42nd Annual Thoth Awards Ceremony Honors Best Communications Campaigns in Washington

Washington, D.C., Sept, 2010 –The Public Relations Society of America National Capital Chapter (PRSA-NCC) celebrated the value of public relations and honored the talent and innovation in Washington public relations professionals at its 42nd Annual Thoth Awards, held at the historic Willard InterContinental Hotel. Thoth, named after the Egyptian god of communications, honors the best and brightest each year.

Special guest presenters, Chris Hansen of "Dateline NBC", NBC News, and Greta Kreuz, veteran reporter and Maryland bureau chief for ABC7/WJLA-TV (at right with Susan Apgood and Jennifer Balios, co-chairs of the event), were in attendance with National Capital Chapter leadership and nearly 300 guests. The Egyptian-themed gala presented 25 Thoth Awards and 20 Certificates of Excellence to regional communications ‘gods.’ The awards program included 23 categories and recipients included a wide array of Washington area public relations agencies, companies, government organization, and trade and professional associations.

“This was a tremendous year for our chapter's signature Thoth Awards program,” said Jeff Ghannam, PRSA-NCC 2010 President. “This year's theme celebrates the traditional meaning of the Thoth Awards but there is nothing ancient or outdated about the winners. The innovative, strategic public relations work displayed in the nominations this year proves Washington, D.C. is home to many communications ‘gods’.”

The Thoth “Best of Show” award was presented to Lockheed Martin for its campaign, “The I Campaign.” Lockheed Martin also received the Thoth Award for Internal Communications.
Thoth Awards and Certificates of Excellence presented included:

PROGRAM AWARDS

• Community Relations: Thoth – Stratacomm



• Reputation/Brand Management: Thoth – Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide for the Association of American Railroads & Certificate of Excellence – Hilton Hotels



• Events and Observances (seven or fewer days): Thoth – Biotechnology Industry Organization & Certificate of Excellence – Crosby Marketing Communications



• Events and Observances (more than seven days): Thoth – Brand Resources Group, Certificate of Excellence – Ketchum, &Certificate of Excellence – Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide for the Royal Netherlands Embassy



• Public Service: Thoth – American Urological Association and Zeno Group, Thoth – GEOFFREY BEENE GIVES BACK and Research!America, & Certificate of Excellence – Crosby Marketing Communications



• Public Affairs/Issues Management: Thoth – National Automobile Dealers Association, Certificate of Excellence – GYMR Public Relations



• Marketing Consumer Products & Services: Thoth – Sprint and Stanton Communications, Inc. & Certificate of Excellence – Embassy Suites Hotels with Emanate



• Marketing Business-to-Business Products & Services: Thoth – Crosby Marketing Communications
  Global Communications, Thoth – Hilton Hotels & Certificate of Excellence – Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide for TED



• Crisis Communications/Issues Management: Thoth – Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide for the American Peanut Council & Certificate of Excellence – Johns Hopkins Medicine



• Internal Communications: Thoth – Lockheed Martin



• Integrated Communications: Thoth – U.S. Department of Commerce, National Telecommunications and Information Administration/Ketchum & Certificate of Excellence – Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide for the Internal Revenue Service

COMPONENT AWARDS

• Media Relations: Thoth – American Urological Association and Zeno Group, Certificate of Excellence – Marianne Worley – So Young Pak, Certificate of Excellence – Crosby Marketing Communications, and Certificate of Excellence – Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide for Dupont Corian



• Online Communications: Thoth – Pepco Holdings, Inc. with Stanton Communications, Inc. & Certificate of Excellence – Balance Interactive



• Blog/Blogger Campaign: Thoth – Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide Vtech & Certificate of Excellence – Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide for Medimmune



• Written Communication/Print Version: Thoth – Johns Hopkins Medicine & Thoth – Mayes Communications Inc. Strategic Design Studio and Nannerdog & Associates for Medstar Health Corporate Privacy Department & Certificate of Excellence – Germanna Community College



• Written Communications/Electronic Version: Thoth – National Automobile Dealers Association, Certificate of Excellence – Military Health System Office of the Chief Information Officer Communications Team



