strategy to drive recipients to a website in order to capture online registrations for the Key Account Storeview launch event.

Business Need/Opportunity[Please note: more detailed content was presented in workplan but has been removed to protect Client confidentiality]

ACNielsen (Nielsen) is the world’s leading provider of market research, information and analysis to the consumer products and services industries. Although store level data has been available in the form of databases for some time, the volume of data has made it difficult to use to find actionable insights in a timely fashion. Large opportunities existed for improvement in decision-making and management of stores; categories etc. if store level information could be utilized effectively to shed light on the store level business.

Key Account StoreView (KASV) represented the next generation of ACNielsen products. It was the leading edge, and a flagship product demonstrating where Nielsen wanted to move all of their products eventually in terms of ease of access, (over the internet in real time), and form and function.

Since KASV was the leading edge, showcase of the products and represents the direction ACNielsen was heading, the tone and feel of the marketing launch materials needed to reflect that Nielsen is a company that is on the technological leading edge, delivering innovative solutions to Nielsen’s client’s business issues. Traffic’s job was to communicate this.

Entrant’s Role in ProjectBernard Hellen, President of Traffic Marketing + Design Inc.Overall campaign strategy, client management and creative direction.

Simon Browning, Principal of SeeThroughWebWeb programming and design of TYPO3 Content Management System.

Isaac Lotz, President of Direct ImageFlash creative deign and programming

Jim Murray, Onwords and Upwords Inc.Copywriting

Intended Audience(s)[Please note: more detailed content was presented in workplan but has been removed to protect Client confidentiality]

The targeted attendance for the KASV launch event was existing Nielsen clients plus the corresponding Business Managers from Nielsen (if their client was attending). It was very important that Nielsen had the


right people at the event so that afterwards, they could quickly convert potential interest into confirmed, signed contracts.

The Key Account StoreView product is aimed primarily at Canadian Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) manufacturers and will have applicability across the entire organization but the primary target is the CPG sales force and would have the greatest benefit to them and help them achieve Excellence in Execution. From the Consumer Packaged Goods manufacturers perspective likely users will include category managers, sales force, sales managers, marketing and sales analysts, as well as brokers.

Nielsen wanted at least 100 people to attend the launch event and targeted three key contacts from each of their top 50 CPG manufacturing clients to attend this event including the most senior sales associate responsible, and the person they report to that is authorized to sign the contract and pay for the service.

GoalGoal is to generate both awareness and then interest among target audience so that Nielsen will have the opportunity to present a more detailed presentation of capabilities, and ultimately secure a commitment to purchasing the service.

Objectives1. Nielsen wished to have at least 100 members of the target audience attend a launch party to hear

retailer endorsements and be provided with additional information and incentive to sign-up for the revolutionary new KASV offering.

2. Nielsen wanted ongoing communication to keep the service top of mind, and generate interest in contacting a Nielsen representative for consultation on issues KASV can solve in clients business.

Solution OverviewTraffic proposed a 2-prong approach to promote the launch of Key Account StoreView – a traditional printed direct mail campaign in combination with a sophisticated electronic marketing campaign. This would address the needs and characteristics of the target group and position Nielsen as a technologically superior supplier.

Traffic created the following integrated marketing strategy (please see Appendix A in the workplan):

1. Mail to a pre-qualified list of 250 recipients, a personalized and printed direct-mail piece inviting them to a viewing of an on-line Key Account StoreView Flash demonstration.

2. Include an exclusive and personalized (unique) ‘Executive Access Code’ that would allow recipients to logon to www.storeview.ca. Entering their ‘Executive Access Code’ they will be invited to verify existing data (name, address, etc.) and add their email address and other information deemed to be of value. A database content management system was implemented to support this activity.

3. After the login process and data validation/update by the responder, they were forwarded automatically to view a Key Account StoreView Flash presentation and then sign-up page for the launch event. Statistics were gathered online and realtime on a per recipient basis beginning at login.

4. Once online, responders were able to register for the upcoming launch event and view an Key Account StoreView demo flash presentation.

5. Immediate follow-up with those respondents who have viewed the on-line presentation/and or registered for the conference with a personalized e-mail offering information – including a sales call.

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6. One week after the initial direct mail package drops, track those recipients who have not yet viewed the on-line presentation and/or registered for the launch event and send out a follow-up email reminder to visit the registration site at www.storeview.ca

Creative Execution and Key MessagingThe creative concept that Traffic chose to launch StoreView was Total Access. Total Access represented complete, unrestricted; special privileged admittance to a wealth of powerful insights from Nielsen. Total Access is the key to the www.storeview.ca website.

As a concept, Total Access combines elements of the elite with a) finding out in depth information about a new service from Nielsen and b) the implication that the service itself promises to be a breakthrough way of viewing information as well, (bearing in mind that the prospect will already be familiar with Nielsen and its range of services).

This was not meant to be a ‘teaser’ concept in any way. It was designed to create involvement with a very sophisticated and difficult to reach target group and work as hard as possible to achieve the objective of getting prospects to the www.storeview.ca website and to enter their Total Access Code. The way that the creative achieved this was by making the recipient feel that they were receiving a special pass that was a unique opportunity to gain new insights.

A direct response mailer was created that consisted of a printed envelope with Total Access messaging on the front. Inside was an actual plastic tradeshow pass sleeve with lanyard, into which was tucked a full colour 2-sided Total Access Pass Card (please see an example in the work samples). The front side had the prospect’s name, title, company and ‘Executive Access Code’. The back side of the card explained what the prospect was to do and hint at the promise of a new Nielsen product that would elevate their level of access to powerful business tools and intelligence.

To those who did not respond immediately, there was a follow up email sent to them reiterating this concept and hinting strongly at what they could be missing out on if they did not respond. This concept created a sense of ‘event’ for the prospects. It also provided the recipient with a cool identification device that they could wear to the launch event.

Implementation and ChallengesThe Storeview campaign was discussed in August of 2006 but the team did not receive a briefing from Nielsen and creative development didn’t then begin until late November 2006. The date for the launch event was already established for March 1, 2007 so the majority of the work needed to be completed in December of 2006 and January 2007. The direct mail drop date was January 24th, 2007. Holiday scheduling and the complexities of co-ordinating a multi-faceted approach added to the challenges. Frankly, the only way to complete the amount of work inherent in the design and programming of a website, including a proprietary backend tracking section, a flash presentation and the direct mail campaign was to have individual freelancers workingon each of the deliverables independently.

Another interesting development in the production of this job was the early January 2007 decision in mid-development of ACNielsen to refocus the business and adopt a new name (Nielsen) and corporate branding. All the creative being designed for print, flash and web needed to be quickly revised to adopt the new graphic standards. This was done in time to still make the direct mail drop date and within the established budgets. The budget of the StoreView campaign was under $50K [Please note: actual numbers were presented in workplan but has been removed to protect Client confidentiality]


Measurement / EvaluationNielsen was very pleased with the results of the campaign, as the number of visitors to the site and online registrations has surpassed the registration results with previous similar events. 76.9% of the target audience visited the conference registration website and of those who visited, 67.7% accepted the invitation and registered for the event. A table of total campaign results is included below.

Traffic implemented a backend administration system that tracked all website user interactions in a database (please see Appendix B: Backend Reporting System document in the work samples). Nielsen had instant access to information on the direct mail campaign’s response rates, registrations, and was able to track logins and segment them into responders and non-responders. In addition, the flexibility of the backend administration system has allowed Nielsen to track visits and responses in near real time allowing Nielsen to adapt their event plans significantly faster than they have been able to historically. Other benefits of this approach included:• Increased awareness of Key Account StoreView;• Direct and ongoing communication with Clients;• Positioning Nielsen as being technologically up-to-date;• Ability to query Responders and collect valuable marketing information;• Control of non-responder follow-ups; and,• Effective marketing analysis and reporting of results.

As a result of the success of the campaign, Nielsen adopted the approach that Traffic proposed andimplemented as a company ‘best practice’ for the way all event launches will be promoted in the future.

Results Initial direct mail list mailed to 250 names as follows:Nielsen internal 048 Client Names 202

Logons to the Nielsen StoreView website:Visitors 279 76.9%Non-Visitors 084 23.1%Total 363 (greater than 250 mailed out due to the fact that recipients were able to invite colleagues)

Client registrations to the StoreView Launch Event:Acceptors 189 52.1%Decliners 077 21.2%Undecided 013 03.6%

Or put another way, 67.7% of all visitors to the StoreView website accepted the launch event invitation!

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Marketing Communications 100K and up – Award of ExcellenceEntrant’s name: Janet Wile, ABC, APR, MCTitle of entry: Unlock the Value Division: Division 1, Communications Management Category: Category 4c, Marketing CommunicationsEntrant’s organization: Barrick Gold CorporationTime period of project: September 2007Brief description: A launch event with media relations and advertising support helped Barrick successfully promote its innovative global Unlock the Value scientific challenge

Business Need/OpportunityBarrick Gold Corporation is the world’s pre-eminent gold mining company with 27 operating mines and 20,000 employees worldwide. Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, Barrick’s vision is to be the world’s best gold company by finding, acquiring, developing and producing quality reserves in a safe, profitable and socially responsible manner. Barrick shares are traded on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges.

At Barrick’s Veladero gold mine in Argentina, there are 180 million ounces of silver contained in the gold reserves, but the silver particles are encapsulated in silica and recovery is only about 6.7%. Barrick’s metallurgical experts researched the problem but did not find a practical solution. Looking for a breakthrough, Barrick Research and Development (R&D) initiated and developed the Unlock the Value program, which challenges scientists worldwide to propose a solution through the internet site www.unlockthevalue.com. The program invites scientists to register online and submit a proposal for review by an expert panel. For ideas with merit, Barrick will fund further research and, for an idea successfully implemented at Veladero, Barrick will pay a performance bonus of US$10 million. In developing the program, R&D staff (themselves scientific researchers) studied emerging trends for using the internet to outsource research, and they determined the key drivers that would motivate the scientific audience to participate. The program reflects a broader company strategy to build relationships with the outside scientific community in search of innovation. It also reflects a trend for corporations to use the internet to generate ideas and encourage applied research, as outlined in Don Tapscott’s book “Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything.”

The program was launched on September 19, 2007, with preliminary proposals due by January 21, 2008.

Business Objectives Aligned Communications Objectives• Generate proposals from scientists

for increasing silver recovery at Veladero (preliminary target – receive 50 proposals by deadline date).

• Reach a broad scientific/inventor audience, both within and beyond the mining industry, to drive web traffic and achieve the program goals of online registrations and submissions. Measure success by volume and type of media coverage, website statistics, and the number of proposals submitted.

• Establish relationships with the scientific community (exceed benchmark of a competitor’s internet initiative that achieved 1400 participants).

• Position Barrick as a progressive company engaging in R&D, open to new ideas, and using internet technology to find solutions. Measure by response from target audience, number of registrations on website and innovation message carried in media.

Audiences• Primary audience was the wide scientific/inventor community, including chemists, engineers, physicists,

metallurgists, researchers, graduate students, and innovation organizations (universities, research institutes).

• Media (as a conduit to generate awareness in target audience), including science trade publications, science reporters and columnists, business and mining reporters.

• Barrick’s 20,000 employees worldwide. Employees (with some exceptions) are eligible to participate.

http://www.unlockthevalue.com



Scientists love to solve difficult problems, so we appealed to their inherent desire to solve “an earthly conundrum.” We focused on the $10 million bonus for success – a substantial incentive to participate. Scientists often have difficulty finding funding to develop their good ideas, so we highlighted Barrick’s plan to fund their research and communicated we are looking for other opportunities to collaborate with them.

Solution Overview

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectAs Director of Communications, I developed the launch concept; wrote or edited all materials; and managed the launch event, advertising, and suppliers. I worked closely with Marion Gotts, Program Manager in R&D; Bill Gray, Barrick’s Creative Director; and Brendan Seale, our Web Specialist. We employed public relations agency Media Profile to implement the launch event and assist with media relations, Axmith McIntyre Wicht to implement the advertising, and Systemgroup to build the website.

Communication Strategies• Used a mix of communication vehicles to create awareness and interest, and drive target audiences to

visit the program url -- www.unlockthevalue.com. • Used a creative launch event and media relations to generate widespread awareness immediately.• Reinforced launch with advertising in selected trade/science publications.

Theme and Image (see attached materials in Work Sample)• A photo of a silver bar wrapped in chains with a padlock symbolized the idea of silver being “locked up”

and needing to be unlocked.

Key Messages• Attention scientists – Unlock the silver at Veladero and earn US$10 million from Barrick!• Barrick’s Unlock the Value challenge invites proposals from scientists and researchers worldwide.• For proposals with merit, Barrick will fund your research. • Barrick is actively looking for innovation, new ideas, and new technology worldwide.

Communication Tactics1. Website: www.unlockthevalue.com is the platform for managing the program and gathering

submissions. The site is consistent with Barrick’s visual identity, and has easy links to and from the corporate site www.barrick.com. The site clearly outlines the opportunity, rules and process. It provides the information and documentation scientists need and lets them pose questions. It allows them to register online and submit their proposals. It tracks proposals and provides an audit trail for executed legal documents that protect intellectual property. The website and program model for Unlock the Value was developed so it can be used for other potential scientific challenges in the future. (See sample screen shots in Work Sample)

2. “Unlock the Silver” Launch Event: (see Work Sample for invitation, photos of event, and announcement speech)• This special press conference was held at the Toronto Stock Exchange Broadcast Centre, chosen

for its high-tech atmosphere and its proximity to universities, research institutes, and key business media.

• The room was decorated with silver accessories (tablecloths, refreshment containers, napkins, etc.). Photos of the mine, researchers at work, and silver bars and coins flashed on the monitors around the room. Ore samples from Veladero were on display. Signage featured the “silver bar and chains” image and the website url.

• Invitees were university professors, researchers, engineering consultants, and media.• The focal point visual was a table in front of the stage. On top of the table sat a clear plastic

case containing pure silver bullion. The case was wrapped in chains with a padlock, waiting to be unlocked.



http://www.barrick.com

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• Upon arrival, attendees received information about the program, and an envelope containing a key.• President and CEO Greg Wilkins announced the program.• All attendees were invited to try their keys in a symbolic “unlocking the silver” event. One opened

the lock, and the lucky scientist kept the silver. This format became the template for events held later in other countries.

• The President and R&D Manager led an animated question period with scientists and media.

3. Information/ Media Kit: This comprehensive kit included a news release and seven fact sheets: Program Overview, Scientific Challenge, Veladero Mine, Barrick Company Profile, Silver Facts, and Biographies of the President and Manager of R&D. All materials were produced on a special template letterhead using the Unlock the Value graphic. (see Work Sample for copies of all materials)

4. Media Relations: The news release and program fact sheet were distributed globally via several newswires and in multiple languages – English, Spanish, German, Chinese, Russian, Japanese, Italian, and French.

5. Video News Release: The news conference was videotaped. Clips of the event and photos of the mine were quickly compiled and posted that afternoon to a website for download by TV stations, along with a suggested script.

6. E-mail Blast: The news release was pushed to a compiled list of 8,000 people in the scientific community worldwide, advising them of the opportunity and referring them to the website for more details. The list included science and engineering department heads at universities as well as research institutes around the world.

7. Advertising Support: We placed advertising in selected scientific and mining trade journals, selecting those with the largest circulation among our target audience. In markets where trade journals did not exist, we employed online or newspaper ads. (See Work Sample for details of ad program and sample of ad in multiple languages)

8. Employee Communications: Stories on the intranet and in the company newsletter informed employees and let them know that employees (with some exceptions) are eligible for the program. (See Work Sample)

9. Flyer Distribution: The ad was produced as a handout and distributed at mining and investor conferences.

Implementation and challengesPreliminary communications budget was $310,000, including advertising, launch event and public relations, translation, printing, and other expenses. We planned carefully and monitored expenses regularly to stay within the budget. In December, the deadline was extended and a phase 2 budget of $100,000 was added so we could conduct additional promotion in China, Russia and India (regions known for engineering talent), bringing the total budget to $410,000. All phase 2 expenses are not yet in, but we anticipate being on or under budget. (see budget in Work Sample)

Communications planning began in late 2006, with development of the content and design of the program website. Detailed communication planning for the launch and advertising program began in May of 2007, in anticipation of a September 2007 launch. In the planning phase, we used checklists and status meetings to monitor progress, and used a critical path checklist to track tasks, progress and responsibilities for the launch event.

