Winning Tips
Awards offer organisations and individuals the opportunity to demonstrate to competitors, customers, prospects and the local community why an innovation, idea or business practice is head and shoulders above the rest. Receiving recognition and third party endorsement by winning or even just being shortlisted for an award can present a platform on which to grow your business and potentially increase your turnover.
Many companies miss out on this opportunity, are put off by writing the entry or don’t consider themselves as ‘outstanding’ or worthy of winning an award. Well, you don’t know until you try, so here are some tips to consider when writing your award entry this year.
- Ask yourself ‘What have we done which is truly outstanding in our business in the last 12 months?’ Delve deep and don’t discount anything. Ask your staff, customers, clients and suppliers for the reasons why they choose to work with you and that will give you a great place to start.
- Make sure you have at least two case studies you can use to demonstrate your achievements that fit the criteria. This evidence will need to be backed up with statistics and testimonials.
- Choose the category which, if you win, best reflects your business and which you can integrate into your marketing strategy when developing your business in the next 12 months.
- Be clear about what you hope to gain out of entering the awards –winning and shortlisting are fantastic but the process of preparing your submission can be invaluable too.
- Ensure the person preparing the award has access to all the relevant information, understands the business and can accurately use relevant facts and figures.
- Include images, testimonials and bullet points to succinctly and effectively validate your achievements – but only use these to enhance a statement where relevant.
- Time – don’t underestimate how much time is needed to source your information, write, re-write, double check and prepare your supporting materials before submitting the final entry.
- Write up to and within the word count and always check spelling and grammar. Two lines answering a question with a 250 word limit just isn’t sufficient.
- Use an external proof reader to be sure everything makes sense.
- Look at previous winners and find out what gave them the winning edge.
- Tell everyone you have entered, that you have been shortlisted and especially that you have won. You will be encouraged by the support you receive.
Pure Event Management is a consultancy and training business working with clients throughout the UK to write winning award entries for the professional services. Lucinda White, owner, is passionate about achieving success for her clients. Her expert writing skills present the best a company or individual has to offer and led to a 72% success rate of their client’s awards going on to be shortlisted or won (local, regional and national) and a 69% success rate of the awards critiqued progressing through to the next stages in 2013.
