On Tuesday, May 2, at the 2023 California Association of Public Information Officials (CAPIO) Annual Conference, the City of San Marcos won an EPIC Award for the San Marcos Creek Project Social Media Campaign. CAPIO is the leading statewide organization dedicated to advancing public sector communicators across all levels of government, through education, networking and training. The EPIC Awards recognize excellence in government communications, honoring the best public information projects and programs across California.
EPIC Award Details
The award was presented to the City as a result of the execution of the San Marcos Creek project’s overarching social media strategy during three years of construction on the largest project in City history. In late 2021, campaign metrics for the Creek’s social media reflected a decrease in post engagement. This was attributed to consumer fatigue due to several years of ongoing construction and a lack of newer visual updates on the project’s construction progress. The Creek team decided to make a big change and in early 2022, shifted their social media strategy to develop new content to focus on “fun facts” about the project through aerial views and behind the scenes looks, share details about construction activities in plain language, and leverage short videos featuring the project manager answering frequently asked questions about the project. With these changes, the team saw a 15% increase from the previous year in post impressions and a 14% increase in overall engagement from 2021.
“We are thrilled to have our hard work on the San Marcos Creek Project recognized and bring this award home to San Marcos. This recognition is a testament to the City’s commitment to keeping our community informed and involved on key infrastructure projects,” said Senior Management Analyst – Economic Development Amanda Boudreault, who attended the conference and accepted the award on behalf of the City. “San Marcos continues to invest in projects, like the Creek project, that reinforce our reputation as a drive to destination.” The City encourages residents to visit the Creek Project website for more information and to sign up for construction updates to receive the latest information on the progress of the project.
