S.C. public relations pros recognized for excellence

Communication professionals from across the state were recognized Thursday for outstanding work in public relations programs, campaigns, tactics and career accomplishments. The South Carolina chapter of the Public Relations Society of America presented 60 awards via Twitter (@SCPRSA) and Instagram (@SCPRSA) in its first-ever virtual awards event.

The awards program includes Mercury Awards recognizing public relations programs and campaigns, Silver Wing Awards recognizing outstanding tactics used in public relations, and individual awards recognizing the career accomplishments of individuals. Overall Best in Show Mercury and Silver Wing awards are presented to the highest-scoring entries as evaluated by independent judges in other states.

Prisma Health Midlands Foundation won the Best in Show Mercury Award winner for “30^th Festival of Trees,” a campaign for one of the foundation’s signature fundraising events. Flock and Rally won the Best in Show Silver Wing Award for “Richland Library Friends and Foundation Buyer Persona Research.”

Keller Kissam, president of electric operations at Dominion Energy, was named winner of the Executive Excellence award. Bianca Crawford Shelton, an instructor in mass communications at Claflin University, was named Educator of the Year. Katie Beliles, integrated marketing coordinator at Infinity Marketing, was named Rookie of the Year, and Victoria Canada, a senior public relations major at the University of South Carolina, was named Public Relations Student of the Year.

Other award winners by category are:

Mercury Awards

Community Relations

• Award of Excellence: Infinity Marketing (Greenville), Cancer Survivors Park Alliance Community Relations
• Award of Merit: K. Hope Creative (Hartsville), I Can. You Can. We Can.

Events and Observances Less Than Seven Days

• Award of Excellence: Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum (Mount Pleasant), The Heroes of D-Day 75 Years Later
• Award of Excellence: Prisma Health Midlands Foundation (Columbia), 30^th Festival of Trees
• Award of Merit: LRADAC (Columbia), Be the Hero, LRADAC Midlands Gives 2019 Campaign
• Award of Merit: Infinity Marketing (Greenville), Let’s Talk Analytics

Events and Observances More Than Seven Days

• Award of Merit: LRADAC (Columbia), Celebrating 40 Years
• Award of Merit: LRADAC (Columbia), Rock 4 Recovery 2019

 Integrated Communications

• Award of Excellence: Flock and Rally (Columbia), The S.C. State Fair: 150^th Year Campaign
• Award of Excellence: Flock and Rally (Columbia), Hire Me SC: Statewide Employer Campaign
• Award of Excellence: University of South Carolina (Columbia), University of South Carolina’s Gary Lee Watson Comic Book Collection
• Award of Merit: Crawford Strategy (Greenville), USC Upstate Branding Campaign
• Award of Merit: Chernoff Newman (Columbia), S.C. Election Commission’s #NoExcuseSC
• Award of Merit: Flock and Rally (Columbia), The BullStreet District: REI Announcement
• Award of Merit: Lexington Medical Center (Lexington), Every Day is a Birth Day

Issues Management

• Award of Merit: Pinewood Preparatory School (Summerville), Roadmap to 2019-2020
• Award of Merit: Crawford Strategy (Greenville), American Zinc Products Community Reputation Management

Marketing Consumer Services

• Award of Merit: Experience Columbia SC (Columbia), Experience Columbia SC Pimento Cheese Passport

Public Service

• Award of Merit: Flock and Rally (Columbia), REALationships 101 Digital Campaign

 Brand And Reputation Management

• Award of Excellence: Prisma Health Midlands Foundation (Columbia), Launch of New Prisma Health Midlands Foundation Brand
• Award of Merit: We Are Sharing Hope SC (North Charleston), We Are … Sharing Hope
• Award of Merit: LRADAC (Columbia), Luh-ray-dak
• Award of Merit: Chernoff Newman (Columbia), Rebranding for S.C. Hospital Association Solutions Division
• Award of Merit: Crawford Strategy (Greenville), USC Upstate Brand Management

Silver Wing Awards

Annual Reports

• Award of Excellence: South Carolina AHEC (Charleston), 2019 South Carolina AHEC Annual Report
• Award of Excellence: LRADAC (Columbia), 40 Years of Vision: LRADAC FY19 Annual Report
• Award of Merit: Chernoff Newman (Columbia), South Carolina Ports Authority Annual Report

Collateral

• Award of Excellence: Flock and Rally (Columbia), Branding & Signage for Greenways

Print Magazine

• Award of Merit: Municipal Association of SC (Columbia), Cities Mean Business magazine

Media Relations for Associations, Government and Nonprofit Organizations

• Award of Excellence: Flock and Rally (Columbia), Historic Columbia Fall 2019 Campaign
• Award of Excellence: The Crawford Austin Agency (Columbia), Comedy Night with Kim Coles at Patriot Hall
• Award of Merit: Crawford Strategy (Greenville), USC Upstate Media Day

Media Relations for Business-to-Business

• Award of Excellence: Infinity Marketing (Greenville), Tindal Corporation Media Relations

Media Relations for Consumer Services

• Award of Merit: Crawford Strategy (Greenville), United Community Plaza Grand Opening

Digital Newsletters

• Award of Excellence: NOAA Office for Coastal Management and the Lynker Team (Charleston), Coastal Communicators
• Award of Merit: Municipal Association of SC (Columbia), From the Dome to Your Home, weekly legislative report
• Award of Merit: Crawford Strategy (Greenville), United Community Bank Internal Newsletter Research

Print Newsletters

• Award of Excellence: Crawford Strategy (Greenville), Meals on Wheels of Greenville Newsletters 2019

Research & Evaluation

• Award of Excellence: Flock and Rally (Columbia), Building Families Brand Research & Redesign 2019
• Award of Excellence: Flock and Rally (Columbia), EngenuitySC Buyer Persona Research 2019
• Award of Excellence: Flock and Rally (Columbia), Richland Library Friends and Foundation Buyer Persona Research 2019

Single-Issue Print Publication

• Award of Excellence: Motley Rice LLC (Charleston), Motley Rice LLC Law Clerk Recruitment Brochure

Facebook Engagement

• Award of Excellence: LRADAC (Columbia), Rock 4 Recovery 2019
• Award of Excellence: LRADAC (Columbia), Be the Hero, Midlands Gives 2019 Facebook Campaign
• Award of Excellence: Chernoff Newman (Columbia), British Airways Takes Off
• Award of Excellence: Flock and Rally (Columbia), S.C. State Fair: Audiences Targeting Social Aids

Videos

• Award of Merit: University of South Carolina (Columbia), South Carolina Honors College Video
• Award of Merit: Crawford Strategy (Greenville), American Zinc Products “Explainer Video”
• Award of Merit: Chernoff Newman (Columbia), South Carolina Department of Agriculture “Sunday Supper”

External Websites

• Award of Merit: Crawford Strategy (Greenville), United Community Bank Website Relaunch

Creative Tactics

• Award of Excellence: University of South Carolina (Columbia), Justice for All
• Award of Merit: DHEC (Columbia), Visualizing South Carolina’s Opioid Crisis

Student Awards

Silver Wing Award of Merit for Digital Magazine: Anderson University, Synthesis

Silver Wing Award of Merit for Research & Evaluation: Anderson University, Anderson University Student Social Media Usage

South Carolina PRSA is one of more than 100 chapters of the Public Relations Society of America, the world’s largest professional association for public relations practitioners. SCPRSA was established in 1967 and has approximately 200 members across South Carolina representing public relations agencies, corporations, nonprofit organizations and institutions of higher education.