MAUMEE, Ohio – Hart received a Best of Show Award, plus five gold awards and one each of silver, bronze and merit, in the Ninth Annual Service Industry Advertising Awards.

The Service Industry Advertising Awards recognize advertising excellence in the service industry. Nearly 2,000 entries were judged on execution, creativity, quality, consumer appeal and overall breakthrough advertising content. Hart received one of only nine Best of Show awards granted nationwide.

The Best of Show distinction was awarded for Hart’s work on behalf of the Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority for its “Gas Guzzler” total ad campaign. The campaign comprises print, outdoor, radio and out-of-home advertising, focusing on numerous benefits of riding TARTA while gas prices rose. The campaign also received a Gold award.

Hart was also recognized for its work on seven additional projects:

• Paramount Healthcare’s corporate website – Gold
• The Right Thing’s “Perfect Match” magazine ad – Gold
• Wacker Chemical Corporation’s “You Know Us” total ad campaign – Gold
• La-Z-Boy’s “The Brooke Review” website – Gold
• Paramount Healthcare’s “Elite” total ad campaign – Silver
• The Right Thing’s “Strength” magazine ad – Bronze
• HCR Manor Care’s “Memory Care” total ad campaign – Merit

Hart is proud to announce it has received a Diamond Award from the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), East Central District, for its work in promoting the Summer Food Program on behalf of ProMedica, the leading integrated healthcare provider in northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan.

The Summer Food campaign took place from June through August 2011 and involved a mix of public relations, grassroots and advertising tactics designed to reach a very important target audience: hungry kids and their caregivers in the city of Toledo. This campaign resulted in a dramatic increase in the number free meals provided to children in need over the summer.

“We’re proud to have partnered with ProMedica in promoting this program, which served more than 45,000 meals to kids in need this summer,” said Mike Hart, president and CEO of Hart.

The Summer Food campaign took place in conjunction with the United Way and the YMCA/JCC of Greater Toledo.

PRSA’s East Central District covers six states including Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

You can view a full list of the winners on the East Central District website.

MAUMEE, Ohio – Hart, an integrated marketing communications firm, created and implemented a campaign that won a Grand Award in the American Public Transportation Association’s (APTA) Annual AdWheel Awards competition.

The “Empty Seat” campaign for the Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority was honored in the Public Relations/Awareness or Educational Campaign category for transit agencies providing four million or fewer annual passenger trips. Earlier, the campaign had won a first place award in the same category, making it eligible for the Grand Award judging.

The basic concept behind the campaign showed an empty seat from a TARTA bus at various venues throughout the Authority’s nine-community service area to underline the breadth of locations and activities that can be reached by using TARTA.

“TARTA has been a long-term client and allows Hart the creative freedom to promote TARTA’s various services. These awards are proof of what can happen when two entities work as true partners. We are very proud of our association with TARTA and of the work we do for them,” said Hart President and CEO Mike Hart.

“Hart has a rich heritage of providing service to public entities,” he said, “and understands the special circumstances in which public entities operate.”

APTA’s judging criteria included clarity of message and information; attractiveness and use of design, layout and type; attention-getting and holding qualities; and overall impact and impression.

“Recipients of this esteemed award represent creativity to the highest standards in public transportation marketing and communications,” says APTA President William Millar. “The AdWheel Award recognizes successful delivery of innovative and engaging public transit communications.”

The awards were presented in October at the APTA Annual Meeting & EXPO in New Orleans, LA. Nearly 600 entries competed this year in the four categories of print, electronic, campaign and special event.

MAUMEE, Ohio – Seven of eight banner designs created by Hart Associates graphic artists have been chosen to appear in a prestigious design magazine.

HOW magazine’s September/October 2011 edition includes the seven designs in its Self-Promotion Design Annual edition. The magazine is highly regarded within the design community and is part of the HOW brand, which includes a host of products and events created to serve the needs of graphic designers.

The banners originally were created for the American Institute for Graphic Arts’ (AIGA) Urban Forest Project to promote sustainability efforts, and were award winners in that 2010 competition.

“For the Hart design team, this selection is a great honor and recognition,” said Mike Bell, Hart’s Vice President, Chief Creative Officer. “It’s even more impressive when you consider HOW magazine honored seven of our banners among the 50 designs it featured in this issue.”

The Self-Promotion Design competition was launched in 1988 and is HOW magazine’s oldest contest. This is the only awards program to specifically recognize outstanding promotional work. The competition celebrates design work that is engaging, memorable and effective at moving the viewer toward action.

MAUMEE, Ohio – Hart Associates, one of Northwest Ohio’s leading integrated marketing and communications firms, created and implemented a campaign that has won a First Place in the American Public Transportation Association’s (APTA) Annual Adwheel Awards competition.

The “Empty Seat” campaign was created and implemented for the Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority and was honored in the Public Relations/Awareness or Educational Campaign category for transit agencies providing less that 4 million trips annually.

The basic concept behind the campaign is to show an empty seat from a TARTA bus at various venues throughout the Authority’s nine-community service area to underline the breadth of locations and activities that can be reached by using TARTA.

“TARTA has been a long-term client and allows Hart Associates the creative freedom to promote the Authority’s various services in attention-getting ways that attract riders and help to ensure continued operations,” said Hart’s President Mike Hart. “Hart has a rich heritage of providing service to public entities and understands the special circumstances in which they operate.”

The criteria on which the APTA entries were judged included clarity of message and information; attractiveness and use of design, layout and type; attention-getting and holding qualities; and overall impact and impression.