How to win business awards

Winning business awards or even being shortlisted for a business award has endless pluses: it raises your business’ profile and that of your leadership and staff; it’s great for morale; customers bask in your glory; and it attracts new employees and potential investment.  

Ask anyone who’s entered an award and they will tell you how much they benefited from the process.  

Entering business awards forces you to take stock, to recognise what you have achieved, and to sum up where your business is moving. 

If you’re curious about entering business awards, what do you need to do to boost your opportunity for success? 

1. Tell your success story 

The first thing is to remember that the judges are looking for businesses or businesspeople who are making progress. These are people or companies that might be delivering great outcomes to others, be growing revenue and profit, or introducing exciting new innovations or initiatives, or overcoming significant challenges.  

Therefore, when entering a business award, don’t forget to explain how you are making progress, and give evidence for this. 

Be honest and frank. When asked about challenges or successes, explain what you did and how you overcame the challenge or what you did to achieve the success. Importantly, describe the outcomes for you, your business or employer, customers or clients or colleagues. Keep your explanation straightforward: state the information in a matter of fact way. It’s not about boasting, or embellishing your words; it’s about being yourself. Equally, don’t be overly modest – you need to set out your achievements and how you’ve made a difference.

2. Make sufficient time

It’s important to make sufficient time for your award entry. Awards have long lead times, so you don’t have to write your business award entry all in one go. But you’ll know how time flies! In fact, it’s a good idea to go through a number of drafts.  

Make yourself a cup of coffee or tea and whilst enjoying the moment, jot down notes in answer to each question that you can flesh out later. You may have to provide data, such as financial records, referees, or perhaps a business plan, and these things can take time to pull together. 

3. Write in the first person

If you are entering as an individual, even if you are an employee, write in the first person. Use ‘I’: I achieved this…, I introduced that… If it is the company that is entering, use ‘we’: we achieved this…, we introduced that… Writing in the first person makes your business award entry more personal; it’s just like talking directly to the judges.  

In a nutshell, preparing a business award submission is a time to appreciate your achievements. Most of all, have fun. Enjoy the look back at your successes and your future journey. 

How to find out about awards or get help with your award entry 

If you’d like help finding suitable business awards to enter or help with the creation of your award entry, Award Writers will be delighted to help. We’ve written hundreds of success award entries, helping companies to success. 

Give us a call today on 02 8036 5532 or 0411 123 216 or email rosemary@proofcommunications.com.au.