POTSDAM – Ads for businesses in Hopkinton, Potsdam and South Colton created by North Country This Week have won statewide recognition for quality design in the New York Press Association “Better Newspaper Contest.”

The awards were announced at the NYPA annual convention in Saratoga earlier this month.

An advertisement for the Potsdam Food Co-op won first place in the “Best Small Space Ad” category, an ad for Miller Farms Adirondack Growers in Hopkinton received second place for “Best Color Ad Created By Newspaper” and “Call of the Wild” sled dog tours in South Colton earned second place for “Best Small Space Ad.”

All were designed by Debbie Morgan, assistant general manager of North Country This Week.

North Country This Week competed against similarly sized papers from the Hamptons on Long Island to the suburbs of Buffalo, owned both by corporate groups and individuals. Hundreds of weekly newspapers, small dailies and specialty publications competed in the contest.

“Grabs your attention,” wrote the contest judges about the Potsdam Food Co-op ad, which ran May 2, 2012 and focused on “Live Green With Local Eggs, Cheese, Produce, Beef, Pork and Honey.”

The judges said the Miller Farms Adirondack Growers ad, “Just Peachy,” did a “great job of keeping the message big and bold!” The ad ran on Aug. 1, 2012 and promoted fresh peaches, sweet corn and other produce.

And the Call of the Wild ad that promoted “An Unforgettable Experience” included a “great call to action,” the judges said. The ad encouraged potential customers to book a dry-land tour, meet and play with the sled dogs, book a kennel tour and bring their cameras.

NYPA membership is composed primarily of paid weekly newspapers throughout the state, but free papers like North Country This Week and some small daily newspapers also belong to the organization. NYPA’s database of newspapers includes 727 weekly community newspapers, 58 daily newspapers, and 147 culturally-specific newspapers.