2013 Thoth Winning Entries

45th Annual Thoth Awards Gala

Program Winners

Events and Observances (Seven or fewer days)

Events and Observances (More than seven days)

Global Communications

Internal Communications

Integrated Communications: Consumer

Integrated Communications: Government (Best in Show)

Marketing Consumer Products and Services

Pro Bono Public Relations

Public Service

Reputation/Brand Management: Business

Reputation/Brand Management: Government

Component Winners

Advertorial

Blog

Brochure (Print)

External Videos

Featured Stories, Editorials, Op-Ed Columns

Integrated Media Relations (Budget under $25k)

Integrated Media Relations (Budget over $25k)

Internal Video

Media Relations: Blogger Campaign

Online Communications

Public Service Announcements

Publications: Annual Report

Publications: Print

Research/Evaluation

Website

Program Winners

Event and Observances: Seven or Fewer Days

Thoth Award

Susan Davis International for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund
Breaking Ground to Share Their Stories

The core values of those who serve – duty, service, courage, integrity – ever abide, ringing true from Bunker Hill to Baghdad. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund launched a campaign to build The Education Center at The Wall, a national landmark bringing to life the stories of more than 58,000 Vietnam veterans who died in service to their country as well as the stories of today’s contemporary warriors. SDI was retained to plan, produce, and promote a media-worthy ceremonial groundbreaking to increase awareness of the campaign and secure passage of critical legislation to support the project.

Event and Observances: Fewer than Seven or More Days

No Thoth Award in this Category

Certificate of Excellence

Ketchum and DoubleTree by Hilton™
DoubleTree by Hilton’s Little Things Project Brightens Travel Experiences Nationwide

At DoubleTree by Hilton, little things mean everything when it comes to travel. With travel growing increasingly difficult, DoubleTree by Hilton was determined to leverage its CARE culture to make travelers feel human again. The solution? Ask the travelers. Listen to their answers. Then surprise and delight them with what they said they wanted. The Little Things Project was born, and DoubleTree by Hilton set off on nationwide tour to deliver “little things” to brighten travel. The team surpassed its goals – delivering 3.6 billion media impressions, along with thousands of new social media followers and Hilton HHonors members.

Certificate of Excellence

Tour for Diversity in Medicine with BRG Communications, Inc.
Inspiring Tomorrow’s Diverse Medical Professional Today

The Tour for Diversity in Medicine, along with the Aetna Foundation, engaged BRG Communications to create a targeted communications campaign that would increase awareness about the need for a more diverse medical profession and provide minority students with the advice and tools they need to pursue medical careers

Global Communications

Thoth Award
Ogilvy Washington for DuPont
Welcome to the Global Collaboratory: Global Food Security

DuPont sought to play a role in identifying sustainable solutions to feeding a world population that will grow from seven to nine billion people by 2050. DuPont partnered with the Economist Intelligence Unit to create a common language around the issue of food security, culminating in the five-country launch of the Global Food Security Index. The program exceeded all expectations including attendance by over 500 influencers at key events, generating over 320 unique articles, 120,000 online visitors to DuPont’s Food Security digital hub and briefing requests from over 15 organizations. Collaborative opportunities with eight new partners have emerged to date.

Internal Communications (for organizations with 10,000 or more employees or members)

No Thoth Award in this Category

Certificate of Excellence

Johns Hopkins
Hopkins Hands
To support Johns Hopkins Medicine’s goal to achieve at least 85 percent compliance in observing hand hygiene best practices, a cross-entity team of communicators partnered with Hospital Epidemiology and Infection Control to develop the Hopkins Hands campaign. This was a first-of-its-kind collaboration to jointly develop and deploy a communications campaign to reach more than 41,000 employees across ten Johns Hopkins entities. By featuring hand hygiene champions and best practices from across the system, the campaign fosters a sense of community while reminding all employees of the importance of washing their hands, regardless of their role or work setting. Employees work in a variety of settings, including six hospitals in Maryland, Washington, D.C. and Florida; dozens of physician practices; an insurance carrier and home health provider.

Integrated Communications: Consumer

Thoth Award

Pepco Holdings, Inc.
Turning Around the “Most Hated Company in America”

Blistering press, customer dissatisfaction, and political fallout surrounding its Pepco utility, named “Most Hated Company in America,” led Pepco Holdings, Inc., to transform its communications strategy. In 2011, new leadership planned a vision for improvement, which, with other PHI efforts, helped lead to Pepco’s 20-point overall customer satisfaction leap.

