The Tampa Bay Active Life Games features Olympics-like events (a 50-meter dash, swimming and games like horseshoes, darts and bowling) for participants 50+ years old. Offered by the Hillsborough County (Florida) Department of Parks & Recreation, the competition has become a tradition, now approaching its 40^th year. For its 37^th annual event, the department wanted to do something different with video. Its efforts have earned first place in the “Event Video” category of PR Daily’s 2018 Video & Visual Awards.

The goal was to increase interest in people on the younger end of the age eligibility, those in their 50s and 60s, and to increase awareness of the Games’ new name (it had previously been called the Senior Games). The video strategy was informed by an understanding of the demographic, which had grown up with media touchstones like MTV and Nike’s “Just Do It” campaign. The team also targeted events for which they wanted to see increased participation, identifying past participants to represent the desired audience.

The short (less than a minute) spots were shared on the usual social media channels, as well as Nextdoor; they were also played on Hillsborough County Television. A local art theater also ran the spots during trailers shown at its Summer Movie Classics Series.

The videos achieved a satisfying number of views and even sparked some media coverage.

Congratulations to Kevin Hoag.

Canada’s BMO Financial Group produced nine videos to familiarize customer service representatives with the digital tools the organization was adopting to make it easier for customers to complete transactions. The videos were produced by Livewire Communications, and have won first place in the “Educational Video” category of PR Daily’s 2018 Video & Visual Awards.

The videos were designed to do more than educate employees on how these tools worked. Employees would have to understand how to carry on conversations with customers about them. The “Wild World of Banking” series succeeds on a number of levels at training employees to help customers embrace online banking, but it’s the tone of the videos that sets them apart.

The productions adopt the look and tone of nature videos, with the narration serving as the key feature. The videos feature two employees—one who assumes the role of a timid creature shying away from perceived danger while the other (who knows the right way to help a customer) takes over and guides the customer through the right digital solution.

The team used actual employees in the productions and created awareness of their availability through monthly emails with links to the videos.

The videos were offered as opt-in training, and more than 1,300 employees have accessed the site. A survey found 71 percent of customer service representatives believed they were “very confident” in their ability to demonstrate online and mobile banking to customers.

Congratulations to Elaine Collins from BMO, and Livewire’s Mark Attard, Lisa McClean-Stellick, Judy Corupe, Andrew Lawlor, Manrico Erasami, Jordan Gross and William Hussey.

You might be tempted to go check out the new media website launched in the United States by the South China Morning Post after watching its 30-second digital ads—which have won first place in the “Digital Advertisement” category in PR Daily’s 2018 Video & Visual awards.

The fast-paced videos, ranging from the 30-second mini-ads to man-on-the-street productions (in a variety of formats to accommodate different channels), convey the growing importance of the China market to U.S. audiences. The videos were developed to introduce the new channels to the U.S. market: Abacus focuses on the Chinese technology market while Inkstone reports on U.S.-China relations.

The videos earned more than 460 media pickups, attracted nearly a quarter of a million new visitors to the website, generated tens of thousands of views and led to strong search results for the titles of the media sites.

Congratulations to Telly Wong, Evan Stainsby, Ryosuke Hoshiyama and Anumita Steinberg.

 The video produced as a cornerstone message of the Havergal College fundraising campaign is a case study in how to research, plan and produce a video. The end result of the prep work is a video that looks like it cost far more than it did. It’s earned Havergal first place in the “Charitable or Nonprofit Video” category of PR Daily’s 2018 Video & Visual Awards.

Havergal College is a private Toronto boarding and day school for girls in Junior Kindergarten through Grade 12. To inspire contributions, the video was based on clear goals and expectations. The theme of the “Limitless Campaign” informed the approach to the video, which aimed to “spark an emotional connection,” according to Havergal.

The team behind the video understood the role video could play in inspiring donations. The school’s faculty helped identify students for the interviews; their time in the video is shared with alumnae, known as “Old Girls.” The roster is impressive, including a CTV News anchor/reporter, the former Premier of Bermuda, the Chief Administrative Officer of the Royal Bank of Canada, a divisional chief of staff for a global tech company and others with equally impressive résumés. They speak of their time at Havergal and its role in their lives.

Even with two of the Old Girls filmed away from the campus, the look and feel of the interviews and b-roll is remarkably consistent. The editing is crisp and the music bed is just right (which seems to be a challenge for many video producers these days).

Placement of the video in the right channels, supported with advertising targeting a very specific group of women and well-conceived promotions, helped generate nearly 150,000 views (both organic and from paid advertising). It has also been a factor in the school’s fundraising, which at the time the entry was submitted had achieved more than half of the goal of $21 million. It’s hard to believe the high quality of the video given its modest budget.

