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Case Studies

Make your awards entry stand out from the pack

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Corporate awards are a great way for companies to raise their profile by showcasing the results and impact of exceptional client work. They can also highlight the innovation, technical prowess and knowledge that delivered these results.

But writing award submissions that do justice to all of this demands time as well as serious storytelling skills. Not many companies have these in-house. So when a global consultancy wanted to submit multiple entries across 12 categories to help showcase recent successes, it turned to FirstWord for help. Here’s how we did it – and helped them get more than three-quarters of their entries shortlisted.

A tight deadline

Our client had just six weeks to write up to 20 award submissions. Each was 2,000 words across a set structure. Their people were too busy with their day jobs and their skill sets aren’t those needed to write compelling stories anyway. We had been writing blogs, thought leadership articles and other content for them for several years, and the client knew we could be relied on to show off their work to best effect.

The brief was clear: to get the maximum number of submissions shortlisted by making them standout entries to grab the attention of judges and, ultimately, to win in as many categories as possible. Within six weeks.

The first thing we did was assemble a team. With a potential 40,000 words to write on a tight timeline, this needed to be sizeable. We assigned a project manager with great scheduling, corralling and editing skills. She chose two editors, a sub editor and eight writers to complete the line-up.

Assigning the right people at the start was a critical step. Making best use of client time under deadline pressure meant it was even more important than usual for our writers to be up-to-speed on the subject matter and available at short notice. The editors had to be clear on what a good submission looked like, so they could tweak copy to ensure the narrative was clear and compelling, and the sub had to be prepared to proofread drafts whenever they were ready.

It wasn’t just our sub who had to be flexible. The busy project teams had very limited availability to tell their stories, which demanded enormous flexibility from our writers, with late nights and early starts.

Digging into the detail

With the editorial team in place, next came extracting details needed for each submission.

For the most part, the client gave us info before we started interviewing. Some of that came as bullet points and stats; some were a brain dump; others were really thoughtfully written pieces of prose with timelines of what had been done on a project. But sometimes we had to start from scratch.

Whatever content we’re working on, it’s our job at FirstWord to make sure there’s a strong narrative with proof points and examples to bring the story to life. An award submission is no different. It’s all about relevance and context.

With this project, it quickly became clear which submissions needed more of our investigative approach. Some required five or six interviews with different stakeholders to nail down all relevant points. Others took just one call and one draft.

One submission stands out. It was an impressive and complex technology transformation project that had come in on time and on budget. But it needed some stardust to make anyone care about it. We realised we didn’t have an explanation of ‘Why this matters’, tying a business project to real-world impact. It turned out to be as simple as introducing the human element – bringing to life the way the technology was helping people access training in new skills to find better jobs.

In another, it was about drawing out and adding context. For a project that’s being entered into a category related to sustainability, it wasn’t enough to say ‘we delivered what our client wanted’. It was important to explain why this mattered – why we need to reduce CO2 and the impact on our planet and climate if we don’t.

Then it was down to the writing. Some were passed first draft; one went through 10. This level of revision can cause stress, with key people on the client’s side struggling to dedicate enough time. We minimised this by making sure we were always available, working round them. When our client sent a query they got a fast response. We also turned round drafts fast. Communication was a priority, with our project manager on the phone to theirs two or three times a day.

And it paid off. All the entries signed off by our client’s clients made it to the submission deadline. But better than that – by far the majority made it on to the shortlists. It’s a few months yet until the winners will be announced, but the client is already as pleased as punch. Now, it’s a case of watch this space.

Written by
Sophy Buckley

A thoroughbred business journalist, Sophy spent years at the Financial Times as a writer and editor before branching out as a broader writer and editorial consultant.

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