"Blue Ridge Standard Time" Tourism Ad Campaign Earns Six Awards

The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Blue Ridge Chapter recently held their 13^th annual Summit Awards recognizing the best in public relations and communications tactics by professional public relations practitioners from around the region.  The tourism ad campaign, "Blue Ridge Standard Time", developed for the Roanoke Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau (RVCVB), the official destination marketing organization for Virginia's Blue Ridge (VBR) region, took home six awards for short and long format audio-visual, creativity, social media, web development and overall public relations campaign.

The campaign was developed through a unique partnership between local agencies Access Advertising & Public Relations of Roanoke and Mikula-Harris of Vinton. According to Tony Pearman, CEO of Access, "It's a rare honor and a first for our two agencies to win six awards all associated with a single campaign, especially in a prestigious competition like the PRSA Summit Awards." 

"Blue Ridge Standard Time" launched in May 2014 positioning VBR as the mountain vacation destination choice for summer and fall 2014.  Target markets included Raleigh-Durham, Richmond, Hampton Roads, and Virginia Beach. The campaign also included an innovative partnership with Kroger. The video and contest information were shown on electronic kiosks in 55 Kroger stores in the target markets as well as the greater Roanoke Region.

Measurable results from the campaign included a 48% increase of unique visitors to the website and mobile site over last year, an added advertising value of $20 million and Facebook likes jumped 50%.  The total estimated campaign impressions were 62.3 million, with an average reach and frequency of 26 million in cable markets.  All made possible by partners and sponsors donating over $125,000 in local prizes.