We congratulate the team of Antonietta Mirabelli, Alison Crocker, Leah Piltz, Maggi Patterson and Sandra Sualim, along with videographer Spencer Torok, secondary videographers Grace Naw and Christopher Parks who both provided additional footage, and makeup artist Stefanie Mather.

Click here to view the Limitless Campaign video.

Navistar, a commercial vehicle and engine manufacturer that had not been profitable for a full year since 2011, had a lofty goal for its employee communications campaign: Return the company to profitability. Navistar’s success has earned the Grand Prize in the “Employee Communication Campaign of the Year” category of Ragan’s 2018 Employee Communications Awards.

The corporate communications team worked with company’s leadership to “inspire employee action and engagement focused on this critical business goal.” The specific measurable communications objective was to continue the improvement in employee attitudes that the company had achieved over the previous several years. These included employees’ understanding of the company’s strategy and their role in executing on it, their trust and confidence in leadership and their belief that Navistar’s leaders had communicated a motivating vision of the future.

The strategy the team developed had to overcome years of cost-cutting, plant closures, layoffs and inconsistent incentive payouts. The concept they developed was labeled “Celebrate”—one of Navistar’s six core values. The theme found its way into video events, a third-quarter celebration, monthly updates (which included a graphic dashboard showing the expected incentive payout based on progress toward achieving key operational goals), open forums with executives, manager talking points and a host of other tactics.

What better metric for success can you imagine than achieving full-year profitability? The company earned its single largest-year market share gain in nearly a decade, along with a host of other achievements attributed, in part, to the communication effort.

Research also found employees’ understanding of the strategy, confidence and trust in leaders and their belief that their leaders had communicated a motivating vision of the future had all reached or exceeded a goal of 4.0 on a 5-point scale. The fact that all this was accomplished on a shoestring budget was just icing on the cake.

Congratulations to the corporate communications team of Kristin Sattayatam, Darwin Minnis and Jim Sloan.

It is both progressive and practical for organizations like TDIndustries to seek new craft workers from nontraditional backgrounds. The perception of a construction worker is predominantly male, but workforce shortages have led construction companies to look elsewhere for skilled workers. TDIndustries’ recruiting efforts have won first place in the “Recruiting Video” category of Ragan’s 2018 Employee Communications Awards.

According to TDIndustries, “TD determined that the skilled-trade labor crisis would continue as long as it was only actively recruiting half of the population.” The company partnered with United Way THRIVE to create a program to attract women into the trades industry, with THRIVE helping recruit, hire and train 10 tradeswomen.

The video about the effort was undertaken to increase access to talented craft workers by targeting female candidates. The team shot interviews with the THRIVE graduates along with b-roll footage of these women in action on job sites and at home.

TDIndustries promoted the video on social media with posts targeting relevant audiences; for example, the company employed hashtags related to gender equality and career path opportunities. The six-plus-minute video has attracted some 4,000 views on Facebook, where it has racked up 1,500 minutes of total view time and no negative feedback.

Even more impressive, 20 women have now gone through the program, and a similar program was undertaken as a result of its success aimed at training women to become pipefitters, which TDIndustries sees as a step in the right direction

Congratulations to producer Meagan Bubela.

When it was introduced, the Macy’s M.A.G.I.C. selling program was popular and successful. Over the years, though, it lost its sheen. Employees saw it as a list of tasks that had little to do with magic. It was time for an upgrade, one that has won first place in the “Training or Orientation Video” category of Ragan’s 2018 Employee Communications Awards.

“Make Brighter Moments” was developed and introduced as a new selling platform that focused associates equally on customers, communities and each other. The video introducing the platform sought to turn “Make Brighter Moments” into a rallying cry so that associates would make decisions and embrace behaviors consistent with the platform’s themes.

Associates are the stars of the video, shot in three locations (Ohio, New York and Miami). Each location serves as a defined segment of the video: The opening takes place first in Ohio, where employees hear about the experience from colleagues. In New York, they learn about the customer experience. Miami associates show how Make Brighter Moments helps Macy’s build community relationships.

The video complements other campaign elements; the entire platform was revealed at the company’s national leadership meeting, where the video was shared for the first time, with the employee stars explaining Make Brighter Moments to the leaders in the audience.

Congratulations to Michael Savage, Bruce Carey, Dave Levin, Lee Greengross, Serina Morris, Larry Greenfield and Fritz Chestnut of J. Walter Thompson INSIDE, the internal communications agency that developed the campaign and produced the video.

The executive in the hospital kitchen has been paired with a chef. He is genuinely surprised to learn that the hospital does not get fish already cut and prepared; salmon is delivered whole and cut right there in the kitchen. The executive—with guidance from the chef—tries his hand at slicing up salmon, all in just a few short minutes. No, it’s not a new reality show. It’s just one installment in a Johns Hopkins Medicine video series introducing employees to “Big Jobs Uncovered,” and it’s won first place in the “Informational Video” category of Ragan’s 2018 Employee Communications Awards.

