Ever wanted to win an award, but not sure how entering an award works?
Then you’re in luck!
We’ve outlined the basic steps of how the awards process generally operates, to help you gain a clearer understanding of what can otherwise quickly become an overwhelming process.
1. First, you need to conduct in-depth research
The first step is to research which awards are best suited for your business. There are hundreds of awards out there, so selecting the ones which are directly relevant to you is essential to have a chance at winning.
To be able to select the right awards, you need to gain a deeper understanding of your business. To do this, take time to reflect upon the strengths, weaknesses, journey, story and values of your business, along with recognising how your business is exhibiting excellence.
Once you have reviewed a range of awards and understand why you deserve to be award-winning, it’s time to review the awards criteria and entry kit. You can typically download the Entry Kit Categories and criteria for the awards you believe are right for you from the awards website.
Make sure to keep note of the award opening and closing dates so you don’t miss any deadlines! If you are looking at placing submissions for multiple awards, then it may even be a good idea to create an awards calendar to keep track of your progress and deadlines of each submission.
2. Next step is to craft a compelling submission
Crafting a compelling awards submission can be tricky. You need to ensure that your submission is cleverly written in a way which clearly highlights to the judges why you deserve to win the category you have entered. A strong awards submission presents a powerful, succinct and honest representation of your business and your achievements.
Smashing the criteria whilst answering all questions in a captivating way can grasp the judges attention, increasing your chances of getting shortlisted.
To help you write a compelling and powerful awards submission, make sure to include all necessary information, to help the judges better understand your business journey.
Your awards submission should always be drafted in a word document or other writing platform, not the awards submission itself. This is because information can be lost, and after spending hours, or even days on a submission, this is the last thing you want!
Standout award submissions also provide all necessary supplementary evidence, whether it is required or not. This may include photography, videos, PDF pitch documents, testimonials or in depth financial reports audited by your accountant. All attached evidence should be presented in a neat, clear manner, and should reflect the required document or file type outlined to capture the judges attention.
3. Make sure you submit your submission by the deadline, in the right format
After putting together an awards submission, it’s time to review and submit! Although by this stage you may be exhausted from all the research, writing and editing, it is important to double and triple check your work.
Seek feedback from high level executives and ensure they approve of the submission. Taking that little bit of extra time to triple check your work for any grammatical errors or mistakes, could be the difference between becoming a finalist or just falling short.
Once you’re confident with your submission, it is time to submit it. Ensure you submit by the deadline outlined on the awards website, and double check that your submission is in the required format and size. The technical formatting and file size details are usually outlined on their submission page, but you can always get in touch with us if you need some guidance.
Make sure to read all of the information provided, and take note of when the shortlist and winners will be announced. This will avoid disappointment later on if you find out too late and miss out on the chance to publicise your win.
4. Keep your fingers crossed in anticipation of the results
After going through all the hard work of completing and submitting your awards submission, the anticipation of waiting for the results begins.
If you’re shortlisted as a finalist, you’ll be contacted by the awards organisers. You may then be invited to attend a glimmering awards ceremony, where winners will be announced, and you can reap the rewards of your hard work.
Awards ceremonies are usually black tie events, giving you a chance to dress up and mingle over food and drinks, amongst your high performing peers. If there is no awards ceremony, winners are often showcased in other ways. This can be through a feature or spread within a well-known publication or magazine, through the awards organisers’ social media platforms, or sometimes, these awards can be televised and streamed live online.
If you are announced as a winner, you may also be offered various optional paid award packages to choose from. These packages can connect you with professionals that will be able to further showcase your achievements, and get you even more publicity and exposure.
Now you know how entering an award works…
Interested in entering awards but are not sure if you have the capacity to do so? Green Door Co has drafted over 420 awards submissions, with 97.5% of clients being shortlisted at least once!
Reach out today for an opportunity to become award-winning.
