Schleich USA, the world’s leading manufacturer of animal figurines, and Brilliant PR & Marketing, a leading agency serving the juvenile and family products industry, have been named finalists in two categories in the 2021 Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Silver Anvil Awards. The Silver Anvils recognize the best public relations campaigns of the year and the highest standards of performance for the profession. Schleich and Brilliant’s work on the 2020 “Power of Imagination” campaign is being recognized for excellence in both the Integrated Communications and Marketing categories. Schleich is joined as a finalist by iconic consumer brands including AT&T, Delta Airlines, Clorox, Crayola, General Motors, Krispy Kreme, Lowe’s, HP, Porsche, 3M and Hilton.
“When we began to develop the Power of Imagination campaign over a year ago and recognized the solid research and insights informing our planning, we knew that we were developing a Silver Anvil contender,” said Clark Nesselrodt, executive vice president of Brilliant PR & Marketing. “The very high standards of the Silver Anvil awards served as a polestar of excellence for our teams as we brought the program to life.”
Schleich’s Power of Imagination campaign was born of a desire to raise brand awareness in the US and celebrate the brand’s natural authority in the areas of creativity and imagination. Built from a core insight that when it comes to open-ended, imaginative play, what parents see is not what kids see, the program sought to translate real kids’ imaginative stories into bold media that could bring grownups into worlds where bears do backflips into outer space and dinosaurs help with homework!
A key element of the campaign was a partnership with acclaimed toy photographer, Mitchel Wu, who brought kids’ stories to life with his unmistakable photography. More than 7,500 kids shared content with Schleich during the campaign, which culminated last December with an interactive Times Square billboard, generating more than a billion media impressions along the way. Schleich brand awareness increased 12% during the year, exceeding goal by 9%.
“Heading into 2020, we had the research and insights necessary to create a truly impactful dent in consumer brand awareness and clarity,” said Kelli Masilun, Director of Marketing for Schleich USA. “Our partnership with Brilliant enabled us to turn that into a truly exceptional campaign vision and the strong execution that led to our quantifiable success and now this stellar recognition from PRSA.”
The 2021 PRSA Silver Anvil winners will be announced during a virtual event on June 10. This year, in addition to the winners selected by an esteemed panel of industry luminaries, the public can vote for a “people’s choice” winner in each category.
For additional information on the Schleich brand, visit the Schleich website or follow the brand on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube. For more information about Brilliant PR & Marketing, visit brilliantprandmarketing.com, and get social with the agency on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.