Media

Wisconsin Cheese Earns Coveted Best of Show Award at 2016 Alchemy Awards

11/28/2016
Madison, Wis. – The Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board (WMMB) was awarded the prestigious Best of Show award for the EatCurds.com Summer of Curds social media campaign at the 2016 Alchemy Awards. Hosted by the Madison Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), the Alchemy Awards honor exceptional campaigns and tactics developed and executed by public relations organizations in the greater Madison area. The Best of Show award is the organization's highest honor.

WMMB's Summer of Curds social media campaign was designed in partnership with the Madison-based agency Stephan & Brady to capitalize on the love that many people have for Wisconsin cheese—specifically, cheese curds—resulting in positive consumer engagement for Wisconsin cheese, as well as increased website traffic and awareness of EatCurds.com.

The 94-day campaign included daily giveaways of Wisconsin cheese curds throughout the summer. The campaign launched with an influencer mailing in which more than 30 individuals – including cheese and food bloggers, Instagram influencers, online media outlets such as BuzzFeed, and celebrities with a direct connection to Wisconsin – received "Summer of Curds" boxes containing fresh Wisconsin cheese curds. Entries into the contest were primarily driven via Wisconsin cheese social media channels including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (almost 60 organic promotional posts were shared over the course of the summer).

As a result of these efforts, the Summer of Curds social media campaign received more than 51 million total consumer impressions including mentions from high profile media outlets including BuzzFeed, Heritage Radio and the New York Times, had nearly 200,000 contest entries and saw a 500 percent increase in traffic to EatCurds.com.

For more information, visit EatCurds.com.

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About The Public Relations Society of America
Since 1947, the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) has been the world's largest and foremost organization of public relations professionals. PRSA provides professional development, sets standards of excellence and upholds principles of ethics for its members and, more broadly, the multi-billion dollar global public relations profession. PRSA also advocates for greater understanding and adoption of public relations services, and act as one of the industry's leading voices on the important business and professional issues of our time. More information about PRSA's Madison Chapter can be found at www.prsamadison.org.

About The Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board
The Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board is a nonprofit organization of dairy producers that promotes the consumption of milk, cheese and other dairy products made in America's Dairyland.

For More Information

Suzanne Fanning
Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin
8418 Excelsior Dr.
Madison, WI 53717
608-203-7262
sfanning@wisconsindairy.org