Summerville, South Carolina
August 15, 2012 – Dorchester
County Economic Development received the Award of Merit from the Southern
Economic Development Council (SEDC) for a technology-driven marketing campaign
in the Council’s annual Communication Awards competition. The awards were formally announced during the
regional organization’s yearly conference that was held during August 5-7,
2012, in Myrtle Beach, SC.
The
marketing campaign consisted of four, high-definition testimonial videos that
centered on Dorchester County’s unique location. Funded by a generous grant from Santee
Cooper, the project was first initiated to improve the visual interest of the
Economic Development website, but then quickly advanced into a mobile marketing
opportunity to reach developers and site selection consultants with "on-the-go"
needs.
As
a one-stop creative solution company and designer of the Economic Development
website, UniMedia was commissioned for this project to maintain branding and
design consistency. During an intense
two days of production, UniMedia was able to capture footage at ArborGen,
Robert Bosch, Scout Boats, and Showa Denko Carbon. Each video is approximately three minutes in
length and narrated by corporate-level executives that conveyed their unique experience
of doing business in Dorchester County.
With
over 20 categories available for acknowledgement, eligible nominations for this
year’s competition reflected only those projects created during June 2011 and
June 2012 that included entries for advertisements, annual reports, and audiovisual,
just to name a few. As the oldest and
largest economic development organization in the nation, SEDC has cultivated
this competition as a means to promote excellence in and among economic
development agencies throughout the Southeast.
To
best represent the diversity among this industry, submissions have been
historically judged by small, medium, and large divisions, and awarded either
Best of Class, Superior, Excellent, or Merit.
Placing again in the medium division, the 2012 competition marks a
consecutive win for Dorchester County.
"We are honored to receive this
prestigious award for our marketing campaign," said Dorchester County Council
Chairman Larry Hargett. "This campaign not
only showcased the diversity of our existing industries, but creatively
illustrated that Dorchester County is a place where companies can grow
globally. It also afforded an
opportunity for our industries to get involved and excited about their
community."
"These annual Communication Awards recognize and showcase the leading
marketing work done by economic development professionals throughout
the South. Dorchester County Economic
Development hit the mark this year with its campaign. This campaign not only showed creativity, but
also solid messaging and effectiveness at reaching its target audience. We were wowed by all the entries we received
this year, and were impressed with the high level of marketing work being done
in economic development by SEDC members," said SEDC President Gene Stinson
after the awards ceremony.
Since its inception
over 65 years ago, SEDC has expanded to include members from 17 states in the
American South with a distinct mission to provide useful information and
dynamic leadership to economic development practitioners for the continued
opportunity to "connect, develop, and grow."
"We strive each
year to produce high-quality, marketing materials to promote Dorchester
County," said Jon Baggett, Dorchester County Economic Development Director. "With so many technological advances, it is important for us to continually evolve
our marketing efforts to better compete in a global market. Receiving honors from SEDC two years in a row
is a great accomplishment for us, and reaffirms that our team is on the right
track."
To view the testimonial videos included in the
marketing campaign, visit www.dorchesterforbusiness.com
or access the videos from your mobile device at www.dorchesterforbusiness.com/mobi.
About
Dorchester County Economic Development
Dorchester
County Economic Development is the organization responsible for growing and retaining
business in the County. Its mission is
to work to create and support an environment that welcomes business, and helps
companies to grow and succeed over the long-term. This ultimately will increase the standard of
living for all of Dorchester County’s citizens by providing more job
opportunities with higher skills and better wages.
About Southern Economic Development Council
(SEDC)
The Southern Economic Development Council (SEDC) is an
830-member professional association composed of a broad cross-section of active
and influential economic developers from business and industry; utilities;
transportation; financial and education institutions; chambers of commerce; and
local, regional, and state development agencies. Members in the 17-state area share a common
interest: the promotion and enhancement
of the economic development profession. The
SEDC region includes the following states: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana,
Maryland and the District of Columbia, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina,
Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia. For more information about SEDC, please visit
our website at www.sedc.org.
