Top ten awards entry tips

by Julia Martin Media Week 19-May-08, 12:30

What should you bear in mind when penning those all-important A4 entries to improve your chances of making it onto the winners' podium in 2008? Here are some words of wisdom from last year's judges.

Get some distance - People who worked on the campaign can draft the facts, but leave it to the best sales or marketing person in the office to write it up.
Force yourself to do the "lift test" - Imagine you've got to sell your initiative in the short time it takes to go from reception to the 5th floor - you should be able to sum it up in one sentence.

Be clear and concise - Think about where you started from, the problem, the solution and the results. Leave out extraneous details. Remember, judges have to read pages and pages of entries.

Don't over-claim - It's a set of serious heavyweight judges with lots of experience. If you claim it's a "media first", they'll know if it's been done before.

Acknowledge other people's input - You never know which of your partners might be sitting on the judging panel wondering why their own team's crucial input didn't merit a mention.

Prove effectiveness - It may be a great idea, but how did it actually benefit your client's business? Numbers speak volumes - as does a favourable client testimonial.

Avoid jargon - Clients can't be expected to understand your in-house shorthand and neither can judges. If you can't resist, include an addendum explaining what it all means.

Don't be lazy - While it's perfectly acceptable to enter the same campaign in more than one category, there are different categories for a reason. The judges are looking for different qualities, so adjust your entry accordingly.

Get someone to proof-read it - There's nothing like spelling mistakes and typos to niggle tired judges looking for a deciding factor.

Check and check again - Submitting an entry to more than one magazine's awards is just about forgivable - forgetting to change the name of the magazine on the top is not.

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