A terrific series of campaigns would be music to any PR pro’s ears.

That’s especially true for Denise Daly, head of U.S. lifestyle public relations branding, product and luxury at Harman, which specializes in equipment for delivering music to discerning ears through the JBL brand.

For raising JBL’s cultural voice, PR reach and online engagement among its young target audience, Daly has been named Ragan and PR Daily’s Corporate PR Professional of the Year. 

Millennials and Gen X consumers value brand authenticity, creativity, personal expression, credibility and innovative products, and they crave socially engaging experiences and connections.

Accordingly, JBL’s messaging aims to anchor JBL at the crossroads of music, sports and culture. Under Daly’s leadership, the three-day JBL Fest, one of nine major campaigns, was held to garner global press coverage and storytelling through ambassadors and influencers, create consumer excitement, drive social conversations, build brand engagement, and motivate key customer participation.

It succeeded on all counts.

Sure, lots of communicators use employee-generated content.

How many of them, though, teach their colleagues the full, 16-bar “Thriller” dance at a Halloween costume party, record the performance, and post it on social media to wide acclaim?

Here’s one: Carmen Collins, social media and talent brand lead at Cisco, selected as Ragan and PR Daily’s Digital Communicator of the Year.

Collins sought greater accessibility features for social media users, owing to her own injury—a broken elbow—and her teaming up with a vision-impaired intern, both of which made her more cognizant of voice-recognition software online. Her efforts in that area resulted in enhanced accessibility for Cisco team members and consumers, and they resulted in enhanced practices on Sprinklr, including greater use of alt tags.

Her boldness extended to other online efforts, as well. Let staffers run the LinkedIn account? Sure! Unscripted? Why not? The resulting authenticity was a winner for Cisco and an example for others to emulate.

To paraphrase Joni Mitchell, he’s looked at PR from both sides now.

As a Forbes journalist, J.J. Colao received lots of questionable pitches. By closely working with PR pros, Colao developed an understanding of industry processes and became frustrated by the lack of substance, depth, and expertise in technology PR.

In response, with no PR experience himself, Colao founded Haymaker in 2014—funding the venture with his credit card. It’s come a long way from those early days; today it’s a million-dollar enterprise. Colao has earned the trust of the CEOs and executives running multi-billion-dollar companies such as Grubhub and Etsy.

For cultivating a successful firm—and reimagining PR practices—J.J. Colao is Ragan and PR Daily’s PR Professional of the Year (Agency).

Colao consistently executes thoughtful, well-informed efforts for clients, while promoting mutual understanding among the public relations, technology and media communities. He approaches PR in a genuine, honest way, even encouraging founders to think carefully before hiring a PR firm.

Effective social media marketing environment relies heavily on voice.

Craig Carter, Discover Durham’s in-house social media manager, organically drives engagement, develops the organization’s brand identity, and creatively represents the North Carolina destination for its audiences. 

In the words of Jake Potter, director of internal communications for RDU International Airport: “Like the city it calls home, Discover Durham’s voice drips with ‘cool.’ … Discover’s creative energy is contagious and makes our job fun. They’ve successfully cultivated an online audience by capturing the spirit of the Bull City in their content.” 

For sharing his “cool” voice, Craig Carter is Ragan and PR Daily’s Social Media Professional of the Year.

As Discover Durham’s resident social content creator (GIF maker, video producer, meme creator, poet, conversation starter), Carter best understands community residents, as well as potential visitors.

Some young professionals just hit the ground running.

Casey Robertson entered the manager training program at Weidner Apartment Homes, a privately-held real estate investment, development and management company and, upon graduating early, was promoted to community director.

Growing from her onsite role, Robertson joined the PR department and was recently promoted to communication and culture specialist. 

Her passion for creating connections, particularly between Weidner’s associates and people in need in the communities it serves, helped elevate her to direct Weidner Cares, its charity initiative, to give back to local neighborhoods and communities. 

Robertson works with regional teams to select a nonprofit to partner with on a one-day project. She has excelled in planning, implementing and directing the intensive projects, applying her flexibility, problem-solving skills, care and attention to detail to every event she manages.

Whether for clients or for her young peers, Maya Ivanovic gives it her all.

After graduating from the University of New South Wales, she quickly secured a role as an account executive at Palin Communications, raising awareness for nonprofits, as well as conducting product launches, disease awareness campaigns, medicine registrations/reimbursements and social media campaigns. 

She joined the Public Relations Institute of Australia’ NSW Young Guns—a subcommittee for up-and-coming practitioners and students—which she has chaired since March 2019. Under her leadership, the group has driven industry engagement and education, connecting young professionals and fostering relationships with senior industry leaders.

She led the October 2019 relaunch of PRIA’s NSW mentoring program, including a revised format, which boasts 32 participants. 

It’s fitting that a rising star should work for an organization called Ascension.

Michelle Heard, senior specialist of public relations for the nonprofit health system, has emerged as an exceptional communications strategist and team leader.

