By Christi Fish, PRSA San Antonio Area Chapter board member
“Next to excellence is the appreciation of it.”
author William Thackeray
All my life, I’ve heard people say the desire to be appreciated is a shortfall that deteriorates the spirit. They suggest rewards should come from within. They claim human nature prevents us from celebrating the achievements of others.
How mistaken they are!
I believe professional recognition nurtures perseverance. Celebrating the accomplishments of our industry’s leaders demonstrates our collective commitment to integrity. Recognizing award-winning work allows us to stay abreast of our industry’s best practices.
Day in and day out, public relations professionals in the greater San Antonio region improve society by delivering messages that raise awareness of important issues. And that’s no easy task.
To develop a communications plan, we research issues, gather facts and confirm our sources. We set objectives and goals. We identify our target audiences and craft key messages. We monitor the success of our campaigns and strategize ways to make our communications even more effective. All the while, hanging in the balance are reputations that take a lifetime to build and a moment to destroy.
This year, members and friends of the San Antonio chapter of PRSA will gather at the Bright Shawl in downtown San Antonio on March 6 to celebrate the region’s best professionals. Awards will be given in three categories. Del Oro Awards recognize outstanding communicators. La Plata Awards recognize outstanding communications campaigns. El Bronce Awards recognize outstanding communications tactics.
We invite you to submit your best work in this year’s competition. Thursday, March 4 is the deadline to enter your campaigns and tactics in the La Plata and El Bronce categories, respectively. The deadline to nominate outstanding communicators for the Del Oro Category is Thursday, March 18.
More importantly, mark your calendar for the Del Oro Awards Banquet on Thursday, May 6.
We hope to see you there!
Showing posts with label Awards preparation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Awards preparation. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 02, 2010
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Storytelling Key to Winning Awards
By Celine Thomasson, APR
Having submitted entries for professional awards and also serving as a judge for competitions, I have a few tips to improve your award entry.
Project summaries or narratives make or break an entry. Focus on a specific problem. Describe that problem clearly and quickly. Talk about how you went about solving the problem. Wrap up with a resolution. A compelling narrative will document opportunities that arise suddenly or describe unanticipated obstacles. If the project summary does not convey the essential story then all the flashy collateral materials are for zilch.
The presentation of collateral materials or work samples is like creating a scrapbook. It is the tactile content that supports the summary. Embellish with notes, photos, samples, and clippings. However, if you can’t secure that key chain or promotional item in the binder it would be better to include a high quality photo. Video, web, or any type of electronic materials should be included but unless the award category is specifically for this type of production don’t count on the judges to see it. A better idea would be to print samples of web content. Your website will change from the time of the project until the competition deadline. If the web content is an important part of the strategy, be sure to print or save as you go along. Finally, include only those pieces that are the most critical or best showcase your work.
Give your story a powerful ending by including photos and testimonials. The evaluation narrative is necessary but often dry. I judged an award submission that included handwritten notes from children who had participated in the event. It was a small but powerful touch to bring the entry to a close.
You be the judge! There is no better way to gain insight into how to submit award entries than to volunteer to judge competitions.
Having submitted entries for professional awards and also serving as a judge for competitions, I have a few tips to improve your award entry.
Project summaries or narratives make or break an entry. Focus on a specific problem. Describe that problem clearly and quickly. Talk about how you went about solving the problem. Wrap up with a resolution. A compelling narrative will document opportunities that arise suddenly or describe unanticipated obstacles. If the project summary does not convey the essential story then all the flashy collateral materials are for zilch.
The presentation of collateral materials or work samples is like creating a scrapbook. It is the tactile content that supports the summary. Embellish with notes, photos, samples, and clippings. However, if you can’t secure that key chain or promotional item in the binder it would be better to include a high quality photo. Video, web, or any type of electronic materials should be included but unless the award category is specifically for this type of production don’t count on the judges to see it. A better idea would be to print samples of web content. Your website will change from the time of the project until the competition deadline. If the web content is an important part of the strategy, be sure to print or save as you go along. Finally, include only those pieces that are the most critical or best showcase your work.
Give your story a powerful ending by including photos and testimonials. The evaluation narrative is necessary but often dry. I judged an award submission that included handwritten notes from children who had participated in the event. It was a small but powerful touch to bring the entry to a close.
You be the judge! There is no better way to gain insight into how to submit award entries than to volunteer to judge competitions.
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