25 Ports Win AAPA’s Comms Competition

The American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) will recognize 25 seaports for exemplary communications projects and programs at its annual convention and awards luncheon this fall.

 

Winning entrants in AAPA’s 50th annual Communications Awards Program will be recognized at an Oct. 26 awards luncheon in conjunction with AAPA’s 105th Annual Convention and Expo in New Orleans, which runs Oct. 23-26. The recipients of the 2016 Overall Award of Communications Excellence trophies - the top awards in AAPA's Communications Awards Program - are Port Everglades in Florida (Category 3); St. John's Port Authority in Newfoundland and Labrador (Category 2); and the Port of Grays Harbor in Washington (Category 3).  Each of the three categories of ports is based on the size of the port's public relations/advertising/marketing budget.

“When port authorities communicate strategically with their many audiences, including their communities, business leaders and policymakers, they’re better able to show their tremendous value as drivers of economic development, environmental enhancement and job creation,” said Kurt Nagle, AAPA’s president and CEO. “This competition helps our member ports by rewarding effective communications and highlighting best practices and lessons learned.”

The 2016 AAPA Communications Awards Program, which had a May 1 deadline for entries, utilized 48 professional public relations practitioners from the Washington, D.C. area who cumulatively spent nearly 200 hours over three weeks judging the 15 classifications of entries, ranging from advertisements and periodicals to videos and websites.

Based on the number of points awarded each entry by the judges, three entries earned an Overall Award of Communications Excellence, 31 entries earned an Award of Excellence, while 46 entries scored an Award of Distinction, and 26 entries received an Award of Merit.