We addressed several challenges. We wanted to make the science fun but also needed to communicate this is a serious scientific endeavor and not a publicity stunt; therefore, the words “contest” and “prize”


were not used in our materials. We had to balance the need to communicate simply and protect our proprietary information with the need to give scientists very technical information. We accomplished this by asking scientists to register to receive detailed technical documents. To reach a globally dispersed scientific audience with a relatively modest budget, we created widespread awareness quickly using media relations, and maintained that momentum with staged, strategic advertising placements and announcement of a deadline extension. Scientists are naturally concerned about ownership of intellectual property; therefore, Barrick’s Legal department created detailed documents outlining all the terms and conditions, and we posted these on the website. Barrick, like all mining companies, is sometimes criticized by anti-development or environmental organizations. We anticipated this and incorporated information about Barrick’s responsible mining practices into the speaking remarks. As the ore is already being excavated, increasing the recovery is both environmentally responsible and beneficial for shareholders, employees and local communities. We provided media training and preparation for the spokespersons. Barrick had not previously reached out to the scientific audience, so we needed to create contact lists and use multiple media channels to reach them. To help scientists who are outside the mining industry, we included a Glossary of Mining Terms on the website. Our regular media monitoring service captures news coverage from major English media around the world, but we do not capture other languages. We added more detailed monitoring of Canadian coverage by the PR agency for one month, and we drew on the resources of our regional communications colleagues in South America to capture Spanish coverage from that region. However, we recognize much international media coverage was not captured.

Results/Evaluation The program quickly exceeded its objective of generating 50 proposals. Given the success of this process, the R&D department decided in December to extend the deadline to April 30, 2008 to maximize the number of submissions, and they committed more resources to conduct targeted promotions in China, Russia and India.

Business Objective #1 Aligned Communications Objectives• Generate proposals from scientists

for increasing silver recovery at Veladero (preliminary target – receive 50 proposals by deadline date).

• Reach a broad scientific/inventor audience, both within and beyond the mining industry, to drive web traffic and achieve the program goals of online registrations and submissions. Measure success by volume and type of media coverage, website statistics, and the number of proposals submitted.

• Achieved extensive media coverage immediately worldwide in a range of media. Major news media the

following day included: New York Times, Globe and Mail, National Post, Toronto Star, CBC national radio, CBC TV news and BNN television, and key on-line sites like Forbes.com, Bloomberg, and Canadian Press. In the following days and weeks, mining and science trade journals carried the story as well. (See sample coverage in Work Sample)

• There were 203 downloads of the NSTC and 75 downloads of the PAL versions of the VNR, indicating usage by TV stations in North America, Europe and/or Asia. (See details in Work Sample)

• The launch and media relations generated traffic to the website immediately. Within two days, 6,500 visited the site, 190 scientists registered, and 2 sent proposals. By December, we reached the target of 50 proposals. The message reached a global audience as indicated by the fact we received registrations from 35 countries.

• After one month, we conducted a Media Relations Rating Points (MRP) analysis, which tracked 77 stories reaching 21 million. The reach is understated as MRP software does not have circulation figures for many international papers (16 of the 77 stories were assigned a reach of only 1). Even so, it calculated a cost per contact of .00251 against the media relations budget and an MRP score of 59%. No stories were negative; 23% were openly positive. The company name was in every clip, 52% of stories quoted our spokesperson, 39% had an open call to action. The key message of $10 million for increased silver recovery was effectively delivered. (See MRP list and sample coverage in Work Sample)

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• Advertising effectively maintained the momentum. A weekly charting of submissions shows a steady level of participation every week since the launch. Most important, 110 proposals have been submitted as of February 27, 2008, more than double the business objective. Proposals have come from 19 different countries. These proposals will all be reviewed by the expert panel after the April 30 deadline. (See chart in Work Sample)

• The deadline extension announced December 14 generated additional media coverage. A Google search revealed the extension announcement appeared on more than 1,000 websites and blogs the following day.

• Three “Unlock the Value” events planned in India (Delhi), Russia (Moscow) and China (Beijing) in late February and early March 2008 promise to generate additional media coverage and participation from those countries.

Business Objective #2 Aligned Communications Objectives• Establish relationships with the

scientific community (target: exceed benchmark of a competitor’s internet initiative that had 1400 participants).

• Position Barrick as a progressive company engaging in R&D, open to new ideas, and using internet technology to find solutions. Measure by response from target audience, number of registrations on website and innovation message carried in media.

• As of February 27, the website has received more than 55,000 visitors and 1,631 registrations from

scientists, exceeding our target.• Links between the program website and corporate site helped scientists relate the company and

innovation. We have 3,893 referrals from www.unlockthevalue.com to the corporate site at www.barrick.com

• The launch events and website have opened up a dialogue with a whole new audience of scientists and suppliers of research services. Barrick R&D staff is receiving invitations from labs and research institutes to visit and learn about their services and technologies. By raising Barrick’s profile in countries where we do not have operations and are not well known, this program has created interest that may boost our recruiting efforts. The website and launch model proved successful and can be used for future scientific challenges to create value.





Marketing Communications 100K and up – Award of ExcellenceEntrant: Marko PerovicTitle: Organics Recycling Division 1/Category 4c: Communication Management/Marketing CommunicationsOrganization: Region of PeelOutside Agencies: Fingerprint Communications/JKR Communications/Informa ResearchTime Period of Project: 2004 (council approval to launch program) to 2007 (program launch)Brief Description: A marketing communications campaign was created to raise awareness and garner participation in Region of Peel’s new organics recycling program.

Business Need/OpportunityIn 2004, Peel’s Regional Council endorsed a staff recommendation to add an organics recycling program to its curbside waste collection services. The program was launched on April 2, 2007 to all households that receive curbside waste collection services in Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon.

Initially, the organics recycling program was scheduled to launch in two phases: in Caledon in 2005, followed by a launch in Brampton and Mississauga in 2006. But due to contractual issues with the waste collection service provider, the rollout to all households in the Region was postponed to April 2007. To date, the launch of Peel’s organics recycling program to 295,000 households represents the largest simultaneous roll-out in Canada.

Expectations for this new initiative were high. With resident program uptake, Waste Management staff anticipated Peel’s waste diversion rate could increase by as much as five to 10 per cent within two years of the launch. The Region’s Long Term Waste Resource Management Strategy has a goal to divert 70 per cent of waste from disposal by 2016. At the time of the launch the Region’s diversion rate stood at 45 per cent.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectAs the Public Affairs Associate for the Waste Management division, working closely with Annette Geldbert, Senior Public Affairs Associate and Waste Management staff, I was the communications lead on a multidisciplinary project team. I contributed to the development of the Request for Proposal, oversaw the planning and implementation of the marketing communications strategy and played an instrumental role at the official launch event to kick off the program. I oversaw the development of the ad campaigns and other collateral print materials by both Fingerprint Communications and the Region’s internal web and design teams. I also liaised with the Region’s Special Events Co-ordinator, Harriet McLoughlin, to execute logistics for the official launch event.

Intended AudiencesThe primary target audience for program messaging included more than 295,000 Peel households receiving curbside waste collection services. This audience encompasses a wide range of ethno-cultural and socio-economic groups. Geographically, the Region consists of rural, suburban and urban areas. As a result, communication initiatives aimed to generate awareness and understanding of the program had to resonate with a diverse audience.

Secondary audiences included: local, ethnic and GTA media outlets, waste management trade media, waste collection contractors, environmental groups (e.g. Brampton Clean City Committee and Citizens for a Clean Caledon), multicultural groups (e.g. Multicultural Inter-Agency Group of Peel).

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Goals/Objectives

Goal • To influence an increase in waste diversion by effectively communicating the organics recycling

program.

Objectives • Create widespread awareness of the program • Educate residents about the program and how to participate • Motivate residents to participate in the program by communicating the benefits to the community and

the environment. (Target household participation and tonnage rates within the first year were 50 per cent participation with an average of 90 kg of organics per household)

• Generate positive local media coverage leading up to and through the launch of the program

Solution OverviewThe Region’s Communications Services and Waste Management divisions engaged Fingerprint Communications to develop an integrated marketing communications strategy to effectively communicate the new program to Peel residents. JKR Communications co-ordinated all public and media relations activities, while Informa Research conducted two focus group sessions to gauge public attitudes and reactions to the new program and garner feedback on the promotional and advertising concepts.

Prior to developing any communication pieces, focus group sessions were held to assess current resident waste management practices and behaviours, reaction to the introduction of the new organics recycling program and its goals, as well as awareness and attitude toward waste issues. Research indicated residents were ready to expand their diversion efforts. They understood the benefits to the environment and identified potential barriers to launching the program. They clearly identified the need to employ a variety of communication channels to reach all eligible Peel householders.

The plan was designed to progress in three distinct phases: pre-launch, launch, and a program maintenance and results focussed follow-up period. The main theme for the program was See Waste in a New Way, which taught residents to look at food waste in a new way – as a recyclable product and a valuable resource. Each phase of the campaign was strategically planned to maximize exposure during the pre-launch and post launch period. The team was also able to meet all timelines during the campaign while staying within the allocated budget.

The campaign exceeded the set objectives with program participation reaching 50 per cent and households diverting an average of 133 kg of organic material per year.


Budget $800,000Program Communications $800,000 (cost breakdown is attached in supporting documentation)Launch Event $9,000

Program Identifier – Organics – It’s in the bin • Developed a program identifier that was placed on all communication vehicles. – Throughout campaignTheme – See Waste in a New Way • Images in the ad campaign and vehicle wraps focused on seeing food in a new way…as a valuable

resource, thus reinforcing the benefits to the environment. – Throughout the campaignWater Bill Insert • Full-colour insert in residential water bills delivered to 295,000 households over a three month period.

– January to March 2007


Direct Mail Campaign • Die cut information piece in the shape of a green bin delivered to 295,000 homes that receive curbside

waste collection services via Canada Post Unaddressed Admail service. – February 2007Green Bin Owner’s Manual • A 10-page information booklet providing residents with detailed information on how to participate in

the program including sections covering acceptable items, bin set out at the curb and appropriate bin liners. The booklet was delivered to residents inside the green bin along with a refrigerator magnet and the Region’s annual waste management guide. – Over a six-week period in February and March 2007

Green Bin Refrigerator Magnet • A magnet providing residents with a list of acceptable and non-acceptable green bin materials. The

magnet was delivered to residents inside the green bin. – February and March 2007 Ad Campaign • The ad campaign supported the organics recycling program launch with a three-phase series of

half page, full-colour ads. All of the ads were created using real props (dead fish, flower, hand etc.) and manipulated via graphic design techniques. A media-buy budget of $100,000 was allocated to advertise over a three-month period in March, April and May. An amount of $50,000 was dedicated to local community newspaper advertising (Brampton Guardian, Mississauga News, Mississauga This Week, Caledon Enterprise and Caledon Citizen).

• A significant portion of the ad budget was allocated to help reach Peel’s large multicultural audience. Data obtained from the 2001 Census of Canada indicated that English is not the home language for almost 20 per cent of Peel residents. $50,000 was dedicated to place translated ads in ethnic media outlets: The Weekly Punjabi Awaaz Newspaper, Eastern News, Ming Pao Daily, Hamdard Weekly, Hindi Times, Ajit Weekly, Punjabi Post and the Desi News.• Phase 1 – It’s Coming March 1 – 24• Phase 2 – Program Start Date Reminder March 26 – April 1• Phase 3 – See Waste in a New Way May 1 – June 1

Public Transit Ads • Ad campaigns were also employed on bus sides and backs in Peel. Phase 1 ads ran from February to

April and phase 2 ads ran from April to June 2007 Media Relations • News releases and media advisories were timed with the official launch and program start. – Releases

were disseminated on Jan. 23 and March 1, 21 and 23, 2007• A media kit was disseminated to the media attending the media launch and forwarded to all targeted

media unable to attend the event.• An electronic version of all news releases and the media kit were made available on the media centre

section of the organics website.• Story ideas were pitched to local and trade media.Green Days • Region of Peel staff set up an organics recycling booth at various malls and grocery and big box stores

in Peel giving residents an opportunity to learn first-hand about the organics program. – 14 Green Days events were held in March and April 2007

Website • An organics website was created to serve as an in-depth resource for anyone looking for more

information on organics recycling. Visitors are able to access the site directly from the Region’s home page and waste management page. – Launched in February 2007 to coincide with the direct mail delivery

• Website navigation includes the following sections:Ø How To ParticipateØ Where To Buy LinersØ Frequently Asked QuestionsØ What Goes in the BinØ Media Centre

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Organics Recycling Tips Sheet – Translated• Translated ‘how to participate’ tip sheets were created for the top 10 language groups in Peel: Punjabi,

Chinese, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Vietnamese, Arabic, Tamil and French. This information is available online and staff also distributed the material through Peel’s community and cultural groups, as well as its public education and outreach events.

Intranet Site • Stories targeting Regional staff (70 per cent are residents of Peel) with a push to the organics recycling

site for reference. – Throughout the campaignRegion of Peel E-newsletter • Stories in Region of Peel monthly e-newsletter sent to 2,500 subscribers (Peel residents and

organizations). – February to May editionsInstructional Video • A four-minute video that provides step-by-step program instructions is available online and in

CD format. To leverage additional outreach opportunities, CDs were distributed to community environmental groups, Peel multicultural groups, schools and the Region’s Public Education and Outreach Team for public education purposes. – Disseminated post-launch

Mobile Road Signs • Approximately 60 mobile road signs throughout Peel announced the start of the program and informing

residents of critical program information. – Placement on a scheduled basis from February to May 2007 Truck Signs • To garner additional program promotion in the community, 5’ x 8’ signs promoting the organics

recycling program were created and affixed to 36 collection trucks on the road four days per week. – February 2007 to date

Vehicle Wraps • Two Regional pick-up trucks and trailers were wrapped with the “See Waste in a New Way” graphic

message. The vehicles are driven daily throughout the Region and are set up at various events and trade shows. – February 2007 to date

Posters and Banners • Posters based on the ad campaign were placed in regional and municipal facilities, including libraries

and recreation centres. Stand up banners and a green bin mascot were used to attract residents during Green Days events. – March and April 2007

Councillor Newsletters • Contribution of content regarding the organics recycling program for use in Councillor newsletters for

distribution to constituents. – Throughout campaign launch

Official Launch • A media launch event was held in the Region’s organics processing facility. The formal speaking agenda

was followed by a photo opportunity and a tour of the facility for attending VIP and members of the media. Approximately 100 guests and media representatives attended the launch. CTV reporter, Tom Brown, hosted the one hour news-at-noon segment live from the facility. – March 23, 2007

Challenges

Challenge – Differentiating Peel’s organics program from Toronto’s organics recycling programThe Region of Peel borders the Greater Toronto Area. Toronto’s organics recycling program launched from 2002 to 2004 and accepts materials such as non-compostable plastic bags, diapers and pet waste, all of which are contaminates in the Region’s program. Due to the close the proximity, many Peel residents look to Toronto’s print and electronic media for information and were already familiar with Toronto’s organics program.


Solution – Staff focused on garnering coverage in both local and Toronto media and ensured that its key spokespeople always focused on what makes the Region’s program different. All communications materials placed an emphasis on the fact that non-compostable plastic bags are not permitted in the program. This was also reinforced with a supporting communications strategy that focused solely on the no plastic bags issue. To date, contamination in the Region’s organics recycling program is well below 10 per cent, which is easily managed on the processing end.

Challenge – Communicating to a broad audienceCommunicating to more than 1.2 million residents in the Region of Peel is challenging. Taxpayers are quick to contact their local councillor or the Region if they feel their municipal government is not being fiscally responsible. Solution –Results from resident surveys revealed their preferred methods for receiving communications from the Region:

• Direct mail – 64 per cent• Newspaper ads – 38 per

cent

• Website – 9 per cent • Municipal offices – 8 per

cent

• Television – 7 per cent• Call Centre – 4 per cent

Measuring/Evaluation

1. In just nine months, the Region of Peel has achieved the goals established for the first year of the program. Participation in the program has reached 50 per cent and households are diverting an average of 133 kg of organic material per year, a significantly greater amount than the 90 kg of organic material staff anticipated achieving in the first year. From April to December 2007, the Region’s overall diversion rate has increased to 51 per cent, up six per cent since the launch of the program.

