Baltimore’s advertising community celebrated excellence in advertising Thursday at the 43rd Annual Baltimore American Advertising “00ADDYs” Awards Show, presented by Comcast Spotlight and hosted by the American Advertising Federation of Baltimore (AAFB) at the American Visionary Art Museum. A record number of entries, 371 in total (including three student submissions), were submitted this year, resulting in 98 ADDY awards presented to local agency, production house and in-house marketing teams.
Top honors included:
- 2017 Best In Show presented to Planit for the Order & Chaos campaign.
- 2017 Special Judges Award for Best Storytelling presented to Early Light Media for “Throw.”
- 2017 Comcast Spotlight Award for Best Concept presented to Frank Strategic Marketing for “Ellicott City Reopener.”
Planit won 13 awards in total (8 Gold, 5 Silver), followed by Harvey with 10 awards (6 Gold, 4 Silver) and MGH with 9 awards (6 Gold, 3 Silver).
The Cyphers Agency, a Capitol Communicator sponsor, won a silver ADDY award for a social media campaign promoting a new dessert for Seasons Pizza.
The campaign’s goal was to generate awareness for the colossal cookie. Cyphers’ strategy involved collaboration between the creative and social media teams to create an image and social media content to engage directly with consumers. This resulted in a robust Instagram campaign that captured Seasons’ brand while celebrating the new menu item.
“We are immensely proud that our creative collaboration was recognized among such prestigious peers,” said Dave Cyphers, The Cyphers Agency president.
The complete list of award winners is available on the AAFB ADDY Awards website.
“Baltimore has a thriving ad community and each year the ADDYs provide a benchmark for the size and scope of where we stand. With entries up 28 percent, it’s clear the industry is growing and expanding to meet the needs of today’s marketers. Further evidence comes from the increase in digital and content related entries, a symbolic shift that parallels the movement of media dollars from traditional to digital and social media platforms,” said David Blum, AAFB president and senior vice president at GKV.
Baltimore-based video production company, Storyfarm, produced the event with a James Bond theme to help Baltimore’s best secret agents and super villains celebrate excellence among their advertising peers.
Title sponsor Comcast Spotlight signed on to present this year’s Baltimore American Advertising Awards for the third consecutive year. Other sponsors included Stanley Black and Decker, NCM, MNI, Acer Exhibits & Events, Clean Cuts & Cerebral Lounge, Mount Royal Printing, Signs By Tomorrow and The Wairehouse.
“We’re so thankful for our sponsors, who make this awards show possible each year. During this dynamic and transitional time in the Baltimore advertising community, it’s wonderful to see new and returning sponsors who continue to support the pursuit of excellence in creative marketing,” added Blum.
At the ceremony, the AAFB announced the recipients of its prestigious individual achievement awards:
- Lifetime Achievement Award presented to Jack Heyrman, Founder of Clean Cuts & Cerebral Lounge.
- Patricia Martin Crystal Prism Award presented to Kathe Flynn, Art Director at ADG Creative.
- Patricia Martin Crystal Prism Award presented to Jennifer Dodson, Chief Creative Officer at Adashmore Creative.
The AAFB also honored two inspiring members of the advertising community, GKV’s Jennifer Pinti and Crosby Marketing’s Tammy Ebaugh – who were laid to rest this year. They both received In Memoriam tributes.
The American Advertising Awards competition is the industry’s largest and most representative competition — attracting more than 40,000 entries every year in local competitions. Gold winners at the local level move on to the regional competition, competing with agencies from Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, Delaware, Virginia and Washington, D.C. A win at the district level earns a spot in the National American Advertising Awards Competition. National winners will be announced at the AAF’s national conference, Admerica, taking place June 7-10 in New Orleans.
Photo: John Waire / The Wairehouse
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