Summary: The best way to prepare for business awards is to start months before entries open. Here’s a strategy for you: Record a baseline of where your business stands today (or the beginning of the year), track the right KPIs, collect testimonials and evidence as you go, and keep a running log of your stories and milestones. When award season arrives, you’ll have everything you need for a winning submission.
Most business owners think about awards the week entries open. They pull up the criteria, stare at a blank page and realise they can’t remember what they achieved last March, let alone prove it.
As a business awards writer, I’ve prepared more than 300 award submissions. I’ve seen some people enter with just a day’s notice (not my clients). Then wonder why they’re not even short listed as finalists. They’re ill prepared, and it shows. Don’t be that person!
The businesses that win consistently work differently. They know that a strong award submission isn’t written in a fortnight. It’s built over the whole year, one result, one testimonial and one story at a time. By the time entries open, the hard work is already done and all that’s left is shaping it into a compelling case.
If you want to know how to prepare for business awards properly, the answer is simple: start now. Here’s how.
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Map out your awards calendar
Start by choosing which awards suit your business. Look at industry awards, local and regional business awards, and national programs that reward things like innovation, customer service, sustainability or growth.
Note when each program typically opens and closes, then put those dates in your calendar with a reminder six to eight weeks beforehand. Most programs run on a similar cycle each year, so once you know the rhythm you’ll never be caught short.
While you’re there, download last year’s entry guidelines. The questions rarely change much from year to year, which means you can see exactly what judges will ask for long before entries open.
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Create an awards evidence file
This is the single most useful thing you can do. Set up one folder (digital is easiest) and make it the home for anything that might strengthen a future entry.
Good things to save include:
- Financial results, growth figures and key milestones
- Customer feedback, emails, reviews and thank-you notes
- Media coverage and social posts that got strong engagement
- Photos of your team, events, projects and premises
- Case studies and before-and-after examples
- New products, services, systems or partnerships you launched
- Community involvement, sponsorships and volunteering
- Team training, qualifications and team achievements
Spend 30 minutes at the end of each month adding to it. Small habits like this turn a stressful scramble into a calm, organised process.
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Record your starting point
Judges love a clear before-and-after story. The most valuable thing you can do today is take a snapshot of where your business stands right now: revenue, customer numbers, team size and the main challenges you’re facing. This baseline makes future growth easy to demonstrate.
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Track the KPIs that matter
A claim like “we grew significantly” means very little to a judge. “Revenue increased 34% and we added four new team members” tells a story. Strong award entries draw on measures across five broad areas:
- Financial, such as revenue growth
- Customers, such as satisfaction and online reviews
- Capacity and operations, such as job volume
- Team, such as headcount and training
- Local economic contribution, such as spend with local suppliers
Which KPIs carry the most weight depends on the award and category you enter. How you track them matters just as much. Judges notice businesses that review their numbers on a regular rhythm and keep the records, and accounting or booking software that reports automatically makes this far easier.
It also pays to write down your goals for the year ahead and define your point of difference now. That way you can later show what you achieved and back up your claims with proof. Start today, and when you enter you’ll have two years of data showing growth, not just a single year’s snapshot.
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Collect testimonials as you go
The best time to ask for a testimonial is straight after you’ve delivered a great result, when the client is happiest. Waiting until entry time means chasing busy people for a quote with a tight deadline.
Make requesting feedback part of your process. Ask clients to mention specific outcomes, such as time saved, money earned or problems solved. Specific testimonials carry far more weight with judges than general praise.
It’s a good idea to check you have permission to use a client’s words and name in an award submission.
How are your Google reviews looking? The judges will likely do an online search for your business, so nudge some of your clients to provide Google reviews. While you’re at it, spruce up your website and social media too.
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Capture your stories
Numbers prove what you achieved. Stories show judges why it matters.
Winning entries are full of specific examples, and these are hard to remember accurately later. Keep a simple running log as things happen, covering areas such as:
- Challenges and how you solved them
- Milestones, with dates
- Customer stories
- Investments in equipment, technology and training
- New systems and processes
- Team culture initiatives
- Community involvement
Honest challenge stories in particular build credibility with judges.
These stories become the heart of a memorable submission. They’re what help judges remember your entry after reading dozens of others.
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Get your team on board
Award entries are rarely a one-person job. Let your team know which awards you’re targeting and ask them to flag wins, positive feedback and great moments as they happen.
If you’re entering a team or employer category, start gathering evidence about your culture now. Think team surveys, professional development, flexible work arrangements and how you recognise great work.
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Prepare your visuals and supporting documents
Many awards allow or require supporting material. Get these ready well ahead of time so you’re not booking a photographer the week before the deadline.
- Professional headshots and team photos
- High-resolution logo files
- Product or project images
- A short business overview you can adapt
- Financial statements, if the category asks for them
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Review last year’s results
If you entered before, request judges’ feedback if the program offers it. It’s one of the most valuable tools available, because it tells you exactly where you lost points.
If you didn’t enter, read about past winners. Look at what they achieved and how they presented themselves. You’ll quickly see the standard you need to reach.
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Decide early whether to get help
Writing a strong award submission takes time, skill and an objective eye. Many business owners find it hard to see their own achievements clearly, or to describe them without underselling.
If you plan to work with a professional award writer, book them early. Good writers fill up quickly once award season opens, and giving them your evidence file well ahead of time means a stronger, more polished entry.
Start today, win tomorrow (well, maybe next year!)
Winning a business award is rarely about luck. It comes down to preparation, clear evidence and a story told well. The businesses that start early give themselves the best chance, because they walk into award season with everything they need already in hand.
So set up that evidence folder this week. Add your first testimonial. Note down one great story from the past month. Your future award entry will thank you.
Wondering which awards to enter? If you’re in NSW, check out this list. Or you could read my Complete Guide to Australian Business Awards post.
Ready to enter but not sure where to start? Get in touch to find out how we can help you turn your achievements into a winning award submission.