2. The Region received outstanding media coverage in local, GTA and trade media. Media highlights include:• Positive and widespread coverage in Peel community media throughout all phases of the program,

including: program announcement, Green Days and launch event. • Great coverage in GTA media – Toronto Star, National Post, CFRB, 680 News, Citytv, CTV Toronto,

CBC Metro Morning and radio news (English and French).• Good coverage and recognition among ethnic media audiences.• By-lined Q&A column in key local papers.• Articles in key environment trade publications.• Estimated total media impressions: 11,360,842.50

3. The Region’s waste management web pages experienced increased page views during the time of the organics recycling launch. Data is compared to 2005 numbers because in March 2006 the Region launched its single stream recycling program, which resulted in increased web hits. During the months of March, April and May 2007, waste management web hits increased 42 per cent, 56 per cent and 40 per cent, respectively.

Web Hits:March 2005 – 48,080 page views March 2007 – 83,327 page viewsApril 2005 – 54,426 page views April 2007 – 123,495 page viewsMay 2005 – 70,526 page views May 2007 – 115,908 page views

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Marketing Communications 100K and up – Award of MeritEntrants’ Names: Jo Langham, ABC, Lisa Gilbert, Karen McCullough, Zoey Fiksel, APEX Public Relations; Diane Jubinville, Ultima FoodsOrganizations: APEX Public Relations / Ultima FoodsDivision/Category: Division 1, Category 4C: Marketing Communications with budget greater than $100KTitle of Entry: The Launch of Yoplait Yoptimal immuni+ Time Period: March 2007 – November 2007Brief Description: In May of 2007 a new yogourt, Yoplait Yoptimal immuni+, launched in English Canada. To generate awareness and trial of this new yogourt and communicate its immune boosting properties, APEX Public Relations developed and executed a public relations campaign targeted towards media, dietitians and consumers in English Canada.

Business need/opportunityBacteria are bad and should be avoided at all costs? Not so! A rash of new products with probiotics and prebiotics have shown us in the last couple of years that some bacteria are actually good for us. But which ones should you choose in a market overflowing with options?

Yoptimal immuni+ launched in Quebec in 2006 and experienced strong sales. Yoptimal immuni+ is a step beyond any yogourt product offered in Canada. It’s the only yogourt to offer a unique combination of two active probiotic cultures (BB-12® and LA-5®) and natural fruit and green tea extracts containing polyphenols, which are rich in antioxidants. The probiotic cultures work together to strengthen the immune system.

Yoplait is a Quebec-based company (owned by Ultima Foods), Canada’s second most recognizable yogourt brand, and known for providing reputable products. But the company had not previously done public relations out of that province. With the introduction of this important product to English Canada in May 2007, Yoplait wanted these complex nutrition messages communicated to consumers and other audiences in order to achieve a successful launch.

APEX Public Relations was hired by Yoplait to create consumer awareness, generate trial and sales of Yoptimal immuni+ and to motivate health specialists to recommend the product to consumers.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectUltima Foods and APEX worked together to develop the Yoplait Yoptimal immuni+ public relations strategy. APEX Public Relations was responsible for executing the public relations strategy. At APEX, Jo Langham, ABC, provided strategic planning and program direction throughout. Lisa Gilbert and Karen McCullough were responsible for coordinating all media briefing and media tour activities, drafting and revising all written materials for the program, conducting media relations follow up and providing day-to-day project management. Zoey Fiksel executed the media mailings, conducted media monitoring and reporting, and provided program support where needed.

Diane Jubinville of Ultima Foods was responsible for providing strategic counsel and research information in addition to approving communications materials.

Intended AudiencesYoplait was able to share key target audience details with APEX as a result of the successful Quebec launch in 2006. These were:• Adults aged 35-54 (the brand's primary target market), particularly women• Adults that are health conscious• Adults aged 55 plus as the secondary target• Health specialists (nutritionists, family physicians, immunologists)


Goals/Objectives• Drive awareness, trial and sales of Yoptimal immuni+

- Reach of 7 million, cost per contact less than $0.04, MRP goal seven out of 10• Motivate health specialists to recommend the product to consumers Solution Overview

RESEARCHResearch proved extremely important for this program, as it helped to determine direction for many plan components.

As Yoptimal immuni+ had already been launched in Quebec there was a certain expectation by the client that most elements of the launch program could be transferred to the English Canada program. After a media audit APEX was able to demonstrate to the client, by comparing Quebec and English Canada media characteristics and preferences, and the awareness levels of Yoplait in both areas that many elements of the Quebec program would not work in the new plan.

Secondly, during initial program development, Yoplait expressed that it was vital doctors were made aware of Yoptimal immuni+ so that they would recommend the product to their patients. APEX contacted friends and family members who were medical professionals to determine the challenges of enlisting doctors to recommend a product. Our research showed that there were many restrictions and challenges associated with communicating product messaging to doctors and that time restrictions on their part usually precluded such learning and recommendations.

APEX therefore also conducted a media audit of food and health journalists to discover the type of spokesperson (immunologist vs. dietitian) media would find most credible and might therefore also best be used for patient recommendations.

Finally APEX conducted an online media review to see just how much news there was already about pro- and prebiotics and how we could ensure our message was different and worthy of coverage.

StrategyAPEX developed several strategies to meet the objectives of the program. First, the decision was made to keep the product messaging as simple and direct as possible. This was done by using the immune system as a focus for messaging instead of leveraging the probiotics aspect. We wanted to refresh conversations in a way that the audience would associate Yoptimal immuni+ with the “new” ability to boost the immune system. For this reason too it was agreed that we should reach the target audience with this messaging through a number of touch points including direct, by health professionals and with the media.

Second, a plan was derived to tailor specific messaging to key target audiences. The general message that the product was available in Canada, had a great taste and added benefits was to be conveyed to all targets. However separate and specifically-focused releases would be developed for food, health and travel writers who could all take a unique angle on the immune system and benefits for boosting it and again reach consumers through different touch-points.

After reviewing feedback from medical professionals, APEX recommended outreaching to dietitians over doctors because doctors are difficult and expensive to reach, and many are too time-pressed to read mailing materials. The media audit revealed that journalists find both dieticians and immunologists to be credible sources of information. As Yoplait was working with a third-party dietitian who was highly credible, APEX recommended that she be used for media relations activities as well.

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Implementation

Media BriefingsTo introduce Yoptimal immuni+ and its complex messages to long lead and select short lead media, APEX arranged a day of one-on-one briefings for the media with spokespeople Hélène Thiboutot (Yoplait micobiologist) and Shauna Lindzon (Registered Dietitian) in April 2007. The experts explained the differences between good and bad bacteria, the benefits of antioxidants, and highlighted key scientific studies on key ingredients. Journalists had an opportunity to sample Yoptimal immuni+ along with other superfoods, such as blueberries, cherries and green tea. Media left with a Yoptimal immuni+ cooler filled with the product and an information kit.

English Canada Media Relations (long and short lead)To generate awareness of Yoptimal immuni+ across Canada, APEX adapted Quebec materials and distributed detailed information kits to target media across English Canada. Through follow-up, APEX offered media interviews with Registered Dietitian Shauna Lindzon.

News Canada Print StoriesAPEX worked with News Canada to develop five mat stories that were distributed in the June edition. Each mat story provided key nutrition information on new Yoptimal immuni+ as well as tips for increasing the strength of the immune system.

National Media TourIn order to communicate key nutrition messages and generate awareness of Yoptimal immuni+, APEX developed and distributed a pitch letter offering media the opportunity to interview Shauna Lindzon on simple ways to boost the immune system through diet. Following the distribution APEX conducted extensive media follow-up to secure interviews across Canada.

Cold and Flu - News Canada VNR and Media RelationsAPEX used the seasonal hook of cold and flu season and the importance of boosting the immune system during the winter months to remind media and consumers about the benefits of Yoptimal immuni+. To reach consumers who frequently source information on the web, a video news release was digitally distributed through News Canada to online portals such as MSN.ca and Google.ca. An electronic mailing highlighting the importance of boosting the immune system during this season was also distributed to targeted long- and short-lead health and food editors across Canada.

Direct-to-Consumer LaunchTo get the product directly into the hands of consumers, APEX worked with NewAd to develop a high-impact sampling opportunity at key high-traffic locations in Toronto. Sampling was conducted during the morning and lunch rush hours, including locations such as the Yonge & Bloor TTC station and the BCE Place Courtyard. Two giant kiosks were created to garner additional attention for the sampling and to allow consumers to take the Yoptimal immuni+ quiz, a fun test to rate their immune system. Registered Dietitian Shauna Lindzon was on hand to answer any nutrition-related questions.

Metro Replate ProgramA special edition of commuter paper Metro extended Yoplait’s messaging to a wider audience and enhanced the impact of the direct-to-consumer event at the Yonge & Bloor subway Station. APEX developed content that included a quiz, the URL, and product information.Budget: Paid for separately by Yoplait


Dietitian OutreachAPEX worked with Tatoo Communications to repurpose a glossy, detailed information folder created during the Quebec launch of Yoptimal immuni+ to provide detailed health information on Yoptimal immuni+ to registered dietitians across English Canada. The folder was distributed with a free coupon and customized cover letter from Shauna Lindzon to 5,500 registered dietitians.

Challenges

• Vancouver media: A day in Vancouver was planned for the Yoplait Yoptimal immuni+ media tour with Registered Dietitian Shauna Lindzon. Following the distribution of the pitch letter, Vancouver media were less than eager to secure interviews. APEX contacted colleagues in Vancouver to discuss the pitch letter and determine if contacts were appropriate. While positive feedback was received from colleagues, it was shared that Vancouver is a very difficult market to tap during a media tour. As such, the day planned in Vancouver was cancelled. To reach the Vancouver market, APEX worked with a food stylist to distribute product and media kits to print and broadcast journalists in the city in order to generate coverage.

• Distribution of product: While product had shipped and was supposed to be on grocery store shelves during the media relations campaign, many journalists had trouble finding the product. As a result, they did not want to file a story about Yoplait Yoptimal immuni+. APEX decided to cease media relations efforts for a few weeks to allow product to appear on shelves and worked with contacts across Canada to determine appropriate timing. APEX then revisited the media relations approach by sending recipes using Yoptimal immuni+ to journalists across Canada and informed them that product was on shelves in their city.

BUDGETAPEX was provided a budget of $280,000, including fees and expenses to develop and execute the Yoplait Yoptimal immuni+ public relations program. Expenses included: spokesperson fees, venue fee, stylist fee, travel and accommodation during the media tour, food and beverage, food stylist fees, props, and News Canada.

Measurement/Evaluation

Communications Objective: Drive awareness, trial and sales of Yoptimal immuni+

Evaluation:ü Met sales goals for launch, however numbers are proprietaryü 7,500 Yoptimal immuni+ samples were distributed during the direct-to-consumer eventü Samples were provided to 40 media outlets and were received very positivelyü More than 33 million impressions – four times greater than the original goal of seven million• 107 storiesü Cost per contact of less than one centü MRP score of 93 per centü Eight interviews were secured for the media briefings, with coverage appearing in five outletsü Strong News Canada story pick up, resulting in 30 storiesü Media tour resulting in 10 interviews

Communications Objective: Motivate health specialists to recommend the product to consumers

Evaluation:ü Received positive feedback from the dietitians who received samples

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Marketing Communications 100K and up – Award of MeritEntrant’s Name: Sharon Hayward, Account Supervisor, DDB Public RelationsTitle of Entry: Bosch Home Appliances: The 2007 Bosch Eco-Legacy CampaignDivision: Division 1, Communication Management Category: Category 4c, Marketing Communications with budget of greater than $100kEntrant’s Organization: DDB Public RelationsClient Organization: Bosch Home Appliances Ltd.Time Period of Project: April 2007 to December 2007Brief Description: The 2007 Bosch Eco-Legacy Campaign was developed to provide marketing communications support for Bosch Home Appliances Ltd., manufacturer of environmentally conscious kitchen and laundry appliances. The multi-tiered program helped to build product and brand awareness in Canada, successfully positioning the Bosch brand as a leader in energy and water efficiency, innovation, quality and product diversity on the Canadian home appliance landscape. The success of the campaign was defined by a remarkable increase in overall sales, unprecedented editorial coverage and an unmistakable enhancement in media and consumer brand awareness and recognition.

Need/Opportunity: In early 2007, BSH Home Appliances Ltd., a subsidiary of the third largest manufacturer of home appliances in the world and the manufacturer of Bosch Home Appliances Ltd., approached DDB Public Relations (DDB PR) with the challenge of creating a campaign that would develop the Bosch brand within the Canadian market. Prior to 2007, although a variety of Bosch kitchen and laundry appliances were available to the Canadian consumer through local retailers, BSH Home Appliances did not possess a corporate presence on Canadian soil. With the opening of a Canadian corporate head office in February 2007, the company was poised to invest in a full marketing communications program that would support their home appliance brands in Canada. The Bosch brand was at a clear advantage among its competitors as it boasted a long-standing environmental commitment. Bosch is one of the only home appliance brands to be almost 100 per cent Energy Star qualified, with dishwashers, washers, refrigerators and more, manufactured with much higher than standard rates for energy and water efficiency and conservation. Further research into the brand showed intense product innovation and an honest and open global environmental legacy that truly defined Bosch as the most eco-conscious home appliance brand on the market. Taking these elements into consideration, DDB PR developed and executed a multi-tiered marketing communications campaign that consisted of a creative and innovative media tour and national media relations campaign that leveraged a highly respected and relevant third-party spokesperson, augmented by targeted consumer touch points, strategic partnerships, product seeding opportunities and a covert guerilla marketing operation.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectSharon Hayward, Account Supervisor, DDB Public Relations, was involved in every aspect of the 2007 Bosch Eco-Legacy Campaign. Her role included, but was not limited to: research, strategy, budget and program development; event planning and coordination; on-site media and client liaison at events; writing and development of all communications materials; media training of key spokespeople; media relations; team leadership (working with a team of three consultants); and day-to-day project management and client liaison to bring this marketing communications program to life. Martine Lévy, Managing Director, DDB Public Relations, was responsible for senior-level strategic counsel and expertise on the program to guide Sharon Hayward in leading the day-to-day project management and program implementation.

Intended Audience(s): BSH Home Appliances identified the primary Bosch home appliance consumer as the suburban family, 30 years of age and older, with a household income of over $75,000.

Through proprietary market research obtained from BSH Group, DDB-led focus groups and survey results, DDB PR determined that Bosch consumers are family oriented, interested in creating a highly efficient, warm and natural environment for themselves and their children. These groups of people are always


attentive to quality and performance in regards to products for their home. They value inventiveness and ingenuity especially when it meets the needs of their family. They care for the environment and desire energy efficient, water saving options for their homes. They are well educated and resourceful – looking to newspapers, magazines, online communities and to their family and friends for information on the most efficient, most economical and highest quality of products.

DDB PR targeted its public relations efforts to media who communicated directly with the target Bosch audience. Accordingly, the primary target media included those geared towards women, families, home décor and design and the environmentally conscious crowd. Media outlets included: daily newspapers (e.g. Toronto Star, Calgary Sun, Le Journal de Montreal, etc.), women’s magazines (e.g. Canadian Living, Chatelaine, Coup de Pouce, etc.), and home décor/design magazines (e.g. Canadian House & Home), environmental publications (e.g. Green Living Magazine, etc.), key online portals (e.g. canoe.ca, canada.com, etc.) and marketing media (e.g. Ad News, Marketing, etc.). Media beats that were covered in this program included: home décor, design/renovations, women’s/lifestyle, parenting/family and environmental/green living.

Goals and Objectives:The basic goal of the 2007 Bosch Eco-Legacy program was to effectively communicate the Bosch brand attributes, vision and product innovations to the media, thereby influencing public understanding and familiarity of Bosch and its commitment to being a leader in energy and water efficiency, innovation, quality and product diversity within Canada. A number of quantifiable objectives were set out as part of the planning process for this campaign including: • Assisting Bosch in realizing an aggressive overall sales target for the 2007 fiscal year• Using the Media Relations Rating Points (MRP) evaluation system, obtaining a total audience

reach of at least 10,000,000 and a cost-per-contact of $0.05 or less via an aggressive media relations campaign

• Under the Media Relations Rating Points (MRP) evaluation system, the target MRP score was set at 75 per cent or higher. The pre-determined rating criteria included: 1) Bosch brand/company mention, 2) photo/image inclusion, 3) key message inclusion, 4) spokesperson quotes, 5) full colour

• Successfully providing one-on-one touch points for at least 100,000 individual consumers via strategic partnerships, product seeding and guerilla marketing

• Obtaining a minimum of 35 articles and an audience reach of at least 10,000,000 via media outreach

• Achieve industry standard minimum of 2 per cent response rate on web-based contesting

Solution Overview: Research: Utilizing proprietary BSH Group market research, competitive brand analysis and Canadian-specific market research, including target consumer focus groups and media surveys, DDB PR devised a public relations strategy that effectively communicated the Bosch message as it pertained to the Canadian Bosch consumer. By examining both consumer and media awareness prior to the launch of the 2007 Bosch Eco-Legacy Campaign, DDB PR was able to determine a course of action towards a campaign that would be both timely and effective in influencing public opinion.

