Everyone loves a winner. In love and war, when it comes down to two sides, people are attracted to the more successful party. In public relations, it’s no different. When it comes to winning new business and locking up coveted clients, PR agencies need to do what they can to stand out from the madding crowd. If a prospective client is evaluating you and another firm, and you both promise to deliver comparable results at a comparable cost, it would help to have a differentiator on your side. Your long list of PR awards wins could be what tips the scales in your favor.
Bottom line is this: when you win awards, people are drawn to you; when your business wins awards, clients are drawn to you. Wins are wins are wins, and wins are good things. But they’re only effective — they only separate you from the crowd — if people know about them. You need to know how to promote your wins. Picture this: you’ve built your business over the years, grown your client list, and consistently reached your targets and helped your clients reach theirs. You’ve also been smart enough to apply to awards programs most years. And the PR awards you’ve won, you’ve turned them into dynamite marketing collateral — this is the key. In case you’ve forgotten, here’s how you’ve done it:
1. Press releases
When you deserve it, it’s never a bad thing to toot your own horn. (Conversely, it’s quite a bad thing when you don’t deserve it.) Send out a press release letting your audience know that the work you do has just been recognized as outstanding. Good PR awards programs, like the Bulldog Awards, will also send out their own releases highlighting the winners, giving you potentially double the coverage.
2. Emails
Whether as part of your regular newsletter or in a separate email all its own, send news of your win to everyone on your list. No one’s going to blame you for showing off a little. And good news travels fast, meaning current clients might just spread the word to future ones.
3. Award visuals
Put ’em places. Let the world see that you won. Display the logo and the term ‘winner’ on your website, your email signatures, your business cards, your online ads, and anywhere else prospects might be looking.
4. Social media
Blast your victory over the social airwaves. Show the Twitterverse and the Facebookers of the world (aka the world) that yours is a top-tier company worthy of industry adulation. And don’t forget to list your victories on your LinkedIn page — there’s a lot to be said for a well-stocked trophy case.
Applying for and winning awards is a huge piece of this PR puzzle; letting the world know that you’ve won is arguably even bigger. If you win an award and no one knows about it, did it even happen? Everyone loves a winner. A Bulldog Award win can and will put you in that camp.