• Annual Report: Thoth – NeighborWorks America



• Public Service Announcements: Thoth – Operation Lifesaver & Certificate of Excellence – American Urological Association and Zeno Group



• Speeches: Thoth – John D. Trybus – the Jane Goodall Institute



• Website: Thoth – Monsanto and Edelman, Certificate of Excellence – Focused Image & Certificate of Excellence – Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide for Medimmune



• Internal Video Program: Thoth – National Automobile Dealers Association



• External Audio Program: Thoth – Strauss Radio Strategies

PRSA-NCC would like to thank all of the Thoth sponsors for helping to make the celebration a wonderful event. Diamond sponsors included Business Wire, News Generation, Inc., Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide, PR Newswire and Strauss Radio Strategies. Silver sponsors included Balance Interactive, BurrellesLuce, GolinHarris, Marketwire and O’Dwyer’s PR News. And, production sponsors included 5th Element Communications, Focused Image, GRC Direct, Hackstone Film Group, News Generation, Inc., and PR Newswire.

About PRSA-NCC PRSA-NCC is a professional public relations organization of approximately 1,400 members in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan region. PRSA-NCC provides professional development programs, accreditation instruction, and networking. PRSA-NCC also promotes public relations education through five area Public Relations Society of America student chapters. For more information, please visit www.prsa-ncc.org or call 703-691-9212.

Media Contact: Shannon Joyce, PRSA-NCC Marketing & PR Committee Chair, sjoyce@okco.com, 571-435-2871.

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American Wonks

For all you branding professionals, here's one for you...

As a member of the Alumni Board at American University, I was privy to the development of a new marketing campaign recently just launched--American Wonks. It's apparently generating quite a buzz -- even the Washington Post covered it in today's article: American University, New Home to the 'American Wonk.'

Similar to many institutions, AU is no different in trying to seek ways to set itself apart. Personally, I thought the mere fact that I matriculated there was enough, but apparently not...

So now we have this "wonkiness" to better distinguish the university from other local schools in our region. American University is now the campus of the "Wonk." And according to university leaders, if you're a "wonk", you are "an intellectually curious person" or "a knowledgeable Washington insider." Huh...I guess there's some hope for me yet.

Wonk, Wonk...

WWPR Presents: Tips, Tools and Tactics for Effective Crisis Communications in a Social Media World

Panelists will discuss:
- Best practices for effective crisis communications
- Benefits and challenges of a 24-hour news cycle
- Social media's influence on outreach
- Tips and resources directly from the experts
- Crisis Communications Q&A

Expert panel:
- Karen Riley is a press officer in FDA's Office of Public Affairs and leader of the agency's medical products team of spokespeople. Contaminated heparin and Avandia are among her hot button issues. She has an A.B. in Economics from Cornell University and an M.P.H. from Johns Hopkins.

- Laura Howe, vice president of public relations for the American National Red Cross. Howe is responsible for planning and executing the public affairs and overall corporate media strategies for the Red Cross. In her role, she serves as one of the primary Red Cross spokespersons and oversees day-to-day corporate media relations and crisis communication efforts.

-Moderator: Susan Matthews Apgood, President & Co-Founder of News Generation, Inc. Susan is an active member of Washington Women in Public Relations (WWPR) and the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) in Washington, D.C. and Maryland. In 2010, she is co-chair of the PRSA-NCC Thoth Judging & Gala Committees.

When:Thursday September 30, 2010 from 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM
Where: National Association of Broadcasters
1717 N Street, NW
Located on the corner of 18th and N Street, NW
(METRO STOP: Dupont South)
Washington, DC 20036

$15 for non-members, free to PRSA-NCC & WWPR members. Register at WWPR.org

Looking for the post author?

Some of our email subscribers wonder why it seems like Denise Graveline's authoring all the posts--and I can assure you, I don't.  That's because those of you who subscribe by email see a return address with my name on it, as the site administrator. If you want to know who's the author of a particular post, it appears on the blog at the end of the post (as shown above, "Posted by Susan M Apgood" appears after the main text and next to the date).  Email subscribers may need to click on the headline of the post in their email versions to get directly to the post in question.  