Certificate of Excellence

Ketchum for The Hershey Company
Hershey’s Simple Pleasures® Chocolates Summer of Sweet Independence™

The certificate goes to The Hershey Company with Ketchum for Hershey’s Simple Pleasures(R) Chocolates Summer of Sweet Independence™. The Hershey Company was ready to tackle the “Better for You” category with Hershey’s Simple Pleasures Chocolates, which contain 30 percent less fat than the average of the leading milk chocolates. Based on the insight that women want to achieve balance without giving up their favorite foods of feeling guilt when enjoying them, Ketchum launched the “Summer of Sweet Independence” to inspire customers to enjoy the things they love, guilt-free. The three-month campaign drove sales to exceed forecast, received 40,000 plus declarations, engaged 24,000 plus Facebook fans and earned 217M plus impressions.

Integrated Communications: Government

Thoth

PRR, Inc. for the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Office of Oral Health
Maryland Oral Health Social Marketing Initiative: Healthy Teeth, Healthy Kids

Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s Office of Oral Health selected PRR to lead, plan, and implement the comprehensive multi-media campaign: Healthy Teeth, Healthy Kids. The campaign included research; a strategic three-year marketing and communications plan; forming a working group, advisory committee, and strategic partnership council; branding; advertising; PR; partnerships; website; toll-free hotline; social media; and collateral materials. The post-campaign survey found an increase in awareness among the target audience that oral health is important to overall health, visits to the dentist increased, and children were taken to the dentist for the first time at an earlier age.

Certificate of Excellence

Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services with Ketchum
Putting the I in Health IT

The Putting the I in Health IT campaign is a nationwide federal government initiative to speed adoption of electronic health records. The campaign places providers in the hero‘s shoes for moving away from antiquated paper records and adopting health information technology to improve health care quality and patient care.

Challenge: Providers viewed electronic health record adoption as burdensome.

Results: 56% of providers registered to receive federal government incentive payments awarded when they successfully adopt electronic health records, and 66% of primary care providers enrolled in federal government assistance programs to help them adopt health IT and qualify for incentive payments.

Marketing Consumer Products and Services

Thoth

The Clorox Company with Ketchum
Clorox’s Bleach It Away Program Encourages Parents to Talk about the 3P’s

Life gets messy. That’s why there’s Clorox Bleach. After nearly 100 years, bleach sales were fading as traditional consumers aged. Ketchum helped Clorox reach today’s parents who, unlike previous generations, aren’t afraid to talk about pee, poop and puke. Bleach It Away, a program highlighting life’s bleachable moments – those moments that only bleach can help erase – was born. We tapped digital ambassadors and social platforms to motivate Gen X/Y parents to tell their OMG EWW stories with bleach as the secret weapon. The result: Parents shared their stories online, and we inspired Gen X/Y parents to buy bleach.

Certificate of Excellence

The Hershey Company with Ketchum
Hershey’s Brings Happiness Through Well-Being with Moderation National Program

Hershey’s Moderation Nation program truly modernized moderation, by transforming it into a liberating lifestyle. The team turned Moderation Nation’s website into an online lifestyle magazine, featuring Good Life Gurus: a celebrity chef, nutrition and fitness experts and a working mom blogger. Offline, the team took Moderation Nation to local wellness events in New Orleans and Chicago, culminating with a Good Life Holiday-themed event in New York City. With tips, recipes and so much more, the program showed how moderation could fit easily into daily routines and reinforced that chocolate can be part of a lifestyle of well-being.

Pro Bono Public Relations

Thoth

Susan Davis International
SDI Illuminates Razia’s Ray of Hope

As a woman-owned PR firm, the empowerment of women around the world is especially important to Susan Davis International. Our chairman, Susan Davis, met Razia Jan in 2009 and over the years, our firm has become a strong supporter of Razia and her efforts to improve education for girls in rural Afghanistan. Razia’s efforts resulted in being named a CNNHero in the summer of 2012. When we learned from Razia’s team that she was likely to be named a Top Ten CNNHero, SDI launched a pro bono public relations campaign using the platform to raise additional awareness and funds for our hero.

Public Service

Thoth Award

Ogilvy Washington with DuPont
Welcome to the Global Collaboratory: Global Food Security

Certificate of Excellence

The Walmart Foundation and BRG Communications
The Walmart Foundation and BRG Communications Walmart Fighting Hunger Together Initiative

In the spring of 2010, Walmart announced a $2 billion commitment through 2015 to help end hunger in America. To celebrate the second anniversary of that commitment, with the help of BRG Communications, the Foundation developed a strategic “Fighting Hunger Together” program to advance the public’s understanding of hunger in America.

