The OpenWater Blog

7 Easy Ways to Best Write an Award Nomination

It can be a tough task to have to write an award nomination. It can sometimes take a lot of time and effort to get your award nomination just right. Here are seven ways in which you should write an award nomination to get the most out of the process, and to make the person you are nominating look the best.

1. Commit to your Nominee

Make sure you know the person you are nominating, as well as their accomplishments, well enough before writing the nomination. You cannot write an effective nomination about someone you do not know well enough. Also, truly believe in what you are writing. An honest nomination will be easier on your part to write, and will come off as authentic to judges.

2. Follow the Criteria as a Guideline

Do not just describe the person you are nominating generally. Answer the questions in the award description by using specific examples as to how your nominee fits the award category.

3. Research Necessary Information About your Nominee

Find out exactly what the person you are nominating has done. Start with their résumé, and gradually find out any projects or activities they are involved in that go above and beyond their job description. Also, find out what the results of their projects were.

4. Keep it Brief

No judge wants to read a nomination that looks like an essay. Your nomination may be just one of many a judge has to read that day. Get to the point in order to avoid wasting a judge’s time.

5. Be Specific

Give examples of why your nominee is deserving of winning the award that will distinguish him or her from the rest of the field. Identify any major accomplishments, and the impact this person has made. Additionally, quotes from colleagues, or statistics will only help in strengthening your nomination.

6. Review

Once you think you have done your best to write an award nomination, put it aside for a few days. When you come back to it, check to see if you have included all the information you wanted to cover. Look for any spelling or grammatical errors also. Finally, ensure that all the information you included in the nomination is accurate, and that you are portraying your nominee in an honest way.

7. Submit Before the Deadline

Do not wait until the absolute last minute to submit your award nomination. You cannot predict the possibility of a technological or human error. Avoid this by submitting with enough time available should a mistake occur.

Timothy Spell

Timothy Spell co-founded OpenWater in 2007 with the goal of helping organizations tackle and better manage the oftentimes overlooked awards and contests industry. As an author and speaker in the awards industry, Timothy provides unique insight on how to use awards to boost membership, social media followers and search engine traffic.

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