“Big Jobs Uncovered” highlights work that other employees may not have known somebody did. The series was launched in response to a challenge from a new president who wanted to support engagement and bring important strategic objectives to life in a more fun and relatable way.

The internal communications team addressed two goals: Show leadership working with frontline staff and deliver a “wow” factor. The idea for the video format emerged as a mashup of the TV shows “Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe” and “Undercover Boss.” Even though they’re snackably short, each video has three distinct parts: the employee and leader meeting for the first time and the leader “gowning up” for the task, the employee and leader performing the task, and a post-task interview.

The series’ first installment was opened nearly 10,000 times, representing a 60 percent open rate; the first video (the one with the fish skinning) was viewed 1,300 times. Comments have also been filled with praise.

Congratulations to the internal communications team led by Stephanie Price and the video team led by Thomas Wach.

Hospitals and health care organizations typically run an annual hand-washing campaign designed to remind employees of the importance of washing their hands regularly and thoroughly. The communicators at Bon Secours Health System went outside the ordinary, winning first place in the “Humorous Video” category of Ragan’s 2018 Employee Communications Awards.

To capture employees’ attention, the team produced a video game show called “What’s On Your Hands?” Designed to support the annual clean hands campaign, the video features a patient surprised to find himself a contestant answering questions from a game show host about the germs and bacteria that could be on his hands after touching various objects commonly found in a hospital.

The video premiered in employee newsletters distributed during the campaign and was posted on the intranet and through Bon Secours’ social media channels; staff members were also encouraged to share it in team meetings.

The goals were easily met: reinforcing the importance of hand hygiene, supporting the campaign and reducing hospital-acquired infections, and engaging staff members through humor (one employee commented, “This cracks me up!”).

Congratulations to Bon Secours’ Amy Austell.

Employees who work in manufacturing and other functions where attention must be paid to safety often ignore reminders to wear personal protection equipment. At Honda R&D, communicators decided the best way to get them to pay attention was to tap Honda motocross racers as the faces for wearing safety gear. This innovative approach has earned first place in the “Visual Communication” category of Ragan’s 2018 Employee Communications Awards.

The idea emerged after an associate at Honda R&D Americas in Denver submitted it as part of a safety contest, the concept being, “If Honda racers wear safety gear, so should I.” That associate was declared the contest winner, leading the Corporate & Technical Communication Department to reach out to him to refine the tactics for how banners bearing the racers’ likenesses would be created, approved, produced and displayed; they based their work on initial mock-ups the contest winner had created.

It took time to get the OK from the selected racers, after which images, layouts and messaging were approved and production began. Ultimately, the vertical banners were simple: The top third is a photo of the racer, and the bottom shows the racer in action. In between are the words: “Be like (Ken or Marc): Wear your PPE.”

The design is clean and uncomplicated—and has been highly effective where the banners have been deployed at Denver and Ohio locations.

Congratulations to Jennifer Dahlgren and staff members of the communication department.

One of the rules communicators tend to follow when it comes to email newsletters is getting to the content quickly. Requiring readers to scroll past the newsletter header before they get to content is a violation of that rule, one that the Howard Hughes Corporation is happy to ignore. Despite that, it’s taken first place in the “Newsletter” category of Ragan’s 2018 Employee Communications Awards.

The big, colorful photo featuring employees at the top of every issue of the weekly newsletter draws readers into the “Weekly Briefing,” which employs photos throughout each issue to introduce employees to new hires and highlight retirements, CSR activities, company news, videos (using a screenshot of from the video with a “play” button that takes readers to the web page where the video can be played) and other content.

There’s lots of color, plenty of white space and an easy flow to the newsletter, inviting readers interested in more than the most cursory information to click a button and read an entire article on the company’s intranet. Content varies from week to week, but always includes a list of employees celebrating birthdays, a feature that would lead employees to open the email just to see if they should share wishes with someone they know.

The internal communicators took advantage of Adobe Campaign, in use by external marketers, allowing them to deliver the email every Monday morning (even on holidays), and target each employee’s time zone. Adobe Campaign also provides email open rates, click rates and delivery reports, enabling the team to determine which stories resonate with employees so they can adjust the content they include.

Congratulations to the team of Van Reed, Ellen Dulweber and Alexis Luoma.

Paycom introduced a new brand concept under the label “Discover” early last year. The internal communications team rebranded its email newsletter, BEAT, to reflect the new brand. The effort was so successful that Paycom has won first place in the “Improved Design” category of Ragan’s 2018 Employee Communications Awards.

In order for the email newsletter to make the transition, the designers met with the communications team to discuss ideas and set a timeline for introducing the new look. The redesign was undertaken simultaneously across multiple departments and communications vehicles, including the corporate culture magazine, digital signage displays and email templates. Also included in the fresh design scheme were a new font and color palette.

