BY TED M. NATT JR.

Business Writer

The Moore County Chamber of Commerce has received Bronze Awards for its 2010 membership drive and Lifestyles magazine from the American Chamber of Commerce Executives.

"It's indicative of putting together a quality campaign and a quality publication," said Patrick Coughlin, president and CEO of the Moore Chamber. "While it's great recognition for our staff, our volunteers helped us tremendously with the membership drive, and our partnership with The Pilot was critical to the success of Lifestyles."

The Award for Communications Excellence Bronze Award meets and exceeds the fundamental standards and criteria for communications excellence. Winners will be recognized at the annual American Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE) convention in August.

"There is truly exceptional communications work being done in the chamber profession," ACCE President Mick Fleming said, "and ACCE is proud to recognize these achievements."

This year's ACE competition drew 83 entries from chambers throughout the U.S., and the Moore Chamber was the only one from North Carolina with an annual budget of less than $1 million to win a Bronze, Silver or Gold.

David Woronoff, publisher of The Pilot, had lobbied the Chamber for a decade to partner on the production of Lifestyles.

"That intensified once we started publishing PineStraw magazine," Woronoff said.

The PineStraw staff wrote the editorial content, developed the design and produced the layout for Lifestyles, while the Moore County Telephone Directory staff sold the advertising.

"And the results speak for themselves," Woronoff said. "I think it's a quality publication that casts our community in a very positive light. But we're not satisfied until we get Gold."

He added that the partnership enabled both entities to do what they do best.

"The Chamber was able to take care of its members, and we were able to produce another top-quality publication," Woronoff said.

Coughlin agreed that it was "a perfect fit."

"The judges appreciated that we were able to work with a local entity to make the magazine happen," he said. "A lot of times, Chambers will partner with a large national company. They do a very good job, but they don't always capture the local flavor and essence of the community. You don't have to worry about losing that when you work with The Pilot."

Coughlin noted that Lifestyles had been "almost cobbled together" in the past.

"It was well thought out this time, and we had a cohesive plan," he said. "I think our partnership with The Pilot was a huge step forward, both in terms of ease of publication and winning the award. We knew we had a strong chance once we saw the final product."

The Awards for Communications Excel-lence is an annual competition that recognizes excellence in all areas of communication. In its 28th year, ACE continues to be the vehicle for the chamber community to promote effective chamber communications, as well as highlight initiatives, introduce events and inform members.

Contact Ted M. Natt Jr. at tnatt@thepilot.com.