Author: chris

Gail Cooksey Recognized Among D CEO’s Dallas 500 Most Powerful Business Leaders

Gail Cooksey, founder and president of Cooksey Communications, has been named to D CEO’s Dallas 500 list of the most powerful and influential business leaders in North Texas.

The Dallas 500 is a special edition of D CEO, the regional business publication of D Magazine. It features top executives in more than 60 categories and provides a personal, engaging look at the “leaders who make Dallas-Fort Worth’s economy tick.” Unprecedented in scope, the Dallas 500 is the region’s highly selective biographical database of the people who truly run Dallas-Fort Worth business, based on extensive contacts in North Texas business circles, hundreds of interviews and months of research.

“I’m honored to be recognized among those who are helping North Texas realize its full potential,” said Cooksey. “The region provides immense opportunities – with its central location, educated workforce and business-friendly environment – and is constantly raising the bar for the rest of the country.”

Cooksey founded Cooksey Communications in 1994 to leverage her extensive corporate public relations experience and deep network of Dallas-Fort Worth civic, media, government and business contacts into high-impact results for the firm’s clients. She serves on the board of directors of the 35W Coalition, North Texas Commission, Dallas Friday Group and the Greater Irving-Las Colinas Chamber of Commerce. Cooksey is also a member of the Public Relations Society of America and a graduate of Leadership North Texas.

Cooksey Earns Six MarCom Awards in International Creative Competition

Cooksey Communications recently received four Platinum and two Gold honors in the 2017 MarCom Awards, an international creative competition.

The six, prestigious awards highlight Cooksey’s diverse and successful experience in strategic communications, creative design, media relations, special events and more:

• Platinum Winner – Strategic Plan Design – DFW International Airport Strategic Plan 2016-2020. Cooksey designed and completed a strategic plan for DFW International Airport with a focus on customer experience, business performance, employee engagement, operational excellence, community engagement, safety and security, and the future.
• Platinum Winner – Television Placement – Exclusive Tour: Modern Meets Creative at Frisco Station. Cooksey secured a two-minute segment on NBC 5 (KXAS-TV) about progress on the Frisco Station development, a mixed-use, master community that could bring 14,000 jobs to Collin County.
• Platinum Winner – Magazine Placement – City of Enid’s Approach to Protect Future Water Supply. In partnership with Freese and Nichols, Inc., Cooksey drafted and placed an article in Southwest Water Works Journal about the Kaw Lake project, which will provide the City of Enid with a reliable water supply for the next 50 years and beyond.
• Platinum Winner – Special Event – Dallas High School Media Hard Hat Tour. In partnership with the Dallas office of the global architecture and design firm, Perkins+Will, Cooksey planned an exclusive media tour of the landmark downtown Dallas High School, which will house the firm’s more than 180 professionals in late 2017.
• Gold Winner – Logo – Drive Like Your Family Lives Here. Cooksey designed the logo for the City of Mesquite’s “Drive Like Your Family Lives Here” public education program, which was developed to help improve traffic safety.
• Gold Winner – Print Advertising – Magazine Beach Ad for EltaMD. Cooksey created a two-page ad to showcase EltaMD’s sun protection products in Princess Cruises

MarCom Awards honor excellence in marketing and communication while recognizing the creativity, hard work and generosity of industry professionals. Since its inception in 2004, MarCom has evolved into one of the largest, most-respected creative competitions in the world. Each year, about 6,000 print and digital entries are submitted from dozens of countries.

MarCom is administered by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals (AMCP). The international organization, founded in 1995, consists of several thousand marketing, communication, advertising, public relations, digital and web professionals. AMCP administers recognition programs, provides judges, and rewards outstanding achievement and service to the community. In the past few years alone, AMCP has contributed more than $250,000 to charitable causes.

Cooksey Earns Six MarCom Awards in International Creative Competition

Cooksey Communications recently received three Platinum and three Gold honors in the 2018 MarCom Awards, an international creative competition, in recognition of the agency’s outstanding client work over the past year.

PLATINUM AWARDS

• Strategic Communications (Media Relations/Publicity)
  CRYSTAL LAGOONS® – BALMORAL
  Cooksey secured more than 100 print, broadcast and digital stories for the August grand opening near Houston of the first man-made, crystalline lagoon in Texas. This resulted in reaching an audience of more than 1.7 million and a return on investment exceeding a quarter of a million dollars.
• Strategic Communications (Media Relations/Publicity)
  FRISCO STATION “INNOVATION” MEDIA COVERAGE 
  Cooksey was instrumental in several media stories centered around innovation at Frisco Station, an exciting 242-acre, new-urban destination in the heart of Frisco designed to enhance the well-being of all who visit, live and work. This included extensive media coverage about the project’s 5G Evolution wireless technology, Uber Elevate urban aviation ride-sharing and drive.ai turnkey mobility solutions.
• Print Media (Print Creativity)
  RICHARDSON ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PARTNERSHIP (REDP) POCKET FOLDER
  The firm designed a visually dramatic, tri-fold pocket folder to showcase the Richardson community’s exceptional, business-friendly attributes and global reputation for high-tech innovation, and to support the REDP’s proactive economic development efforts across the U.S. and internationally over the coming years.

