4 Common MistakesAwards P rograms Make

There is a lot to do to get your awards program ready.

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There is a lot to do to get your awards program ready.

Planning your awards program is hard work. There are

a mi l l ion th ings to do and str ic t deadl ines to meet.

Somet imes, in the f lurry, th ings can s l ip through the

cracks.

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That’s ok! We’re all human.

That’s ok! We’re all human.

However , some mistakes can end up having d ire

consequences for your program. That 's why we're

going to examine 4 common mistakes that awards programs make and how you can avoid them.

Just Winging It

Why you can ’ t sk ip out on p lann ing .

1

Planning an awards program is a big job.

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Planning an awards program is a big job.

But, some programs th ink they can manage their awards cycle without any extensive planning.

Unfortunate ly, winging i t increases the chance that

you’ l l forget something important, or that some

unforeseen disaster wi l l sneak up on you.

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What to do instead:

What to do instead:

Take the t ime to p lan out each part of your awards.

Start off establ ish ing the goals of your program.

This wi l l he lp keep your p lanning focused, showing

you where you need to go.

Not Budgeting Properly

Why mapp ing out expenses can end up sav ing you.

2

Setting a budget is key to your program’s success.

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Setting a budget is key to your program’s success.Sett ing a budget that ’s rea l is t ic and atta inable is

cruc ia l . There are a lways h idden costs that crop up

dur ing your awards. Not d iscover ing them in t ime can cost your program big.

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What to do instead:

What to do instead:

Planning and account ing for projected and poss ib le

expenses wi l l save you a lot of headaches. Consider a l l

the poss ib le costs assoc iated with your program. Use

the l is t to get organized and set a budget your team

can st ick to.

Ignoring Timing

Why you shou ld keep your ca lendar c lose dur ing p lann ing .

3

Timing is extremely important!

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Timing is extremely important!

Before you set a date for your gala, make sure i t

doesn’ t conf l ic t wi th any other major annual

assoc iat ion act iv i t ies or hol idays. Sett ing up your

program dur ing a t ime when potent ia l appl icants

are too busy doing something e lse wi l l negat ive ly

impact submiss ions and engagement.

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What to do instead:

What to do instead:

Start by checking your ca lendar and sett ing a date for

your gala and work ing backwards from there,

ca lcu lat ing how long each port ion of your program wi l l

take. Carefu l ly cons ider ing t iming wi l l he lp you avoid any conf l ic ts throughout the awards cyc le.

Not Planning Categories

Why organ i za t ion matte rs so much.

4

How you categorize your awards matters.

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How you categorize your awards matters.

Categor ies should support and ref lect the miss ion

and values of the organizat ion, and a lso recognize

achievement that corresponds with those goals .

Having too many categor ies d iminishes the value of

each award, but too few wi l l not a l low you to

recognize outstanding entr ies that don’ t f i t into a

part icu lar category.

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What to do instead:

What to do instead:

Look at what your program is about and what you hope

to achieve. Do the categor ies a l ign with these goals?

Use these goals to f igure out what exact ly you want to

recognize. Dist i l l and div ide these cr i ter ia in your

categor ies.

What slip ups has your awards program faced and what did you learn from them?

Tell me more:Download our gu ide The 7 Deadly S ins of Awards Programs to l ea rn about o ther common awards mishaps and how to avo id them.

Click here to learn more!

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