Hubbies 2014 Individual Awards Winners
Digital Entrepreneur of the Year 2014
Winner: Meagan Cignoli, director of short-form videos, Visual Country.
Since then, Cignoli has travelled the world to create more than 60 high-resolution campaigns for companies such as Nike, GE, Clinique, Lowe’s, The Walt Disney Co., and HBO, among others.
To help manage the increasing workload, Cignoli formed Visual Country, which now employs six full-time creative staffers. The firm’s work has garnered high-profile coverage in more than 30 major publications, including Time, Fast Company, Forbes, Business Insider, and The New York Times. In a segment on CBS, the broadcaster called Cignoli “a leader in the space.”
Her work has also been recognized on the global awards circuit, as she won a Cannes Cyber Lion and two Mashie Awards – ‘Best Digital Campaign of the Year’ and ‘Best in Show’ – for her Vine work.
“Meagan’s pioneering work with Vine is becoming the benchmark to help advance some of the world’s greatest brands,” said one judge. “She is not only a true entrepreneur, but also clearly an innovator who many will seek to emulate.”
Digital Innovator of the Year 2014
Winner: Anastasia Khoo, director of marketing, Human Rights Campaign
As the US Supreme Court decided to hear two landmark marriage equality cases that would determine the rights of same-sex couples to marry, Anastasia Khoo led one of the most successful and viral marketing campaigns in the history of the LGBT movement.
As the largest LGBT membership organization in the country, the Human Rights Campaign had an enormous investment in the outcome of the cases.
Khoo and her team implemented a strategy that spanned earned media, advertising, and events, but it was the centerpiece of the initiative – a red and pink version of the organization’s logo – that really helped drive the campaign forward.
Within 24 hours of the logo being uploaded on Facebook, the post received 189,177 shares, 95,725 likes, 18 million newsfeed appearances, and more than 10 million impressions. Soon, politicians, corporations, celebrities, and millions of people across the globe adopted the logo to show their support for the cause.
When the Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act and Proposition 8 in June, granting federal rights to same-sex couples and declaring California’s ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional, the iconic image had helped turn the spotlight on the group’s work and on LGBT equality.
On decision day, the organization had the top-performing page on Facebook with instant news and more than 1 million interactions. Khoo’s inspired campaign also scooped a prestigious 2014 PRWeek award for ‘Best Use of Social Media/Digital.’
“This is an extraordinary example of how a single, motivated individual can create a movement through passion and determination,” noted one judge.
Influencer of the Year 2014 – Individual
Winner: Heidi Sullivan, SVP, digital content, Cision
Heidi Sullivan has been a strong and growing force at Cision for more than a decade.
In 2013 alone, self-proclaimed media metrics nerd Sullivan hosted 20-plus webinars, spoke at more than 15 conferences and events, and even found the time to co-write a content marketing ebook, titled Power Your Story: Content Marketing Essentials for PR.
When she was not speaking about content marketing, digital influencers, or social trends in the past 12 months, Sullivan – who joined Cision in 2004 – was helping the organization develop and launch the Content Marketing Suite – which helps users create, curate, and amplify content across more than 90,000 publisher sites.
“Heidi is fast talking and moving as our SVP of digital content,” says a Cision colleague, “and we are happy to be moving with her.”
The Hubbie ‘Influencer of the Year’ award is the latest in a string of accolades for Sullivan. In 2012, the youngest member of Cision’s executive team was named to PRWeek’s 40 Under 40 list for transforming the company’s approach, including updating Cision’s vast media database to reflect the increasing importance of social media.
Sullivan is also heavily involved in Cision’s Seek or Shout online community.
Young Digital Innovator of the Year 2014
Winner: Serena May, senior account executive, Social@Ogilvy
Described as a natural leader, Serena May has had a whirlwind year at Ogilvy Public Relations.
In the past 12 months, she grew the scope of work with Ogilvy client DuPont Sustainable Solutions by 20%, delivered multiple online social media training sessions to Chanel’s 80-person marketing communications team, and was a key figure in the implementation and rollout of Social@Ogilvy’s 2013 Global Advocacy Study.
Fluent in Mandarin and Cantonese, May served as a digital strategist in Ogilvy Hong Kong before bringing her social media skills to Ogilvy’s Washington, DC office and, later, the WPP agency’s New York headquarters.
May leads day-to-day paid, owned, and earned media strategy for DuPont. In less than 12 months she launched and grew the company’s LinkedIn group into a 1,200 member community of senior level and C-suite executives. Within six months, she was promoted from account executive to senior account executive. The process normally takes a minimum of 12 months.
She now manages junior staffers on the DuPont account and oversaw the creation of new agency offering the Principles of Social Design. May also facilitated training of this offer for 20 traditional PR and advertising creatives.
For her outstanding contributions in 2013, May was a finalist for ‘Young PR Professional of the Year’ at the 2014 PRWeek Awards.
Other accomplishments include leading brand and senior leadership interviews for Ogilvy’s internal Product Team, which is set up to evaluate the services the agency provides to clients, along with capturing emerging trends to help the team with annual planning.
To download the complete list of winners from The Hubbies 2014, click here.