DDB Public Relations, with peripheral support from the integrated partners at DDB Canada (print advertising and CRM), devised a comprehensive communications campaign that brought the philosophy of and story behind Bosch Home Appliances to Canadians. Through an innovative and strategic public relations program, DDB PR helped to build a unique Canadian-specific story around the brand’s strong heritage for design, quality, performance and leadership in the manufacturing of energy and water efficient appliances.

Built around the desire to separate the Bosch brand from its competitors, taking the appliances out of the appliance showroom and directly depositing them into the hands of the media and consumers,

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the campaign strategy included officially introducing the Bosch brand to the media via a mobile eco-conscious Bosch kitchen and laundry display. By bringing a clear representation of the brand philosophy and product offering directly to them, the media had the opportunity to physically touch and feel the brand. They were also privy to special one-on-one meetings with a respected Canadian environmentalist and advocate, Dr. David Bell, who could speak to the Bosch belief in energy and water conservation and overall sustainability. To ensure consistent and continuous messaging, this same thinking was replicated at the consumer level. DDB PR coordinated a mobile kitchen tour that literally took the Bosch eco-conscious appliances out of the store and into the local retailer’s parking lot, encouraging brand interaction with consumers who were pre-disposed to purchasing a new home appliance. Ongoing seeding activities and strategic partnerships over the next six months afforded Bosch a continuous presence at key industry and consumer-frequented locations including home shows, industry gatherings and via contesting on the web. Finally, to drive the message home and to encourage buzz and public discussion on the environmental impact of energy-and water-efficient appliances, DDB PR implemented a covert guerilla marketing campaign that took the Bosch message to the consumer in an attention-grabbing and direct fashion. Public Relations Program Tactics:The multi-tiered 2007 Bosch Eco-Legacy Campaign consisted of the following tactics: 1) Bosch Eco-Legacy Tour – July 2007

• An innovative media tour with a mobile eco-conscious kitchen display that travelled to key media outlets in Toronto and Montreal; media were treated to one-on-one meetings with Dr. David Bell and a Bosch spokesperson and got to try the appliances, first hand and at their own convenience

• Complimentary consumer-focused mobile kitchen display tour at key retailers/dealers within the Ontario and Quebec markets took place over a two week period following the media tour. The mobile kitchen was displayed outside stores and consumers were encouraged to try the appliances out before purchasing

2) National media relations campaign – summer and winter 2007• With a strong focus on Bosch’s key water-and energy-efficient appliance offerings, the national media

relations campaign also helped to announce Bosch’s entry into the Canadian market • DDB PR encouraged the formation of strong media ambassadors via a product testing program for

Bosch’s offering of small appliances (i.e. gourmet coffee machines, vacuum cleaners, etc.)• Via a holiday-themed e-newsletter, DDB PR conducted a second media relations push in the fall and

winter, thereby encouraging editorial coverage on Bosch small appliances 3) A “Different Kind of Green” Wallet Drop – September 2007

• A covert guerilla marketing campaign wherein green Bosch wallets were strategically ‘dropped’ in target consumer hotspots; program was executed in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver

• DDB PR helped Bosch to forge a relationship with environmentally focused Canadian companies; Roots and Enwise Power Solutions (a home energy audit company) who both supplied ‘green’ wallet incentives including discount cards and free home energy audits

• DDB PR set up Bosch laundry window displays at Roots flagship stores in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver during the wallet drop campaign to further drive brand awareness and recognition

• Subsequently ran the Bosch “Win A Green Machine” web-based contest including a consumer call-to-action to visit the Bosch website thereby increasing web traffic during the Wallet Drop program

4) Seeding and Strategic Partnerships – Ongoing • Negotiated Bosch sponsorship of ecoHOME project; a futuristic rendition of an eco-conscious living

space featuring all Bosch appliances• Built a Bosch laundry booth on ‘Green Street’ at IIDEX; trade outreach helped to build industry brand

ambassadors• Negotiated exclusive Bosch appliance sponsorship opportunity with the Canadian Living Country Kitchen

at The Home & Country Show; consumer outreach focused on the quality in design and craftsmanship of appliances and encouraged informal brand endorsement by key media, celebrity chefs, etc.

• Bosch Holiday-themed contest giveaway with Elle Canada to further encourage consumer awareness of the Bosch brand


Implementation and ChallengesBudget: BSH Home Appliances provided DDB PR with a total budget of $200,000 for the national 2007 brand development campaign. The budget included planning and program development, program management, measurement and evaluation, reporting and all individual activities included in the program for both fees and disbursements. (*Please note: budget figures in this summary were submitted for the purposes of this award entry and have not been released for public broadcast or distribution)

Challenges: As mentioned previously, although Bosch Home Appliances were available to the Canadian consumer through select dealers and high-end appliance outlets prior to 2007, BSH Home Appliances had never invested in marketing communications or public relations support for their home appliance brands in this country. As such, the DDB PR team was challenged to improve media awareness and understanding of the brand while effectively increasing consumer knowledge and recognition of the brand as an environmental leader in the home appliance category – essentially starting from scratch to provide a Canadian-specific viewpoint.

Measurement/Evaluation of Outcomes: Through highly impactful and innovative touch points, Bosch was effectively able to interact with its target audience, providing clear and consistent messaging that truly made an impact on the consumer’s awareness and understanding of the brand – a brand that they had barely heard about or seen before in Canada. The editorial coverage that was generated over the course of the eight-month media relations program far exceeded pre-set quantifiable objectives. Utilizing a selection of evaluation tools, the following results were recorded: • BSH Home Appliances Ltd. exceeded their 2007 sales targets overall and Bosch surpassed their 2007

target by $5,000,000• According to the Media Relations Rating Points (MRP) analysis, the multi-tiered media relations

campaign surpassed agency expectations achieving an audience reach of 28,721,654 with over 50 individual hits nationally

• With impactful qualitative criteria that included inclusion of spokesperson quotes and call to action mandates, the editorial messaging via a qualitative measurement score was excellent at 77 per cent surpassing the set target

• The cost-per-contact was far less than originally forecasted: $0.00071 versus $0.05• Through highly influential consumer programs and on-target strategic partnerships, pre-set goals for

direct consumer reach was exceeded by 75 per cent, with approximately 175,000 individual consumers experiencing direct interaction with the Bosch brand at various consumer shows and on the street

• Visits to the Canadian Bosch website increased significantly with over 400 hits alone during the one-week covert guerilla marketing wallet drop campaign

• Response rate for the “Win a Green Machine” web-based contest achieved industry-set standards and were calculated at just over 2 per cent

• Through post-program surveys conducted by DDB PR and its affiliates, it was determined that there has been a distinct increase in media consciousness and consequently consumer awareness and understanding of the Bosch brand – a tangible reflection of the success of the 2007 Bosch Eco-Legacy Campaign

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Marketing Communications 100K and up – Award of MeritEntrant’s Name: Chris Baines, PR Manager, Virgin Mobile CanadaOrganization’s Name: Virgin Mobile CanadaDivision: Division 1, Communication Management Category: Category 4c, Marketing Communications with budget of greater than $100KTitle of Entry: Virgin Mobile Canada creates Freedom Day for CanadiansTime Period of Project: January – March 2007Brief Description: When wireless number portability (WNP) became available in Canada on March 14, 2007, Virgin Mobile Canada wanted to use the opportunity to let Canadians now that they were now free to take their mobile number with them regardless of which carrier they were with. To help celebrate WNP’s arrival in Canada, Virgin Mobile and Sir Richard Branson established Freedom Day in Canada.

Business Need/OpportunityOn March 14, 2007, wireless number portability (WNP) became available in Canada and 18.5 million wireless customers were finally able to keep their numbers when they switched from one mobile carrier to another. Based on past experience in other markets such as the UK and Australia, Virgin Mobile knew that WNP would be an important moment for Canadians and would present an exciting opportunity for the brand.

The Opportunity• Let Canadians know that WNP is now available

- As a new entrant to the market, Virgin Mobile stood to gain a lot from the availability of WNP• Position Virgin Mobile as the consumer advocate

- When Virgin Mobile launched in Canada in 2005, they promised to shake up the mobile industry by promising consumers a simpler better deal – championing the WNP issue was one way to highlight how they could deliver on this promise

- WNP was an issue that Richard Branson had promised to take on when launching Virgin Mobile in Canada in March 2005

- Virgin Mobile saw WNP as an opportunity to reinforce their positioning as the consumer advocate by drawing attention to the benefits for the consumer that WNP would bring

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectVirgin Mobile Canada engaged Hill & Knowlton Canada to provide PR support. Virgin Mobile and Hill & Knowlton worked in tandem to execute and manage all PR activities in advance, during and following the launch of Virgin Mobile.

Responsibilities included:• PR needs analysis & stunt development• Preparation of media materials: media advisory, media alert, news release, Q&A, product/service

backgrounders, bios, key messages, VIP and media invitations, speaking remark, PowerPoint presentation

• Media relations pre-, during and post-event• Managing media access to Richard Branson and Andrew Black (President and CEO of Virgin Mobile

Canada)• Prepping spokespeople for media interviews• Event day PR strategy and logistics• National media relations• Ongoing liaison with affiliated agencies (i.e. advertising, event logistics, online and French agencies)


Intended Audience• With WNP’s availability, VMC was targeting both youth purchasing their first mobile phones and Canadians

who were dissatisfied with their current carrier and were looking to switch.

Goal/Objectives1. Build awareness of WNP and its arrival in Canada2. Generate national Virgin Mobile messaged coverage in media outlets that reach its target consumer3. Build brand character and communicate Virgin Mobile’s messages to maximize media exposure using

Richard Branson and Andrew Black

Solution Overview• Create an exciting media event featuring Richard Branson• Develop a comprehensive media kit with information about WNP and Virgin Mobile’s role in accelerating

its implementation • Support event with ongoing, proactive national media relations

Implementation & Challenges• Media relations outreach commenced prior to the Toronto event. Tactics included:

- Creative invitation to media with a chocolate handcuff teaser to begin to establish the “Freedom” messaging

- Coordinating Richard Branson’s participation in an outrageous jailbreak-themed public “stunt” to symbolize the arrival of mobile freedom for Canadians – the end of their mobile imprisonment

- Live morning interviews with Richard Branson suspended in the jail cell to help drive public traffic to the event at Yonge-Dundas Square & generate buzz

- Augment stunt coverage by arranging a full day of high-profile one-on-one interviews for Richard Branson, including the country’s wire service, MuchMusic, MTV and CBC’s The Hour which helped reach the target consumer with details on how Virgin Mobile differs from its competition

- Managing media at the evening VIP party to help build the Virgin Mobile brand character and reach entertainment/social/celebrity media

- Engaging in aggressive media follow-up to secure ongoing interview opportunities in the days following the media event with business, marketing, news, technology, lifestyle, youth, entertainment and consumer media

- Develop a comprehensive media kit with details about the history of WNP and highlighting Virgin Mobile’s support of its arrival

- Build in a consumer offer to create additional announcements for the event that were unique to Virgin Mobile

Measuring/EvaluationMedia impressions and quality of coverage were used to measure success. The campaign generated more than 162 million media impressions – considerable in a country with a population of 33 million.

Other major highlights included generating 220 media hits nationally across all the major Canadian media outlets.

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Special Events up to 50K – Award of MeritEntrants’ Names: Tracey Bochner, Erin Hardy, Melanie Dulos, Cathy Mitchell, APEX Public Relations; Jane Shaw, Nike CanadaOrganization’s Name: Nike CanadaDivision/Category: Division 1/ Category 5a: Special events with budget up to 50k Title of Entry: Nike Runner’s Lounge Launch (Toronto)Time Period of Project: March – June 2007Brief Description: To engage the running community and facilitate product trials of Nike+, Nike Canada created the Nike Runner’s Lounge. Nike approached APEX to develop and execute a public relations campaign to generate awareness among Toronto runners and potential runners of the Runner’s Lounge; drive traffic to the Lounge; increase trial and purchase of Nike+; and, drive traffic to nikeplus.com.

Business Need/OpportunityNike Canada wanted to reinforce its leadership within the running community and generate awareness and sales for Nike+, an iPod-enabled tool for tracking runs. To engage the running community and facilitate product trials of Nike+, Nike Canada created the Nike Runner’s Lounge. Located in Toronto, the Lounge would offer free services to runners including product trials, running routes, food and beverages. The Nike+ system would also be available for trial.

Nike approached APEX to develop and execute a public relations campaign to generate awareness among Toronto runners and potential runners of the Runner’s Lounge; drive traffic to the Lounge; increase trial and purchase of Nike+; and, drive traffic to nikeplus.com.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectAPEX Public Relations was responsible for managing the launch of the Nike Toronto Runner’s Lounge and for all media relations in relation to the Lounge. APEX also managed and participated in the media run night.

Tracey Bochner and Erin Hardy provided client counsel and strategic planning. Melanie Dulos managed all event logistics, developed media materials and conducted media relations. Cathy Mitchell assisted with event logistics, facilitated distribution of the media materials and provided media relations support.

GOALS/OBJECTIVESNike Canada set the following communications goals: • Generate target audience awareness and increase sales of Nike+ in Toronto in Spring 2007• Generate target audience interest in and attendance at the Toronto Runner’s Lounge• Reinforce Nike’s leadership in running to the target audience

Goals were to be measured based on Lounge traffic, nikeplus.com membership and sales.

APEX set the following media relations objectives:• Secure four broadcast stories, 10 print stories and five online stories• Achieve an MRP score of 80 per cent

Intended AudiencesNike Canada’s core target audience for the Runner’s Lounge program was:• Toronto lifestyle and sports media as influencers• Toronto runners and potential runners


Solution OverviewResearchAPEX conducted a comprehensive media audit to evaluate running-related coverage. The audit included a retroactive search of GTA newspapers, websites and magazines to identify the journalists who wrote fitness-related stories in the previous year.

APEX also contacted lifestyle and sports writers to identify journalists who were runners, determine their running habits and see if there were any Toronto media that were not currently runners, but were interested in taking up running.

The research showed that we could capitalize on the media’s personal interest in running and by doing so, make them ambassadors of the Nike brand.

Strategy• Maximize budget by focusing on media relations as a vehicle to reach the target audience• Encourage media to write about the Runner’s Lounge by educating them on running; inspiring them to

take up the sport; and, providing them with the tools needed to learn how to run

APEX recommended a media launch event at the Runner’s Lounge, media relations, media product trial and a media-only running clinic for female journalists.

TacticsMedia launch event:• Invite media to an exclusive preview of the Runner’s Lounge • Offer media one-on-one interviews and photo opportunities with Canadian Olympic hurdler Perdita

Felicien. Perdita would discuss and demonstrate how Nike+ and running is an integral part of her training schedule.

• Develop and pitch a variety of visuals and story angles to accommodate different media: sports (Perdita), technology (Nike+), news (new resource for Toronto runners); fitness (the Lounge, Nike+, suggested running routes); health (benefits of running); and, fashion (Nike+, running gear).

• Post alert, release and event photo on Canada Newswire

Product Trial:APEX and Nike believed the best way to get media to endorse the Nike+ system was to get them to try it. Media who attended the launch event received a pair of Nike shoes, an iPod nano (needed to use Nike+) and a Nike+ sport kit.

Post-event media relations:APEX aggressively followed up with journalists post-event in order to secure stories for the Runner’s Lounge and Nike+.

Running Clinic for Female JournalistsAPEX’s research uncovered that a handful of influential female Toronto-based journalists were interested in learning more about running and interested in making running a part of their fitness regime. As a result, APEX recommended an intimate evening at the Runner’s Lounge for these women to run as a group. They were given the choice to go for a 3K, 5K or 7K run.


BudgetAPEX was given a budget of approximately $27,400 to develop and execute the launch event and media relations. This budget included all fees and expenses. Expenses included: Canada Newswire and media monitoring, couriers and a variety of other expenses.

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Restraints• Limited budget• Nike heritage as running company not top of mind with media or running community

To overcome these obstacles, APEX focused on generating sustained awareness of the Runner’s Lounge through a multi-story campaign. Stories were tailored to each outlet’s individual needs to increase the likelihood of coverage.

APEX maximized the limited budget by focusing on media relations as a vehicle to reach target audiences.

