And the winner is…? Top tips for a successful award entry

Last week I attended the PRmoment Awards, as Spark was shortlisted in the category for best B2B PR Campaign for the work we carried out for iPass around its Wi-Fi Growth Map. Unfortunately we didn’t win, but it did get me thinking about awards more generally and the role they play in PR and marketing.  Working in PR, you sometimes forget that for many clients, winning or even being nominated for an award is very much a badge of honour for the entire company, so it shouldn’t be sniffed at. 

Working in PR for 15 years (yes that long!) I have probably seen the good, the bad and the ugly when it comes to award entries, so here are some top tips for a successful award entry:

• Read the small print – a lot of time can go into crafting a great award entry, only for it to not meet the award entry criteria. There are a number of basic questions you should always try to answer to avoid falling foul here. Does your entry meet the specified word count? Was your product launched within the stated timeframe? Can vendors make direct entries? Were you aware of the entry fee? These are just a few examples of where entries can fall at the first hurdle before the judges have even considered them, so it definitely pays to read the small print as it will save a lot of wasted time and effort.
• Demonstrate happy customers – when it comes to project-focused awards, judges always want to hear from the customer rather than the supplier. So always look to write entries from the position of the customer and talk about the benefits they realised, rather than talking about how great you are.  You will sometimes also find that customers will be more prepared to support an award entry rather than full-blown PR, as they can directly see the benefit of being involved.
• Play the numbers game – in very much the same way that journalists are on the lookout for stories that show ROI, productivity gains, impact on the bottom line etc., award judges (which often include journalists) are also looking for these to come through entries. For instance, in our recent entry for iPass we were able to show tangible outcomes, such as the number of business meetings secured. If you can’t demonstrate tangible success, you should question the merits of entering an award in the first place.
• Make your entry easy to read – it may sound obvious, but making your award entry easy to read can go a long way. Award judges often have to read hundreds of different entries, so if you can easily signpost facts, figures and customer benefits they will be happy. Make bullet points your friend!