Support Materials

Support Materials are any materials associated with your marketing effort and are worth 50 points. Support Materials for your entry could be as simple as a single print ad (as in the Print Advertising category) or could include a wide variety of materials as described below. All Support Materials must be submitted digitally online. For information on uploading Support Materials, click here.

Support Materials are generally either visual/creative (involving some artistic design or production) or non-creative in nature and will be evaluated accordingly in relation to information provided in the Entry Summary.

Examples of visual/creative Support Materials include:

• Samples of brochures, sales kits, media kits, information sheets, visitor or meeting guides, newsletters, posters, invitations, press releases/announcements, and other printed materials

• Samples of print, web, TV, radio, outdoor, mobile and other ads; videos and other interactive audio or video materials

• Samples of specialty merchandise or other promotional items such as clothing, decals, calendars, pens, umbrellas, etc.

The creativity and quality of these visual/creative materials will be evaluated based on the appropriate standards of the craft. For example, websites and mobile apps will be evaluated based on content, structure/navigation, visual design, functionality, interactivity and overall experience. A print ad would be evaluated based on readability and visual appearance, quality of text and copy, call-to-action, overall design, etc. Judges will evaluate how well materials tie to stated objectives and target audiences, if graphic or design elements set the entry apart, how production quality rates based on the budget and scope of the entry and other factors.

Examples of non-creative Support Materials include:

• Evidence of impact or results, such as publicity clips or TV news coverage and letters of support

• Event photos or raw video footage

• Research results, web traffic reports, marketing plans, etc.

These types of Support Materials will be rated based on relevance to the entry, what credibility they lend to details provided in the Entry Summary and how well they support or underscore the planning, strategy, creativity or results of the entry overall.