Heard helps lead a national strategic initiative to engage and educate consumers on Ascension’s efforts to transform health care through innovation. The integrated program consists of media relations, social media, speaking engagements and securing awards for Ascension’s national and regional executives.

Overseeing a team of 30 communicators network-wide, Heard has played a vital role in elevating and enhancing the Ascension brand. She is the primary spokesperson for Tennessee, one of Ascension’s leading markets. 

Heard’s not done learning about her vocation: She’s working to obtain her master’s degree at Penn State University.

The intersection of business and politics can be perilous, especially today.

Even a seasoned hand might have second thoughts about such hazardous duty, yet Celeste Carswell has established herself as a savvy media consultant, becoming a go-to source for clients and colleagues alike to pitch reporters and keep close tabs on media opportunities. 

As senior associate for communications and public affairs at Global Strategy Group, Carswell works on high-profile political and policy issues and supports companies as they navigate the treacherous D.C. terrain. A 2017 graduate of UCLA, she has adopted a consultant’s mindset and consistently rises to meet new challenges. 

She has worked with clients to hold Trump Cabinet officials accountable in the press, pressure Congress to pass gun violence prevention legislation, and raise awareness about human trafficking issues.

The numbers are impressive; so are the testimonials.

In two years with Layton Construction, Sierra Bonner has brought in more than $150 million through her ability to craft the right message for the right audience as a marketing manager. 

She’s an obvious selection as a Ragan and PR Daily’s Rising Star of the Year.

Jeff Palmer, EVP at Layton, says: “Sierra’s attention to the details, reliability of deadlines and ability to communicate throughout the process has made my job easier. When Sierra is working on my project, I have confidence in an exceptional, predictable outcome. In less than two years, she has made a massive contribution to our bottom line.” 

Jessica Pantages, VP of marketing and communications, says: “Sierra is one of those unique individuals who makes an impact on an organization immediately and then continues to bring in new ideas to improve herself and her team.” 

Striking success spanning a quarter-century, as well as an ocean, merits special recognition.

Phil Nardone’s elevation of industry standards, his development of fellow professionals, and his firm’s attendant financial success—as well as a slew of professional honors—make him an obvious selection to Ragan and PR Daily’s Communicators of the Year Awards Hall of Fame.

Nardone is president and CEO of PAN Communications, an integrated marketing and PR firm with nearly $25 million in revenue. He has made a tremendous impact on the PR industry and on every agency employee over the years.

He has expanded the firm to over 150 employees across five offices in Boston, San Francisco, New York, Orlando and London.

Nardone’s ability to work closely with his team of executives, to think strategically and to lead PAN through regional, national and global success has generated tremendous growth:

• 18% increase in revenue year over year (sixth year of double-digit revenue growth)
• Annualized revenues of $24.3 million as of October 2019
• 9% growth in average deal size
• 31% growth in regions
• 33% growth from organic revenue
• 82% client retention rate
• 17 clients celebrating milestones of five years or more
• 40% increase in IM&PR service requests year over year from existing and new clients
• 20% increase in number of clients through acquisition of Capella PR

Here’s another important figure: PAN’s community efforts and corporate philanthropy program, PANcares, have donated $70,000 in pro bono PR services to PAN’s partner organizations—including and Covenant House and the MA Coalition for the Homeless—since November 2017.

Embracing markets large and small is crucial in public relations.

For Lauren Gongora, that hybrid vision has brought significant success—and a well-earned place in Ragan and PR Daily’s Communicators of the Year Awards Hall of Fame.

Gongora oversees key accounts in Boden’s portfolio, including Target and McDonald’s, and is an integral part of the business development team. She pitched and won the Target Hispanic PR AOR business and has expanded the business from one category to nine total.

Working with McDonald’s to engage its key Hispanic consumer segment, she led the development of a communications and social media program focused on music, sports and education. The campaign aligns McDonald’s as a facilitator of memory-making moments that celebrate Hispanic passion points. 

It generated 306 media placements totaling 266.8 million impressions and 404 earned influencer posts totaling 121.9 million earned influencer impressions. In 2019, it resulted in 271 earned media placements, totaling 82.3 million impressions and 464 earned influencer posts, which generated 157.3 million impressions.

Gongora spearheads communications and stakeholder strategies to reach cross-cultural . Her deep understanding of and commitment to the Hispanic consumer market and the industry as a whole, paired with keen strategic thinking, have been significant in securing new business.

She has led the development of thought-provoking and engaging presentations for industry events, including Hispanicize, Multicultural Retail 360 Summit, Portada Marketing & Advertising Summit, We All Grow, and industry professional meet-ups coordinated by the Hispanic Public Relations Association.

DC’s celebration for the 80^th anniversary of their legendary Super Hero Batman was a yearlong campaign that crescendoed with a mind-boggling stunt. 13 markets across the globe would display the fictional symbol Gotham City Police Commissioner James Gordon lit up whenever he needed Batman’s help on Batman Day. This fan-first activation has won the top prize in the “Publicity Stunt” category of the PR Daily Awards.

