Local Media Association honors top promotions in Digital Innovation Awards

The Local Media Association’s 2024 Digital Innovation Awards recognized three standout campaigns in the Best Contest/Promotion category, sponsored by Upland, showcasing creative ways news organizations and startups are engaging audiences and building revenue. From leveraging a once-in-a-lifetime eclipse to tapping into football fever, these winners demonstrated the power of innovative promotions.

First place: The Sentinel-Record captures eclipse magic

In April 2024, The Sentinel-Record of Hot Springs, Arkansas, turned a historic celestial event into a major audience engagement opportunity. With the city situated in the path of totality for the first solar eclipse in Arkansas since 1918, the newsroom published more than 50 articles, launched a pop-up newsletter titled “Total Eclipse of the Spa,” and created interactive content like a solar eclipse quiz.

The engagement paid off: nearly 3,000 subscribers signed up for the newsletter, with 234 opting in directly from the quiz. By collecting ZIP codes during sign-up, the team was able to tailor content and eventually transition these readers into a new entertainment-focused newsletter, “Hot & Happening.”

Judges praised the campaign for its ingenuity and long-term thinking:

“The creative approach to covering the eclipse and capitalizing on it afterward revealed creative spark and energy for the Sentinel-Record,” said Allison Shirk, director of digital content and engagement for WEHCO Media. “While this newsroom is not one of our largest at WEHCO Media, their engagement had more newsletter opt-ins than any other newsroom engagement across our company in 2024.”

Second place: The Press Democrat scores with holiday movie bracket

At The Press Democrat in Santa Rosa, California, a fun and nostalgic holiday movie bracket drew readers in droves — and delivered a revenue boost. Sponsored by local retailer BottleBarn, the bracket challenged readers to vote their favorite holiday films through successive rounds, generating excitement throughout the season.

The campaign attracted 837 participants who cast a total of 8,221 votes and produced 1,196 email opt-ins for both the news outlet and the sponsor. It also brought in $8,500 in sponsorship revenue.

Judges commended the team’s creativity and results:

“This engaging initiative, mirroring the NCAA Tournament format, drove 8,221 votes from 837 participants, generated $8,500 in sponsorship, and created significant opportunities for subscriber growth through sustained audience engagement.”

Third place: H-Town Dads builds buzz with Texans ticket giveaway

Houston-based parenting site H-Town Dads took home third place for its simple yet effective promotion targeting football-loving fathers. The site gave away two tickets to the Houston Texans’ Christmas Day game against the Baltimore Ravens, a contest that required entrants to sign up for the site’s weekly newsletter.

The sweepstakes attracted more than 400 sign-ups — a major win for the website. According to founder David Arkin, the giveaway helped raise awareness, build buzz and ultimately increase email engagement:

“A few weeks after the emails were captured, we saw a 10-15 percent lift in our open rates and that has stayed consistent,” he said.

Judges noted the campaign’s strategic timing and execution:

“H-Town Dads launched a strategically targeted promotion that capitalized on Houston’s passion for football… demonstrating a powerful and repeatable strategy for audience growth and future monetization.”

These three campaigns exemplify how creative promotions can not only drive short-term engagement but also lay the groundwork for long-term audience and revenue growth.

Editor’s note: Artificial Intelligence was used to turn contest notes from a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet into an article, which was then edited by LMA staff.