PCI programs win Golden and Silver Trumpet Awards at the Publicity Club of Chicago’s virtual gala.

The Publicity Club of Chicago’s Annual Golden Trumpet Awards Virtual Gala showcased excellence in public relations and communications within the Chicago community. We are thrilled to announce that four of our client programs have been recognized at this year’s Golden Trumpet Awards.

With each win, it is important for us to acknowledge our hard-working teams and clients. Our digital and crisis programs recognized by PCC have gone above and beyond to create innovative and impactful campaigns.

The winners of the 2020 Golden Trumpet Awards are:

Winner: Silver Trumpet Award in Social Media

Coral World Ocean Park

After years of careful planning and construction, Coral World’s new 69,000-square-foot open ocean dolphin sanctuary was nearing completion. But excitement about its opening was tempered: animal activists were loudly expressing their disproval of the project on social media. With the prospect of new dolphins arriving in a few short months, Coral World needed a solid strategy of sharing stories on social media about their research and conservation work, and its importance and successes in protecting marine life.

PCI developed a comprehensive social media strategy playbook and led a training workshop for Coral World staff prior to implementation of the social media playbook. Since Coral World began using the social media playbook to guide content development and respond to negative feedback, they have seen a rise in engagement, followers and brand ambassadors. Their channels reflect their key messages of conservation and animal care efforts, and detract animal activists with proactive storytelling. Posts are more visually appealing, informative and interactive.

Winner: Silver Trumpet Award in Healthcare/Medical Marketing

Howard Brown Health (HBH), a federally qualified health center serving Chicago’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) community, partnered with PCI to implement a Google Search and Display Ads campaign to raise awareness of health insurance open enrollment and increase visits to three of their clinics.

Working together, HBH and PCI implemented a digital campaign, researching each location’s specific needs, demographics and services offered and implementing and continually optimizing ads to reach niche audiences in the target areas.

 PCI and HBH collaborated to create ad creatives featuring eye-catching rainbow lettering, and messaging and visuals that resonate with the Chicago neighborhood each clinic serves.

The campaign succeeded in raising awareness for each clinic and notably increased online traffic to their pages, exceeding usual healthcare industry standards. The campaign saw a 14% paid search conversion rate, and $18.05 cost per conversion, both significantly surpassing healthcare industry benchmarks. When patients were asked to take a survey asking how they heard about Howard Brown Health, many responded with “Online Ads” or “Internet Search.”

Winner: Silver Trumpet Award in Social Media

The Infectious Diseases Society of America

In 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) named vaccine hesitancy a top 10 threat to global public health, and pockets of low vaccination rates across the United States resulted in infectious disease outbreaks. Despite this, a small but vocal group of advocates opposing vaccines continued to attract attention and use social media to spread misinformation. To create a more balanced, science-based narrative on social media, the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) used IDWeek 2019 to encourage IDWeek participants, aligned partners and the public to flood Twitter with #WhyIVaccinate messages to spread the truth about the vaccines.

PCI and IDSA developed four digital toolkits segmented by audience. A landing page on IDWeek.org housed all Twitterstorm-related materials. Extensive research was performed to identify aligned influencers, and template email messages and invitations were drafted and distributed to key stakeholders and partners.

The #WhyIVaccinate Twitterstorm exploded on Twitter, going viral and capturing the attention of millions including national media. 1,791 pageviews of the Twitterstorm landing page were secured. The hashtag was used 9,584 times nearly doubling our objective. The hashtag went viral, trending #1 in Washington, DC, #5 in the US, and #28 in the world. 5,535 individuals participated.

Winner: Golden Trumpet Award in Crisis Communications

Runner-up: Platinum Award

African Safari Wildlife Park

Thanksgiving night, a devastating fire ignited in a heated barn that housed exotic animals, including three giraffes, at the Midwest’s largest wildlife safari park. Two weeks prior, the park owner had attended a crisis communications workshop by Public Communications Inc. (PCI). As she raced to the fire, she called PCI crisis counselors for help. Working remotely, the team created and implemented crisis strategies to proactively tell the park’s story to media and on social channels. Messages informed and rallied supporters and addressed anti-zoo activists that launched a campaign critical of the park.

Strategic communications strengthened the park’s relationship with its publics and positive actions turned the tragedy into positive outcomes.

Congratulations to the teams that worked on our award-winning programs, and all of the winners of the PCC Golden Trumpet Awards!

Congratulations to the teams that worked on our award-winning programs, and all of the winners of the PCC Golden Trumpet Awards!

Want to know more about the campaigns or interested in learning how we can help you? Email us at lets_talk@pcipr.com.