The PRSA Nebraska Chapter Paper Anvil Awards Recognize the works of Nebraska public relations, marketing and communications professionals. The 2023 event took place Dec. 7. The following received top Excellence award honors.
About PRSA Nebraska:
The Public Relations Society of America – Nebraska Chapter is a division of PRSA National. With more than 150 members, including representatives from nonprofit, agency, corporate and government agencies, PRSA Nebraska aims to create a community of public relations professionals throughout the state.
Who Has Access to Your Guns?
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Community Relations
Company Name: KidGlov
Client’s company name: Prevention Coalition
KidGlov and Region V Systems created a campaign that tackled gun safety creatively, exceeding goals and topping Talk Heart 2 Heart’s webpages. With 93% of visits from digital ads, they emphasized the message that accessing firearms should never be as easy as grabbing a sock out of a drawer.
YOLO!
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Community Relations
Company Name: KidGlov
Client’s company name: Prevention Coalition
KidGlov and Prevention Coalition created an interactive game “YOLO Solo,” that transforms beer pong into an educational experience, communicating an important message to teens that you really only live once. The campaign achieved more than a million digital ad impressions and outperformed the set social reach goal by 165%.
Omaha Steaks
Burger Perfection Campaign
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Integrated Communications
Company Name: Omaha Steaks
Omaha Steaks Burger Perfection campaign tested burger enthusiasts’ devotion with an irresistible offer of a tattoo and lifetime burgers. The campaign positively impacted brand perception, driving 132% gain in brand mentions, 12% net sentiment, over 100 articles, over 30 nationally syndicated articles, and over 300 million impressions. Over 14,000 people entered to win.
Latino Economic Development Council Showcases Plans to Revitalize South Omaha
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Public Affairs
Company Name: Lukas Partners
Client’s Company Name: Latino Economic Development Council
Lukas Partners assisted the Latino Economic Development Council by executing a public relations plan for a proposed revitalization project vying for state funding. By hosting a press conference that generated 94 news placements, the council increased public awareness, generated positive attention and maintained support from state legislators.
Take Initiative: Know More. Do More. Inform More.
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: DEI & Social Justice Projects (Student Only)
Organization Name: University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Client’s Company Name: U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A class team at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln executed the Take Initiative campaign to prevent targeted violence and hate against refugees. The team hosted three events, supported by social media and a microsite, to encourage students to learn more about refugees, do more to help them, and inform others.
Bosch Night Eyes
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Influencer Marketing
Company Name: Bailey Lauerman
Client’s Company Name: Bosch Automotive
Bailey Lauerman led an influencer campaign for Bosch to assist in the company’s goal of a 2.4% increase in market share for its premium wipers. Fourteen influencers activated 73 pieces of content, receiving 424 thousand engagements, a 315% increase in site sessions and a 6.4% increase in market share.
Bosch Night Eyes
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Marketing Consumer Products
Company Name: Bailey Lauerman
Client’s Company Name: Bosch Automotive
Despite a flat budget from the previous year, the creation of our visually compelling Night Eyes campaign and strong use of weather-targeted media, including influencers and a social filter, led Bosch wipers to increase its market share by 6.4% and incremental foot traffic by 14.2%.
Empowering Families Through Positive Disruption
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Video
Company Name: KidGlov
Client’s Company Name: Nebraska Family Helpline
Nebraska Family Helpline wanted to talk about bullying, substance abuse and depression in a way that cuts through the clutter and captures attention. KidGlov’s solution was a series of videos shot from a teen’s point-of-view, causing enough positive disruption to move the mark and make a difference.
How to Increase Access to Clinical Trials for Females
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Blogs
Company Name: SCORR Marketing
Client’s Company Name: Elligo Health Research
Elligo is a proud supporter of women’s health research and, with an industry-wide need to have more women participating in clinical research, Elligo set out on a mission to help educate and expand reach to pharmaceutical companies (sponsors), showing them exactly how they could achieve this.
YOLO!
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Public Service
Company Name: KidGlov
Client’s Company Name: Prevention Coalition
KidGlov helped Prevention Coalition “spill the tea” on underage drinking with YOLO Solo, a downloadable game that turns beer pong into an educational tool about the risks of alcohol. Bringing parents these vital resources allowed them to communicate an important message to their teens: you really only live once.
A Website for the Wellbeing of All
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Websites and Smartphone/Tablet Applications
Company Name: KidGlov
Client’s Company Name: The Wellbeing Partners
The Wellbeing Partners plays a critical role in connecting communities and workplaces to wellness, relying heavily on their website to do so. When they sought to enhance their online presence, they called on KidGlov. Now, visitors are more engaged, with the average time spent on the site 151% higher than the goal.
UScellular Helps People Reset, Redefine Healthy Digital Connection
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Marketing Consumer Services
Company Name: Lukas Partners
Client’s Company Name: UScellular
UScellular has worked to help people reset and redefine healthy digital connection through its “Let’s Find US” consumer services initiative that included the Phones Down For 5 Challenge and US Mode experience. Phones Down For 5 and US Mode aim to inspire people to develop healthier relationships with their technology.
