IT'S THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR: THE UNAWARDS 2015

There was real celebratory feel about the UnAwards15, which we’re pretty pleased about because that’s exactly what we hoped to achieve.

By Darren Caveney

The UnAwards15 saw 140 colleagues from across the industry descend on the very cool Everyman Cinema in Birmingham last Thursday. The mood was one of big event excitement - Christmas party meets trip to a posh cinema mixed with lashing of great communicators celebrating one another’s work.

Holding the UnAwards at Christmas is deliberate too – we wanted to add a little festive sparkle to the proceedings.

We’re a tad biased but we felt the whole day was a little bit special.

Sitting watching the fabulous Planes, Trains and Automobiles with what felt like a great big group of pals was pretty amazing. The film had a whole bunch of relevant messages and takeaways (and if you have ever watched the movie remember – ‘never assume you are cuddling a pillow’)

If you were a part of the UnAwards15 we hope it was fun. We hope you felt recognised.

If you missed the UnAwards then get it in your diary for next year, we suspect it might just get even bigger in 2016 (1 December looks rather tempting)

FIRST OFF, SOME WELL-DONE MESSAGES...

If you entered, well done. The entry process will have made you stop and think about your project or campaign - what worked, why it was successful and how you measured it. It may also have made you think about how and where you may do things differently next time. Quiet reflection, review and evaluation is vital for us all.

If you were one of the 81 shortlistees then huge congratulations. We said it on the day of the event and it’s true - the standards have risen this year. And that’s so encouraging to see.

If you won you should be seriously delighted. It means independent and experienced judges from the industry thought your work was great and made a difference. Get it on your LinkedIn profile sharpish.

If you lost out in the public vote for the best guest post, best comms team and lifetime achievement UnAwards you should take great pride and satisfaction that someone else nominated you. That’s something special. Something to be cherished.

THE WINNERS

There are too many to mention here but some standouts from the UnAwards included Sheffield City Council grabbing three wins and Sarah Lay collecting the lifetime achievement UnAward from last year’s winner Fran Collingham.

It was really pleasing to see wins for local government, NHS, police, housing, creative agency and the fire and rescue service. Excellence was spread across the sectors.

And both Leeds City Council and Shadow Giants remain as the only two organisations to win at both the UnAwards 14 and 15. Go you.

We’ve published the full list of winners and judges’ special picks. Many thanks to our judges.

SAYING THANKS

The UnAwards15 would simply not have been possible without a lot of help and support from some brilliant people. So from Dan and I huge thanks to:

-          Musterpoint

-          Alive With Ideas

-          GovDelivery

-          Luke Williams

-          Nicky Speed

-          Nigel Bishop

-          ByeByeBirdieUK

SO WHAT NEXT?

We created the UnAwards to celebrate the achievements of the comms industry. But to do it in a way which was a little different. We don’t like stuffy and so try to make our events genuinely entertaining. We also developed them as an antidote to an awards industry which is fast pricing the public sector out of the market.

The UnAwards set out to be the most accessible industry awards around.  We think we pulled it off. But if we didn’t, tell us.

Lots of you have been asking for more details about what winners did so that we can share the learning. So we’ll now work on an event for the New Year to bring together winners and shortlistees and give them the chance to tell us all in more detail what they created, delivered and learned. We’ll need a venue and a sponsor or two to make this fly (and a couple of people have already signalled an interest)  More as soon as we have it.

We want your blog posts on your entries so that we can share widely across the comms community. That’s the whole point of comms2point0.co.uk – sharing and learning. So get scribbling and send us your posts as soon as.

UNAWARDS 2016

survey services

AND FINALLY

I was repeatedly asked two questions on the day. The first, light-heartedly, centred on my Val Doonican Christmas Special UnAwards outfit (you had to be there). Well for all you discerning gents out there, here’s where you can grab your own velvet jacket to make an impression (or not) this Christmas.

And secondly, I was asked whether the UnAwards was a whole load of work and was I worn out from it? Honest answers, yes, it’s a lot of work. But as Morrissey once said, “the pleasure, the privilege was mine.”

So thanks for letting us have so much fun.

See you at the UnAwards15 Winners Masterclass in the New Year.

Darren Caveney is co-creator of comms2point0 and the UnAwards

UNAWARDS15 - THE SHORTLIST

Well that was fun.

Yesterday saw the end of our public vote and the announcement of the #UnAwards15 shortlist. I went slightly bog-eyed watching it all unfold but we now know the runners and riders in all 15 categories.