Measurement/EvaluationAPEX far exceeded Nike’s reach and coverage expectations for the Runner’s Lounge program. Feedback from the women’s media running clinic for was so positive it evolved into a monthly event. “Media Run Nights” were conducted from June to December 2007. This resulted in incremental budget of $2,500 per month for APEX to execute the events.On average, approximately eight to 10 journalists attended the media run nights each month. Running with the group was the only incentive to participate.

Communications Goal: Generate target audience awareness and sales of Nike+ in Toronto in Spring 07Success: Nike reported that sales spiked significantly as a result of the Lounge opening. However, sales figures are confidential and Nike did not share them with APEX.

Communications Goal: Generate target audience interest in and attendance at the Toronto Runner’s LoungeSuccess: The Lounge attracted 1,200 Toronto Runners. • Approximately 300 new runners in each of the first four weeks

Communications Goal: Reinforce to target audience Nike’s leadership in running. Success: The Runner’s Lounge helped increase the membership on nikeplus.com. • Membership on nikeplus.com reached 20,000 for Canada during 2007

Media Relations Objective: Secure four broadcast stories, 10 print stories and five online storiesSuccess: APEX exceeded all the media relations objectives that were set at the beginning of the program. • Five broadcast stories for the Lounge were secured:

- Breakfast Television (CityTV): Breakfast Television did a LiveEye from the Runner’s Lounge, included all key messages and dedicated four on-air segments to the launch

- CityNews at Six (CityTV)- CTV Evening News- CTV Late News- SunTV

• Fifteen print stories were secured in the following outlets: - Toronto Star (2 stories)- National Post (3 stories)- Toronto Sun (2 stories)- 24 Hours (3 stories)- Metro- Fashion Magazine- 2: The Magazine for Couples- Get Out There- Life & Fashion Magazine


• Nine online stories were secured in the following outlets:- Flare e-newsletter- Flare.com- www.24hrs.ca- www.canoe.ca (2 stories)- www.lfpress.com- www.thestar.com- www.citynews.ca- www.runnersweb.com

Communications Objective: Achieve an MRP score of 80 per centSuccess: The overall MRP score was 83 per cent.

Additional Media coverage highlights include:• The media relations campaign generated more than

25 million media impressions • Cost per contact for Nike was less than one cent• 100 per cent of stories included branding• 86 per cent of stories included key messages• 83 per cent of stories included a photo or image

http://www.canoe.ca

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Special Events 100K and up – Award of ExcellenceEntrant’s Name: Diana RobinsonEntrant’s Organization: Diana Robinson & Associates Client Organization: Multiprint Ltd. - DeréonDivision & Category: Division 1, Communication Management, Category 5C: Special Events with budget over $100KTitle of Entry: Beyoncé and the Canadian Launch of DeréonTime Period of Project: July 18 – October 29, 2007Brief Description: Superstar entertainer Beyoncé launches her family-run fashion business, Deréon, in Canada with a special event designed to introduce the line to the fashion industry and the media.

Business Need/Opportunity:On July 18, 2007, Multiprint Ltd, a Montreal-based clothing manufacturer and distributor, received agreement from superstar entertainer Beyoncé to launch her new, junior fashion line, Deréon, in Canada. Deréon had been launched in the U.S. in August 2006, and was targeted to sexy, sophisticated, empowered women between the ages of 18 and 30. Now, Canadian women would be the first to purchase the line outside of the United States.

Diana Robinson & Associates and Multiprint identified that there was both a need and an opportunity to generate tremendous excitement and awareness about the line. Beyoncé was willing to spend one hour attending a launch event, but it would have to be held just three weeks later on August 15th, 2007 when she was in Toronto on tour. Beyoncé would be joined by her mom, Tina Knowles — the co-founder, creative director and designer behind the Deréon brand — and her sister, Solange Knowles.

A previous line, the House of Deréon, had received bad publicity in the U.S. and there were concerns that the negative perceptions would affect the launch of the junior fashion line in Canada. There had also been recent articles in the fashion press about the glut of celebrities dumping “fashion” lines in the marketplace, cashing in on their popularity. There was a need to show the Canadian fashion industry trade, the target demographic, consumers and the general Canadian public that the line was legitimate, successful, and fashionable. There was also a need to reinforce that the business was a “family” business, and that Tina and Solange both played active roles in the company. Both women were often overshadowed by the superstar celebrity circus that surrounded Beyoncé. The family wanted to see a stronger family presence in the way the line was presented and in the media coverage. Introducing Canadians to the designer and inspirations behind the brand -- Tina, Béyonce and Solange -- would bring fresh attention to the clothing line, ensure Multiprint as the new licensee would be able to sell-in the brand to potential retailers in Canada and generate additional awareness amongst the demographic groups.

Despite the extremely tight timeline, we conducted man-on-the-street interviews in Toronto, interviews with key retailers and intensive web, magazine, newspaper, and broadcast research into the current junior fashion industry to gain insight into how the brand was currently perceived. We also researched how Beyoncé and her family were portrayed in the press. The research showed how articulate the target demographic audience was and how aspirational both the brand and Béyonce were to the target demographic. The research also showed that the best way to reach these groups quickly, appropriately and effectively was with a significant special event launch. We then researched similar types of projects to understand what type of event would stand out.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectDiana Robinson & Associates is an integrated marketing sole proprietorship agency, owned by myself, Diana Robinson. As such, I was responsible for all the initial research, client liaison, strategic development, management and execution of the program. I bring in suppliers as required, for example, designers, photographers, and security companies. I was actively involved in every step of the program, from presenting the concept to the client, researching the audiences, sourcing and coordinating all aspects and suppliers for the program including security, liaising with clients at all levels, designing the look and feel of


all elements right through to venue floor plans and floral designs, coordinating all media and guest lists, interviews and RSVPs, coordinating and conducting the media tour including briefing Béyonce, Tina and Solange and timing each interview and overseeing and executing all aspects of the event.

Intended Audiences:The target audiences for the program included:• The Canadian fashion industry including retailers, executives and buyers that could potentially carry

the Deréon lines, from independent one-off retail shops to larger retailers. At one end of the spectrum, this group can be somewhat jaded and cynical about industry events given the number they attend each year, in addition to the ones they may host; at the other end are owners of small shops in small cities across Canada who have never been invited to any type of event by their licensee/designer before.

• Canadian fashion, lifestyle, business and fashion trade media as gatekeepers to the end consumer and purveyors of what is hot, trendy, in fashion and successful in business. This is a group used to being wined and dined, courted and schmoozed by the world’s biggest, trendiest, hottest designers and retailers. They think they’ve seen everything and can make or break the public’s image of a designer and their line.

• Women, 18-30, the primary demographic of the Deréon brand, especially women who are fashion conscious, up on trends and styles and wanting to be at the forefront of fashion. It is a diverse group, with diverse interests, but they tend to be early adopters, ready to try new things, confident in their choices and a leader amongst their friends. The age demo crosses various life stages: from high school where they have plenty of disposable income, to college and university where they become more strapped for spending money unless they are living at home and then more is spent on fashions and discerning their fashion taste, to their first years on their own and in careers where they start buying more career clothing to an age when they are starting to be more established in their careers and willing to invest in more expensive clothing. Our research showed that they were articulate, comfortable with who they are and very aware of the fashion scene and who and what Beyoncé, Tina, Solange and Deréon are.

• The Canadian general public as influencers of public opinion. Canadians love to hear about celebrities and their latest adventures, and while this can be perceived as gossip, it can also influence retail sales.

Goals/Objectives:Our overall goals for the program were to create awareness of the Deréon fashion line in Canada, generate interest in the line and position it as a family business amongst the general public, the target demographic and the fashion industry. Our objectives for the program were to:• Create an exciting and exclusive event – one that would be heralded as a major event – that would be

attended by the who’s who of the Canadian fashion industry and media, approximately 500 guests.• Generate national, positive media coverage of the brand that generates brand awareness, mentions

the brand name and establishes the credibility of Deréon as a fashion line — in both the news and fashion sections of newspapers, TV and magazines — and includes two articles in and at least one front page picture in a major daily newspaper.

• Reach 15,000,000 Canadians through the media coverage and generate a return on investment of two to three times the cost of the program, approximately $475,000.

• Communicate that the business is a family business and have Tina and Solange included in the media coverage.

• Deliver the program on time with only three weeks to turn the event around, and on a very tight, very “un-celebrity-like” budget.

• Generate interest in the line so that Multiprint could arrange meetings with retailers.

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Solution Overview: We identified an opportunity to create an exclusive, “By Invitation Only” event for trade and media. It would allow an inside look at the “sexy, sophisticated, empowered lifestyle” character of the brand which was in keeping with Beyoncé and Tina’s design approach. They are well known for their celebrity lifestyles. It is a key element of the brand and one of the reasons that the target demographic purchases the line: the opportunity to have a taste of the lifestyle. We would bring that taste of the high life to Toronto and show the trade and the media that Deréon was a strong, growing, sexy and exciting brand. Our strategy was to utilize Beyoncé’s Toronto tour date to develop an event that would generate trade and media awareness of the launch and the line. However, as Beyoncé would only be available for one hour, we also wanted to utilize the family aspect of business to extend awareness beyond Beyoncé and generate additional media opportunities. Key messages we wanted to communicate through the program were:• Beyoncé, Tina and Solange Knowles launch their junior fashion line, Deréon, in Canada.• Deréon is a family business.• The line is distributed by Montreal-based Multiprint and available at specialty retailers across Canada.

Program Tactics:• Create an exciting “by invitation only” event that would dovetail with Beyoncé’s tour date on August

15, 2007.• Develop and deliver a memorable invitation to event that would initiate buzz.• Develop an invitation delivery schedule that would deliver invitations with live flowers to Montreal, NY

and Toronto VIPs quickly and efficiently.• Invite select Canadian media to interview Beyoncé (2 interviews only), her mother Tina, and her

sister Solange and coordinate key media interviews to generate awareness of Deréon line, and family approach.

• Integrate brand theme: Where the Sidewalk and Catwalk Meet into event.• Develop media kit to provide media information on fashion line.• Coordinate a sexy, dynamic fashion show to give key media and retailers opportunity to see fashions.

The key: do it all in three weeks, over the long August 1st weekend, and during industry summer shut-downs.

The budget for the program was $215,804.29 for all expenses including AV, tents, rentals, venue, food, police, security, photographers, media walls, limo invitation delivery, florist/décor, production of invitations, Westin Harbour Castle fashion show staging area, fashion show production and cost of parking lot, and including $18,750 in fees for handling all the event planning, execution and creative development and coordinating the media relations.

We rented the entire Ultra Supper Club venue, a chic, happening dinner club with rooftop lounge in downtown Toronto, and begun actual on-site planning for all aspects of the program. We had three days to interview and hire a fashion show producer, AV production company, decorator and florist during a busy summer wedding and event season. We worked with the chef to create a dynamic, exciting menu with a nod to Tina’s Creole heritage; arranged for valet parking during rush hour in a busy downtown Toronto area, devised a white, chrome, black and glass decorating theme that built on the clean, classy yet sexy ambiance that reflected Beyoncé and the “Where the Sidewalk and Catwalk Meet” theme, and included a red entry carpet, lighting, staging with video walls showing Beyoncé’s music and fashion videos; sourced decorations including flowers, furniture; hired a designer and florist; coordinated the development and delivery of the invitations; made hotel arrangements for the entire entourage team including areas for media interviews; coordinated DJ and created a live fashion show with 18 models, 10 dressers, hair and makeup team at the event; and coordinated all media arrangements in Toronto.

One of our biggest challenges was working with Beyoncé’s schedule. She was performing the night before in Montreal, needed to travel to Toronto and was performing that evening. Therefore, the event would


need to be held from 4-7 p.m., not the usual time for this type of event and not a great time for media schedules. We recommended key one-on-one media interviews through the day with Beyoncé, Tina and Solange instead of a press conference to provide insight into the fashions, in a more intimate setting and communicate the family nature of the business.

With only three weeks to the event, we needed to generate buzz right from the delivery of the invitations. Over the long holiday weekend in August, we sourced and printed navy blue embossed invitations, with a special hang tag that told the story of the family heritage that is Deréon. These tags were hand-applied to live white Casablanca lilies. Each lily was placed in a clear plexiglass box, with the invitation, in the back of the two delivery limos by a florist, just prior to delivery. Each VIP invitation was hand-delivered by two stretch limos and drivers wearing white gloves that carried the invitations on sliver trays. When each box was opened, the scent of the Casablanca lily wafted out. The buzz about the event started immediately. We had calls from many trade VIPs and fashion media exclaiming over the fantastic invitations.

Implementation & Challenges:The challenges for this program were constant and the biggest one was the short timeline. The plans for our program changed continuously to accommodate client schedules and demands and needs. The guest list changed daily; the demand to attend the event swelled the list with the addition of celebrities and fashion industry executives and media. Given that Beyoncé is well known for the million dollar events that she throws, our budget was well below what she would normally spend, and yet, we recognized that expectations for the event would be just as high.

Initial plans to close down a major street in front of the venue to hold an outdoor fashion show that could be attended by the public were quashed by the city as there wasn’t enough time to get the permits. Two alternate plans to hold the fashion show on a side street and in a private parking lot met a similar fate. We had to abandon the idea of literally bringing the catwalk to the sidewalk and allowing the general public -- Beyoncé’s fans -- to see the show and move it inside. That created a whole host of other logistical issues including where the dressing rooms and runway would go. We had to negotiate the use of the private parking lot next door to erect a tent with air conditioning to hold the dressing rooms, the models and the hair and makeup teams. We also had to carefully coordinate logistical and security arrangements for getting the models from the outdoor dressing rooms, through the back of the club, through the packed venue and back out to the tent.

Three days prior to the event, we were advised that the interviews we were coordinating could no longer be done through the day and must be done on-site at the event. This required us to rework the schedule juggle the needs and politics of various media outlets. To provide as many journalists as possible with an opportunity to talk to Beyoncé, Tina and Solange, we coordinated a short red carpet and the production of a media wall for in front of the venue. As media arrived for the event, we lined them up on either side of the red carpet, alongside screaming fans. I met Beyoncé, Tina and Solange as they exited the cars at the foot of the red carpet and then escorted them up the red carpet, stopping to allow key journalists an opportunity to do quick one minute interviews. Another media wall just at the entranceway allowed for a photo opportunity. Once inside, another media wall and red carpet was set up to accommodate the two key one-on-one interviews that Beyoncé had agreed to do: Fashion Television with Jeanne Beker and Entertainment Tonight Canada.

We were required to handle all security arrangements for the visit and given the level of celebrity that Beyoncé is, there was a very exacting list of requirements. This required us to source off-duty policy officers, bodyguards and a security team of more than 30 people and to have all the security arrangements arranged and in place as they stepped out of the car. Toronto police and the city had been extremely concerned about the safety of the public in front of the venue and it required major negotiation to get their approval to hold the red carpet media interviews in front of the venue. Final approval was received less than 24 hours before the event.

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As our immediate client, Multiprint, the licensee was based in Montreal and the Beyoncé head office was located in New York, it was imperative that we stay in close contact with both of them throughout the planning and execution of the event. In addition, the Knowles family is very hands on and approved all elements of the program, which was challenging given their very busy schedules.

Having a successful outcome to this program required us to be adaptable, flexible, identify what would turn on the jaded fashion industry trade and media as well as appeal to the target demographic, live with almost no sleep, work very closely with the client, be reachable at all times, think beyond the mundane and usual and meet the exacting standards of both the Multiprint and Beyoncé clients.

Measurement/Evaluation of Outcomes:The program was an overwhelming success both in terms of the way the event was portrayed, the coverage of the event, the goodwill it generated amongst the trade, and the favourable impressions it left with all the guests.• We created an exciting and exclusive event -- one that would be heralded as a major event -- that

was attended by the who’s who of the Canadian fashion industry and media, more than 500 guests. Invitations were in hot demand. 118 key media and their guests RSVP’d. Guests stopped to personally thank members of the Diana Robinson & Associates team for the amazing event. Many media sent thank you emails to Diana Robinson & Associates for the opportunity to attend the event and/or interview Beyonce, Tina and Solange. Major media outlets like Canada AM, Entertainment Today Canada and eTalk all commented on how well organized the event was and how smoothly the media aspect was handled.

• We generated national, positive media coverage that generated brand awareness, mentioned the brand by name and established the credibility of Deréon as a fashion line — in both the news and fashion sections of newspapers, TV and magazines — and included two articles in and at least one picture on the front page of a major daily newspaper. The amount of coverage generated is outstanding given that our opportunity to conduct one-on-one interviews with Beyonce, Tina and Solange was very limited.

