Do
- Follow the guidance given online, in the entry kit and online entry system. The information provided under each category has been carefully and specifically compiled to give you as much direction as possible
- Be sure to write every entry against the category-specific criteria
- Ensure the representation of your work within every element of the submission is 100% accurate and authentic
- Tell the story of your work. Explain what you wanted to achieve and why – we need to know the problem, not just the solution
- Explain why you approached the problem in this way – what were the critical success factors and were there any difficult circumstances to overcome at the time of execution?
- State what gave your campaign the competitive edge and if the proposed solution was innovative
- State if this campaign was the first of its kind
- Show evidence of a strong strategy – don’t assume that it will be obvious to the judges if you haven’t explained it clearly
- Ensure you show a clear link between strategy, objectives, tactics and outcomes
- Tell us how and where the results made a difference for the audience/patient and the client
- Ensure the evaluation and outcomes really do marry up with the SMART objectives you set out to achieve (NB retrospectively constructed objectives are easy to spot) If you enter an educational CME or CPD programme the judges will require that the objectives are purely educational and comply with recognised guidelines
- Get your point across quickly and simply – remember judges review lots of entries
- Use simple explanations and clear, punchy language
- Identify who did what between client and agency – roles and responsibilities
- Make sure that all materials supplied can be viewed in both Mac and PC format, that you provide any passwords required and that links to sites remain valid until after the final judging day (17 May 2024)
- Remember – judges are looking for entries that build trust and improve the reputation of our industry. They are also looking for entries that make them think “I wish I had thought of that” or “That’s an initiative/activity I would have been proud to be associated with”.
Don’t
- Exceed the submission length – in the online entry system, each element of the entry has a maximum word count.
- Be too formulaic – creativity is very important and remember less is often more
- Use complex sentences and ‘clever’ words
- Overuse marketing jargon
- Overstate your initiative – if it was a meeting series, say so
- Make apologies for using a standard tactic; explain that it was precisely what was required – flawlessly executed, of course
- Confuse “outtakes”, “outputs”, and “outcomes” when evaluating effectiveness of the campaign
- Assume the judges know the ins and outs of your disease/therapy area – ensure you explain enough to help them understand, but not so much as to complicate the entry
- Assume the judges will get to see your materials on the day – if your entry doesn’t make the cut on the first round of scoring, they won’t see any additional items that you send in. If an innovative tactic was involved, make sure it is represented or depicted properly in the submission itself.
Final Tip
Once you have written your entry, let a colleague who knows nothing about the initiative read it. If he or she doesn’t understand something, then neither will the judges!
