Centre for Ocular Research & Education (CORE) Brand Launch Named Among World’s Best Public Relations Programs of the Year 2017 Campaign Chosen as a Finalist for Prestigious PRSA Silver Anvil Award
ROCHESTER, N.Y., April 10, 2018—An eye-opening communications campaign to launch the reimagined Centre for Ocular Research & Education (CORE) brand to the international optometry and ophthalmology communities has been named one of the best of the past year by the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA). This is believed to be the only Silver Anvil honoree from the Rochester region in 2018.
Centered on CORE’s debut at the 2017 American Academy of Optometry Annual Meeting, the program has been selected as a finalist for the 2018 PRSA Silver Anvil Awards. Only 116 programs from approximately 650 nominations received this designation, including initiatives from P&G, Hilton Hotels, Medtronic, the Smithsonian's National Zoo, Johnson & Johnson, REI, and Universal Pictures. The worldwide competition is widely considered the global public relations industry's highest honor.
Developed and conducted by McDougall Communications in conjunction with CORE, the campaign encouraged hundreds of ocular researchers, eye care professionals, industry executives and optometry students to co-create a large-format mural over three days in Chicago last October. The resulting work, titled Collected Insight by lead artist John Park, was then installed at CORE’s headquarters within the School of Optometry & Vision Science at the University of Waterloo, in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.
“It was a joy to work alongside the CORE team in developing its new brand during the first half of 2017, reflecting its evolution over the past three decades to become a preeminent center for advanced biosciences, clinical research and education relating to the eye,” said Mike McDougall, APR, Fellow PRSA, president of McDougall Communications. “But even more rewarding was conceiving a unique way to introduce the CORE brand to the organization’s wide range of current, past and potential collaborators, resulting in an immediate spike in recognition, awareness and opportunities for new partnerships.”
Founded in 1988 (and originally named the Centre for Contact Lens Research), CORE’s uncompromising independence and results of the highest quality have been at the heart of many of the most prominent advances in eye health. Today, its approximately 50-person team serves a range of ophthalmic sectors, including medical devices, ocular pharmaceuticals, digital technology and others, with a focus on the anterior segment.
McDougall Communications, founded in 2011, is focused on helping clients across the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific meet their business objectives through a range of communications services, including strategic planning, media and influencer relations, reputation and crisis counsel, and social media management. Its work in optometry and ophthalmology is widespread, having represented organizations such as CooperVision, Optometry Giving Sight, the International Association of Contact Lens Educators (IACLE), Labtician Opthalmics, the Contact Lens Institute, as well as other medical device and biotechnology entities.
For more than 60 years, Silver Anvils have been awarded to the world's most comprehensive, creative and effective public relations programs. Candidates are evaluated by senior professionals drawn from corporate, non-profit, military and agency communications teams, as well as from academia. Members of the McDougall Communications team have previously received 11 Silver Anvils and Awards of Excellence. The 2018 Silver Anvil gala is scheduled for June 7 at the Edison Ballroom in Manhattan.
About The Silver Anvil Award Since its inception in 1944, the annual Silver Anvil Award is the oldest awards competition for excellence in public relations and communication. The iconic Silver Anvil Award symbolizes the breadth of talent among industry practitioners while recognizing outstanding individual professional achievement. Entries are judged on their research, planning, execution and evaluation, while also considering factors such as creativity, ethics and budget. For more information on the Silver Anvil Awards, please visit http://anvils.prsa.org/