By Darren Caveney

Over 140 entries poured into the UnAwards15 from across the UK and from as far afield as Norway. Central government, local government, NHS, Police, Housing, Fire, Higher Education, third sector and the agency world all took part and our 14 external judges have had quite a task in getting down to our final shortlist.

The standard of your entries this year has been high. We know this because some of our judges are hard to impress, But impressed they were.

Our love and respect for this fabulous comms, PR, marketing and digital community, which we all exist in, just grows and grows and thank you so much for supporting the #UnAwards15.

It’s extra work for everyone who gets involved – from entrants all the way through to judges - but I shall never stop believing that recognising great work, memorable achievements and creativity is just about the most important part of what we believe in at comms2point0 headquarters.

The fact that 2.7k votes were cast in the public vote tells us that you believe this too.

Here is the shortlist - huge thanks to everyone who entered.

If you weren’t shortlisted this time, I’m sorry. The standard this year was incredibly high and in some categories really good entries still weren’t good enough to make the final cut. This doesn’t mean that your work wasn’t great, of course, and reflecting on what worked well is always time well spent. Don’t give up – as us Birmingham City F.C. fans say, “there’s always next year”.

Tremendous thanks go to our team of judges for taking the time to make this happen – Dan and I were itching to judge but as we know so many of the entrants now through our consultancy work, training and events we thought it fairer all round to butt out.

And whether you are shortlisted or not do get yourself to the best comms event of the year on 3 December at the very cool Everyman Cinema.

The event features the ceremony, the watching a classic comms and PR film, eating a tasty meal with friends and colleagues, and the chance to learn and network with your industry.

‘Yes, it’s work’, if your boss questions it.

And ‘no’, it’s not a stuffy black tie affair where you have to part with £300 and listen to a bad after dinner speaker.

Tickets are selling fast and once they are gone, they are gone I’m afraid.

To guarantee your place on a very comfy sofa for the big event rustle through your wallets and purses for £20 and grab your prized ticket now.

I hope to see lots of you there. Dan may even buy you a drink.

Darren is co-creator of comms2point0 and the UnAwards

Image via Flickr creative commons

UNAWARDS15 LATEST: THE SHORTLIST, THE PUBLIC VOTE AND ATTENDING ONE COOL EVENT

By Darren Caveney

Wow.

We are just getting our breath back from working our way through the mountain of UnAwards entries we’ve received. And we thank each and every one of you for that.

The standard of your entries this year is very high and it has been fascinating looking through your work - the challenges you face and the creative solutions you have found to tackle them. We’re impressed.

We have entries from as far afield as Norway. And, interestingly, the top four most popular categories were ‘best creative comms’, ‘best internal comms’, ‘best use of video’ and ‘best low cost/free work’. The creativity and sheer breadth of your work has been a real treat to be able to delve into.

SHORTLISTING

Your entries are now winging their way through to our crack external team of judges. They have a tough job on their hands to get us our shortlist.

But decide they will and we’ll be posting the shortlists here on and around 16 November.

Winners will then be announced at our rather exciting UnAwards15 event taking place on 3 December.

MAKE SURE YOU ARE THERE ON THE DAY

The event will be a fantastic, fun day celebrating our industry and is a unique chance to learn and network, whether you are shortlisted or not.

It will run from 10am – 3pm at the very lovely Everyman Cinema, which is just a three minute walk from the all-new Birmingham New Street Station.

The event will feature the UnAwards ceremony, the screening of one very cool industry-related film, a tasty sit down meal and the chance to meet folks and friends both new and old.

There are still tickets available - at the moment - but please be aware they are strictly on a first come, first served basis. Tickets are just £20 – we know, that is ridiculously cheap.

So if you want to guarantee your place on a very comfy sofa on the day grab your tickets whilst you still can.

DON’T FORGET TO VOTE

In keeping with our UnAwards ethos, three of our category winners are selected by you. So please cast your vote in the following categories:

-          Lifetime Achievement

-          Best Guest Post 2015

-          Best Comms / Digital Team

You have until 17 November to vote for your favourites.

Good luck wishes go out to all of our entrants and nominees.

AND FINALLY

Huge thanks to official partners Musterpoint, and official sponsors GovDelivery and Alive with Ideas for your kind support and enabling us to host such a brilliant event with those cheap as chips ticket prices.

THE REAL REASON WHY YOU SHOULD ENTER THE UNAWARDS

There are several reasons for us running the UnAwards 15. Celebrating the work and efforts of colleagues across comms, PR, marketing and digital is right up there amongst them, of course.

But for me it runs a little deeper than that.

