Olson Engage Named Most Innovative PR/Social/Communications Agency

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 27, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Olson Engage, the PR, Social & Experiential division of Olson, dominated the Holmes Report's first ever In2 SABRE Awards last week, winning five trophies, including honors for "Most Innovative Agency" in its category and the Platinum SABRE for "Best in Show" for a Belize Tourism campaign.

The SABRE haul comes less than a month after Olson Engage was named a finalist for PR Week's Midsize Agency of the Year distinction, which will be awarded in March.

Formerly known as the Silver SABRE Awards, the Holmes Report this year spun out its Insight & Innovation ("In2") SABREs to reflect the ever-growing role of creative product, digital and social, analytics and content in influence and engagement. The awards were announced at the Four Seasons Hotel in San Francisco Jan. 23.

Olson Engage was named "Most Innovative Agency" in the PR/Social/Communications category on the strength of its line-blurring client work and its strong business momentum. It also was one of two winners in the "Visual Storytelling – Social Images" category for helping client Skittles engineer a headline-grabbing surprise for supermodel (and superfan) Chrissy Teigen.

The evening's biggest winner was "Breaking Bad's Trip to Belize." The Belize Tourism Board had to react fast when characters on AMC's Breaking Bad began using the phrase "Trip to Belize" as a synonym for murder. But while many clients and agencies might have avoided or minimized the moment, Olson Engage helped the Belize Tourism Board embrace it in real time by inviting the entire cast on a real-life trip to Belize to prove the gorgeous country is nothing like the reference suggested. The invitation, shared initially both over social media and in news coverage, dramatically shifted the dialog around the episode and, incredibly, wound up improving online sentiment around Belize.

The effort, a collaboration between Olson Engage's Chicago and Minneapolis offices, won the In2 SABRE Awards for "Marketing Buzz" and "Digital Influence – Media," and at the close of the evening, won the evening's only Platinum SABRE Award as "Best in Show."

"SABRE Awards are among the very top honors in our industry, and to win five innovation SABREs in one night is just a tremendous tribute to our clients, who make this work possible, and our talent, who deliver the results," said Olson Engage President Bryan Specht. "We're very grateful for the recognition, but even more proud to know that this work is delivering business results for our clients."

ABOUT OLSON ENGAGE
Olson Engage is the public relations, social media and experiential division of Olson, one of the top five full-service independent digital agencies in North America. Founded in 2004, Olson Engage has built a reputation as one of the industry's most creative, innovative and effective agencies through work for blue-chip clients such as MillerCoors, Wrigley and Kraft Foods. In 2014, Olson Engage has emerged as one of the industry's most acclaimed firms, having been named "Most Innovative Agency" in its category by the Holmes Report and a finalist for Midsize Agency of the Year by PR Week. Olson Engage consists of more than 85 PR and social media professionals in offices in Chicago, Minneapolis, San Francisco and New York.

SOURCE Olson Engage