Category: Don’t Panic

Awards – Can you afford not to enter? 

This year has seen such changes across the awards industry. We have been unable to come together with our peers to celebrate what makes digital, social and search great and the parties have gone virtual. 

That said, as much as we love the physical event, the bonding, the glitz and glamour, our awards are so much more than just that.  

Our Awards are based upon the ethos of rewarding innovative, creative and exceptional work that has made an impact on and to business and that has achieved outstanding ROI. This work continues to take place, and dare we say it thrive, and we intend to keep on rewarding and celebrating no matter what the world throws at us. 

We all know and recognise the benefits that come with being shortlisted and winning accolades.  

• Marketing opportunities before and after the announcements 
• Attracts new clients who are drawn to and seek success 
• Openings for new business partnerships and collaborations 
• Appeals to new talent who want to join a successful agency 
• Industry and staff recognition that gives moral a boost 
• Entering and judges feedback provides SWOT analysis for future campaigns 

These benefits are why we pride ourselves on our industry expert judges and robust two-step judging process which ensures the validity and value of our awards – they are awards the business and customers trust.  

Today social proof, the wisdom and feedback of others (qualified and sadly un-qualified) and influencer stamps of approval guide us to what we engage with and purchase. If it wasn’t the case Twitter would not be popular or Which or Trustpilot or, the travellers’ favourite, Tripadvisor, we could go on and on. Good reviews, high ratings and recognition are all key to growth and an Award communicates perfectly how successful a business is and why consumers should engage.  

Entering our awards is the most cost-effective marketing, recruitment and recognition investment you can make. Pre and Post event the Awards advertises your business on their website and social reaching new audiences previously untapped by your business. This along with the benefits above is, why entering awards is, excuse our phrasing a ‘no brainer’! or why you cannot afford to not enter our awards.  

We offer exclusive multiple entry offers and early bird discounts. We recently sent an invoice to a company entering 4 Global Social Media Awards – their invoice, which included 1 free entry, was just £774.00. If they had met the early bird deadline it would have been even less! The ROI from this investment across their entire business is unmatched.  

Our Awards include the Agency, Search, Social and Content Awards series, as well as the Company Culture Awards and more.  

We believe Award Accolades are essential and so should you. 

For details of all our awards click here or contact our dedicated team of award experts who will help you with any questions, advise on which awards and categories best suit your business and guide you through the entry process. 

For 15 fabulous years this August, we’ve been celebrating and rewarding professionals in the digital, creative and marketing industries, and we’ve had an absolute blast along the way.

Full of energy and laughter, with global expansion mixed in, we’ve developed into the Don’t Panic we are today thanks to our great team and incredible supporters. We’ve enjoyed meeting each and everyone one of you at our international events, whether it be at an awards, expo or conference.

As a thank you for your continued support over the years, we’re offering an exclusive 15% discount on category sponsorship across all Don’t Panic Awards for the whole of August!

To get your company in front of an engaged digital audience, all you need to do is contact Elisha Savage on elisha.savage@dontpanicprojects.com and quote the code ‘15BIRTHDAY‘, with the awards you are interesting in partnering on.

You can find the full list of active Don’t Panic Awards here: https://dontpanicprojects.com/events-tickets/

Discount expires 23:59 on August 31, 2020.

We look forward to continuing celebrating with you for the next 15 years!

David Edmundson-Bird is Principal Lecturer in Digital at Manchester Metropolitan University and an expert in the field of all things innovative and creative across the Digital landscape including marketing, social and interactive.

‘I have been working in the Digital Award business for over 12 years and have to admit that some of the judging practices I have encountered have been murky and destroy the real validity that the digital profession deserves’, he says. ‘We at Manchester Metropolitan University form an integral part of the digital business community and want to add our support to the change that needs to happen in respect of the ethos, respect and trustworthy nature of awards currently available to digital organisations in the real world who demonstrate great practice.’

Currently many awards are simply a popularity contest and no constructive feedback is provided to help businesses moving forward.

Therefore, David Edmundson-Bird has just been appointed Chair of Standards at Don’t Panic Events across our 22 digital awards.

David wants all digital awards to have validity so that employees, business partners and clients can trust the system. ‘We want to build an objective, fair process that judges can apply objectively to all entries that will ensure consistency irrespective of the entry. We also want to provide entries with feedback that will scaffold ongoing innovation and improved best practices that can be shared and celebrated in the future. Awards should be driven by merit and be judged by peers.’

Nicky Wake, Managing Director of Don’t Panic tells us ‘we have a robust two-step process for judging industry innovation, creativity and marketing and from September 2020 all entries will receive constructive feedback to help improve business and to improve future award entries. I believe we are unique in the business as our judges are key influencers, peer nominated and highly regarded in the digital field, our awards therefore are ethical, transparent and legitimate – real awards that add real value to business. Working with David will enhance the kudos of our awards and ensure the public know they are worth the paper or trophy they are written on.’

If you are contemplating entering an award then Don’t Panic awards are the ones that reward business merit and add real value.

Are you considering entering into one of our award schemes but aren’t sure what it takes to complete a winning entry? David Edmundson-Bird, a renowned judge of multiple awards, has put together his top tips on what the panel looks for during the judging process.

When receiving an entry, the main points I look for are:

• Make sure you respond to all of the tasks
• Please use the official form
• Don’t use marketing fluff or try to hide things from us with weird language – if you are trying to hide the truth, bluff or just avoid being direct, it will work against you
• Bear in mind the person reading your entry may be a leader in your field

Objective(s) & budget

• Make sure you put down clear, measurable objectives.
  • These should either be business objectives, marketing objectives or comms objectives.
• You should be using your objectives to help you define successful results in your evaluation.
  • Did you have any key performance indicators (KPIs) that you set yourself?

• Make it clear how the budget is used for aspects of the work.
  • If you have exploited assets from another campaign or business activity, make sure you include the true cost of these assets in your costing.
• Nothing is ever free.
  • Even if you have no media costs and you’ve used establishment staff as sunk cost, make sure you help us understand the cost of time spent or the loss of value as a result of staffers unable to work on other work.

Target audience & strategy

• Clearly define your target audience.
  • Particularly when looking at the audience for communications, have you identified a clear, specific target audience for your comms?
  • Have you gone beyond basic demographics and thought about things such as digital behavioural, geo-locational or psychographic targets?

• Give a clear strategy about your plan to engage with those targets.
  • What was the route to reaching that audience?
  • What were the stages or tasks you needed to go through to achieve your objectives?

Implementation & creativity 

• Show clearly how you executed the strategy.
  • What did you do to ensure you were going to achieve your objectives?
  • What did you do that was clearly unique and unusual?
  • What rules did you break?
  • What new and different approach did you use that sets your thing apart from anyone else’s?

Results & evaluation

• Please relate these to the objective(s) stated in your objectives and budget.
  • Your objectives should have been measurable so did you achieve them?
  • Did you meet your KPIs and do they underpin the success of the work?
    • Did you exceed them?
  • How did you evaluate the softer measures?
    • By what measure is this a success?
    • Would you do anything differently if you were to repeat the work?

Why should you win this category?

• This one is often the clincher when it’s a close race – you really want to win this so make sure you convince the judge that you are a worthy recipient.
  • Why you and not the others?
  • Why should I pick yours?
  • In a pile of also-rans, what will make me think ‘Hey this is a one-off!’

So, that’s it! You’re now fully equipped to submit a winning entry. To find out more or enter into one of our upcoming award schemes, click here.