SMPS MARYLAND KEY AWARDS
Celebrating Excellence in A/E/C Marketing
The SMPS Maryland Key Awards celebrate outstanding marketing, communications, business development, and creative work across Maryland’s architecture, engineering, and construction community.
Each year, the program recognizes work that demonstrates creativity, strategic thinking, thoughtful execution, and measurable impact. Entries are evaluated by a panel of industry judges, with honors presented to the submissions that exemplify excellence in A/E/C marketing and communications.
2026 SMPS Maryland Key Award Recipients
SMPS Maryland proudly recognized the 2026 Key Award recipients during our annual Summer Celebration. Congratulations to this year’s honorees—and thank you to every firm that shared its creativity, ideas, and outstanding work with our Chapter.
Digital Key Award
Winner: Wilmot Sanz — Website Redesign
The judges recognized Wilmot Sanz for a sleek, easy-to-navigate website that clearly reflects the firm’s creativity, culture, and market position. They praised the thoughtful planning behind the redesign, the strength of the final product, and the use of clear performance metrics to demonstrate results.
Runner-Up: Harkins Builders — Website Redesign
The judges noted that Harkins demonstrated a strong understanding of its audiences through a clean, well-executed website highlighting the firm’s services, sectors, people, and differentiators. The submission was also recognized for incorporating meaningful engagement metrics and maintaining a clear focus on improving the user experience.
Experiential Key Award
Winner: ECS Mid-Atlantic — ECS Baltimore Open House
The judges praised ECS for creating a memorable and highly thoughtful event that connected the firm’s Maryland roots, personality, and technical expertise in a creative way.
The event’s “Where Local Flavor Meets Strong Foundations” concept helped elevate the open house beyond a typical industry event and created an experience that authentically communicated who ECS is as a company.
Best in Show
Wilmot Sanz — Website Redesign
Receiving the highest overall score among all submissions evaluated by the judges, the Wilmot Sanz Website Redesign was named the 2026 SMPS Maryland Key Awards Best in Show.
The entry stood out across the awards program for its strategy, execution, results, and overall excellence.
People’s Choice Award
Wilmot Sanz
New for 2026, SMPS Maryland introduced the People’s Choice Award, giving attendees at the Summer Celebration an opportunity to review the finalist submissions and select their favorite entry.
Congratulations to Wilmot Sanz, the inaugural recipient of the SMPS Maryland People’s Choice Award.
Award Categories
Campaigns
- Multi-channel or multi-touch marketing efforts that are designed to promote a firm, project, initiative, or message over time.
- Examples include:
-
- Integrated campaign (email + social + event + collateral)
- Project launch or announcement campaign
- Thought Leadership campaign
- Recruiting campaign
- DEI or culture campaign
- Multi-platform social media campaign
Digital
- Digital-first marketing assets, platforms, or ongoing content strategies.
- Examples include:
- External Websites (full redesign or new launch)
- Social media presence
- Blogs
- Email marketing
- Video
Brand & Design
- Visual identity systems and standalone designed materials that represent the firm or its work.
- Examples include:
- Full rebrands/brand refreshes
- Logo development
- Collateral (brochures, project sheets, templates)
Experiential
- One-time or live experiences designed to engage clients, employees, or the public.
- Examples include:
- Client events
- Project milestone events
- Holiday gifts or campaigns
- Anniversary celebrations
- Internal culture events
Proposal/Business Development
- Materials and strategies directly tied to winning work.
- Examples include:
- Proposals
- Presentations
- Leave-behinds
- Win strategies
Previous Winners
2026
- Digital: Wilmot Sanz — Website Redesign
- Digital, Runner-Up: Harkins Builders — Website Redesign
- Experiential: ECS Mid-Atlantic — ECS Baltimore Open House
- Best in Show: Wilmot Sanz — Website Redesign
- People’s Choice Award: Wilmot Sanz
2025
- Website: Building Envelope Consultants and Scientists (BECS)
- Brand Identity: Building Envelope Consultants and Scientists (BECS)
- Marketing Campaign: Plano-Coudon Construction
- Grand Prize: Plano-Coudon Construction
2023
- Website: Quinn Evans
- Marketing Campaign: Ayers Saint Gross
- Social Media Campaign: Chesapeake Contracting Group
- Grand Prize: Ayers Saint Gross
- Brand Identity: EBA Engineering
- Website: Chesapeake Contracting Group
- Website, Honorable Mention: Straughan Environmental
- Social Media Campaign: Chesapeake Contracting Group
- Grand Prize: Ayers Saint Gross
- Website: Plano Coudon
- Marketing Campaign: Ayers Saint Gross
- Marketing Campaign, Honorable Mention: JMT
- Social Media Campaign: Harkins
- Event/Holiday Piece: Ayers Saint Gross
- Grand Prize: Ayers Saint Gross
2020- • Brand Identity: Straughan Environmental
- • Website: MK Consulting Engineers
- • Marketing Campaign: Ayers Saint Gross (Renovation & Renewal)
- • Event/Holiday Piece: Ayers Saint Gross
- • Grand Prize: Ayers Saint Gross
- 2019
- • Brand Identity: Toole Design
- • Website: O’Connor Construction Management
- • Marketing Campaign: Ammon Heisler Sachs Architects
- • Social Media Campaign: Century Engineering
- • Grand Prize: Toole Design
- 2018
- • Brand Identity: CRGA Design
- • Website: Ammon Heisler Sachs Architects
- • Marketing Campaign: 15 Minute Marketing (by Carrie Ann Williams, CPSM and Mindy Hinsley, CPSM)
- • Event/Holiday Piece: Site Resources
- • Grand Prize: Ammon Heisler Sachs Architects