 GOLD AWARDS

• Strategic Communications  (Communications/Public Relations)
  UNITED WAY OF TARRANT COUNTY
  Cooksey assisted the organization with its annual campaign launch and announcement of the honorary campaign chair, baseball Hall of Famer Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez. The public relations, media outreach and social media efforts helped to kick off the organization’s annual fundraising season.
• Strategic Communications  (Media Relations/Publicity)
  SKANSKA
  Cooksey’s work ensured that advanced technology being utilized in various projects by Skanska, a worldwide construction and development company, was featured in a San Antonio Business Journal article titled “Construction’s High-Tech Future in San Antonio.”
• Print Media  (Publications)
  EltaMD “DID YOU KNOW?” BROCHURE
  Cooksey’s creative department designed a 24-page product brochure to educate consumers about protecting their skin against premature aging and skin cancer. EltaMD is a leading physician‐dispensed sun care brand with a unique positioning around broad‐spectrum, everyday use, physician‐dispensed sunscreen.

MarCom is one of the largest and most prestigious creative competitions in the world. MarCom is sponsored and judged by the Association of Marketing and Communications Professionals (AMCP), a 24-year-old international organization consisting of several thousand creative professionals.

Cooksey Communications Again Ranked Among Top 10 Public Relations Firms in North Texas by Dallas Business Journal

Cooksey Communications, with $2.2 million in revenues, is ranked the ninth largest public relations firm in North Texas, as determined by the Dallas Business Journal. The listing, which appeared in the Aug. 3, 2018, issue, ranks PR firms by total revenue for the year.

Now in its 24th year in business, Cooksey is a fully integrated strategic communications firm, offering traditional public relations services along with creative and digital services.

“We are proud and honored to again be ranked in the Top 10 of local PR firms,” said Gail Cooksey, founder and president. “Our approach to communications yields major successes for clients. With deep roots in specialized and nuanced sectors, including municipalities and professional services, we engage audiences, solve problems and deliver results.”

Joel Rowe Joins Cooksey Communications as Senior Designer

Dallas/Fort Worth-based strategic communications firm Cooksey Communications has added Joel Rowe to its creative department as senior designer. Rowe brings a wealth of knowledge of various industries and the real-world experience needed to make compelling and visually interesting creative pieces.

“Joel is passionate about combining unique ideas with inspired design that speak to both business-to-business and business-to-consumer markets,” said Gail Cooksey, founder and president of Cooksey Communications. “We already have an incredibly dedicated staff in place, and Joel is going to make our creative services team even stronger. We’re eager to show his work to clients.”

Prior to Cooksey, Rowe worked as a freelance graphic designer for a range of clients in the real estate, technology, travel and retail markets. He has worked at companies such as Texas Instruments, Travelocity, Animal Supply Company and ReachLocal. Rowe studied communication design at Texas A&M University-Commerce and earned certifications in user experience (UX) design and marketing from Southern Methodist University.

Cooksey Earns Six 2018 Hermes Awards in International Creative Competition

Cooksey Communications recently received four Platinum and two Gold honors in the 2018 Hermes Creative Awards, an international creative competition.

The six awards highlight Cooksey’s diverse and successful experience in strategic communications, media relations, creative design, marketing and more:

• Platinum Winner – Publications – 2017 AllianceTexas Magazine. Cooksey was recognized for its planning, writing and design of the 28-page, four-color magazine produced for AllianceTexas, a development of Hillwood.
• Platinum Winner – Media Relations – The Real Estate Council (TREC). In conjunction with media outreach efforts for the inaugural Dallas Catalyst Project recipient, the agency secured a feature placement in The Dallas Morning News titled “Can $1 Million ‘Brighten Up’ Fading Block?” The article details TREC’s three-year initiative to invest more than $1 million in grants and pro-bono professional services work within the Forest Revitalization District in Southern Dallas.
• Platinum Winner – Media Relations – Toyota Music Factory. Cooksey was honored for media outreach and placements for Toyota Music Factory, a mixed-use entertainment and lifestyle complex in the Las Colinas Urban Center in Irving. Cooksey secured 282 print, broadcast and digital media clips in 12 months for the entertainment and dining destination.
• Platinum Winner – Advertising – Cooksey Communications. The agency was honored for its own ad titled “Sky-High Visibility” in the 2017 Bell Fort Worth Alliance Air Show program.
• Gold Winner – Integrated Marketing Campaign – Catholic Diocese of Dallas. Cooksey created the campaign materials for the 2018 Bishop’s Annual Appeal for Catholic Ministries. This included a logo, brochure, pledge card, eblast and other collateral.
• Gold Winner – Logo Design – City of Wylie Economic Development Corporation. Cooksey designed a logo for the city’s signature “Wide Awake Wylie” brand. Today, “Wide Awake Wylie” evokes a fondness for the hometown feel, while representing the vibrant community it has become.

The Hermes Creative Awards, administered by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals, honor creative professionals involved in the concept, writing and design of traditional and emerging media. Judges are industry professionals who look for companies and individuals whose talent exceeds a high standard of excellence and whose work serves as a benchmark for the industry.

There were about 6,000 entries from throughout the United States and many other countries in the 2018 Hermes Creative Awards competition. In the past, about 15 percent of entries won Platinum, the top award, and around 20 percent the Gold Award. Approximately 10 percent were Honorable Mention winners.