• We reached 163,358,368 Canadians through the media coverage and generated a return on investment of 42 times the cost of the program. In fact, the media coverage was seen internationally, reaching into the U.S. and Latin America.

• The program generated 163,358,368 impressions, 11x our goal.• The editorial value of the program is $9,075,050.16, which represents a return on investment of

approximately 42x the budget.• The cost per contact was $0.00, the cost per media value dollar is $0.00 and the cost per message

point is $0.00.• There were 107 stories generated; 36 newspaper stories, 18 television stories generated resulting

in 44.03 minutes of airtime; 5 radio stories generated resulting in 3:05 minutes of airtime; and 42 Internet stories.

• We generated three front page cover stories – The Toronto Sun and two different Metro stories; the timing of the event made it more difficult to gain front page coverage.

• The demand for interviews with the media was so intense that we had to turn down more interviews than we were actually able to set up.

• Photographs shot by our hired event photographer were used by media outlets across the country and on People.com.

• Canada’s premier television fashion show, Fashion Television conducted one of the two exclusive television interviews that resulted in a 6-minute piece that ran 6 times. Fashion Television is carried by satellite in more than 40 countries around the world. (not included in our evaluation numbers)

• The coverage clearly conveyed the family nature of the business. The family connection was mentioned in 71 articles. 11% of headlines mentioned “family”. Deréon is mentioned in 11 headlines. 15 of photos used were the posed family shot. Beyoncé is quoted in 59 articles; Tina Knowles is quoted in 46 articles.


• The coverage clearly conveyed the brand message. All articles mentioned the product by name and the tone of the articles is positive. A photo accompanies 43 articles; 50% of photos used were taken in front of the branded media wall. 12 of photos used showed models in fashions.

• The program was delivered on time and on the agreed-to budget. • The florist/décor, venue, security, AV and fashion show production team I sourced and coordinated

to deliver the event was top notch and overcame many challenges including working on very tight turnaround times, working to coordinate invitations over the long August 1st weekend, working around summer shutdowns and vacations and city bureaucracy.

• All key messages were communicated.• Any major issues the day of the event were handled smoothly and effectively. For instance, the 1 hour

late appearance of Tina and Solange for their interview with Canada AM was handled by shifting the interview to after the fashion show and other scheduled interviews, after Beyoncé had left, but still ensuring that Canada AM crew could meet their deadlines. We also had to deal with preventing the media walls from blowing over in the wind, pushy media and guests and security issues.

• The program ignited interest in the brand and the Multiprint sales team was able to book sales meetings while still at the event. While sales numbers are confidential, there was an increase over projected sales.

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Special Events 100K and up – Award of MeritEntrant’s Name: Martine LévyOrganization’s Name: DDB Public RelationsDivision/Category: Division 1 – Communication Management, Category 5c – Special Events over $100KTitle of Entry: Canadian Blood Services (CBS) National Blood Donor Week & World Blood Donor Day: Canada Hosts the WorldTime Period of Project: April 2007 to July 2007Brief Description: These events were developed for Canadian Blood Services/Héma-Québec, a national, not-for-profit charitable organization that manages the blood supply in Canada. These events included innovative “Live Public Service Announcements” to thank blood donors across Canada during National Blood Donor Week. High-profile celebrities were also brought together in a “song of inspiration” for an event in Ottawa on World Blood Donor Day, where Canada hosted the world on behalf of the World Health Organization.

Business Need/OpportunityCanadian Blood Services/Héma-Québec (CBS) is a national, not-for-profit charitable organization that manages the blood supply in Canada. Their mandate is to build awareness of the importance of voluntary blood donation. CBS was facing a looming challenge based on the impact of an ageing population. Their established “boomer” donor base would inevitably face a rapid decline and correspondingly, blood product demand would escalate over time. These two trends were expected to intensify in the long run. To overcome this challenge, from 2006 onwards CBS set its sights on initiating social change in Canada – to connect a new younger generation of Canadians with the blood donation cause, encouraging them to actively and regularly support the blood system. The overarching communications platform was: “Share your health and vitality with someone in need” and it targeted both committed donors (who donate blood, though not regularly), and prospective donors (who would be willing to donate blood if the right opportunity presented itself).

Each year the World Health Organization (WHO) selects a country to host World Blood Donor Day, a worldwide celebration to help raise awareness for the universal and ongoing need for safe blood and blood products - and to say thank you to donors for their selfless gift. In 2007, the WHO selected Canada to host World Blood Donor Day based on its long and proud history of volunteer blood donation. On June 14th, 2007 all eyes of the world were on Canada as it hosted World Blood Donor Day. Canadian Blood Services had the challenge of creating an event worthy of international attention, as it simultaneously rolled out its annual Canadian event, National Blood Donor Week that took place from June 11th-16th, 2007. Each year, this designated week supports the recruitment of new blood donors in Canada.

As the world would be watching, there was a tremendous opportunity for Canada and CBS to take a leadership role in the cause of donating blood. It would also provide the optimal opportunity to inspire and move a new generation of Canadians to become regular, committed blood donors. DDB Public Relations leveraged the extensive research conducted by CBS including public surveys on CBS awareness levels, blood donation awareness levels and attitudes, past performance in terms of total units of blood donated year over year, etc. to establish its strategic approach for the development of these media relations campaigns. The agency conducted a thorough media audit to create a snapshot of the editorial dialogue that was taking place in the Canadian landscape on blood donation and other competing charitable giving outreach. In addition, several existing blood donors, and prospective blood donors were interviewed in order to gain a deeper qualitative understanding of the target audience’s insights, motivators, and the context of their lifestyle in general.

The research findings indicated that for CBS’ new younger target audience, the need for blood donation was often connected with times of major disasters or catastrophes, and that’s when it would become a top-of-mind priority. On an everyday basis, blood donation would often take a back seat to their time-


starved lifestyle with thoughts like “I can only do so much.” Among this group, while giving blood was seen as “the right thing to do”, the deep impact of even one donation (how one blood donation can save up to three lives) was not realized. CBS had to illustrate this impact of giving blood, stressing how making time to donate blood on an ongoing volunteer basis had the potential to turn anyone into an everyday hero. Research suggested the key behaviour-changing factor would be inspiration.

Factoring these insights and findings into the programming process, DDB Public Relations established two unprecedented media event campaigns that would maximize the incredible opportunity that lay before CBS to really make its mark among its target audience in 2007. By celebrating and thanking blood donors, both initiatives would build awareness of Canadian Blood Services, would showcase importance and the impact of ongoing voluntary blood donation, and would encourage more people to become regular voluntary blood donors.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectWorking hand-in-hand with the national and regional CBS offices, DDB Public Relations developed and managed the execution of both the World Blood Donor Day and National Blood Donor week media relations campaigns. Martine Lévy and her team provided strategic direction and client counsel, managed both budgets and project details, outreached to and secured celebrities and influencers for the events, and coordinated all event details and media relations, and provided program evaluations.

Intended Audience(s)The primary audience for the World Blood Donor Day and National Blood Donor Week events included committed and prospective blood donors in Canada. Secondary audiences included influencers and third party spokespeople such as the international blood donation community such as the WHO, other countries’ counterparts to CBS in Canada, and well-known and recognized Canadian athletes, on-air television and radio personalities, dignitaries, community leaders, government representatives and local celebrities.

Demographic and psychographic profiles of the target public audience are as follows.

Committed and prospective donors: with a 50-50 ratio of men and women, this target audience is 35-55 years old. They tend to live in the suburbs, and often tend to donate blood through work, or at permanent blood donor clinics. They feel fortunate for the opportunities they’ve had in life, are financially secure and well-educated, and they feel it is important for them to share their good fortune and health by “giving back” to the community.

For committed donors: though they are busy and pressed for time, they find a way to “make time” for things that are important to them. In terms of insights, they believe donating blood is most important and rewarding. They feel it is a unique social contribution and that the personal investment is significant. They are proud blood donors, and feel this giving is a type of insurance for the day when they or their families may need blood. They appreciate being recognized for their contributions, but don’t expect or need to receive any incentive to donate.

For prospective donors: their key priorities in life are family, career and community, for the most part in that order. They try to be involved in their communities, for example, by attending church, participating in activities for their kids (e.g. soccer, Boy Scouts, swim lessons, etc.), etc. They try to help out when they can, but given their current commitments, they feel they need to be “selective” - they can only do so much. They have never donated blood before (or they donated blood a long time ago). They feel that donating blood is the “right thing to do” and they intend to give blood sometime in the near future. They just haven’t had the opportunity to actually do it yet. Often they don’t really know where they could go to donate or know what is involved. They may not be sure what organization manages the blood system, and feel if there is an urgent need, they would make the time and give blood.

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Based on these target audience descriptors, DDB Public Relations concluded that the target audience needs to feel inspired and appreciated – to know that blood donation recipients are truly thankful for their gift. They need to see the impact of donating blood and how it literally saves lives. By doing so, this audience will strengthen their commitment to this cause and will start donating blood.

To reach these committed and prospective blood donors, the agency used media events and media relations as a strategic communications vehicle. Based on research and consultation with CBS’s media buying agency OMD, the agency targeted media outlets who directly serviced CBS’s target audience of committed and prospective donors.

Goals/ObjectivesThe overarching goal of these media relations campaigns was to support CBS in attracting 80,000 new donors to the blood donation cause over the course of the year. This goal directly addressed CBS’s business need in terms of expanding its target donor base to maintain an ongoing supply of safe blood and blood products across Canada. It would also proactively address CBS’s concern in sustaining its donor base in the long term by reaching new generation of Canadians in the blood donation cause.

The special events in this campaign had to support CBS’s goal outlined above.

To spread the word and inspire the target audience, DDB PR’s task was to have the celebration and awareness events reverberate through maximized media coverage across Canada. As such, the media relations objectives were based on previous years’ benchmarks and included:

Quantitative objectives:• Media impressions to exceed 5 million• Cost-per-contact of less than $0.05

Qualitative objectives:• Minimum Media Relations Rating Points (MRP) score of 75% • Based on CBS’ business need as outlined above, the MRP criteria included: company mention (to

increase CBS name recognition and awareness among prospective audiences and re-affirm it among committed blood donors), image inclusion (for inspirational impact), prominence of editorial (to capture the audience’s attention), key message inclusion (to educate the target audience), and call-to-action inclusion (to move the target audience to joining the “movement” of blood donation)

Solution OverviewThese CBS events were designed to promote the organization’s unique selling proposition: donating to someone in need through Canadian Blood Services has a direct impact on someone’s life. The agency’s goal was to recognize and celebrate those who give of themselves selflessly, and to inspire and motivate others to join the blood donation movement – to compel them to want to become everyday heroes as well.

In approaching this communications challenge, DDB PR worked in tandem with DDB Canada, CBS’ advertising agency of record to thoroughly review the target audience response to the event concepts, key messaging etc. This was done through focus groups to test of the creative concepts and message impact. This process helped immensely in developing the innovative, creative concepts of the “Live Public Service Announcements” or PSAs (for National Blood Donor Week), the strategic approach for World Blood Donor Day and to determine what would resonate most with the target audience. In addition, the agency worked closely with CBS to identify moving donor and recipient stories.

National Blood Donor Week: recipient stories needed to touch the hearts of potential and committed donors to drive home the importance of ongoing voluntary blood donations, but competing amongst so many other Canadian charities, the message had to be communicated in an innovative way.


The creative event concept consisted of “Live PSAs” where a recipient could treat a donor to a public thank-you celebration for their gift of life with the support of a local community VIP member (e.g. media personality, artist, etc.). Media, photographers and videographers would be on hand to capture in-the-moment images, videos and sound bites that could then be used for locally relevant media coverage. For example, in Calgary, to celebrate the vitality of life, a blood donor and recipient went skydiving together; in Toronto the entire cast of the show “We Will Rock You” serenaded a blood donor and recipient in Trinity Park. In total, 15 innovative “Live PSA” events were coordinated across Canada.

World Blood Donor Day Event: the creative concept for this initiative needed to leave a lasting impression on a national and international audience. The agency enlisted artists to donate their time and talent to create a song of inspiration, as they raised their voices together thanking blood donors around the world. With the participation of these high profile Canadian influencers, the world would see Canada’s commitment to the cause of blood donation. The result was an exclusive taping and then live performance of an uplifting and soulful commemorative song entitled “We Shine as One” that made its debut in Ottawa for the World Blood Donor Day event. Moving, heartfelt recipient stories were also shared to bring the blood donation message to life. Health Minister Tony Clement, various dignitaries from across Canada and WHO representatives also provided motivating speech remarks.

Implementation and ChallengesFor National Blood Donor Week, the agency and Canadian Blood Services worked in partnership to implement 15 highly successful “Live PSA” events with the participation of high profile personalities. In Niagara Falls, a donor and recipient joined ET Canada host Rick Campanelli on the Maid of the Mist; in London, Transport Minister Donna Cansfield gave an 800-time donor a personalized license plate; in Halifax, the Maritime band McGinty hosted an ‘open house kitchen party’; in BC, the BC Lions met with a donor and recipient at their training practice. Local media relations activities were conducted throughout resulting in unprecedented local and regional media interest. There were many challenges in coordinating the schedules of the various parties including the high profile personalities, the blood donation recipient and the blood donor and making sure the “Live PSAs” could be held during a time that would also be convenient for the media. Finding creative backdrops and activities for each “Live PSA” also meant liaising with several suppliers and venues to ensure flawless execution. Finally, the national and regional CBS offices and the DDB PR team had to be in constant contact and work seamlessly over a very short period of time to ensure consistency in the roll-out of the campaign, and to make sure all the activities took place in time to promote National Blood Donor Week effectively. Clear communication, updates and reporting became pivotal tools in ensuring campaign success.

For the World Blood Donor Day event, the agency assembled an impressive list of leading artists to produce the “We Shine As One” song including: double Juno-award winner Liberty Silver, singer Giorgia Fumanti, Latin jazz singer Amanda Martinez, altrock singers Edwin and Mista D (the Salads), 16-year-old jazz sensation Sophie Berkal-Sarbit, leading R&B, hip hop vocalist Dru (In Essence), the cast of the hit musical We Will Rock You and the Renee Rowe Singers. The commemorative song was written and produced by renowned lyricist and producer Eric Mercury (Stevie Wonder, Roberta Flack), co-produced and arranged by Juno award winner Eddie Bullen and co-written by Broadway sensation Brenda Russell (The Colour Purple). The song also featured instrumentation by Thelonious Monk III on drums, Canadian jazz heavyweight Bill King on the organ, bassist Etric Lyons (Kush), percussionist Joaquin Nunez Hidalgo (Hilario Duran) and guitarist Elliott Randall (Steely Dan). Artist relations over the course of this campaign was vital in ensuring CBS left a positive and lasting impact among this audience, and that the end product would truly inspire not only the end user – the target audience, but also the artists themselves. Each artist was asked to volunteer their time, so remote tapings, coordinating individual schedules and accommodating their technical requirements were keys to success.The agency also managed numerous tactics to promote the World Blood Donor Day event including a multimedia presentation that featured international footage and clips from the “Live PSAs.” While

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this was presented at the Ottawa event, a webcast, b-roll was disseminated via satellite to broadcast outlets, a strategic, comprehensive media kit, national media relations follow-up and all aspects of event coordination and management in Ottawa.

Copies of the “We Shine As One” song were included in the media kits, distributed to event attendees, and a shorter version of the song was also sent to target radio stations as part of the event strategy. The song was also available for download on the Canadian Blood Services website.

The total budget for this program including agency fees and disbursement costs was $196,000. This budget included planning and research, program development and management, implementation and evaluation. Implementing the 15 National Blood Donor Week ‘live PSA’ events meant there were numerous challenges including: liaising with CBS regional offices across Canada to ensure the creative concept was on strategy; ensuring that tight timelines were met, VIPs were confirmed, and donors and recipients were briefed and secured.

Measurement/EvaluationThe sheer magnitude of the local Live PSA events and the highly successful event in Ottawa were reflected by the quality editorials and broadcast segments that were generated. Pre-set communications objectives for the program were blown out of the water:

Quantitative objectives:• Total media impressions: 19,671,292 (target was to exceed 5,000,000)• Cost-per-contact: less than $0.01 (target was to be less than $0.05)• Coverage breakdown: (221 hits in total)

- 168 broadcast hits: 11,463,100 reach- 40 print hits: 2,813,041 reach- 13 online: 5,395,151 reach

Qualitative objectives:• MRP score of 85% (target was to be higher than 75%)

The media coverage from these special events influenced consumer behaviour as well. Visits to www.blood.ca were up an astounding 53% over the previous year. Moreover, the World Health Organization proclaimed that the Canadian World Blood Donor Day event was the most successful country launch to date. They are considering sending a CD of the song to all member countries using it as the music behind a new recruitment video.

