Awards season isn’t just for film, TV and music – Businesses should be watching closely
As the worlds of film, television and music move into awards season, we’re once again reminded of something important: recognition still matters
Whether it’s a standing ovation, a golden statuette or a carefully engraved plaque, awards signal excellence. They tell your story and crucially they influence perception.
We’ve all seen in the creative industry that awards can launch careers overnight. In business they can do something just as powerful – open doors that were previously closed, or maybe a just ajar.
There’s a lingering myth that business awards are “nice to have” rather than strategic. In reality, they’re one of the few third-party endorsements that cut through instantly.
A well-chosen, well-written award entry does three things:
It distils your story into a compelling, judge-ready narrative
It positions your business alongside peers you want to be compared to
It provides external validation that reinforces why your business stands out
More than that, entering awards also gives you the rare opportunity to step back and see your business as others do; often revealing just how much your team has achieved and providing a powerful way to thank them while recognising and celebrating their work.
Clients, investors, partners and prospects may not read your website in depth, but they will clock an award win in an email signature.
A true story from the Rise files
One of our clients secured a major new contract directly off the back of an award win; not from a pitch or a meeting or a cold call, but from a sales email.
The prospect noticed the award win in an email signature, looked it up, saw who the client was up against (and winning against) and asked for a call.
By the time the conversation started credibility had already been established.
That award entry had taken time to put together – information gathering workshops, interviews, drafting and refining as well as preparing a suite of stylish graphics to bring the entry to life.
But the return on that effort? Tangible, commercial and immediately measurable.
The bit no one tells you: judges are human
This is where our specialist edge comes in.
Rise doesn’t just enter awards, we’ve helped create them.
That means we understand how judges read entries when they’re on their tenth coffee, how quickly weak narratives fall apart and what makes a submission linger in the “shortlist” pile rather than the “nice, but no” one.
Judges are looking for:
Clarity over jargon
Evidence over adjectives
Impact over ambition
And above all a story that feels real.
Yes, awards take time. That’s the point
Awards are not a shortcut. They force businesses to articulate what they actually do well, why it matters and how it’s different. That clarity then moves into pitches, proposals, sales conversations, LinkedIn bios and those important email signatures.
Awards season might belong to film, TV and music; but the smartest businesses are watching closely and taking notes.
Because recognition, when done properly, doesn’t just celebrate success, it creates it.
Just some of the companies we’ve helped on their award winning journey:
“If you’re looking for a team that really understands how to communicate in writing and can transform the stories you tell about your business in to award winning copy, you’ll find it hard to better the exceptional talents of Jo. For many of my clients, Jo has crafted the most wonderful award entries, resulting in numerous shortlisting’s, and more often, outright wins, against the stiffest competition. After Jo’s taken you through the process of discovering what’s outstanding about what you do, and how you do it, you’ll likely marvel at how she weaves together all those threads into an amazing tapestry. Probably the best award entry writers in the business.
Lucas Vigilante, High Performance Business Coach, Action Coach
Jo was instrumental in our success at the BizX Awards 2024 – she was professional, supportive, and kept us to the deadlines we needed to meet. On top of that her ability to write and edit copy, assemble facts and figures and advise on the content that ought to be prepared was essential. Highly recommend working with Jo”
Tom Wesson, Director of Marketing, Westminster Wealth Management
“We engaged with Jo to assist with our PR efforts as part of a refresh to our marketing strategy. Since then, we have been finalists in a number of prestigious national awards, including winning Best Overall Business at the Business Excellence Awards in 2021. Jo managed the award entry process from beginning to end and not only brought our business to life within the submission but showed a clear understanding of not only the services we deliver but the culture within our business. This has led to an increase in visibility within our marketplace, but as importantly it has led to a real sense of achievement within the business. If you are looking for help with your PR I would wholeheartedly recommend Josie.
More than that, entering awards also gives you the rare opportunity to step back and see your business as others do; often revealing just how much your team has achieved and providing a powerful way to thank them while recognising and celebrating their work.
Clients, investors, partners and prospects may not read your website in depth, but they will clock an award win in an email signature.
