City Of Suwanee Annual Report Wins National Award

SUWANEE, GA — The City-County Communications & Marketing Association, or 3CMA, announced the City of Suwanee 2016 Annual Report as the national 2018 Savvy Award winner in the category of Graphic Design – Publications during a ceremony at the Hyatt Regency Milwaukee on Sept. 6.

The Savvy Awards, held in conjunction with 3CMA’s Annual Conference, recognize outstanding local government achievements in communications, public-sector marketing, and citizen-government relationships. The Savvies salute skilled and effective city, county, agency or district professionals who have creatively planned and carried out successful innovations in communications and marketing.

Dubbed "The World's Most Amazing Annual Report," Suwanee's 2016 financial accounting document was written and illustrated in the style of a classic Marvel comic book. The report tells the story of Suwanee, where children frolic in fountains, music plays in the town square, and "happiness is at an all-time high." Woven within the 16-page narrative are the facts and figures of a traditional annual report.

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"A traditional annual report is just a bunch of numbers, and it's boring!" said Abby Wilkerson, City of Suwanee Public Information Officer and the author of the city's 2016 annual report. “In our version, the numbers are still there, but the comic book tells the story in a more entertaining way."

The 3CMA judges agreed, noting in their comments: “Love to see a city with a sense of humor and guts to go with it. The backgrounds behind the characters were great. Love all the artwork. Lots of fun to read...compelling...and I'm sure even more so for your residents. Creative and unique approach.”

Over 700 entries in 40 categories were submitted for Savvy Awards this year. 3CMA utilized volunteer judges from across the United States to review every entry and provide constructive comments on the winning entries.

“What I keep hearing is ‘this is the first time I’ve read an annual report,’ which was our main goal when we were brainstorming the idea,” said Wilkerson.

Graphic courtesy City of Suwanee