Writing Effective Award Entries

Avoiding the common pitfalls by Matthew Wood, founder a4uAwards

New for 2011

Best use of…. Social Media and Mobile Hot shot rising star award (under 30 years of age) International Award (for excellence) Best Managed Affiliate Programme Network Excellence Awards

What about the community choice awards?

Scaled back except the ‘Community choice of Network’ Blog award on hold but may return in the future

The right category

Think carefully about selection Don’t forget the vertical awards (casino & gaming or travel historically under-represented whilst Retail is very popular) Enter multiple categories to boost your chances, however ensure you personalise each submission Check eligibility carefully especially when your activity has taken place

Second time lucky?

You are unable to re-enter unless there have been notable enhancements

Writing an effective entry

Put yourself in the judges shoes (judges marking all categories spend on average 3 full days + digesting hundreds of entries) Be short, snappy and specific Aim for 2 pages max, size 10 font minimum Include 1 or 2 pages of supporting evidence (only if relevant) Stand out from the crowd Demonstrate how you achieved your success

What to include

Think about what makes you unique Equally, do demonstrate Innovation, excellence and best practice Demonstration of ROI is a must Include hard figures and not just % increases Testimonials from clients can add credibility

Remember

All judges sign an NDA agreement, mark anything not for publication as ‘Judges eyes only’ else we may publish it in the winners guide or on the night Please convert to PDF With some awards we will telephone you for further quantitative information

Need Inspiration?

Learn from last year’s winners

The 2010 winners guide contains details of each award, who won and why Search for blogs written by judges about their experience Remember our core mission ‘to reward excellence and innovation’

Judging criteria

Clear Campaign ObjectivesProvide evidence of clear, well thought out objectives and overall strategy for the campaign or product

Innovation and UniquenessDemonstrate to judges innovation and uniqueness used within the specified activity

FeasibilityDefine the need, drivers, opportunity and commercial feasibility for the campaign

Smart ExecutionBriefly describe how your strategy was executed and what made it stand out

Success and ROIClearly show ROI from the campaign (figures) and ultimately why it was a success

Common mistakes

Lack of ROI demonstrated Lack of perceived effort (simple spelling, layout, design) Not adhering to the rules of submission Not leaving enough time for client sign-off / general preparation

Remember

All activity must be related to the period 1st January 2010 to 31st January 2011 Submissions cannot re-submitted unless significant developments have taken place

Timeframe

31st January 2011 – Submission deadline 7th February 2011 – Extension for late entries 1st March 2011 – Shortlist announced 17th May 2011 – The Awards

Is late entry possible?

Yes, but it’s a ruddy pain and as per other industry awards attracts a £50 late entry admin fee.

Questions?

Follow a4uAwards

twitter @a4u blog @ a4uawards.com/blog Subscribe to the affiliates4u newsletter Call me on 01172 033 009