Winner: Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.
Campaign: Toyota Today
Toyota Today, published every other month, is distributed to 23,000 of the company's management and sales staff in dealerships throughout the U.S. Designed to strengthen the
link between Toyota Motor Sales and its dealerships, the magazine aims to build a broader understanding of industry issues, generate support for corporate, recognize
accomplishments of dealerships and their employees, motivate dealers and their staffs to improve sales and service, and provide product and program news.
The 32-page, four-color glossy publication contains stories ranging from profiles of Toyota employees to customizable e-brochures that "align customer dreams with regional
realities" and the technology that lets Toyota "maximize performance and fuel economy while minimizing emissions." Employees might even spot a piece on a concert that Toyota
sponsored to entertain the troops at San Diego's Camp Pendleton - starring sexy songstress Beyonce Knowles. The magazine is written and edited by an in-house staff of five, each
of whom has other jobs to do, aside from contributing to the publication.
The corporation's internal communications management team conducts biannual readership surveys to learn what the magazine's audience needs to know, and confirms that the
publication's goals are being met. One of the surveys in 2005 found that 97 percent of respondents rated Toyota Today "excellent" or "good"; 89 percent of those who responded also
said the magazine helped them do their jobs better, while 91 percent confirmed that the magazine helped them understand Toyota better.
The surveys also let the communications team fine-tune their coverage. As a result of a 2005 survey's findings, the team plans to increase its focus on sales, feature more
sales consultant profiles, offer more sales tips from peers, and provide more product information and competitive comparisons. More customer input will be sought, as well, and the
company will consider ways to boost readership of its Intersection column, which addresses specific issues with questions posed to sales consultants on the front lines.
Winner: American Airlines and Weber Shandwick
Campaign: American Airlines Gets Fuel Smart
The outlandish fuel bills of many major airlines have given rise to a spate of financial woes in recent years, sparking numerous and varied responses.
American Airlines embarked on a conservation effort in 2005, called Fuel Smart, to keep its employees posted on the carrier's efforts to conserve fuel system-wide. The campaign
also encouraged employees to submit their own conservation concepts for consideration.
A Fuel Conservation Task Force included members from various key American Airlines departments, from fleet service to finance and corporate communications. By conducting
extensive research, the team gathered information on fuel prices, consumption and burn statistics, as well as the potential impact of each of the top 12 fuel conservation
initiatives. In addition, the team analyzed the company's systems to determine best practices for reaching employees, as well as the cost and feasibility of creating new
communications channels.
The campaign needed to inform employees of the carrier's efforts, engage targeted domestic work groups in the solution, and inspire those groups to work uniformly to employ
existing fuel conservation strategies. The employee newsletter, Flagship News, was the centerpiece of the program, focusing on Fuel Smart and sharing facts and success stories and
issuing a call to action.
The four-page, black-and-white printed pieces also aligned with the company's cost-reduction efforts by keeping production costs down. More than 93,000 issues of Flagship News
were distributed to AA employees across the country at headquarters and in airports. E-mail messages were sent to top managers and work group leaders to encourage word-of-mouth,
and the publication was so popular that reprints had to be ordered. Employees responded eagerly to the newsletter, and pilots studied it closely. Many employees even posted the
newsletter at their desks as a reminder of the company's focus on fuel conservation.
Under the Fuel Smart program, the airline saved more than $150 million by the end of the year - at the time, that was the equivalent of buying more than 80 million gallons of
fuel. Pretty smart tactics.
Honorable Mentions
SYNC: Gemstar-TV Guide International With the aim of improving internal communications, Gemstar created an internal newsletter to highlight new projects, success stories and
cross-company initiatives. The newsletter now receives more submissions than it can print.
McWane Magazine-Casting for the Future: Panorama Public Relations To increase employee awareness companywide of employee and technical achievements, McWane put out an internal
publication. In addition to accomplishing its primary objectives, the magazine also received the 2006 Communicators Award of Excellence.
INK: Carpet One For national carpet retailer Carpet One, the purpose of its PR-owned and -distributed internal newsletter INK was to keep all storeowners and employees abreast
of the goings-on within the company. However, after conducting informal research, the PR team realized that many of its retailers - generally males over the age of 45 - don't
understand the role played by PR in the organization. Therefore, the INK newsletter came to embody two main functions: spreading news and educating employees about PR's purpose,
with the tagline "Carpet One Public Relations gets you ink." The effort paid off: With a minimal budget of $6,000, the team spread the word, reaching an estimated 2,000 employees
nationwide.
The Star: McCain Foods When a local printer said it could no longer print McCain Foods' The Star black-and-white publication, the company took the challenge in-house. A color
trial edition in 2004 was successful, using new methods to collect materials from 50 correspondents around the world, adhering to the Star Correspondent Manual. The production was
well received by The Star's audience of 1,600 employees, and quarterly assessments ensure the quality will remain high.