DURHAM – The Town of Smithfield was among 21 North Carolina governments to earn recognition in the North Carolina City & County Communicators’ (NC3C) 2020 Excellence in Communications Awards. Smithfield won First Place in “Social Media: General Use on a Single Platform” for its Town of Smithfield Facebook Page and Second Place in “Video: Regular Programming” for its Smithfield in 60 series.
The awards were announced in a virtual awards ceremony June 25 due to the cancellation of this year’s annual NC3C Spring Conference. All 192 award program entries were judged by professional communications peers from the Minnesota Association of Government Communicators.
“It is my honor to congratulate all the 2020 NC3C Excellence in Communications contest winners,” said Rebecca Carter, NC3C President. “Each year I’m blown away by the incredible talent of local government communicators in North Carolina. The creativity and expertise NC3C members show in communicating, informing and educating their residents showcases not only their ability and skill but also how much they care about their communities. I’m so proud to be part of this remarkable group.”
First Place in “Social Media: General Use on a Single Platform” for its Town of Smithfield Facebook Page: Public Information Officer Tim Kerigan stated that, “We realized in previous years, we were simply not conveying proper information to our citizens and followers in a thorough and expedient manner. There were many in the town who wanted and desired better and quicker dissemination of all kinds of information about Smithfield. Since hiring Brian Eaves as the town’s Marketing and Communications Specialist at the end of 2018, those efforts and results have been drastically improved.” Brian Eaves adds, “Our Facebook reach has increased almost 500% from the beginning of 2019 and we have increased our total followers by almost 60%.”
Second Place in “Video: Regular Programming” for its Smithfield in 60 series: This series is filmed by IT Specialist Eric McDowell and written and hosted by Eaves. “It is a fast-paced, short (approximately 60 seconds) video that exhibits Brian’s unique wit and character while highlighting three to four upcoming events designed to inform and engage our citizens. This is another great way for the town to “tell our story,” explains Kerigan.
Of special note, Smithfield is the smallest town to win an award this year.
The purpose of North Carolina City & County Communicators is to encourage professional development and networking among local governmental communications professionals. The organization was formed in March 2007 and consists of professional government communicators from around the state. For more information about NC3C, visit the website www.nc3c.com.
