US Search Awards: Bing's Duane Forrester is a Judge

In conjunction with Pubcon this fall, the US Search Awards will be held in Las Vegas.  These awards have been around a while outside the US, but 2013 marks the first time they’ve come to the USA.  If you think you’ve done outstanding work, or know of something amazing that was done somewhere, now’s your chance to give a huge shout out.  Duane Forrester from Bing’s Webmaster Tools program is on the judging panel for what is shaping up to be a pretty cool competition.

Now, before you go nuts flooding Twitter with ideas, there is a process and we’ve outlined some guidance here to help level set everyone.

What makes a good search award entry? (The deadline for award entries is: Friday 19th July 2013)

When writing an award entry it’s difficult to assess how the entry will be perceived, so how to make an entry stand out and simply what the judges are looking for?

Here are five great tips for entering this year’s US Search Awards.

Don’t miss your opportunity to enter your fantastic work in Search, PPC and by entering it into the US Search Awards – entries are now open and you have until July 19th to enter.

Step 1: Simple

It may sound obvious but sometimes simple is best. Judges have many categories to peruse over and if your entry is full of ‘fluff’ and extra information that has to be waded through – you’re making their job difficult. Make sure your awards entry is clear and concise.

Step 2: SMART

It can often be difficult to assess what came next when objectives are written in a pitchy matter. An easy way to set out your objectives in your Search entry is to think of the mnemonic, SMART, this way it is clear to the judges what the objectives are:

– Simple – Measurable – Achievable – Realistic – Timely

If an awards entry is award winning the clarity is often the key – with the story being concise, coherent and ultimately convincing.

Step 3: Clear ROI

An award-winning entry is one that exceeds initial objectives. ROI is what you are being measured on – so if you want to be commended for your campaigns – you need to make sure you prove your ROI is strong. However, it is not always big figures that impress because it throws into question how much it cost to achieve those results. Some of the most impressive ROI figures are from relatively low –budget campaigns.

Step 4: Innovation

Creative, Innovation and intuition are three key elements which judges really take notice of when assessing award entries. What makes your campaign special? It is great to see campaigns that have, in some way, shape or form, pushed boundaries and are therefore different to other campaigns which have been seen before. If your campaign has a sense of pushing the Search industry forward, with brand new ideas and thoughts – this will set your entry apart from others.

Step 5: Presentation

To make a good first impression it is important that the small things count when writing your award entry.

A first point about an award entry presentation is that all entries should be well written, spelling mistakes look sloppy and lazy. A suggestion would be to write your entry in bullet points to break the content up and make it easier for the judges to read.

Finally, the award categories are now open for entries for the US Search Awards – view them here.

The deadline for award entries is: Friday 19th July 2013

Good Luck and get entering!