By Darren Caveney

We run the UnAwards to support and – in our own way - fly a flag for folks across the UK and beyond who are working in difficult circumstances and still delivering day after day. To sing for the unsung, to recognise the unrecognised.

I hear – and I hear it way too often, I’m afraid – of some less than great behaviours by some organisations and the way they are treating staff. To a degree this is to be expected with the enormous and ongoing cuts to the public sector – with 350k people leaving local government alone in the past five years there is unprecedented change taking place.

But this doesn’t excuse shoddy behaviour.

Lack of recognition has been a theme in much of the staff survey feedback I have seen over the years too. Sometimes your achievements will be appreciated by others, sometimes they’ll not be. That’s a fact of comms life, as it is in life.

And for me, part of the UnAwards is flying back into face of this and celebrating what you do and do well. We’ve been at, and are, at your coalface so we know.

So the real reason why you should enter the UnAwards is to celebrate you.

The UnAwards are about sticking your hands up in the air, proudly, and saying “you know what – I did some bloody good things this year. And I damn well should celebrate them.”

If you’re feeling a bit unloved, the community will show you some love. We all need some, right?

And whether you are ultimately shortlisted or not in the UnAwards s not necessarily the most important thing either - taking some time out to reflect back on all you have done this year is. This can only be a good thing for you personally, for your teams, and for your organisations.

Of course, if you have done something amazing you should absolutely crow about it, get it on your LinkedIn profile and write a post about it on comms2point0.co.uk. You never know, it may just get you spotted and open a door somewhere for you.

Convinced?

Then get cracking. You have until the end of Wednesday 28 October to enter.

Grab an hour with a cup of coffee, sit somewhere quiet and do yourself proud.

You’ll be glad you did.

p.s. Don’t forget to nominate someone brilliant in our two public categories: Lifetime achievement and best comms/digital team.

Darren Caveney is co-creator of comms2point0 and the UnAwards

image credit

A COOL INFOGRAPHIC - A GUIDE TO THE UNAWARDS

Here's the lowdown on everything you need to know about the UnAwards15, courtesy of this fab infographic by our sponsors, Alive with Ideas. Thanks, folks.

[if you like the look of what Alive with Ideas create give them a shout]

KNOW SOMEONE BRILLIANT? NOMINATE THEM AND MAKE THEIR DAY.

We know that a common complaint from comms folk, and others for that matter, is a lack of recognition for their work.

Whether it’s a brilliant campaign, managing communications through a crisis or just turning up every day of the year and being the best you can be it’s not a lot to ask to get the odd ‘well done’ or ‘thank you’.

But it doesn’t happen often enough and that is the ultimate reason behind the comms2point UnAwards 15. To shine a light on the colleagues proudly flying comms flags across the sectors.

Now there’s only one thing better than being shortlisted for an award and that’s being nominated by someone else for an award. It’s a special thing.  It means you’ve caught someone’s eye, demanded their attention or impressed them with your creativity, doggedness, enthusiasm and skills.

Know someone like that? Then why not nominate them in the UnAwards 15.

All you need to do is complete this dead easy entry form here.

Follow the instructions and share your Dropbox link with us and we’ll do the rest.

There are two categories to choose from:

-          Best comms/digital team

-          Lifetime achievement award

When we set up the UnAwards we were absolutely clear that they would be the most accessible industry awards around.  Where the community were actively involved in shaping and deciding.

So, best of all you, the comms community, gets to choose the winners through a public vote.

We’ll tell you more about that soon.

HOW LONG HAVE I GOT?

The closing date of 28 October is fast approaching. So get nominating who you believe to be the best comms/digital team around and the person you feel most deserves the lifetime achievement award. That’s quite an accolade so think carefully about who really should be in with a shout.

BE THERE ON THE DAY…

Want to soak up the atmosphere of the coolest comms, PR, marketing and digital event of the year in person? UnAwards tickets are priced at just £20 each – see, we told you they were really accessible. They are available on a first come, first served basis and will sell out so don’t hang around.  Book yours now here.

It’ll be a day of recognising and rewarding excellence and dedication. It will also be fun - we don’t do ‘stuffy’. After the ceremony we’ll watch a great film, and you’ll also have refreshments and a meal all courtesy of our fab partner, Musterpoint and our brilliant official sponsors Alive with Ideas and GovDelivery.

Darren Caveney is co-creator of comms2point and the UnAwards

Top tips for success in the UnAwards 2015

We know many of you are working on your entries and nominations for the UnAwards 2015. We thought it would be useful to share some top tips on giving you the best shot at success this year.