The weekly newsletter is designed to reduce the number of emails employees have to cope with, while providing relevant information about company news and upcoming events. Among the BEAT sections that would incorporate the new design were vital news, announcements, content about clubs and events, corporate philanthropy, reminders, lunch menus, employee birthdays and more.

The new design resulted in a highly appealing newsletter that not only conveys the company’s new look but presents content in a highly engaging and easy-to-read format.

Congratulations to Chelsea Justice, Taylor Young and Lacey Brauser.

The WilCon Trader has been a quarterly magazine for employees of Wilbur-Ellis since the 1940s. Although the magazine evolved over the years, a recent review determined that the publication needed an overhaul. The effort has won first place in the “Magazine” category of Ragan’s 2018 Employee Communication Awards.

The internal communications team decided to reinvent the print magazine rather than abandoning it for a digital-only approach. Employees also have ready access to a “flappable” digital version of the redesigned WilCon Trader on the Wilbur-Ellis intranet (the company’s central hub for internal communications).

The redesign was focused on striking a balance between business news and more personal content, producing a new design that would attract readers and invite reading, creating online and offline components to keep a story alive over time while also creating opportunities for interaction and maintaining the strategy of employees originating content.

Working with a team from Peppercomm, communicators began with an editorial calendar used to create calls to action in each issue for employees to submit their stories and photos for content on specific topics slated for future editions. Teasers in the magazine drive readers to the intranet for more information and additional content. Full-length features highlight the company’s strategic activities and market trends. High-resolution photography has made the publication more appealing.

Content includes external news supplemented with insights from internal subject matter experts. Multiple types of media support and reinforce the print version, including a podcast. The content is so popular that when a link to the podcast broke, 200 employees created trouble tickets with the company’s IT department within minutes of the magazine’s distribution.

Congratulations Katherine Fordon from Wilbur-Ellis, and Peppercom’s Mari Abe, David Jolly and Mitch Bombardier.

City of Hope produces a biweekly internal online newsletter, Inside Hope, conceived as a way to connect staff members with the organization’s priorities and one another while deepening employee understanding of the hospital’s goals and vision. Employee profiles are a part of the newsletter’s content mix, and one of them has won first place in the “Interview/Profile” category of Ragan’s 2018 Employee Communications Awards.

The story was written to reinforce City of Hope’s leadership in equality and inclusion for its LGBTQ staff. Eli Mendelson had come out to employees as transgender in a video explaining his decision to undergo medical transition and asking colleagues to adopt his new name. He also founded Pride in the City, the diversity resource group he continues to lead, designed to provide a safe and supportive space for LGBTQ employees. As a result of Eli’s leadership, City of Hope was designated a “Leader in LGBTQ Equality” by the Human Rights Campaign in both 2017 and 2018.

In telling Eli’s story through the lens of his role as an employee in the organization’s Philanthropy group, communicators were able to explore the roles played by the HR staff, the benefits staff, Eli’s boss and other members of the City of Hope employee population. According to City of Hope, “Telling Eli’s story in his time, in his way, allowed us to profile a courageous person, a dedicated and talented worker, and also provide a platform for him to advocate for himself and others like him at City of Hope.” The profile also gave others at the City of Hope assurance that the organization’s culture is one of acceptance and inclusion.

Congratulations to writer Michael Easterling.

“If I had this experience when I started 21 years ago,” says Bonita Hadley, “I think it would have helped me in dealing with customers.” Hadley’s experience riding along with utility foreman Lyle Butler allowed her to enlighten other staff members who deal with customers of Ameren, an electric services company in Illinois and Missouri. The article about the ride-along has won first place in the “Feature Article” category of Ragan’s 2018 Employee Communications Awards.

The article was inspired by the company’s goal of better serving its customers through an empowered-high-performance team. The customer service and external affairs departments, in an effort to develop their staffs, implemented a job-shadowing program that allowed employees to gain a more comprehensive and firsthand understanding of the business.

The staff of the quarterly Ameren Journal saw an opportunity to get the message across via the highly personal tales of employees like Hadley and Butler. The article was titled “Trading Places,” with the subtitle “An Hour on Their Headsets, a Mile in Their Shoes.”

Readers learned about people like Hadley, a customer service rep who gets calls from customers produces work orders and hands them off to co-workers in the field. After 21 years of playing her part in the process, the ride-along gave Hadley a clearer view of the end-to-end process.

The three-page feature included 10 sources, providing readers with a variety of voices from throughout the company’s Illinois work centers. The article featured high-quality photography capturing job shadows in the field as well as the call center. The strongly-written article raised awareness of and interest in the job shadow program.

Congratulations to Ameren’s Keith Anderson and Mike Montandon.