“Brookline was honoured with a Silver Award of Excellence in the Social Media Category at the Canadian Public Relations Society (CPRS) 2009 conference. The agency was acknowledged for the innovative “Young & Free” campaign for Servus Credit Union. To find out all the details, check out our press release below.”

Prestigious Canadian Public Relations Society Awards Salute Leaders in the Public Relations Industry

CALGARY, ALBERTA —June 15, 2009 – Brookline Public Relations is pleased to announce that it was honoured with a Silver Award of Excellence in the Social Media Category at the Canadian Public Relations Society (CPRS) 2009 conference in Vancouver on June 9th. Brookline was recognized for the extremely successful “Young & Free” campaign for Servus Credit Union that applied various methods of social media to engage youth between the ages of 17 and 25.

The CPRS Awards acknowledge outstanding performance and service by members of the society and showcases the talent within the industry. This particular award was based on effectively communicating a campaign by means of social media and overall results.

“Social media is more than a trend, it’s an effective, prevailing form of communications that public relations professionals must understand and embrace,” said Shauna MacDonald, principal and founder of Brookline Public Relations. “Brookline is known for its fresh and creative approach and we are privileged to be recognized as such with this award.”

The award-winning Young & Free campaign was lead by senior account executive, Rebecca Eras, and supported by assistant account specialist, Deanna Vigeant. In October 2007, Servus Credit Union looked to Brookline for a way to connect with young people as a result of a decline in their youth membership. Brookline worked closely with Larissa Walkiw, the web-savvy self-proclaimed “spokester,” to establish a presence on YouTube, Twitter, Flickr and Facebook.

The campaign received national recognition and Brookline generated weekly media hits in social media spheres, as well as traditional and industry media. As a result, the website saw 95,021 site visits, 1,381 blog comments, 128,014 YouTube video views and a 30 per cent increase in youth members.

In summer 2008, the initiative took home one of the most prominent social media awards in North America, a Forrester Research Groundswell Award.

“I always say one of the most rewarding things at Brookline is seeing employees grow and succeed, I am very proud of our team for achieving such success with this campaign,” said MacDonald. “They deserve to be rewarded for the tireless effort they put forth on this account and I am confident Brookline will be honoured again in the future.”

Today, youngfreealberta.com receives approximately 300 hits a day and Young & Free is still thriving as Servus signed on its second spokesperson, Myles Peterman, in fall 2008.

Brookline is proud to announce our involvement in winning a significant award for our client, Common Wealth Credit Union (CWCU). CWCU took home one of the most prestigious social media awards in North America, a Forrester Research Groundswell Award, for its innovative social media program, Young & Free. The first place award in the Talking Category recognizes Young & Free for its success at engaging young people online through a microsite populated with blogs, vlogs and polls that cover everything from finance to pop culture. Check out details of the award here: http://www.forrester.com/Groundswell/talking.html.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Prestigious award salutes Calgary’s brightest young leaders of 2008

CALGARY, ALBERTA—September 4, 2008 – Brookline Public Relations is pleased to announce Shauna MacDonald, Principal and Founder, has been selected as one of the recipients of CalgaryInc Magazine’s highly anticipated Top 40 Under 40 Class of 2008. Selected by a panel of judges consisting of CalgaryInc’s editorial staff and senior business leaders, nominees were selected for excelling in their careers, giving back to the community, and in the process, elevating the profile of Calgary. This year marks the 10^th Anniversary of the award.

“I am thrilled to have been named a member of the Top 40 Under 40 Class of 2008,” said Shauna MacDonald. “It is an honour and a privilege to be recognized with these outstanding business and community leaders.”

Shauna founded Brookline Public Relations in October 2004, quickly growing the boutique PR agency and securing an impressive roster of clients based locally, nationally and internationally. Brookline is now recognized as one of Canada’s leading boutique public relations agencies with a superior track record for planning and executing award-winning public relations programs.

Getting her start in PR with a Boston-based public relations and strategic communication consulting firm, Shauna was able to provide strategic public relations expertise to companies of all sizes throughout the U.S. and the world. For five years, prior to starting Brookline, Shauna was Vice President and Managing Director of Western Canada for an international public relations firm, as well as the Technology & Marketing Communications Practice Leader for its Canadian operations.

Shauna has helped numerous companies in many industries launch programs, products and increase profile and awareness by developing comprehensive and strategic PR and IR strategies. Her extensive knowledge of both Canadian and U.S. markets has helped start-up and established companies gain and sustain market leader positions.

Shauna and the rest of the recipients will be profiled in a special section of the September issue of CalgaryInc. and honoured at a launch party at Flames Central on Wednesday, September 3. This is the 10^th anniversary for CalgaryInc.’s Top 40 Under 40. This year, hundreds of outstanding nominations were received. For more information: www.top40under40.com/