Certificate of Excellence

Ogilvy Washington with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Obesity Happens One Pound at a Time. So Does Preventing It.

Working with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) toward its overarching goal to positively change the nation’s diet and exercise habits, Ogilvy Washington developed a multi-faceted campaign beginning with comprehensive research and planning, followed by the launch of national public service announcements, digital components, and paid media. By targeting adults ages 45-60 and at-risk populations, especially African Americans, Hispanics, and Native Americans, the TV public service announcements, public service announcements, earned print placements, and online videos all exceeded the campaign’s impression objectives.

Reputation/Brand Management: Business

Thoth Award

Ogilvy Washington for DuPont
Welcome to the Global Collaboratory: Global Food Security

Certificate of Excellence

Ogilvy Washington with BP
BP in America: Going Beyond Detractors to Transform a Brand

Ogilvy harnessed the power of Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to demonstrate BP’s ongoing commitment to the Gulf of Mexico, while establishing a fresh narrative regarding the company’s investment in America and how it provides safe, reliable energy in the US. As a result, Ogilvy and BP are setting the standard for community management by advancing a proactive strategy that centers on working and collaborating with BP’s audience to serve both them and the business better.

Reputation/Brand Management: Government

Thoth Award

U.S. Department of Labor
Labor Day 2012

In 2012, during a year-long observation of the Department’s 100th anniversary, OPA implemented a “Labor Day Campaign” which coupled traditional print and broadcast media efforts with social media.

Together, these showcase the Department’s historic legacy, enduring relevance, and role in accelerating economic recovery. It also markedly increases our brand visibility and reputation with stakeholders and customers.

Component Winners

Advertorial

Thoth Award

Ogilvy Washington with the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition
The Importance of Physical Activity for All Americans

During the past four decades, the obesity rate for American children ages 6 to 11 has more than quadrupled, and it has more than tripled among children ages 12 to 19. Recognizing that physical inactivity has contributed to the childhood obesity epidemic, the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition (PCFSN) wanted to remind parents and caregivers that they play a key role in encouraging their children to lead active and healthy lifestyles. As a result, Ogilvy and PCFSN developed a multi-faceted national initiative to raise the profile and increase conversation around physical activity through a public service announcement campaign and other tactical implementation—including an advertorial.

Blog

Thoth Award

Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services with Ketchum
Putting the I in Health IT

Putting the I in Health IT is a nationwide government initiative to speed adoption of electronic health records (EHRs). The campaign places providers in the hero’s shoes for moving away from antiquated paper records and adopting health IT to improve health care quality.

A key component for the program is the Health IT Buzz blog, a platform for engaging the health care community.

Visitors: 360,558

The blog helps recruit health providers to seek assistance from Regional Assistance Centers (RECs) and apply for EHR incentives:
66% of primary care providers are receiving REC assistance.
56% of providers registered for EHR incentives.

Brochure

Thoth Award

Gershman, Brickner & Bratton, Inc.,Atwater Communications, MillerCox Design
GBB Brochure: Focusing on “Why,” Leadership Transition and Measurable Results

Gershman, Brickner & Bratton, Inc. (GBB) is a Virginia consulting firm that specializes in recycling and solid waste management. The company wanted to update its 2009 brochure, showcase the firm’s expertise in new waste management technologies, highlight project results, and introduce a team of new officers during the company’s current leadership transition. In 2012, Atwater Communications, working with MillerCox Design, developed a new brochure that emphasizes “why” GBB is involved in the solid waste industry (not only what they do and how they do it), raises awareness about the new officers, and showcases measurable results from 18 projects.

External Video

Thoth Award

Technology CEO Council
Simplifying Corprate Tax Policy So the U.S. Can Win the Race, Keep the Pace, and Lead the World

With corporate tax reform under consideration for the first time since 1986, the Technology CEO Council sought to educate lawmakers on the complex issues related to corporate tax policy with a series of easy-to-understand, two-minute videos that helped correct misinformation and more clearly explain the issues as well as potential solutions.

