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MEPRA announces date for Annual General Meeting

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The Middle East Public Relations Association (MEPRA) has announced that it will hold its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on February 25, 2015 at Middlesex University in Knowledge Village, Dubai.

The agenda of the meeting will include all of the business transactions pertaining to the administrative functioning of MEPRA. The talking points will cover the key achievements of the industry body for the year of 2014, following with the strategy for the year of 2015. The board will also discuss the financial structure regarding the future activities for the year ahead.

The Chair of the MEPRA Board and Managing Director of Ketchum RAAD Middle East, Nicola Gregson, along with Brian Lott, Vice-Chair of MEPRA and Executive Director of Group Communication at Mubadala will go over prior activities and provide an overview of the upcoming events. Honorary Treasurer of MEPRA, Mazen Nahawi and President of News Group International, will be presenting the audited financial report and budget for the year 2015.

“We strongly encourage those involved in the PR industry throughout the region to attend this year’s meeting,” says Nicola Gregson, Chair of the MEPRA Board. “As an industry body we are committed to setting standards of excellence in the communication industry and providing platforms for members to come forth and present their views on past activities and contribute to the planning and action of future events as well.”

For more information please visit www.mepra.org.

Winners of the MEPRA Awards 2014 announced

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The winners of the MEPRA Awards 2014 have been announced. Celebrating the achievements of the Middle East’s PR industry over the last 12 months, a record-breaking 161 entries for this year’s MEPRA Awards were whittle down to 17 winners.

MEPRA Agency of the Year was awarded to Weber Shandwick MENA, while Memac Ogilvy Dubai won the Best Campaign award for The Autocomplete truth initiative and Mubadala won the In-House Team of the Year. A total of 10 agencies and organisations won for their creativity and execution, with Weber Shandwick, Memac Ogilvy and Hill+Knowlton Strategies winning multiple categories.

The winners were selected by a distinguished jury of marketing and communications leaders from across different sectors and organisations. The jury selected entries that exemplified best practices from across five categories – issue identification, research, strategic approach, planning and execution. Entries were received from across the region, extending to Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, as well as the UAE.

“The judges noted the quality of the entries this year, and they were impressed by how well the winners had managed to convey the underlying issue, the depth of research undertaken, the thought behind their strategic approach, the amount of planning which went into the winning campaigns and the quality of the execution,” says Carine Duvignaud, General Manager, MEPRA. “This year’s award-winning campaigns, agencies and organisations prove that the region has moved beyond what is traditionally viewed as a function that only embodies media relations to a profession that adds real value to the bottom line in terms of reputation building, issues awareness and incremental business.”

The full list of winners for the MEPRA Awards 2014 is as follows:

Sectors & Services 

  • Best Consumer Goods Campaign – Memac Ogilvy PR Tunisia – Delice
  • Best Consumer Services Campaign – House of Comms – Bounce: The Free-Jumping Revolution
  • Best Consumer Services Campaign (Highly Commended) – Hill+Knowlton Strategies – WWE Riyadh Tour 2014
  • Best Corporate Reputation & Image Campaign – Weber Shandwick MENA – The DGC-X-Factor! How DGCX Transformed Its Regional and Global Profile
  • Best Corporate Social Responsibility & Environmental PR Campaign – Blue Rubicon – Action on Diabetes Ramadan

Campaign

  • Best Government Communications Campaign – Hill+Knowlton Strategies – Inspiring a Sporting Generation – Qatar National Sports Day
  • Best Health Car & Services Campaign – Memac Ogilvy PR Dubai – Break Away from Psoriasis
  • Best Business to Business Campaign – Weber Shandwick MENA – Credit Where It’s Due! Raising Understanding of S&P’s Role in Regional Capital Market Development
  • Best Internal Communications Campaign – ENEC – 123 Tarkeez

Techniques 

  • Best Integrated Campaign – Memac Ogilvy PR Dubai – The Autocomplete truth
  • Best Launch Live Event/Stunt – DABO & CO – The Launch of Nokia Lumia 1020: Reaching New Heights
  • Best Use of Media Relations – Mojo PR – ICAEW
  • Best Use of Social Media & Digital PR – Atlantis the Palm
  • Best Use of Sponsorship – Hill & Knowlton Strategies – ‘Winning the ultimate World Cup battle of the brands for Adidas’

