Star Group Wins Gold In International Academy Of The Visual Arts’ Web Competition

Philadelphia, PA (November 21, 2011) – Linda Rosanio, CEO of Star Group, today announced that the agency has won a Gold Award from the International Academy of the Visual Arts (IAVA) as part of its 2011 "W3 Award" program.  The  "W3 Awards" honor creative excellence on the web and recognize the creative and marketing professionals behind award-winning sites, marketing programs and video work created for the web. Star Group earned a Gold Award from a pool of more than 3,000 entries from domestic and international agencies and Fortune 500 companies.

Star's winning entry, the "Team Ra-Ras Kicks Breast Cancer" YouTube video (below), was created and marketed for the Philadelphia Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure® to help the organization make a huge splash during National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The video showcased the story of 136 NFL Alumni Philadelphia Chapter Cheerleaders spanning four decades, who reunited in Philadelphia to empower the cause with an original 'pink pom' dance. It mobilized local and global breast cancer communities to take action and raised $100,000 for the Affiliate through a 10¢-per-view donation from UnitedHealthcare of Pennsylvania. 

With Star's Synegrated™ strategy of social media, online communications and traditional promotion, the video reached an impressive one million views in under four weeks, making it the #12 most-viewed YouTube "Non-Profit & Activism" video in that time frame. One year after being launched, the video had generated more than 3.6 million views.

"We are thrilled to receive such prestigious recognition from IAVA,” said Rosanio. "But our greatest reward comes from being able to use our talents and expertise to contribute in a major way to the breast cancer cause. Through 'Team Ra-Ras Kicks Breast Cancer,' we inspired millions of people to take action by demonstrating that four minutes is all it takes to make a real difference in ending the disease that takes a life every sixty-nine seconds."

"This year’s W3 Winners demonstrate the out-of-the box thinking and creative execution that exemplifies what the web is all about, ” said Linda Day, Executive Director of IAVA. "On behalf of the entire Academy, congratulations to this year’s W3 Award entrants and winners for their dedication to pushing the limits and finding new ways to raise the bar in web creativity."

The "W3 Award" entries were judged based on a standard of excellence determined by the IAVA, an invitation-only body consisting of top-tier professionals from a “Who’s Who” of acclaimed media, interactive, advertising and marketing firms, including executives from Alloy, Brand Week, Coach, Disney, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, HBO, Sotheby’s Institute of Arts, Wired and Yahoo!.  Earlier this year, Star also received a Social Media Stars award from the Philadelphia Business Journal for the video.

"Team Ra-Ras Kicks Breast Cancer" video... 

About Star Group
Star Group is a Synegrated™ Marketing Communications Company dedicated to creating business for clients operating in today’s hyper-competitive, rapidly evolving digital marketplace. Offering the full range of marketing and communications disciplines, this inventive marcom agency reaches beyond traditional marketing tactics, employing deep thinking and entrepreneurial spirit to uncover and unleash new business-building ideas. Based in Philadelphia, Star Group “creates business” from six offices nationwide. To learn more, visit www.stargroup1.com.