Feature Stories, Editorials, Op-Ed Columns

Thoth Award

U.S. Department of Labor
Labor Day 2012 Op-Ed: Focus on Veterans

As part of an intensive outreach effort to promote our products and services for Labor Day, 2012, the department produced and placed an op-ed that provided vital, timely information about resources for veterans seeking employment and transitioning service members. The strategic decision to focus on veterans came about in response to stubbornly high unemployment rates among veterans. The clear, compelling information about these veterans employment resources was targeted to small media outlets in communities with high veteran populations. The op-ed was placed in 37 newspapers in 19 states, driving remarkable increases in traffic to the department’s online veterans employment tools.

Certificate of Excellence

Susan Davis International
Spanning Generations: Vietnam to Today

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund launched a campaign to build The Education Center at The Wall, a national landmark dedicated to the fallen of Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan. SDI was retained to produce the ceremonial groundbreaking of the center, grow awareness of the campaign and help secure passage of key legislation. The submitted op-ed, signed by the first living Medal of Honor recipient since Vietnam, ran in nine daily newspapers. It powerfully argued the case for the center, helping attract an impressive list of event participants, informing the public about the campaign and inspiring the desired legislation.

Integrated Media Relations (budget under $25,000)

Thoth Award

PadillaCRT
Web.com’s Small Business Mobile Survey

As provider of online solutions for small business owners (SBOs), Web.com strives to be ever-attuned to the challenges they face. Recently, the SBO’s marketing toolkit has expanded exponentially, making it difficult to stay ahead of the shifting trends. To identify and address key pain points, Web.com conducted a survey centered around one of the fastest-growing marketing platforms today: mobile. Web.com uncovered that low adoption despite high success shows a missed opportunity for many SBOs. Using this data, CRT/tanaka constructed a comprehensive media relations package to educate SBOs about mobile marketing and position Web.com as the perfect solution.

Integrated Media Relations (budget over $25,000)

Thoth Award

495 Express Lanes/Transurban and Fluor/O’Keeffe& Company
495 Expess Lanes Media Relations Campaign

To bring much needed traffic relief to the most congested area in the nation, Transurban and Fluor partnered with the Virginia Department of Transportation to deliver a landmark traffic solution the 495 Express Lanes – new high occupancy toll (HOT) lanes on the Virginia side of I-495. The road was the first of its kind in the region with new rules of the road. To generate awareness and educate drivers about how to use the lanes, the team executed a media outreach campaign using tactics such as press releases, pitching, media briefings, ride-alongs and press conferences at exclusive locations.

Certificate of Excellence

American Psychological Association and Vanguard Communications of Falls Church, Inc.
Stress in America: Our Health at Risk

The American Psychological Association’s Stress in America™ survey was designed to monitor the causes and health consequences of stress in the U.S. The earned media effort for this campaign leveraged the survey results to engage health care advocates and the media in promoting strategies for managing stress and reducing chronic illness. Findings from 2011 were released at a town hall-style event at the Newseum in Washington, D.C., in January 2012. The survey received widespread coverage; overall, earned media coverage of Stress in America: Our Health at Risk was worth an estimated $2.3 million.

Internal Video

Thoth Award

U.S. Department of Labor
DOL Centennial Video: Then, Now, Next

Then, Now, Next is a cinematic celebration of the Department of Labor’s employees and its remarkable history of service to America’s working families, made to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the department. At a time of budget cuts and hiring freezes, the video aims to inspire, unite, and instill a sense of pride in the department’s 17,000 employees stationed around the world. Clocking in under six minutes, it includes heartfelt testimony from current employees about their love of their work and a swiftly-moving overview of the department’s achievements. It serves a dual purpose as an educational resource for the public.

Media Relations: Blogger Campaign

Thoth Award

PadillaCRT
BISSELL’s White Sock Test – Educating America About the Power of Deep Cleaning

BISSELL knows that to rid carpet of dirt, dust and allergens it must be deep cleaned, but for consumers, awareness remains low. When it comes to carpet cleaning, consumers must “see it to believe it.” Our challenge was to: devise a creative concept, give life to a mundane subject and generate engagement through media relations about deep cleaning and the Lift-Off Deep Cleaner. Our solution was the White Sock Test, a video-inspired contest encouraging Americans to “Live on it. Spill on it. Dance on it. And enjoy it.” The campaign heightened awareness of deep cleaning and placed BISSELL products top-of-mind.