These special events ultimately contributed to changing behaviour for CBS, as its goal in 2007 of generating 80,000 new donors to its blood donation movement was met. This was a huge accomplishment that ultimately proved these event-based campaigns were highly effective.

http://www.blood.ca/

http://www.blood.ca/


Employee/Member Communications – Award of ExcellenceEntrant’s Name: Cynthia WujekOrganization’s Name: Sun Life Financial (Client organization: AstraZeneca Canada)Division and Category: Division 1 (Communication Management), Category 7 (Employee/Member Communication)Title of Entry: Getting personal: Motivating the move to better investment choicesTime Period of Project: September 2006 through April 2007Entry Description: Many of AstraZeneca’s 1,400 Canadian employees had their pension plan money invested in low-yield investment funds, even though they were saving for a long-term goal (retirement) that required a greater potential investment growth. The risk to employees? Not enough savings to enjoy their desired retirement lifestyle. The plan administrator (Sun Life Financial), in conjunction with the plan sponsor (AstraZeneca), developed a personalized communication that went to each “at-risk” member to educate them on the need to consider other investment options.

Business Need/OpportunityAstraZeneca, one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, provided its 1,400 Canadian employees with a defined contribution pension plan as part of its total rewards program. The company and each employee contributed money to the employee’s investment account, with the employee responsible for investing this money by choosing from a menu of investment fund options.

The investment fund options ranged from conservative low-yield money market funds, to fixed income funds, to more growth-oriented stock funds. By providing a wide range of investments, AstraZeneca Canada gave employees the choice they needed to develop a diversified portfolio of investments to match their risk tolerance and meet their need for long-term investment growth.

But there was a problem. Even though the plan offered many investment options with high investment growth potential, many employees had 30% or more of their pension savings in the low-yield money market fund. The money market fund was the “default” fund for the pension plan, meaning that if the employee didn’t provide any investment instructions, their money would automatically be invested in this fund. It was apparent that many employees were not taking an active role in their investment selections, and were relying on the default fund instead.

The risk to these employees was that their long-term investment growth would barely cover the impact of inflation over time, let alone provide the additional savings boost that their long-term investments were supposed to provide. The risk to AstraZeneca was that they had an obligation under Canada’s Capital Accumulation Plan guidelines (the “CAP guidelines” – similar to ERISA in the U.S.) to educate employees about investing – including the many benefits of a diversified portfolio. If the message wasn’t getting through, the company was concerned that it had not fulfilled this obligation – with the potential threat of litigation from employees years later.

To encourage plan members to take an active role in their investment selection, AstraZeneca tried a generic communication campaign for all employees, employee meetings and education sessions. But attendance was spotty, the generic communications didn’t motivate change and the attempts had no measurable impact at all on employees.

The lack of impact was not the fault of management or employees. The employee base was highly educated, and enjoyed the challenges of working in a forward-thinking competitive industry. In fact, AstraZeneca Canada was recognized as one of the 50 Best Employers in Canada in 2008, with employees clearly engaged. The issue was the difficulty in getting an employee’s attention in a demanding work environment. For many employees, the investment of their retirement savings was taking a back seat to other work and life issues.

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AstraZeneca turned to its pension partner, Sun Life Financial, Canada’s leading provider of group pension services. Sun Life Financial was AstraZeneca’s pension plan administrator, providing full recordkeeping services, an interactive plan member website, due diligence on the plan’s investment options, and call centre support.

Sun Life Financial had also just launched an innovative platform for delivering plan member education. AstraZeneca decided to leverage Sun Life Financial’s expertise in delivering an innovative, personalized communications approach; one that would speak to each plan member as an individual – with their own unique investment allocation, retirement horizon and career stage.

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectThe entrant managed the strategic direction of these targeted communications, overseeing the team that created the pieces, creating and managing the budget, and implementing the communication plan. Success measurement was also the responsibility of the entrant, who then communicated the results within both the entrant’s organization, and AstraZeneca.

Intended AudienceWhile the message AstraZeneca wanted to deliver was a good one for all employees, the company was most concerned about targeting employees with the greatest risk of having an under-achieving portfolio – and an inadequate level of retirement savings – over the long term.

While employees were encouraged to diversify their investments among the different asset classes (money market, fixed income, and stock investments), the low-yielding money market fund would ideally represent just a small portion of an employee’s overall portfolio. A typical balanced portfolio might have anywhere from 5% to 20% of its assets invested in the money market fund.

Beyond this level of money market fund investment, problems with under-performance could emerge. So AstraZeneca decided to target employees who had 30% or more of their portfolios invested in the money market fund.

In the end, 430 employees met this criterion. They were located in both Ontario and Quebec, so materials would have to be prepared in both English and French.

Goals and ObjectivesThe goal of the communications effort was to turn passive investors (who automatically invested in the default fund) into active investors, who assessed their investment goals and risk tolerance and then made investment decisions to match. Sun Life Financial wanted to move the success rate from the 0% response of previous company communication efforts to a 20% response rate for this particular initiative.

On route to this goal, the campaign had a number of objectives:

• Target the audience and the message: To contain costs and enhance effectiveness, Sun Life Financial wanted to limit the scope to a single group of employees who were seen to be at the highest risk of having under-performing portfolios. In addition, while there were many tangential topics relating to investing that were worth communicating, they wanted to keep it simple and focus the message on just a single topic – taking an active role in choosing your investments.

• Motivate asset transfers: Sun Life Financial knew that if employees were properly assessing their portfolios, many would find they were under-invested in investments with higher growth potential. A key objective of the campaign was to motivate the transfer of assets from the money market fund to other investments where it was appropriate.


• Satisfy CAP guideline requirements: AstraZeneca and Sun Life Financial wanted the communication to clearly meet or exceed the CAP guidelines for plan member investment education. This not only ensured plan members received excellent savings and investment education, it helped manage the company’s future liability risk should employees claim their retirement savings were inadequate due to their lack of plan and investment knowledge.

Solution OverviewThe groundwork for the 2007 AstraZeneca communications was laid in 2006, when Sun Life Financial launched a new communications platform for its member communication efforts – my money.

my money combined proven marketing techniques with sophisticated printing, internet and telephone technologies to deliver information that was precisely tailored to the individual plan member’s unique circumstances. The platform was based on three core attributes:

• Simple. Using simple, clear language and adopting a “less is more” approach to communication increased the likelihood of a plan member accessing the information they needed, understanding it and taking action.

• Personalized. Sun Life Financial had studied U.S. research showing that personalized communication – incorporating data such as a member’s name, life stage, and relevant financial information – could make a huge difference in the likelihood of information being read, retained and acted upon. For this reason, personalization became a core feature of the my money concept.

• Relevant. A shotgun approach to communications meant that all plan members received all of the information all of the time. This meant that much of the information received by plan members was irrelevant to their situation. By using database information to target specific plan member segments for specific messages, the clutter of irrelevant information could be reduced, and relevancy dramatically increased.

Sun Life Financial used these techniques in developing its communication solution for AstraZeneca. It produced a glossy, double-sided one-page letter, with concise information that was customized to each plan member with details such as:

• the member’s name, gender, and career stage (early, mid or late career), with photos on the communication customized to their life stage

• the percentage of assets the member held in the default fund• the plan member’s preferred language (English or French).

The communication was delivered to the 430 plan members that Sun Life Financial and AstraZeneca had identified as having the highest risk of long-term portfolio under-performance. In short, it was a simple, personalized, and relevant communication mailed directly to employees’ homes to avoid the distractions and “lost in the clutter” challenges that a workplace presented.

Implementation and ChallengesOne of the benefits of using the my money platform was that the infrastructure for a personalized communications campaign was already in place. There were, however, a number of challenges in developing this infrastructure and launching a platform that changed the way plan member communications were delivered. Sun Life Financial had to:

• Identify and work with a strategic partner who had the capability to produce personalized, print-on-demand communications

• Develop personalization software that could merge its database information with customized messages

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• Create the templates for the key communications that most plan sponsors would need, such as enrolment guidebooks

These challenges were met and the solutions developed over a two-year period through 2005 and 2006. With the infrastructure in place, the steps for launching the AstraZeneca personalized communications took place over a three-month time period that culminated in the delivery of the communication to the targeted plan members in January 2007:

1. Sun Life Financial ran a report from its recordkeeping database to identify the employees with 30% or more of their assets in the money market fund.

2. Sun Life Financial communication specialists wrote the base communication, and created variable text fields for the personalized information that would be inserted. The communication was written in English, and then translated by the company’s translation department into French.

3. A separate file was created containing each employee’s name, address and the percentage of assets they held in the money market fund. Each file was also tagged for language of preference, lifestage (based on date of birth), and gender.

4. Sun Life Financial created a spreadsheet with the customized variables: each member’s name, address, current asset allocation, life stage and gender. These communications were then printed with a direct-mail vendor, who used digital print-on-demand technology to prepare and deliver each personalized mailing.

5. The communication was mailed to each employee’s home in January 2007.

In terms of budget, the communication was produced and mailed for under $1,000. As you’ll see in the Measurement of outcomes section below, the success of this communication was spectacular, particularly considering the low production cost.

Measurement and EvaluationSun Life Financial tracked the movement of money out of the money market fund in the months following the mailing of the targeted communication to members’ homes. Here were the results:

• One month after plan members received their personalized letter, 9.7 per cent of targeted members moved more than $1 million of assets out of the default fund

• Two months later, 10.4 per cent of targeted members had moved money

• Four months later, by the end of April 2007, approximately 25 per cent of targeted members had taken some action – all the result of a single letter sent to their homes

The success of the campaign was noteworthy, and gained national attention when it was profiled in a feature article in the September 2007 issue of Benefits Canada magazine, a top resource for sponsors of pension and benefits plans in Canada.

The results exceeded Sun Life Financial’s expectations and AstraZeneca was extremely pleased with the direct action taken by plan members as a result of the communication. And with the my money platform in place, and the proven effectiveness of the initiative, the January 2007 communication paved the way for AstraZeneca to build on this success through future personalized communication campaigns.


Employee/Member Communications – Award of MeritEntrant’s Names: Tangie Hinds, Daniel Thamotharem, Danny Faria, Catherine Krever, Paul KilbertusOrganization: Smart Systems for Health AgencyDivision 1: Communication Management Category 7: Employee/Member CommunicationTitle of Entry: GET CAUGHT!Time Period: September 4 to December 1, 2007Brief Description: “GET CAUGHT!” an internal privacy and security awareness campaign was launched in September 2007 to promote and develop a culture of privacy and security for all staff at Smart Systems for Health Agency (SSHA).

Business Need/OpportunityCreated in 2003, SSHA – an agency of the Government of Ontario’s Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care – is responsible for electronically connecting all public health care professionals and organizations across the province.

In a review in early 2007, Ontario’s Information and Privacy Commissioner (IPC) called SSHA to task to document and update its privacy and security program in a variety of areas. SSHA needed to quickly demonstrate it had fulfilled IPC recommendations – as changing its corporate culture was a business requirement resulting from this review.

An internal privacy and security campaign was developed to communicate new mandatory goals and behavioral practices.

All SSHA staff members were expected to “Get caught doing the right thing” including: • Understanding their personal responsibility for privacy and security • Demonstrating this new behavior daily • Achieving 90% or more on two mandatory online training courses to be completed by December 1,

2007

Entrant’s Role in the ProjectAn in-house Communications team for SSHA created, designed, wrote and managed the internal awareness campaign to promote and communicate new mandatory privacy goals and behavioral practices.

Tangie Hinds was the senior graphic designer, responsible for design and creative direction all campaign collateral. Daniel Thamotharem supported Tangie with graphic design production. Catherine Krever and Danny Faria were responsible for developing the concept and strategy, writing, editing and liaising with and managing internal clients on the project. Paul Kilbertus was the director of the team.

Intended AudiencesThe primary audience included existing staff – approximately 400 employees, and 150 consultants. Composed mainly of male IT professionals, employees and consultants are highly-educated individuals who consistently work on tight timelines with competing priorities.

The secondary audience was the IPC. SSHA was required to demonstrate it had fulfilled the full range of mandatory privacy and security change initiatives including staff training recommendations, resulting from the IPC review.

To learn more, the team researched elements of successful internal campaigns to change employee attitudes. Research showed that positive, rewards-based approaches have greater likelihood of success than punitive measures.

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Goals and ObjectivesThe creative objective was to create a memorable, positive, action-oriented campaign to heighten the importance of privacy and security within SSHA. The Communications team had two outcomes. Encourage 100% of the organization to:

1. Adopt the featured privacy and security practices; and 2. Complete the mandatory online training within the specified deadline

The creative contributed to SSHA’s business needs by using humor to engage and motivate staff about the serious topic of privacy and security. The campaign also played a key part in influencing SSHA’s reputation with the IPC and the health care sector.

Solution OverviewThe overall theme for the “GET CAUGHT!” campaign was “Privacy and security is your responsibility.” It was crucial to convey to all staff that they needed to be accountable; the onus was on them to “Get caught doing the right thing.” This key message was heavily emphasized throughout the beginning of the campaign in a series of targeted posters.

“GET CAUGHT! Being aware of privacy and security” was an additional key message used on promotional items to heighten awareness. Lastly, the flexibility of the campaign made it possible to create a targeted message to promote the mandatory online training; staff was encouraged to simply “GET CAUGHT! Making the Grade.”

The creative solution involved a multifaceted campaign that could work in multiple locations which exhibited positive behaviors and, at a glance, appeared to depict conduct contrary to privacy and security. Along with whimsical color photography of what seemed to be criminal activity, each headline was boldly emphasized using a dominant black and white theme and linear graphics representative of “prison bars.” In each case, the creative was successfully aligned with the gaps identified in the IPC report and was able to reinforce positive messaging with a twist, making it memorable for the intended audiences. All of the pieces were developed to reach and inspire staff to be accountable and aware of privacy and security.

Creative components of the internal privacy and security awareness campaign included:• Nine 18” x 24” posters, Intranet banners, LCD kitchen display graphics and custom e-mail template• The creation of a privacy and security hotline and e-mail account (both the hotline and e-mail account

are now monitored on a daily basis)• “GET CAUGHT!” coffee mugs imprinted with the privacy and security hotline and e-mail address (mugs

distributed to staff at a series of “walkabouts” by the Vice President of Privacy and Security)• “You’ve been CAUGHT!” Tickets (coupled with a $2 gift certificate to a popular coffee shop to reward

staff for exhibiting positive privacy and security behaviors)

• An organization-wide “GET CAUGHT!” screensaver• “GET CAUGHT!” promotional computer monitor mirrors

Creative components for online training included:• One 11” x 17” poster• A colorful print “reminder” dropped on the desks of all staff and consultants• Intranet banner, LCD kitchen display graphics • A promotional micro site on the SSHA Intranet


Implementation and ChallengesImplementation was over the course of three months with the following key activities:

Timeframe ActivitiesEarly September Campaign launch

Mid-September Campaign refresh (4 new posters, screensaver launched)October 1 Online learning launchNovember 30 End of campaign and celebration of 100% achievement

Key challenges included:• Budget. As a publicly-funded government agency, SSHA is always conscious of demonstrating value

for money and accustomed to employing cost effective solutions. For the “GET CAUGHT!” project, creative costs were zero – the entire campaign was conceived, produced, managed and led internally by the Communications and Public Relations team. Production costs for all components came in well under $8,000

• Timeframes. The timelines to create and implement this campaign were extremely tight. Brainstorming started August 20 and the creative presentation to SSHA executives took place Aug. 24. Posters were produced, digitally printed and delivered one week later. The campaign was launched Sept. 4/07. In addition, SSHA’s new VP of Privacy and Security was absent at the time of the creative pitch – he was busy relocating to Toronto from Ottawa. The team made the pitch to the CEO in his place – who had to be briefed on the project from scratch.

• Special circumstances. Communications planning for the online training component had actually begun earlier – in July 2007. Planning and approvals for the training component was evolving steadily when suddenly the need for the awareness campaign dropped in, threatening to cause confusion to the audience by introducing competing messages.

