Holmes Report 02 May 2018 // 5:33PM GMT
NEW YORK—A corporate social responsibility initiative for supplemental insurance company Aflac, “Aflac ‘Outducks’ a Reputational Deficit,” conducted in partnership with FleishmanHillard, Ken Willis International, Carol Cone ON PURPOSE and Marina Maher Communications, took home top honors at the North American SABRE Awards dinner last night, picking up the Platinum SABRE Award for the best public relations program of 2017.
The Aflac campaign—which included a plush toy version of the company’s popular duck mascot, created to provide emotional support to kids with cancer—triumphed over 2,000 entries submitted to this year’s awards competition, including four other finalists for best in show:
- The NFL Tastes The Rainbow—Skittles with Olson Engage
- All Ages, All Races, All Genders—M∙A∙C Cosmetics with Praytell Agency
- Bar on the Edge—Brewdog with Manifest New York
- Eclipsing the Eclipse—Royal Caribbean International with Weber Shandwick
It was a great night for Edelman, too. The world’s largest public relations agency’s clients took home six Diamond and Gold SABRE trophies, more than any other agency.
Other multiple winners included Ketchum and Weber Shandwick (five); Olson Engage (four); M Booth and Zeno Group (three); and Allison Partners, Carmichael Lynch Relate, FleishmanHillard, Marina Maher Communications, and Mullen Lowe (two each).
The awards ceremony was held once again at Cipriani 42nd Street in New York and attended by more than 840 professionals from across the country.
A complete list of winning campaigns can be found here.