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8 Features A Good Awards Consulting Agency Needs

Regardless of your industry, awards matter. After all, your own awards program is a simple medium you can use to honor others in your industry or exemplify the values and goals set forth by your organization.

However, understanding the benefits of awards and actually implementing a successful program in your organization are two different things. Running an awards program is a significant commitment of both time and effort on the part of your staff. So, if planning and executing an awards program seems like a herculean task for your organization and staff what are you supposed to do?

The answer lies in awards consulting agencies.

So, What are Awards Consulting Agencies?

Awards consulting agencies are the answer for awards programs that are strapped for time and manpower, or are looking for a way to achieve greater success.

Why? Because these agencies are experts on awards programs and their whole business is understanding awards and how to properly execute them. You can consider them your partner in the entire awards process that will take your unique challenges and goals and translate them into a comprehensive strategy.

They will then take that one step further and actually carry that plan out for you. As such, you can establish legitimacy, enhance your brand, and position your organization as an industry leader while enjoying the several other benefits a successful awards program has to offer.

But, How Can I Tell Whether or Not an Awards Consulting Agency is Right for Me?

Awards consulting agencies might not be the right fit for every awards program, but if you’re considering looking into one, be sure that it meets these eight crucial criteria.

1. Have a Clear Plan of Attack

The agency you select should have a clear, detailed plan that contributes to the success of your awards program. By taking the time to learn your program’s unique goals and challenges, an agency should be able to identify how to meet your needs, while delivering on your goals.

2. Teach and Train Your Staff

An agency is a resource for your organization, not a replacement for your staff. The best awards consulting agencies will take the time to teach and train your staff on your awards software to foster a collaborative environment essential for success.

3. Showcase a Specific Specialty

When agencies offer a specific specialty, you can expect exceptional results to match. After all, you want to ensure that there are specific skills coming to the table that translate into direct benefits for your organization.

4. Be Able to Explain Their Process

Transparency matters, especially for awards consulting agencies. Your agency should explain every aspect of their approach to ensure that you understand their methodology and agree that it will produce results that meet your goals.

5. Be Able to Prove Previous Success

You can’t assume that every agency is as good as they say they are. In fact, if they aren’t able to prove previous successful outcomes, it’s often best to move on to another qualified candidate.

6. Tailor Their Strategy to Fit Your Program’s Needs

You already know that your awards program is unlike any other and your agency’s strategy needs to be as well. A good agency will work with you to learn your unique challenges and goals and tailor a plan to fit those needs.

7. Keep You in the Loop

Transparency matters for your program. You shouldn’t have to ask about regular progress and updates. Instead, your awards consulting agency should give you updates and be willing to train your staff on software. This will translate to happy entrants and a program that meets your organization’s goals.

8. Focus on Analytics and Metrics

You need to know how your program performs so you can improve upon it next year. This means that your awards consulting agency should remain focused on the numbers to take this year’s strategy and improve upon it for next year.

If your organization is currently building an awards program or looking to improve upon a program already in place, an awards consulting agency could be right for you.

For more information, be sure to check out our OpenWater Interactive page or guide to get the information you need.

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Miriam Hancock

Miriam Hancock
Miriam is the Marketing Coordinator for OpenWater. When she isn't writing and designing content she paints and cooks for her own personal blog.

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