Boots & Buckets Fundraiser 2023
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Events & Observances
Company Name: KidGlov
Client’s Company Name: Dreamweaver Foundation
Dreamweaver Foundation teamed up with KidGlov to create “Boots and Buckets,” a signature event designed to fulfill bucket-list dreams of older adults with life-limiting illnesses. Stunning collateral, social media, digital event media, and event decor created a magical effect that raised over $1.3 million in one evening.
Take Initiative: Know More. Do More. Inform More.
Award: Best/Excellence, Student Best in Show
Category: Classroom Campaign (Student Only)
Company Name: University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Client’s Company Name: U.S. Department of Homeland Security
A class team at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln executed the Take Initiative campaign to prevent targeted violence and hate against refugees. The team hosted three events, supported by social media and a microsite, to encourage students to learn more about refugees, do more to help them, and inform others.
“The Building Code” Podcast
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Podcasts
Company Name: Buildertrend
Buildertrend’s “The Building Code” podcast is a leading resource for residential construction professionals, telling the stories of some of the most successful in the industry. In the past year, the podcast boasted 73,500 downloads, with over 325,500 total downloads since its inception four years ago.
2022 United Way Fundraising Campaign
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Internal Communications
Company Name: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska’s annual fundraising campaign for United Way of the Midlands brings employees together to raise funds for the nonprofit, which supports those most vulnerable in the Omaha-Council Bluffs area.
Star Savers Campaign
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Word-Of-Mouth Marketing
Company Name: KidGlov
Client’s Company Name: Farmers & Merchants Bank
If you want to get families talking, surprise and delight the kids! Farmers and Merchants Bank tapped KidGlov for a Star Savers kids club strategy, generating positive word-of-mouth publicity that led to a 41% increase in club membership and was linked to a $544,000 increase in deposits.
Brand Awareness Campaign
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Reputation/Brand Management
Company Name: UNMC
A brand awareness campaign helped increase awareness of the high quality of the College of Dentistry’s patient care and patient experience and motivated consumers to consider the College for their future dental care needs.
Celebrating Women & Connecting Community
Award: Best/Excellence, Professional Best in Show
Category: DE&I, Multicultural & Global Public Relations
Company Name: NFM
NFM reached its goal to connect new audiences with its women-owned company roots and core values throughout Women’s History Month in March 2023. The celebration culminated with inspiring panel events featuring prominent female leaders of Omaha, Des Moines, Kansas City and Dallas/Fort Worth.
Veterans Campaign
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Social Media
Company Name: Swanson Russell
Client’s Company Name: Koch Fertilizer
Koch Fertilizer’s major PR objective in 2022 was increasing awareness of the value that their plants and employees bring to local communities. Swanson Russell supported by developing a month-long campaign and distributing it across the brand’s social media channels. The campaign generated 59,295 impressions and 649 link clicks.
Beef Producers Must Share Their Environmental Stories
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Editorials/Op-Ed Columns
Company Name: Swanson Russell
Client’s Company Name: Cattlemen’s Beef Board
Beef production’s environmental impact has been spotlighted in the media over several years. To demonstrate to producers that the Checkoff does many things to share the truth about beef’s environmental impact and show consumers that producers care for their land, an op-ed was developed and distributed to both audiences.
Scooter’s Coffee Celebrates 25th Birthday with Guinness World Record for World’s Largest Cake Ball
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Special Projects
Company Name: Lukas Partners
Client’s Company Name: Scooter’s Coffee
To commemorate its 25th birthday, Scooter’s Coffee, with help from Lukas Partners, launched a special public relations project to break a Guinness World Record for World’s Largest Cake Ball. The 182 news placements on the giant baked good enhanced the company’s brand positioning and ability to innovate products.
Flagstar Bank TPO Newsletter
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Marketing Business to Business
Company Name: Bailey Lauerman
Client’s Company Name: Flagstar Bank
As key mortgage players were exiting the space after COVID-19, Bailey Lauerman created an ongoing media strategy for Flagstar Bank to amplify content and showcase a message of stability. With five newsletters sent since the launch in 2023, it has received seven placements with four executive interviews and 100% positive sentiment.
Milford Magazine Feature – Belles
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Blogs/Feature Stories (Student Only)
Organization Name: UNO PRSSA and MaverickPR
MaverickPR, UNO’s student-run agency, created content for Milford Magazine, a local arts and culture publication. The profile, “Omaha country artist Kelli Belle is proud to be a Nashville Cornhusker,” tells of how she followed in the footsteps of all the women in her family a part of Mulberry Lane.
“I Love My Dog Expo” Community Service Project
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: PRSSA Chapter Project (Student Only)
Organization Name: University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Domesti-PUPS University of Nebraska-Lincoln PRSSA supported Domesti-PUPS, by improving brand engagement by recruiting nearly double the number of desired volunteers for its annual “I Love My Dog Expo” fundraiser. By promoting the event and gathering volunteers from various on-campus organizations, PRSSA successfully met all objectives set by both PRSSA and Domesti-PUPS.
WhyArts Logo
Award: Best/Excellence
Category: Branding (Student Only)
Organization Name: UNO PRSSA and MaverickPR
MaverickPR created a new logo for WhyArts, a nonprofit that provides arts to those with disabilities and other underserved populations. The executive director wrote,
“The MavPR team used their artistic talents to not only create an aesthetically pleasing design but one that has become the face of our organization.”