By Darren Caveney

You have six weeks to work on your entries.  Sounds plenty of time doesn't it?  But the deadline will be here before you know it.

We’ve all left award entries until the last minute in the past due to other competing work demands. But is that what your best work this year deserves? No, course not.

So use the time wisely and have a think about which of the 15 categories are a best fit with the activity and projects you are most proud of. Grab a coffee, sit somewhere quiet for 10 minutes with a pencil and a piece of paper and begin sketching out your ideas or a small mind map for your entry. Focus on the best way to make it stand out from the crowd.

WHAT WORKED WELL LAST YEAR

In the 2014 UnAwards the winning entries were generally those which were really well written, short and concise and painted a picture of why they were the obvious choice for the winner’s medal.

Innovation and ‘doing things differently’ featured strongly last year. It may have been a solution to a problem new or old but it was approached and tackled with fresh thinking.

It’s not about budget – having no budget or a decent budget won’t affect your chances either way. It’s about how you used the resources you had to best effect. Creative thinking cost £zero so this is very much an even UnAwards playing field.

SUPPORTING INFO – GET CREATIVE

This year you’ll get to complete an entry form which is designed to get the most important info from you. And you’ll also have the chance to submit one attachment. So use this chance wisely – what best represents your work? A picture says a thousand words so you might want to create something bespoke to tell your story graphically? Make a GIF, send us an infographic. A short film would be great. Or just a good old fashioned great piece of storytelling.

As the advertising industry great, Bill Bernbach, once said- “creativity is an art not a science. So be creative with your entry. Make it sing, make it fly and don’t clutter it with unnecessary words and distractions.

WHAT THE JUDGES WANT TO SEE

We have a small army of judges supporting the UnAwards this year. They come from a range of professions and sectors across comms, PR, marketing and digital. So put yourselves in their shoes and think about what would most grab their attention when they are working through submissions.

As well as creativity, the judges will want to see results – tangible outcomes which made a genuine difference to your staff, your residents, your customers or your patients. Effective research and evaluation are key to any successful comms and digital project so do make sure that your entry is strong in these areas. You don’t need to submit oodles of data and information – in fact it’s better if you don’t – but do focus on the killer stat, the compelling reason for your campaign or the driver for your objectives and intended outcome. Now I love a good stat but make sure you only include the telling metrics.

SIMPLE IS BEST. FOR A REASON

Almost always in life simple seems to work best. It’s become a bit of a mantra for us.

And it’ll work with your award entries too.

So keep it simple, give your entries the time they deserve and get entering. And don’t forget that the UnAwards are free to enter.

THE KEY DATES

-          Entries and nominations are open NOW

-          The closing date for entries and nominations is 28 October

-          Ticket sales are open NOW (they’re priced at just £20 and will sell out. So if you want to be there don’t hang around)

-          Three categories will be decided by public vote – these will open on 29 October

-          The UnAwards will take place on 3 December at the rather lovely Everyman Cinema in Birmingham

Tickets for the UnAwards can be purchased here.

And to keep up to date with all of the UnAwards 15 news and announcements you’ll want to subscribe to our weekly email here.

Darren Caveney is co-creator of comms2point0 and the UnAwards

THE UNAWARDS 2015 ARE OPEN

The comms2point0 UnAwards 2015 are now officially open. How can you enter? how can you nominate and how can you attend them? Here’s the lowdown…

By Darren Caveney

So you’ve delivered some great work this year which has made a difference. And you might just feel like it deserves a little smidge of recognition. Well you’re in luck because the comms2point0 UnAwards have arrived giving you the opportunity to show off your best work.

It might be a social media initiative which delivered amazing returns or it might be a shiny new website which has made your online business purr. How about a campaign which has made a difference to your residents, patients or customers. Or a good old fashioned piece of great storytelling.

Whatever you’ve created this year there’s almost certainly a category amongst the 15 in this year’s UnAwards.

We were overwhelmed with entries in in 2014 so you’ll need to think carefully about how you make yours stand out from the crowd and grab the judge’s attention. Or if you are entering a public vote category think about how best to impress your colleagues across the industry.

ENTERING AND NOMINATING

With 15 categories to choose from there really is something for everyone in terms of entering this year. And it’s absolutely fine to enter more than one category, just in case you were wondering.

You might also want to nominate a colleague for an award. This could be someone who has inspired or impressed you, someone who has given much to the industry, or a piece of work which has just blown your comms socks off.  From categories such as best comms or digital officer, through to the lifetime achievement award there are several ways in which you can nominate someone worthy. Just complete the entry form, submit it to us as and we’ll do the rest.