A good resume, cover letter and interview still go a long way

Some things never cease to amaze me. As you well know, the economy is still sputtering along and there are many actively seeking work. I've actually been meeting some of these individuals as of late given we are hiring for an Account Manager position at The Event Planning Group, LLC. But what never ceases to amaze me is the poor quality of the resumes and cover letters received -- as well as the bland presentation when meeting face-to-face! Quite frankly, I have more spirited conversations with my 8, 6 and 5 year-old nephews who sell me well on why they should have yet another cookie.

My good friend and fellow Boss Lady Kate Perrin owner of PRofessional Solutions, LLC -- the Washington area's only public relations temporary agency -- not only places professionals in positions of employment, but has offered countless tips and strategies on building effective resumes and successfully preparing for the interview. Kate, the harvest is still PLENTY!!

I have to chuckle when I receive resumes that show tracking changes, or total seven pages in length or have the usual typos and misspellings. But the one thing that gets me is when the resume looks good on paper, and then we meet....I'm totally deflated when the person simply sits there. I often want to reach across the table and shake the candidate saying: "Help me, help you! I really want to hire you, but you need to convince me why I should!" And the reason shouldn't be because you simply want to be rescued from your not-so-good current job situation. Interestingly, that's the one thing that did come through in a recent interview. Oy ve.

You would think people would sharpen their game given the current job conditions. And as Kate so aptly concludes in her February 2009 posting:

There are still jobs to be had and temporary assignments to fill, just not many. How to get one of the limited openings? If you’re a professional communicator make yourself stand out from the rest of the crowd by demonstrating you can write, can craft and express key messages effectively, and can help the client (employer) meet its goals and be successful.

That says it all.

PRSA-NCC 42nd Annual Thoth Awards Gala -- Last Call for Tickets!

On the evening of Thursday, September 23, 2010, the winners of this year's 42nd PRSA-NCC Annual Thoth Awards Gala will be unveiled at the Willard InterContinental Hotel in Washington, D.C. Outstanding PR achievements will be recognized in 34 categories, including 13 program categories, celebrating the very best PR campaigns and 21 component categories highlighting top accomplishments in PR tactics. The gala will take place from 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.

PRSA will be joined by Chris Hansen, "Dateline NBC" correspondent, NBC News and Greta Kreuz, veteran reporter and Maryland bureau chief for ABC7/WJLA-TV. Ticket prices are $85 for PRSA, DC Ad Club and WWPR Members. Non-Member prices are $105, and Students/Retirees are $55. Register Now!

Ever Seen a God Rap? Check Out the Thoth God Do His Thing

This video produced by HackStone Video in advance of the 2010 Thoth Gala is too fun: http://bit.ly/cHx8nK. Bet you cannot wait to see what else is in store this year! Join us on Thursday, September 23 at the Willard Hotel, register online.

WWPR Woman of the Year Sponsorships are Now Available

Are you interested in capturing the attention and esteem of more than 200 of the DC area's most influential communicators in one room, in addition to having a great time at WWPR's biggest annual event? Then consider sponsoring and attending the WWPR Woman of the Year Luncheon on November 10. Sponsorship details are in the sponsorship section of the Washington Women in Public Relations web site. Not only do sponsors get great visibility at WWPR's premier event, but they also help further the PR profession by honoring women who have excelled in the field. (If you -- or someone you know -- fits that description, please also consider submitting a nomination for Woman of the Year.)

Ready for the Biggest Night of the Year in PR?

The PRSA-NCC Thoth Awards are just three weeks away. Chris Hansen, "Dateline NBC" Correspondent, NBC News and Greta Kreuz, veteran reporter and Maryland bureau chief for ABC7/WJLA-TV, will join us for an evening of celebration and award presentations. The event is at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 23 at the historic Willard Hotel in downtown D.C. (Metro Red, Orange & Blue lines) Register now at:

http://www.prsa-ncc.org/thoth_awards/

Confirm your status!