People and Agencies 

  • Agency of the Year – Weber Shandwick MENA
  • In-House Team of the Year – Mubadala
  • Best Overall Campaign of the Year – Memac Ogilvy PR Dubai – The Autocomplete truth
  • Dave Robinson Award for Outstanding Young Communicator of the Year – Becki Willis, Hill+Knowlton Strategies
  • Dave Robinson Award for Outstanding Young Communicator of the Year (Highly Commended) – Rijosh Joseph, DABO & CO

Weber Shandwick named MEPRA’s Agency of the Year

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Weber Shandwick MENA has been named Agency of the Year by the Middle East Public Relations Association (MEPRA) at the MEPRA Awards ceremony, which was held in Dubai last night. Weber Shandwick MENA also took home separate awards for ‘Best Corporate Reputation and Image’ for its work for DGCX (Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange) and ‘Best Business to Business Communications’ for its work with Standard and Poor’s. Honourees for each category are selected by an independent industry panel based on information gathered during the regional awards process.

“Winning MEPRA Agency of the Year is both a great achievement and a recognition of our commitment to creative excellence in a competitive marketplace with increasingly high best practice benchmarks,” says Ziad Hasbani, CEO, Weber Shandwick MENA. “I am delighted for my talented colleagues across the region who strive to achieve outstanding results for our clients day-in, day-out. However, we will not be resting on any laurels. We are driving forward a transformation of our business, which will ensure that we continue to stay ahead of the regional communication trends and place centre-stage the recognition that creativity and digital offerings are now key. We are confident that this award win will be the first of many.”

2014 MEPRA Awards finalists announced

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The finalists for the 2014 MEPRA Awards have been revealed, with the winners due to be announced at the annual gala event on Tuesday November 25, 2014, at the Westin Dubai Mina Seyahi. Among the 16 award categories – which have been split into Sectors & Services, Techniques and People & Agencies – finalists include DABO & CO, Edelman, Four Communications, Mojo PR, Memac Ogilvy PR – Dubai, TOH PR and Weber Shandwick MENA for Agency of the Year, Etihad Airways and Mubadala for In-House Team of the Year and Al Jazeera Media Network, Blue Rubicon, DABO & CO  and Memac Ogilvy PR – Dubai, for Best Integrated Campaign.

To view the full list of MEPRA 2014 finalists, visit http://goo.gl/LNTBKQ.

Six weeks left to enter for 2014 MEPRA Awards

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There are six weeks left to submit entries for the 2014 Middle East Public Relations (MEPRA) Awards. With the submission deadline scheduled for midnight on October 9, 2014, the finalists will be announced on November 2. Sponsored by Mubadala and Fabric as the Platinum and Gold sponsors respectively, the awards will be announced on November 26 at an awards ceremony and gala dinner held at the Westin Hotel Mina Seyahi in Dubai.

Entries for the awards are welcomed from businesses and individuals operating in the public relations sector across the Middle East. This year, thirteen best practice categories and three team categories are available, split into Sectors & Services, People & Agency and Techniques, with two awards not open to entries – Overall Campaign of the Year and Chairman’s Award – Contribution to the PR profession in the Middle East.

For more information and to register, visit www.mepra.org/en/awards/

Middle East PR Awards 2014 open for entries

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The Middle East PR Awards 2014, hosted by the Middle East Public Relations Association (MEPRA), is now open for entries. The deadline for entries is October 9, with the finalists to be announced on November 2 . The awards, which seek to recognise agencies, teams and individuals in the public relations sector in the Middle East, will be announced on November 25 at an awards ceremony and gala dinner held at The Westin Dubai Mina Seyahi.

The categories for this year’s Middle East PR Awards are split into the following:

Sectors & Services
Consumer Goods, Consumer Services, Corporate Reputation & Image, Corporate Social Responsibility & Environment PR, Government & Communications, Health Care & Services, Internal Communications and Business to Business.

People & Agency
In-House Team of the Year, Agency of the Year and Young Professional of the Year.

