It is the eve of the Media Federation Awards I am starting to feel a bit nervous.
This is the first time I've entered an industry competition and I've been lucky enough to end up as a finalist.
My nerves have made me wonder though, how important are industry awards for agencies, individuals and clients alike?
Putting together my entry gave me an opportunity to think outside the box. I put together a proposal that, given the real-life constraints of budget, appeasing board members and securing required partnerships may not wholly come to life. My point here is, should we have an industry awards program that allows the creative/strategic brilliance shine and as such build a library of knowledge that brands can access when selecting an agency (or even the people they would like working on their business)?
What the current awards system does is highlights the good work that has actually come to life, but a huge number of fabulous ideas never get showcased because they get over-thrown by other factors at play. This is all part of the game I suppose I just wonder what value prospective clients get from this.
Personally, entering the awards has given me a morale boost. Ending up in the same room as some of the industry's most awarded and talented people is a huge confidence booster. I would have loved to have been exposed to this when I was at uni or a media assistant but I was never even aware of the industries bodies. In light of the industry recruitment problems, rather than self-promotion within our own industry maybe its about promoting the achievements highlighted by awards nights outside of the industry and as a result attracting other quality people into media.
I'm interested to know what you all think about industry awards and how they should be used for self-promotion (agency & individual) and agency selection (by brands).