TOP TIP…

At the centre of the comms2point0 ethos is creativity and innovation. So if you can demonstrate to us and the panel of judges that you have tackled a problem, new or old, a little bit differently you’ll stand more chance of glory.

HOW TO ENTER

Lots of you have already been in touch to ask about the entry costs. Well they’re FREE.

The UnAwards are designed to be the most inclusive and accessible comms industry awards around.

This year entries will be submitted via Dropbox. All you need to do is complete the simple entry form and upload this and one attachment to your Dropbox account and share the link with us. Easy peasy.

Now, not all of you will have a Dropbox account, and some of you may have trouble accessing Dropbox at work. No bother, you can easily do it at home. It is straightforward and simple to use (and actually a rather handy resource to have if you’ve not used it before)

WHAT’S THE CLOSING DATE?

The closing date is 28 October so there’s no excuse - get thinking about your entries now (don’t leave it until the day before, ahem)

I WANT TO BE AT THE UNAWARDS - MAKE IT SO…

Whether you are entering or not you will want to be at the UnAwards event taking place on 3 December at the rather lovely Everyman Cinema, Birmingham sat in one of the venue’s very plush sofas with footrests, no less.

Ceremony, film and food – it will be fun and entertaining and this year there is even a meal thrown in. And with tickets priced at a rather amazing £20 Christmas has quite literally come early.

You can snap up your ticket here. Don’t hang around, when they’re gone, they’re gone.

We’re watching lots of films right now to select the finest prime cut to watch on the day. We’ll tell you more about this soon.

In the meantime, get cracking with your entries and your nominations.

So, to recap – the UnAwards 2015:

Free and simple to enter, cheap as chips to attend. We hope we’ve whet your appetite.

Good luck to you all.

Darren Caveney is co-creator of comms2point0 and the UnAwards

the unawards are back.

Following their huge success and popularity in 2014, the comms2point0 UnAwards return on 3 December 2015, even bigger and better than last year but still remaining true to their original ethos.

By Darren Caveney

The UnAwards are our opportunity to showcase great work and celebrate a hugely creative and dedicated community.

Why ‘UnAwards’, you ask? Well they’re a deliberate alternative to the £300-a-pop, black tie, swanky London hotel event awards machine which exists in our industry. 

That’s not a slight on these events – if you have been to one of them, and won an award in the process, you’ll have felt pretty good about the whole thing. But for many the cost has become prohibitive. This is making the awards landscape a bit, well, ‘exclusive’.

That’s not how we like to do things. We’re more Sundance Film Festival than Oscars Ceremony.  The UnAwards are accessible to the entire comms, pr, marketing and digital community and, importantly, will recognise the contributions of colleagues across the sectors for their creative endeavours over the past 12-months.

They are also designed to be fun. Because fun is important too, right?

Of course, you can come along dressed in party frocks and black tie if you want to. Some attendees in 2014 actually used the event as their Christmas party.

When do they take place?

3 December, 9.30am – 3.30pm. Yes, that’s right, during the day.

Six hours? What will we do for six hours?

After the awards ceremony we’ll sit and watch a film and eat sweets.  Awards, film and food – that’s my kind of day.

OK, I’m interested – where are the UnAwards taking place?

The UnAwards 2015 will be held in the very cool new Everyman Cinema in Birmingham’s iconic Mailbox, situated just a two minute walk from New Street train station. And attendees will even have a tasty meal after the movie in the Everyman’s trendy, retro-style diner.

What’s different about this year’s awards?

As well as a new, larger venue, we have a dedicated new UnAwards website. Here you’ll be able to do everything under one roof – enter, nominate, vote, read regular news updates and purchase your event tickets.

And this year we’re chuffed to be working with an official UnAwards partner – the fab MusterPoint, leaders in social media monitoring and management.  We’ll also have a couple of lovely sponsors making sure that all attendees are very well fed and watered.

When will more news be released?

We’ll be releasing more updates in the coming weeks and announcing the UnAwards timetable here. Make sure that you’re following us on Twitter and signed up for our weekly email so that you hear about all of the key announcements and dates first and fastest.

The hashtag to follow is #UnAwards15.

So take a look at the 15 categories and start thinking about what you’ll be entering (all entries are free, of course).  And block 3 December out in your diary – there will only be 140 tickets up for grabs and we know how quickly they were snapped up last year.

We’re really looking forward to seeing you there.

Darren Caveney is co-creator of comms2point0 and the UnAwards.