North Coast Media, LLC

North Coast Media brands win 14 Regional Azbee Awards from ASBPE

CLEVELAND — North Coast Media (NCM) is proud announce that its brands and staff combined to win 14 Azbee awards at the ASBPE Heartland Region banquet June 24 in Cleveland.

Launched in 1964 as the American Society of Business Press Editors, ASBPE is the professional association of editors, writers, art directors and designers in the business, trade and specialty publishing industry.

Heartland Region awards were selected from more than 1,200 entries from member states Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia.

NCM staff members at the 2016 ASBPE Heartland Region awards banquet in Cleveland

North Coast Media publications Golfdom, GPS World, Landscape Management, LP Gas and Pest Management Professional received awards, as did the company’s corporate website. (See below for the complete list)

Several of the regional finalists are also finalists for national awards, which will be announced July 21 at the Azbee Awards of Excellence Banquet during the ASBPE National Conference at The Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Florida.

NCM’s Joelle Harms will represent the company at the National Awards, where she is also being named a Young Leader.

The complete list of NCM brands and staff recognized includes:

Golfdom

Print, Original Research, Gold Medalist, “The Golfdom Report,” Seth Jones, Pete Seltzer and Grant Gannon

Design, Front Cover-Photo, Silver Medalist, “A Masterpiece of Minimalism,” Pete Seltzer and Seth Jones

Design, Opening Page/Spread-Illustration, Bronze Medalist, “Water, Water, Everywhere” (November 2015), Pete Seltzer

GPS World

Design, Website Redesign, Bronze Medalist, GPSWorld.com, Jesse Malcmacher, Joelle Harms, Bethany Chambers and Pete Seltzer.

Landscape Management

Print, Special Supplement, Gold Medalist, LM150, Marisa Palmieri, Dillon Stewart and Tracie Martinez

Print, How-To Article, Silver Medalist, “Step by Step: How to store pesticides,” Marisa Palmieri, Dillon Stewart and Tracie Martinez

Online, Social Media Presence, Silver Medalist, Landscape Management social media, Marisa Palmieri, Allison Barwacz and Dillon Stewart

LP Gas

Online, Web Feature Article, Silver Medalist, “The digital revolution and its impact on the propane industry,” Allison Barwacz

Print, Original Research, Bronze Medalist, “Concealed carry policy discussion,” Megan Smalley

North Coast Media

Design, Website Design, Silver Medalist, NorthCoastMedia.net, Jesse Malcmacher, Joelle Harms, Bethany Chambers, Pete Seltzer and Steve Galperin

Pest Management Professional

Design, Front Cover-Illustration, Silver Medalist, “PestTech 3.0” (December 2015), Leo Michael, Illustrator; Tracie Martinez, Marty Whitford and Heather Gooch

Print, Humorous/Fun Department, Silver Medalist, “Start-Up Diaries,” Pete Schopen, Contributor; Marty Whitford, Heather Gooch and Tracie Martinez

Design, Front Cover-Best Typographic Cover, Bronze Medalist, “2016 State of the Industry Survey” (November 2015), Tracie Martinez, Marty Whitford and Heather Gooch

North Coast Media brands Golfdom and Landscape Management net 27 industry awards

CLEVELAND – May 17, 2016 – North Coast Media (NCM) is pleased to announce two of its brands were recognized for outstanding editorial, graphic design and photography, winning 27 awards at the Turf & Ornamental Communicators Association (TOCA) awards ceremony in Omaha, Neb., on May 5.

Both Golfdom and Landscape Management (LM) won more total awards and more first place awards than their competitors.

Golfdom led golf market publications with 17 awards, including 10 first place awards and seven merit awards.

Landscape Management (LM) came home with 10 awards. Included in its accolades are two “best in show” Gardner Awards for new media and special projects, along with seven first place awards and one merit award.

“Once again, we are proud of our haul of TOCA awards,” said NCM President and CEO Kevin Stoltman. “Each year they help strengthen our longstanding leadership positions in the landscape and golf course maintenance industries.”

NCM staff members recognized for their work include VP of Graphic Design & Production Pete Seltzer, Editorial Director Marty Whitford, Editorial Director and LM Editor-in-Chief Marisa Palmieri, Golfdom Editor-in-Chief Seth Jones, Golfdom Associate Editor Grant Gannon, LM Associate Editor Dillon Stewart, LM Digital Media Content Producer Allison Barwacz, and LM Art Director Tracie Martinez.

TOCA annually recognizes members for excellence in writing, design, photography/AV, new media and special projects, and top winners in the marketing and publishing categories are named as Gardner Award winners.

