McLEAN, Va. – The National Fisheries Institute’s Dish on Fish seafood education initiative continues to make a splash with consumers – and the Public Relations world is taking notice. Dish on Fish has just been named a finalist in the Blog category for PR News’ 2018 Platinum PR and Agency Elite Awards.
The awards from PR News – whose publications and programs serve the communications, public relations and marketing community within corporations, agencies, nonprofits, and governmental organizations – recognize the year’s most-outstanding communications campaigns across dozens of categories, including media relations, social media, digital media, measurement, and more. The award winners to be announced at a New York ceremony in September will be honored for campaigns carried out in 2017.
As a finalist for the Platinum PR Award in the Blog category, Dish on Fish is competing alongside entries from Microsoft, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, PureTemp LLC, the National Association of Manufacturers, and R&R Partners.
“We are thrilled to be named a finalist for this Platinum PR Award and are extremely proud of the Dish on Fish blog. In a short time, this education initiative has become a powerful voice for encouraging Americans to eat at least two seafood meals a week as part of a healthy diet,” said Judy Dashiell, senior vice president with The National Fisheries Institute.
“Through this blog, we’ve been able to engage and inspire various target audiences by sharing how delicious and nutritious seafood is as an option at home or in restaurants,” she added. “We share this award nomination with our NFI members, who have made seafood education a priority.”
The centerpiece of an integrated digital campaign, the Dish on Fish blog was introduced by The NFI in summer 2016 to encourage consumers to enjoy seafood at least twice a week, as recommended by the U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
The campaign is designed to inform consumers about their seafood-buying options; sell the experience of seafood beyond just its positive health aspects; help younger generations understand and feel more comfortable eating and cooking seafood; engage chefs and tastemakers in explaining seafood; and counter misleading messages about seafood with facts presented in a compelling way.
The blog features fun, consumer-friendly content – including delicious seafood and meal planning recipes, health and nutrition facts, and seafood preparation and cooking tips – from spokesperson Rima Kleiner, a nationally recognized food and nutrition expert. The core content portal is designed to look, feel and engage like a traditional food blog. Guest commentary and advice about seafood from noted food bloggers or other nutrition experts are included each month.
The blog has attracted visitors representing a variety of cooking skill levels, seafood preferences, ages and demographic backgrounds. In 2017 alone, the site averaged nearly 5,000 page views per month while growing its audience membership and email subscriptions by more than 28 percent over the previous year. News media impressions for Dish on Fish last year were in excess of 300 million. In addition, specially produced, Tasty-style recipe videos from Dish on Fish were seen more than 165,000 times.
Dish on Fish content last year was amplified via the social media platforms Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter. In 2017, more than 4.1 million social media impressions were recorded, while engagements approached 210,000.
An Instagram account was added to the Dish on Fish initiative in spring 2018, to celebrate the delicious and diverse seafood dishes served at eateries across the country and also to promote other out-of-home, seafood-eating experiences. The initial average engagement rate for Dish on Fish in its first few weeks on Instagram topped 24.8 percent per post.
DishonFish.com in June was ranked No. 1 on content reader Feedspot’s list of the “Top 100 Seafood Blogs and Websites for Seafood Lovers in 2018.” The regularly updated Feedspot list indexes thousands of seafood blogs, websites and YouTube channels, featuring only the top 100 digital destinations following an evaluation of each site’s search and social metrics.
The Dish on Fish blog is the product of a partnership between The NFI and Butin Integrated Communications, which is headquartered on St. Simons Island, Georgia. Butin also was selected by PR News as one of the 12 finalists for the Platinum PR Award in the Small PR Firm of the Year category.
“We are excited about the integrated digital strategy created by Butin Integrated Communications to provide the valuable information about seafood to our audiences,” Dashiell noted.
The 2018 Platinum PR and Agency Elite Awards will be presented Sept. 21 during luncheon ceremonies at the Grand Hyatt New York in Midtown Manhattan. Award-winning sports journalist, producer and director Hannah Storm is scheduled as the keynote speaker for the event, which begins at 11 a.m.
To learn more about Dish on Fish, visit https://dishonfish.com or head to its Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter and Instagram pages.
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About The National Fisheries Institute
The National Fisheries Institute is a nonprofit organization dedicated to education about seafood safety, sustainability and nutrition. From seagoing vessels to favorite seafood restaurants, The NFI’s diverse member companies bring delicious fish and shellfish to American families. The NFI promotes the federal government’s Dietary Guidelines, which suggest Americans include fish and shellfish in their diets at least twice per week, for longer, healthier lives.
The NFI and its members are committed to sustainable management of our oceans and to being stewards of our environment, through the institute’s embrace of the United Nations’ Principles for Responsible Fisheries. The NFI believes the investment it makes in the world's oceans today will provide our children and future generations the health benefits of a plentiful supply of fish and other seafood tomorrow.
From responsible aquaculture and a marketplace supporting free trade to ensuring consumers and the media have the facts about the health benefits of fish and shellfish, The NFI and its members support and promote sound public policy based on ground-truth science.
Source: National Fisheries Institute