Techniques
Best Use of Sponsorship, Best Launch Live Event/Stunt, Best Use of Media Relations – Consumer or Trade, Best Use of Social Media/Digital PR and Best Integrated Campaign.

Not Open to Entries
Overall Campaign of the Year and Chairman’s Award – Contribution to the PR Profession in the Middle East.

For more information and to register, visit www.mepra.org/en/awards/

Nicola Gregson promoted to MEPRA Chairman

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Nicola Gregson, Managing Director of Ketchum Raad – Middle East, has been elected as Chairman of MEPRA, the Middle East PR Association, following the AGM meeting last month. Having been a member of the board since 2009, Nicola was initially responsible for Measurement and Evaluation, and was promoted to Vice Chair two years ago.

“The PR industry in the MENA region continues to progress at an amazingly rapid rate – MEPRA’s role is to provide access to training, ensure governance and best practice, and be the voice for the profession so that we can continue to drive the region’s PR industry forwards,” says Nicola. “I am incredibly proud to be working with such strong Board members representing both international PR networks and regional agencies and global and national companies.”

DABO & CO continues winning streak at MEPRAs

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Integrated communications agency DABO & CO added three further MEPRA awards to its already impressive tally at last night’s fifth Middle East Public Relations Association (MEPRA) Awards. The latest awards sweep takes the company’s total MEPRA awards tally to 15 since the annual event was launched in 2009. Past awards include ‘Agency of the Year’ in 2010 and ‘Mid-Sized Agency of the Year’ in 2012.

DABO & CO triumphed with three awards out of the four categories entered picking up Best Integrated Campaign – DABO & CO & Marriott International: ‘The Launch of the JW Marriott Marquis’, Best Use of Media Relations Consumer or Trade: ‘Canon at Gulf Print 2013’ and Best Practice Consumer Goods: ‘kate spade new york’.

“The annual MEPRA Awards is a major highlight for us as an agency and we are thrilled to have walked away with three awards in recognition of our integrated and results-driven approach to communications,” says Managing Partner, Camilla d’Abo. “Yesterday’s MEPRA awards were the perfect celebration of an industry that has come of age. In light of yesterday’s Dubai Expo 2020 win, the Middle East’s PR industry is on the threshold of an amazing period in its evolution and I am confident that this will bring further opportunities to showcase world-class campaigns emerging from the region.”

Jason Leavy, Managing Director, added: “The 2013 MEPRA wins are the perfect way to round off another exceptional year for the agency. Not only have we recently moved to new state-of-the-art offices to accommodate our continued growth, but we have a stronger than ever talent pool combining exceptional local talent alongside international industry heavy weights, and we are looking forward to an even better 2014.”

Ketchum dominates Healthcare at MEPRA Awards

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For the second consecutive year, Ketchum Raad dominated the healthcare sector at the Middle East Public Relations Association (MEPRA) Awards held last night. The event recognised the Ketchum Raad ME team as Best Practice in Healthcare & Services for their partnership with AstraZeneca Gulf on the Safe@Heart campaign.

The campaign, targeted at Gulf Nationals who are at risk of heart disease, those who have been diagnosed with a heart condition or those who have had a heart attack, has resulted in over 5400 people taking part in heart health screenings and hundreds signing up for a 12 week programme that encourages them to make easy yet impactful changes in their daily habits to benefit their health.

“Healthcare is a packed space with a lot of important messages vying for an opportunity to be heard,” says Nicola Gregson, Managing Director Ketchum Raad Middle East. “Campaigns need to be intelligent, strategic and extremely well executed to capture the media’s attention and reach their target audience. I couldn’t be more proud of my team for their success with Safe@Heart. We are expanding our healthcare offering in 2014 and look forward to partnering with our existing and future clients to deliver even more impactful and effective communications across the sector.”

Abigail Dawson, Account Director and Regional Healthcare Lead at Ketchum Raad Middle East added, “This is the second year in a row we have received the Best Practice Healthcare and Services award and we are truly proud to be taking it home again. Projects like Safe@Heart are the reason we are in communications. As a healthcare team, we are genuinely passionate about working with our clients to help them achieve their business goals as well as communicate with patients and customers and empower them to change their lives positively.”