PRINZ annual gala shines spotlight on PR excellence

NIWA’s use of communications to tell the scientific story of the Hunga Tonga–Hunga Haʻapai volcanic eruption in 2022 has won its communications team the Supreme Award at the PRINZ Awards 2023.

The Awards celebrated the best public relations and communications work of the previous year. The head judges said the NIWA campaign was well-researched, conceived and executed within a very short timeframe with little budget and while managing multiple agencies.

Called ‘Shotgun Blast from the Deep”, the campaign also took out gold in the Best Use of Media Relations, at a gala dinner held on Friday evening (26 May).

A total of 14 golds and two special awards were awarded, from 48  finalists. Special PR took out PR Consultancy of the Year (large), while Waikato-based HMC was awarded top small PR Consultancy of the Year.

HMC Director, Heather Claycomb says she is incredibly proud of the team. “Despite our small size, we work with global and national leaders in their sectors.  We are thankful to our many clients for supporting us and giving us challenging, meaningful work which is behind this award win.”

Claycomb says the 2022/23 financial year was the third full year the public relations agency has operated as a social enterprise.

“Four years ago I decided that 100 percent of profits from my business would be donated to my family charity, All Good Ventures.  What this means is that HMC clients not only receive excellent PR services, they also get to partner with us to do good in the world.”

Claycomb’s family charity, All Good Ventures, is a registered New Zealand charity that provides money, mentorship and ‘muscle’ to support budding social entrepreneurs to start up businesses for good.  It has supported entrepreneurs in New Zealand, Australia, Africa, Canada and the UK. 

The judges commented that HMC “stands tall in the regional market”.

“On top of being an excellent PR consultancy is the massive contribution it makes to All Good Ventures. Their transportation into a social enterprise is a clearly unique position which also positions public relations in a positive, constructive light.”

Fire and Emergency NZ (FENZ) won four golds for its ‘You’re Cooked – if you’re cooked, stay off the stove’ campaign, across Best use of Digital and Social Media, Experiential and Activation, Marketing Communications and Most innovative, while Mango Communications won two Golds for its campaign to recruit staff for McDonald’s, called ‘McCensus – understanding the crew to attract the new’ as well as a special award, the Isentia and PRINZ Prize for Excellence in Research, Measurement and Evaluation. 

In-house PR team of the year went to Auckland Airport and the Sally Logan-Milne Young Practitioner of the Year award was won by Jessica Chaplin of NZ Police.

Head judges Denise Mackay, Director of Communications, Engagement and Events at Te Puni Kōkiri, and Andrew Pirie, communications consultant and Chair of the Spark Foundation, Denise Mackay said, the 2023 awards lived up to expectation.  “We were hugely impressed with our winning entries. The sheer breadth of public relations and communications was strongly showcased across all categories, from NIWA’s media relations to FENZ’s hugely innovative campaign that combined experiential, digital, and marketing communication to create impact.”

Special PR took out large PR Agency of the Year, despite being a start-up with one employee only two years ago, with the judges saying its entry was “outstanding”.

“They have shown impressive growth in a short timeframe, and each of their case studies was a banger with X-factor. They bring fresh energy and excitement to the industry, are delivering impactful work with lashings of enthusiam.”

Kelly Grindle, GM of Special PR, says: “We’re thrilled to be recognised as Large PR Agency of the Year, and is testament to just how much hard work the team has put in over the last twenty-four months. We believe we take a fresh approach to PR in New Zealand, one that prioritises strategic insight and creative ideation above all else, and it’s rewarding to see our new way of thinking recognised by our national industry body.”

Auckland Airport’s in house team won for its ability to ‘punch above its weight in a dynamic post Covid environment that saw it achieve success across the board and the trust of multiple internal and external stakeholders’, the judges said.

A total of 113 entries, an over 30 percent increase on 2022, were received across 18 categories this year, and a team of 50 judges from across the profession selected the final 48. A full list of gold, silver and bronze winners is available here.

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