Roanoke Region Parks & Tourism Departments Win Big

Blue Ridge Standard Time Two Roanoke Region organizations received recognition for their creative campaigns this year. The Roanoke Valley Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Roanoke County Parks, Recreation and Tourism department both earned awards for their efforts in 2014.

The Blue Ridge Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America recently handed out six Summit Awards to the Roanoke Valely Convention and Visitors Bureau for their “Blue Ridge Standard Time” tourism ad campaign. The six-month campaign promoted Roanoke – “Virginia’s Blue Ridge” – as an ideal mountain vacation destination for the summer and fall. The bureau partnered with Kroger to place digital kiosks in their grocery stores in target markets like Richmond, Hampton Roads, and Raleigh-Durham.

Not to be outdone, the Roanoke County Parks, Recreation, and Tourism department garnered some praise of their own this month. The county took home four awards from the Virginia Recreation and Park Society’s annual conference, among the most by any organization in 2014. The awards are listed below:

Best New Special Event (Population 50,0001-100,000): Roanoke Zombie 5K
Best New Environmental Sustainability (Population 50,001-100,000): The World is Not Your Ashtray campaign
Best Promotional Effort – Specialty (Population 50,001-100,000): Green Ridge Fun, Family Fitness TV ad
Best Promotional Effort – Traditional (Population 50,001-100,000): Facility Rental Guide