The one low cost marketing tactic businesses often overlook

Your marketing strategy (Don’t have one? Chat to us!) likely has social media tactics, advertising budgets and seasonal campaigns planned for the year ahead, but it could be missing an easy, low cost activity that can reap long term benefits.

Do you use award programs as an opportunity to promote your business?

Winning awards can open doors to new prospects that might never have been possible otherwise, and can elevate your brand.

By simply sharing Elevate’s 2017 Small Consultancy of the Year award win with our networks, we have secured new clients, re-connected with past contacts and have opened the doors for more new partnership opportunities. It’s an incredible and almost immediate ROI that businesses long for. 

Having drafted a number of award submissions that have achieved finalist positions and category wins, I know what it takes to share the good work you have achieved through the year and make it award-worthy.

1)    Read the entry kit, highlight and re-read

The criteria for awards is generally very strict. From word limits to the time frame being judged, it’s worth taking the time up front to read through the categories and highlight the core criteria. And make sure you know the deadline and how it’s submitted. You don’t want to be cutting and pasting parts of your Word document into an online portal 2 minutes before the cut off!

2)    Think bigger than your business

How did your activity or staff member support and build not only our business, but the wider community? If you’re announcing a record sales year, was this re-invested in the community? Did your charitable donations go up? Did it offer resources to allow for flexible working to benefit staff and their families? Make your success about the big picture. 

3)    Decide whether to KISS or Flesh
Depending on the word limits available to you, you will have to decide which parts to keep short and simple and which areas to flesh out or expand on. What areas will have the most impact on the judges?

 4)    Give yourself time

Awards take time to get right. Your first draft won’t be your final draft! Leave plenty of time for a few drafts and make sure you get other people to review it. Sometimes what makes sense to you will be lost on someone not in the business and therefore, will be lost on the judges.                                                                                

5)    Go for more than one award

You can usually enter more than one category, so if it’s suitable, tweak your submission and try for another category.

When you are nominated as a finalist or selected as the winner, use your new title to promote, promote, promote! Ask the Awards organiser if they have a digital logo you can add to your signature and website, pop it on your social media pages, create and distribute a media release, publish a blog on LinkedIn, use it in your recruitment ads and so much more.

Elevate’s experienced award writing team can help identify suitable award events and draft the application, so hit us up for the best chances at being recognised for your work!

Call us on 07 3180 3666 or email us at info@elevatecom.com.au