By Greg Hazley
A pest control company's PR push for a bedbug summit,executed on a shoestring budget and garnering national attention, took Best in Show honors at PRSA/N.J.'s annual Pyramid Awards on June 15.
L-R: Ken Hunter, VP of R&J PR and past president, PRSA-N.J.; Jared Winley, senior manager, public and media relations, NY Jets; Nick Filis, PR coordinator, NY Jets, and Rich Lukis, Coyne PR president and head of PRSA-NJ. |
The campaign by Cooper Pest Control and its Bedbug Central information hub drew national media coverage as a seminar on bedbugs became the "BedBug University: North American Summit," landing segments on the top three morning talk shows and 1,500 placements overall.
Coordinated by Calvin Allen, director of strategic communications for Cooper, the effort won Pyramids in the competition's special events and "PR on a shoestring budget" categories, as well.
On the agency side, New Jersey-based heavyweights MWW Group and Coyne PR were the top winners with four and five awards, respectively, in the competition.
The New York Jets' communications team won the chapter's Award for Excellence in the field of PR.
Rich Lukis, president of Coyne PR and head of the New Jersey PRSA chapter, called the Jets unit one of the most PR-savvy organizations in the state. He gave them props for generative positive press and deflecting negative attention last season, as well.
Coyne nabbed two marketing comms. awards (Disney Parks and Medco Health Solutions), in addition to two honors for media relations (Breastcancer.org and SkyJump Las Vegas at Stratosphere Hotel & Casino), and a Pyramid for special programs (Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company).
MWW won Pyramids in financial/investor relations (North Jersey Community Bank); marketing comms. (Samsung Mobile); multicultural/diversity comms. (Samsung Telecommunications America, and digital comms/social media (Nikon).
R&J PR picked up two Pyramids for feature/news article (National Fire Sprinkler Assn.) and crisis communications (Arnot Health). Stern + Associates nabbed two Pyramids for online/interactive technology (Univ. of California – Berkeley Haas School) and media relations (Herman Miller Inc.).
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