Online Communications

Thoth Award

Crosby Marketing
Don’t Blow It Mobile App

To help prevent teen smoking, Crosby created “Don’t Blow It,” an entertaining mobile app, for the Anne Arundel County Health Department. The app demonstrates the effects of smoking on the lungs. Players blow into their phones to keep a green balloon from touching a burning cigarette, but the game becomes harder as they “smoke more” in higher levels. Failure to keep the balloon aloft results in a loud bang, mocking laughter and smoky skull and crossbones. Each level features a tobacco fact, and the app includes a smoking facts section. In 2012, Don’t Blow It was downloadable free from Apple iTunes and Android Market.

Certificate of Excellence

Ogilvy Washington with the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute
The Heart Truth® Celebrates a Decate of Inspiring Women to Protect their Hearts

In September 2012, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s The Heart Truth campaign celebrated its 10th anniversary, marking a decade of raising awareness of heart disease, the #1 killer of women. To commemorate a decade of helping women protect their hearts, Ogilvy Public Relations and the NHLBI implemented a 10-day social media engagement initiative, encouraging individuals and campaign partners to join in the celebration. Through various online activities and platforms, thousands of Heart Truth supporters, including individuals, media, partners, celebrities, and designers, participated in the celebration by sharing their stories and encouraging other women to take action to protect their hearts.

Public Service Announcements

Thoth Award

Crosby Marketing
Invasive Species “Hungry Pests” Campaign

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s Hungry Pests campaign was designed to raise awareness of the issue of invasive pests in 12 key states considered “at risk.” Beyond awareness, this series of public service announcements sought to educate the public about their role in preventing the spread of invasive pests through the “Leave Hungry Pests Behind” messaging.

In the campaign’s first 8 months, more than 480 million earned media impressions were generated across the 12 priority states. $6.9 million in earned media was generated in just 12 targeted states. Since the site’s launch in April 2012, 95,000+ people visited the website and more than 10,000 have visited the Spanish-language site.

Certificate of Excellence

National Education Association with Lyons PR
Buly Free: It Starts with Me

A national radio PSA campaign from the National Education Association, in conjunction with Lyons PR took a unique approach to the anti-bullying crusade by targeting not the students, but the parents and adults who witness the bullying, and, have the power to stop it. Far too often, adults look the other way, or summarize bullying as a ” right of passage.”

The BullyFree, It Starts with Me campaign stressed that it only takes one caring adult to make a difference when it comes to bullying and, urged those with the power to stop bullying to stand up and take action.

Publication: Annual Report

Thoth Award

Marriott International
See The World: Marriott International, Inc. 2012 Annual Report

The Marriott International Inc. Annual Report ‘See the World’ celebrates and recognizes the lodging company’s successes in the 2012 fiscal year. The report showcases Marriott’s four high-performing regions – The Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East and Africa. This year’s eye-catching annual report cover features three iconic landmarks from several continents that together create a global theme. A 5-minute video with President and CEO Arne Sorenson accompanies the report. In combination with Marriott’s corporate culture, high-performing workforce, and operational excellence, the report tells the story that Marriott International is truly a lodging leader.

Publication: Print

Thoth Award

Barbaricum LLC
Vanguard of Valor: Enhanced Edition

Barbaricum LLC is a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned and HUBzone certified small business located in Washington, D.C. We are a contracting firm that seeks to fulfill the external needs of the United States government both at home and abroad. Our business focuses on communications, new media, intelligence, and operational energy. Our clients include the U.S Army, Department of Veteran Affairs, Department of the Treasury, and the Office of the Secretary of Defense. Throughout our company’s history, our work has been guided by our personal commitment to our nation’s security and our focus on integrating private sector expertise into the federal government.

Research/Evaluation

Thoth Award

The Clorox Company with Ketchum
Clorox’s Bleach It Away Program Encourages Parents to Talk about the 3P’s

Websites

Thoth Award

Ogilvy Washington with National Crop Insurance Services
NCIS: Using Innovative Web Design to Bring to Life Age-Old Agricultural Issues

National Crop Insurance Services (NCIS) strongly disagreed with the government’s proposed crop insurance cuts, and believed additional program changes or reductions in the Farm Bill would greatly impact the Federal Crop Insurance Program, causing harm to farmers and the economy. To ensure that NCIS’s voice was heard through its digital presence, Ogilvy helped redesign its website to meet the latest standards of web design and functionality. The website now serves as the backbone for a robust mobile presence, featuring compelling content and an easy-to-use interface for NCIS to voice its stance on Farm Bill debates.

Program Winners

Component Winners

Program Winners

Global Communications

Component Winners

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