The complete list of winnings for the two publications includes:

Golfdom:

Design – First
Two-plus page design, editorial – printed magazines
“Make yourself at home” | Pete Seltzer

Design – First
Cover page design – printed magazines
“A masterpiece of minimalism” | Pete Seltzer

Photography, Video, Multimedia – First
Best single photo – Use of stock art
“Search. Tap. Sold!” | Pete Seltzer

Photography, Video, Multimedia – First
Best single photo – Use of stock art
“Water, Water, Everywhere” | Pete Seltzer

Photography, Video, Multimedia – First
Best single photo – created by a TOCA member or freelancer commissioned by a TOCA member
“Ready for Play” | Seth Jones, Pete Seltzer

Writing – First
Environmental stewardship article – commercial publications
“Propane to the people” | Seth Jones

Writing – First
Product information article – commercial publications
“The stars of Texas” | Seth Jones, Ed Hiscock, Marty Whitford, Grant Gannon

Writing – First
Business management – commercial publications
“What are online tee times doing for your course?” | Grant Gannon

Writing – First
Series of columns by regular department columnist – commercial publications
“Assistant Living” | Matt Neff

Writing – First
Turf feature article – commercial publications
“To Core or Not to Core?” | Stacie Zinn Roberts

Design – Merit
Overall magazine design – printed magazines
“October 2015 Golfdom” | Pete Seltzer

Photography, Video, Multimedia – Merit
Best single photo – created by a TOCA member or freelancer commissioned by a TOCA member
“A masterpiece of minimalism” | Pete Seltzer

Photography, Video, Multimedia – Merit
Best print magazine cover
“Search. Tap. Sold!” | Pete Seltzer, Seth Jones, Grant Gannon

Special Projects – Merit
Writing for special projects
“The Golfdom Report” | Seth Jones, Grant Gannon, Pete Seltzer

Writing – Merit
General feature article – commercial publications
“Getting by with a little help from friends” | Seth Jones

Writing – Merit
Column – commercial publications
“You might be a turf guy if…” | Matt Neff

Writing – Merit
Ornamental feature article – commercial publications
“The buck stops here” | Hannah Schrum

Landscape Management:

New Media – Gardner Award
“LM Social Media Strategy” | Marisa Palmieri, Dillon Stewart, Allison Barwacz

Special Projects – Gardner Award
“LM October 2015” | Marisa Palmieri, Dillon Stewart, Tracie Martinez

Design – First
Single page design, editorial – printed magazines
“January 2015 Backstory” | Tracie Martinez

New Media – First
Blogs
“LM Blog” | LM Staff + Contributors

New Media – First
Innovative use of social media
“LM Social Media Strategy” | Marisa Palmieri, Dillon Stewart, Allison Barwacz

Photography, Video, Multimedia – First
Portrait/Personality
“March Cover Photo/Bill Dysert” | LM Staff, Laura Watilo Blake

Photography, Video, Multimedia – First
Best print magazine cover
“LM March 2015” | Laura Watilo Blake, LM Staff

Special Projects – First
Best single issue
“LM October 2015” | Marisa Palmieri, Dillon Stewart, Tracie Martinez

Special Projects – First
Writing for special projects
“LM150 2015” | Marisa Palmieri, LM Staff

Writing – Merit
Editorial/Opinion Piece – commercial publications
“Editor’s Note: To the point” | Marisa Palmieri

Inside the GPS World redesign with VP of Design Pete Seltzer

Pete Seltzer has more than 20 years of experience as an art director and has spearheaded dozens of magazine and brand redesigns since he began working in publishing. He sits down with NCM Insights’ Bethany Chambers to talk about his latest project, the redesign of GPS World magazine and related properties, which launched last month.

Q: Before you get started on a redesign, where do you look for inspiration?

A: We base our redesigns on reader and advertiser research. Using the research results in combination with industry expertise provided by our staff, we affirm the brand essence. The brand essence identifies the audience, their key need, our value proposition, proof of that value proposition and the personality of the brand. Visual cues reference all of these aspects. Additionally, one of the questions we ask readers is what consumer magazines do you read on a regular basis.

Q: Why do you ask this, and what did you find out?

A: This gives us a feel for what they like, both from a content standpoint and an aesthetic one. GPS World readers also read Scientific American, Popular Mechanics and The Atlantic.

Q: Once you have inspiration, which elements do you start with for a redesign?

A: Creation of the logo is the cornerstone for the redesign. It should project the brand essence, personality and tone for the overall redesign.

Q: The new GPS World logo is drastically different. What stands out about it to you, and how many iterations were there in the redesign process?