To support the effort, the 80^th anniversary website was decked out for Batman Day, and pre-event communications were distributed to make sure the word got out on a cluttered news day (the Emmys were being presented, among other things). The Bat-Signal turned on like clockwork at 8 p.m. local time in each of the 13 worldwide markets.

Fans could follow the festivities using an interactive Batman Bat-Tracker, which displayed the real-time projections. That same day, the new Batman comic book series talent team was introduced at a standing-room-only panel in New York City.

The event garnered a remarkable 7 billion impressions across print, online and broadcast media. Several countries reported double- or triple-digit sales increases.

Congratulations to the DC publicity team!

The innovative marketing agency Stein IAS settled on a 360-degree, virtual reality-ready video to promote the benefits of SafeTug, the software aid from Trelleborg Marine & Infrastructure that makes bringing in vessels safer and more efficient by giving tug masters complete, real-time visibility over tug teams and the cargo ships and tankers they maneuver. The single-page microsite on which the video is embedded has won first place in the “Website” category of the PR Daily Awards.

The video was designed to create awareness among the target audience of tug masters, marine pilots, tug companies and harbor masters—a total of about 6,000 people worldwide. Stein IAS gained access to Teesport, the U.K.’s third largest port, to record the berthing process of a 57,000-ton tanker.

Using specialized gear, the team filmed the docking process from the bridge of the lead tugboat while drones got aerial shots and additional footage was taken from the tanker. The result: a 360-dgree video that can be viewed on desktop or in VR.

The long scrolling site is divided into discrete sections with a vertical chapter bar on the right side of the page letting readers know what section they’re on (SafeTug Features, for example, is chapter four). Non-360-degree videos are also included on the page to supplement text.

Ultimately, 965 unique users watched the video, beating the target of 500, with an average 6.5 minutes spent on the web page. In addition to the video views, the campaign obtained or reactivated 189 new contacts, 57 qualified leads and an ROI of 20:1 based on average lead conversion rates.

Congratulations to the entire Stein IAS team.

The legalization of cannabis is sweeping North America; in some places, access to various marijuana products has become common. Yet the notion of a Super Bowl ad devoted to cannabis still raises eyebrows. When the agency KCSA Strategic Communications, on behalf of Acreage Holdings, pitched the idea, they made sure it wasn’t just a “go buy weed” commercial, but rather one that would educate consumers, regulators and legislators about plant’s the medical benefits.

They knew, however, that the odds were against the Super Bowl accepting its first-ever marijuana-focused commercial. The team was ready for that. Those preparations and the resulting campaign have earned first place in the “Viral Campaign” category of the PR Daily Awards.

The campaign’s goals included positioning Acreage as an industry leader committed to education, and taking advantage of the controversy around the rejection of the commercial to draw attention to the hypocrisy of the NFL and national broadcasters around the airing of cannabis-related commercials.

The 30-second spot developed by the team demonstrates the life-changing medicinal benefits cannabis had on a child with epilepsy; a 60-second commercial told the same story in a longer manner, along with the stories of two other patients who have benefited from treatment with cannabis.

Scenarios were developed for PR resulting from both acceptance and rejection of the ads, with the rejection campaign focused on “the commercial the NFL doesn’t want you to see.” USA Today broke the story, with coverage spreading to the likes of CNBC, The Daily Show, TMZ, Bloomberg, CNN Business, Esquire and Rolling Stone, reaching 2.4 billion people.

Congratulations to Lewis Goldberg and Howard Schacter.

A survey of 9^th and 11^th graders in Minnesota revealed 2,220 out of 81,000 identified as transgender or gender nonconforming, confirming the need for a pediatric gender health program. In 2019, Children’s Minnesota—one of the largest freestanding pediatric health systems in the nation—launched a program to help these kids, one of only about a dozen hospitals with such a program. A multichannel PR campaign was conceived to reach key audiences and help establish the clinic’s immediate success. The campaign’s effectiveness has led to it winning the top prize in the “Traditional Campaign” category in the PR Daily Awards.

In addition to reaching prospective clients, the campaign also took care to prepare for opposition from community members who would not support this kind of program, readying spokespeople with messages designed to respond to negative feedback (which proved to be effective).

The campaign was designed to reach both families and referring physicians and clinicians, resulting in 90 patients annually and five to six earned media stories that could be repurposed for multiple uses. Tactics employed to achieve these goals included a press release, media relations efforts (including a successful pitch to the Star Tribune), owned content that was pitched to media outlets and patient stories told by kids and families willing to share their tales (who were prepped for interviews).

Key messages were established, like the fact that the program is exclusively pediatric, that equity and inclusion is at Children’s Minnesota’s core and that the clinic is multidisciplinary and comprehensive. In just the two months since the campaign launched, 50 new patients signed on, rising to 85 after six months. News of the opening reached millions of people through media outreach.

Congratulations to Madeline Riggs and Angela Goepferd.