Morris Marketing Group, Archer Malmo and DCA took top honors at the 23rd annual Vox Awards hosted recently by the PRSA Memphis chapter at Visible Music College.

Morris Marketing Agency won Best in Show for Campaigns Brand Management/Reputation (more than $7,500) and for Special Events One Day (more than $7,500). Archer Malmo and DCA tied for Best in Show for Tactics, with Archer winning the Media Tactics: Press Conference category and DCA winning Print Tactics: Visual Elements.

This year featured three awards honoring individuals in the profession.

Naomi Adams Bata, senior vice president of public relations at Archer Malmo, was named Executive of the Year.

DCA public relations and social media manager Cara Greenstein was named PRSA Rising Star, a new award that recognizes the top PR professional with less than three years of experience in the field.

And the PR Star award, which recognizes a professional with more than three years of experience, went to Alisha Tillery, senior PR account executive at KQ Communications.

The Star Awards honoring individual PR professionals in and outside Public Relations Society of America membership are new and were spearheaded by Bob Phillips, PRSA awards chair.

“We wanted to be more inclusive, not only including people within the PRSA, but outside, too,” Phillips said.

Other nominees this year for Star Awards were Gale Jones Carson with Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division; Kim Cherry with First Horizon National Corp.; Courtney Ellett and Sarah Lichterman with Obsidian Public Relations; Renee Malone at KQ Communications; and Jennifer LaRose Sharp with The Neely Agency and Ballet on Wheels Dance School & Company.

In addition to Best in Show winners, Vox Awards went to Hampton by Hilton for Campaigns Marketing Communication/Promotion Products (more than $7,500); KQ Communications for Special Events Four Days or More; MLGW for Media Tactics News Release: Hard Breaking News; and Running Pony for Video Tactics: External Video Presentation.

VOX Awards recognize outstanding work on campaigns, special events and tactics in the realm of communications, says Diana Fedinec, PRSA VOX chair.

“I think it’s a very prestigious award and one that is aggressively sought after,” Fedinec said. “When people win them it speaks volumes, and it credentials you in a way.”

Hemline won two Gold awards for Special Events and Video Tactics. Other Gold awards went to Morris Marketing Agency, the Greater Memphis Chamber, Walker & Associates, the city of Germantown, DCA, Sedgwick and KQ Communications.

Star Awards were judged by the Houston PRSA chapter. The VOX awards, which recognize notable work by local Memphis professionals in the PR sector, were judged by the Tampa Bay, Florida PRSA chapter.

“We send our congratulations to all of this year’s winners and our thanks to everyone who took the time to enter,” said PRSA Memphis Chapter president Elizabeth Cawein. “Without a doubt, this was one of our most competitive years yet for VOX. Honoring and spotlighting our peers for significant contributions in the PR field is such an important element of what we do as a chapter.”

There are 23 categories of awards that showcase the quality of work being done in the Mid-South.

https://www.memphisdailynews.com/news/2016/nov/2/prsa-memphis-honors-dca-three-pr-stars/