A: What’s key about this is how we arrived here. Typically a tagline is something that is added after the logo development and is not necessarily essential to the logo itself. The tagline in the GPS World logo is not a tagline really; it’s part of the logo. It’s the brand guideline to never use the logo without it. These are the key sections we cover.

Q: So to say there were more iterations than usual would be correct?

A: Absolutely.

Q: How do you pick colors/themes for the design?

A: Creation of color palette and themes are born out of the editorial strategy for a brand redesign. Colors/themes should support and reinforce editorial approach, as well as personality of the brand. Special consideration should be made for the audience demographics.

Q: The new color palate of GPS World has earthier tones as opposed to the previous bolder, more saturated colors. What does the new color palette say about the brand and the audience?

A: I would describe the colors as more muted but still masculine because a good portion of our audience is male. This is more sophisticated and reinforces the technical feel of the brand.

Q: What would you say is the most important element of a redesign project?

A: I would rate selection of fonts as one of the most important elements. Ease of readability is a core function, while finding the right combination of display and text font families that work well together is also key. The fonts’ secondary purpose is to further reinforce the personality of the redesign.

Q: What stands out to you about the new GPS World fonts?

A: The display type has a technical flair and the body copy has an ease of readability.

Q: What makes this design more effective than the previous design?

A: By definition, a redesign updates the presentation of the brand—that in and of itself is window dressing. However, by also conducting research and re-examining the brand essence in an effort to serve our audience (which is readers and advertisers both) to the best of our ability, we are confidently providing a more effective design presentation.

Golfdom wins industry-leading 16 awards from Turf & Ornamental Communicators Association

CLEVELAND, Ohio — May 22, 2015 — North Coast Media is pleased to announce Golfdom continues to be recognized for its outstanding editorial and design leadership by the Turf & Ornamental Communicators Association (TOCA), which this year held its annual awards ceremony in Milwaukee. Golfdom earned an industry-leading 16 awards including one “best in show” Gardner Award for new media, seven first place awards and eight merit awards. Sister publication Landscape Management (LM) nabbed 15 awards. North Coast Media once again led all publishing companies that competed for TOCA awards in the golf and landscape markets with 31 total awards.

Golfdom won TOCA awards for:

First Place

Photography, Video, Multimedia, Best single photo – Use of stock art, “The Golfdom Report,” Pete Seltzer
Photography, Video, Multimedia, Best print magazine cover, “The Golfdom Report,” Pete Seltzer
New Media, Blogs, “The Golfdom Daily,” Seth Jones
Writing, Editorial/Opinion Piece – commercial publications, “The dangerous art of speaking your mind,” Seth Jones
Writing, Column – commercial publications, “A post-Open reminder that freedom isn’t free,” Seth Jones
Writing, Series of columns by regular department columnist – commercial publications, “Keeping up with the Jones,” Seth Jones
Writing, General feature article – commercial publications, “Jimmy the Kid,” Seth Jones

Merit

Photography, Video, Multimedia, Portrait/Personality (photo of individual or group of individuals), “Driven to distraction,” Leah Nash
Photography, Video, Multimedia, Best single photo – created by a TOCA member or freelancer commissioned by a TOCA member, “Golf’s got 99 problems, but is the big cup one?,” Sarah Nader
Design, Single page design, editorial – printed magazines, “The 19th Hole,” Pete Seltzer
Writing, Column – commercial publications, “Those guys,” Matt Neff
Writing, Column – commercial publications, “Are you ready for some Fantasy Greenkeeping?,” Matt Neff
Writing, Product information article – commercial publications, “What’s the next big idea at GIE+Expo?,” Seth Jones
Writing, General feature article – commercial publications, “True romance,” Seth Jones
Writing, Series – two or more articles defined as series – commercial publications, “Winterkill in the crosshairs; Working undercover,” Sam Bauer, Brian Horgan, Ph.D., Lindsay Hoffman, Ph.D.

The Gardner Award was awarded in the new media category to Golfdom’s blog, “The Golfdom Daily.” This is the fourth year in a row Golfdom‘s blog has won the first place TOCA award in the New Media, Publishing category.

Golfdom also demonstrated that it has the best columnists in the industry, winning three of the four individual column-writing TOCAs awarded, and a first place series award for “Keeping up with the Jones,” the monthly column written by Golfdom’s editor-in-chief, Seth Jones.

“The results of the 2015 TOCA awards reaffirmed that our publications, Golfdom and Landscape Management, are at the top of their respective markets,” said Kevin Stoltman, president and CEO of North Coast Media. “I’m confident Golfdom and Landscape Management will continue to impress TOCA judges — and most important, our readers and marketing partners — for decades to come.”