Five top tips for CRN Women in Channel entries

If you've been nominated for this year's awards, you may wish to consider the following pointers for your entry

Over the last eight weeks, CRN readers have been furiously nominating their colleagues, partners and peers (as well as themselves) for the second annual CRN Women in Channel Awards.

The number of women and organisations nominated during this period exceeded 500.

Now we move onto the second stage of the process - formal entries.

The entry process is designed to be as easy and accessible as possible, and there is no formula for the perfect entry.

However, anyone wanting their entry to stand out may wish to consider the following pointers, all of which were high on the agenda for last year's judges.

Provide testimonials

Not everyone likes to blow their own trumpet, so why not get others to do it on your behalf? Some of the strongest entries last year were brought to life with supporting quotes from colleagues, customers and suppliers. Strong testimonials will make entries stand out and give the judges extra evidence that it deserves to win over the competition.

Give the judges enough information to go on

The judges will have dozens of entries to mark, so brevity is key. On the other hand, if you find yourself providing one-sentence answers to each question, you're probably not giving them enough information to judge you on. You have a story to tell, and we want to hear it. Within reason, the more detail and colour the better.

Avoid bigging up your company

Unless you are going in for one of the three company-wide categories, these awards are about YOU, not the organisations you work for. The judges may mark down entries that contain PR fluff about the firms entrants work for. Corporate jargon is another bugbear for most judges.

Illustrate how you are helping other women

CRN's Women in Channel Awards are designed not only to celebrate the success of females in our industry, but also to confront why more women aren't seeking a career in the industry. Those who provide evidence of how they are helping tackle the diversity deficit will be favoured by some of the judges (although we appreciate that this may not be possible if you are a graduate/apprentice or very new to the industry).

Provide evidence and figures

If you can, please back up any claims you make with evidence. If you've grown a business unit, tell us by how much. If you're a marketing person, can you quantify the success of a campaign you've worked on? If you're a technical person, be as specific as you can about what makes you outstanding in your role. We appreciate that some of these figures may be commercially sensitive, but please illustrate your entries with any evidence you are able to share.

Most of all, well done for being nominated, and good luck with your entry.