• Competing interests. The online training component was suddenly exposed to the possibility of being overshadowed by the awareness campaign which would be launched first, jeopardizing its impact on the audience. In order to appease both internal clients – the team responsible for online training, and the VP of Privacy and Security dealing with the IPC, as well as creating clear messaging for the internal audience – the Communications team quickly retrofitted elements of the training campaign, to make it look and feel like an essential component of the overall awareness campaign. This included negotiating with non-communications members of the online training team, so they would not feel slighted that some elements from their campaign would be borrowed and that another high-profile campaign would be launched in advance of theirs.

Measurement/EvaluationObjective:The campaign helped SSHA to begin to change its corporate culture by successfully raising awareness of privacy and security, and to motivate 100% of staff and consultants to complete the online training – as per requirements in the IPC report.

Result:100% of staff and consultants successfully completed the mandatory online training one day in advance of the deadline:

“We exceeded our expectations. Based on previous history, we anticipated a 90-95% completion rate. Achieving 100% was unprecedented in the Agency,” ~ Sarah Funston-Mills, Senior Privacy Analyst, SSHA, Jan. 30/08

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Staff Survey:Approximately two weeks after the campaign finished, a ten question voluntary online survey (using a scale of 1 to 10) posted on the SSHA Intranet demonstrated the awareness campaign was largely successful in accomplishing its objectives.

87 responses were received (16% response rate). The survey showed that:• 94% were very aware of the campaign• 84% reported they now have the information and tools to be privacy aware and vigilant• 70% rated the campaign to be highly effective• 64% stated they were more aware of privacy and security due to the campaign

Anecdotal and Qualitative Results:The series of nine posters reinforcing privacy and security messages posted throughout all four SSHA locations were effective – a few went missing, particularly the “Cuddles” poster.

There was no fixed budget for the campaign. Creative costs were zero. The in-house creative team consisted of a Director, two communication advisors and two designers. Production costs for all components came in under $8,000 – posters being the most expensive item costing $3,150 for 90 ($35 each).

“I thought you would be interested to know that the awareness campaign would have cost $60-$80K if prepared by an external agency. I was showing it off to an associate partner at one of Canada’s leading full-scale advertising agencies. He was tremendously impressed by the integration between the different elements of the campaign and the innovative way in which we were presenting privacy and security concepts,”

~ Jane Dargie, Director, Privacy, SSHA, Oct. 10/07.

During the campaign, the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario sent in a consultant to evaluate SSHA and its progress against recommendations made earlier in the year. Here is what the consultant had to say:

“SSHA declared September, 2007 to be Privacy and Security Awareness Month featuring a novel set of posters, coffee mugs, and coffee events on specific floors. This was a component of its desire to promote and advance an organizational culture of privacy at SSHA. It wants to promote strongly the positive behaviours it expects of all personnel as described in the Standard of Conduct. The tagline of the posters is therefore, “GET CAUGHT,” doing something good. The initiative is being resourced to continue to ‘catch’ people and to keep the collateral fresh and rotated on an ongoing basis. There is also a privacy and security direct dial hotline available from everyone’s phone at SSHA and an e-mail address for the same purpose,” Report to the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario (IPC) on the Ontario Smart Systems for Health Agency’s Compliance with the IPC’s Privacy and Security Recommendations.

~ Prepared by David H. Flaherty, Ph.D., October 20, 2007

“I am carrying photos of your posters around with me at a privacy conference in Vancouver to show to people,”

~ David Flaherty, Privacy Consultant for Ontario’s Information Privacy Commissioner, Sept. 20/07

SSHA uses the services of a number of consultants who work for large, worldwide organizations. They witnessed the campaign first-hand since they are on-site.


“I thought the SSHA Privacy campaign was incredible… it was very comprehensive… from posters to screen savers … to the interactivity of the VP bringing coffee to my desk explaining the importance… I cannot think of any additional manner of connecting to me that was not used. The creativity of the message was unique and intriguing… for example ‘Get caught just wearing your ID’ was bold and arresting (no pun intended!!) for the culture of SSHA. As a former VP Marketing for The Coca-Cola Company, I was extremely impressed with the overall campaign,”

~ Doug Humfries, IBM Global Business Services (on consulting assignment to SSHA), Feb. 5/08

Michael Power, SSHA’s new VP, Privacy and Security, SSHA was so impressed with the campaign, he authored a Case Study about building a culture of privacy and security for an international trade magazine: IEEE Security & Privacy, November/December 2007.

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Economic, Social and Environmental/Third World Development – Award of MeritEntrant’s Name: Bernard HellenOrganization’s Name: Traffic Marketing + Design Inc.Division: Division 1, Communication Management Category: Category 8, Economic, Social and Environmental/Third World DevelopmentTitle of Entry: ‘Change the world’ FSC XpertTM CampaignTime Period of Project: October 2007 and ongoingBrief Description: The Forest Stewardship Council FSC XpertTM program is a designation and educational initiative specifically created for graphic design and communication professionals that are committed to responsible forest management, and who obtain the knowledge and skills to successfully source and manage print design projects that use FSC-certified paper.

Business Need/OpportunityDesigners make the world’s most beautiful trash.Scott Ewen, Emigré Magazine

According to Design Can Change; an initiative that helps graphic designers encourage sustainable practices and make the environment a priority in their practices, paper accounts for 81 million tons of solid waste annually, which constitutes 40% of North America’s total. In the United States alone, designers purchase or specify $9.1 billion in printing and paper annually. Clearly graphic designers and other communications professionals have a role to play in minimizing the impact of their industry.

The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is an international non-profit organization, founded in 1993 to promote the environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial, and economically viable management of the world’s forest. The FSC accomplishes this through the process of forest certification, through which forests are independently audited to meet a set of strict environmental and social standards, and all producers along the supply chain are certified to guarantee that any product carrying the FSC label came from a forest friendly source.

More and more companies have been looking to FSC-certified products as a way of demonstrating their commitment to responsible sourcing of materials. Hundreds of companies now print their annual reports, sustainability reports, magazines, books, flyers, envelopes and letterhead on FSC-certified paper.• Markets are looking for responsibly sourced materials, and clients are requesting their jobs to be FSC.• As demand and recognition of FSC grows among the corporate audience, there is a strong need to

raise the awareness of FSC and environmental paper use among graphic arts and communications professionals.

• Graphic art and communications professionals provide clients with a multitude of services and must respond not only to their requests, but understand the trends and demands of their markets.

• There are currently no other designations or formalized programs that are targeting graphic design or communications professionals with the goal of taking the environmental message to market.

Entrant’s Role in ProjectBernard Hellen, President of Traffic Marketing + Design Inc. approached the FSC to inquire about becoming FSC-certified. As a graphic designer who was not directly involved in handling or taking possession of chain-of-custody certified paper; he was not eligible. This was the genesis of his work to create and to promote the FSC XpertTM program – a designation and educational initiative specifically created for graphic design and communication professionals that are committed to responsible forest management. As a graphic designer Bernard Hellen wanted to be able to approach his clients with the knowledge and tools, as well as a designation, demonstrating his commitment to making informed paper recommendations.


Antony Marcil, President and CEO and Maia Becker, Manger of Communications and Client Services, Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Canada worked to develop and design the FSC XpertTM designation program details.

In addition to the ideation of the designation, Traffic Marketing + Design was commissioned by the Forest Stewardship Council to design a print communications campaign to promote the FSC Xpert program.

Intended Audience(s)Graphic artists and communications professionals who exert a significant influence on the manner in which print communication and marketing materials are produced.

An interesting characteristic of this target group that was factored into the solution is the above average sophistication of the audience. When communicating to and designing for graphic design and communication professionals, messages need to be skillfully crafted and materials must be clearly and elegantly presented.

ObjectivesThe goal of the FSC Xpert program is to provide graphic designers and other communication professionals with the knowledge and resources to help them successfully source and manage projects that use FSC-certified paper and with FSC-certified printers.

The near-future goal of the project is to gain a wide adoption of the FSC Xpert designation within the graphic design and communications industry and achieve 1,000 FSC Xperts within the first year of the program.

The overarching goal of the program however is that FSC Xperts generate increased demand for FSC-certified paper, which in turn will lead to more forests that are certified to FSC’s standards. More FSC-certified forests mean great protection of forests, waterways, wildlife and communities.

The communications objectives of the print communication campaign are to create and promote an appealing design piece targeted to the intended audience that will:• Grab and hold their attention,• Announce the details of the FSC Xpert program,• Drive them to an online web site for more information; and, • Encourage them to start specifying FSC papers.

Solution OverviewIn October 2007 FSC Canada launched the FSC Xpert program. In order to become an FSC Xpert, the candidate is required to undergo an online course and write an exam testing participants on their knowledge of the FSC certification process and requirements, responsible forest management and the steps in managing a project using FSC-certified papers. Upon passing the exam, designers receive the right to use the FSC Xpert designation. The key messages that the booklet needed to convey were ‘Promote – Purchase – Participate’:• Promote the principles of FSC certification to colleagues, friends and clients. Encourage your clients to

use FSC-certified products on their next project.• Print your business materials and stationery on FSC-certified paper, and work with an FSC-certified

printer.• Participate as an environmental and social leader in business and the local community. Share your

knowledge of environmental and social issues and contribute to the discussion on issues related to sustainability.

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To promote the designation to the intended audience, Traffic created the ‘Change the world’ book – a 32 page print demonstration and swatch book that highlights the connection between nature, design and print. Each sheet in the book is printed on a different FSC-certified paper and features the art of five outstanding international environmental artists reproduced using waterless printing technologies. The goal of this piece is to attract attention to their relationship between the environment and paper in a visual way, demonstrate the specific characteristics of fine FSC-certified papers and to raise understanding of the FSC Xpert program.

Five myths that graphic designers identified in research conducted by Traffic are presented with corresponding ‘truths’ that serve to dispel any misconceptions that designers might have about FSC-certified papers. Printed swatches of each FSC-certified paper are available at the back of the book to demonstrate their excellence.

The launch of this piece took place at the DesignThinkers conference of the Registered Graphic Designers of Ontario (RGD Ontario), after which it was distributed nationally throughout the design and communications community.

A print advertising campaign in five major publications (Applied Arts Magazine Design Annual, Design Edge Canada Magazine, PrintAction Magazine’s Buyer’s Guide, Print Me by Canadian Printer Magazine, and RGD Ontario’s Member Directory) directed readers to visit http://www.fsccanada.org/fscx

Implementation and ChallengesA key success of the FSC Xpert program and associated promotional booklet was the collaboration between different individuals and groups within various sectors to create a compelling story that connects paper and printing choices with environmental responsibility.

The majority of the graphic design services, printing, FSC-certified paper and international artists’ works were donated by individuals and companies that recognize the importance of evaluating the day-to-day choices we make in our professions and how they impact nature. A pro bono project of this nature with non existent budgets required an amazing commitment and dedication by all parties – a testament to the importance of the message being communicated – ‘Change the world.’

The task of managing these disparate groups each with their own agendas and timelines fell to Traffic Marketing + Design and was a formidable task. In reality, the idea for the promotional book was launched in September 2006 and it took over a year to co-ordinate the various stakeholders and realize the vision of the final deliverable in time for the DesignThinkers conference in October 2007. Along the way the project lost the donated services of a printer and another generous supplier had to be found. Many thanks to Jay Mandarino of CJ Graphics who stepped into the void and provided flawless printing.

Paper had to be chosen from numerous FSC-certified suppliers and evaluated for a number of criteria including fairness of representation for the major producers and paper merchants, quality for reproduction, and suitability to the other paper included in the book. And then rechosen. And then again.

This was also an international project that involved 5 international eco-artists representing Canada, the United States, Germany and Switzerland and sourcing and managing original photographic materials of a quality suitable for print reproduction was a challenge.

Measurement/EvaluationSince the launch of the FSC Xpert promotional booklet just three month ago, 150 design and communications professionals have registered for the program, and 83 have been officially designated as FSC Xperts (for full listing please visit http://www.fsccanada.org/fscxlist). As a demonstration of the high interest in the program, a recent workshop in Edmonton on the FSC Xpert initiative was sold-out with


150 attendees, and over 50 additional participants on a waiting list to attend the next event. Appendix A presents a testimonial letter from FSC Canada attesting to these results.

Since its introduction, the FSC Xpert program and promotional ‘Change the World’ book have been well received by the design and print industry. So much so that the book is being reprinted for broader distribution by Neenah Paper. Neenah http://www.neenahpaper.com only participates in a handful of commercial reprints each year. Neenah will be reprinting the brochures using various “green” papers that Neenah manufactures and will distribute approx. 10,000 of them as promotional material through their national sales team. This is an excellent opportunity for the FSC to get their message out as these brochures will be distributed to some of the largest corporations in North America and Canada! Neenah is very excited about the opportunity to work with Traffic, FSC Canada and all of the talented artists who participated in the brochure.

The FSC Xpert program has been featured at seven tradeshows and in five major magazines (Applied Arts Magazine, Design Edge Canada Magazine, PrintAction Magazine’s Buyer’s Guide, Print Me by Canadian Printer Magazine, and RGD Ontario’s Member Directory).

While not solely attributable to the FSC Xpert program booklet, in 2007, there was a 102% increase in the number of FSC-certified papers, and a 143% increase in the number of FSC-certified printers in Canada, and certainly the creation of a program targeting design and communications professionals is getting the messaging out.

Other positive outcomes of the booklet include:1. FSC International is looking at the program for an international rollout.2. AIGA is interested in investigating the program with an eye towards adoption.3. The UK Design Council has requested more information about how FSC is involving graphic designers

in the paper decision process.4. The Society of Graphic Designers of Canada (GDC) has expressed interest in adoption.5. The Association of Registered Graphic Designers of Ontario (RGD Ontario) is including a lead story on

the FSC Xpert program in their Feb/March Sustainability issue of the RGD Review.

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2008 Maverick Student of the YearWinners Name: Maricel Dicion School: Centennial College

Media ReleaseAttention: MAVERICK PR Student of the Year Judges

Public Relations student aims to get practitioners “with the PRogram”

(TORONTO – April 30, 2008) Wake up and smell the Java apps. The public relations profession is undergoing a serious makeover. Some may not be able to recognize the industry’s new look, but Maricel Dicion, a Centennial College public relations student, is brewing up a strong batch of ideas that will help some practitioners reacquaint themselves with the new guise of public relations.

The face of the industry isn’t the product of a single person or even a team of public relations professionals anymore, who set out to modernize its image. The new visage of the industry is the product of social media — millions of people across the nation and across the globe.

“Social media exists, because people use it as a tool to discuss and share opinions and ideas and to be informed”, says 21-year-old Dicion. “Those people are our target audiences and our stakeholders. I’m no Shel Holtz and most practitioners are aware of this change, but I want all public relations professionals and organizations to embrace the need for sound social media relations. We’re living in a world where trends and headlines change within a blink of an eye. Conversations are constantly shifting and changing as people log on and log off. We need to log on — and stay on.”

Dicion plans to give the industry a bit of a makeover by introducing the need for social media relations to organizations that have yet to test the waters of social media. As a media relations intern at the Ontario Science Centre, Dicion has already taken the first step in achieving this goal by creating a social media communications plan for the Science Centre’s SCI FRI program that suggested establishing a presence on Facebook by creating a SCI FRI fan page.

“SCI FRI is a monthly event at the Science Centre aimed at engaging youths ages 14 to 24 to think about how they can make a difference in the world,” Ellen Flowers, media relations officer at the Ontario Science Centre said. “Youths are heavy users of Facebook, using it to keep track of their social lives. Creating a fan page for SCI FRI on the social networking site gives the event some legs and gets the word out to the targeted audience. The Science Centre thought it was a great idea and embraced it.”

Her supervisors at the Ontario Science Centre believe Dicion will set herself apart from other ‘newbie’ practitioners, with the same goals in mind, through her impressive work experience and portfolio. They have noticed her contagious energy level, compelling writing skills and distinctive brand of creativity and believe these attributes will ensure her continuous success.

Born and raised in Toronto, Maricel Dicion’s communications and writing skills were developed at an early age. Winning awards for her short stories and poetry when she was only eight, Dicion knew she was a wizard at words and went on to earn a diploma in journalism at Centennial College. After learning about the shift in the public relations’ practices she decided she wanted to help with getting all practitioners “online.” She currently works part-time at 680 News as a news and traffic reporter and is an intern in the media relations department at the Ontario Science Centre. Maricel Dicion is a member of the Toronto chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators and can be reached via phone, e-mail, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or PROpenMic.

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Maricel DicionPresident, comMARICation PR416-882-1192 OR [email protected]: http://twitter.com/comMARICAtor, Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=305300763 LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/myprofile?goback=%2Ehom, PROpenMic: http://www.propenmic.org/profile/comMARICator

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