When entering a project into an award program, the ultimate goal is to be recognized. But with hundreds of projects to compete against, a few qualities can make your entry stand out from the others while the judges are making their final decisions.
These qualities will differ from program to program, but for the Builder’s Choice Design Awards (BCDA), jurors issue grand and merit awards based on criteria including design excellence, innovation, sustainability, floor plan efficiency, and use of materials.
This year, projects completed after Jan. 1, 2019, are eligible for consideration across 14 different categories, ranging from outbuildings to single-family to multifamily. Plus, with a new emerging product type in the industry, the program has added a build-to-rent category.
Submit your projects before June 21, and consider the following tips when you are crafting your entry.
1. Choose an attractive project name: This is how we refer to projects for the entire judging process, so make it short and unique. Titles like House 35 or Renovation to Log Cabin are not too enticing.
2. Keep your project narrative concise and meaty: Give as much background, details, and facts as possible, and leave out any traditional marketing speak. Explain what makes it stand out and why it deserves an award.
3. Fill in as many fields as possible, even the ones not required: Sometimes for the sake of time, people skip over the “Unusual Constraints” and “Sustainability Highlights” fields. It is highly recommended to give the background and facts in the required narrative and continue the story in the other specific fields. This does not mean copy and pasting the same copy from field to field.
4. Pay for professional photography: Photos are so important with BCDA entries, helping judges see how the project came together and the final results. Entries with bad photos typically get tossed to the side. So, pay extra to get those professional photos.
5. Upload the best overall shot for file one: File one is the thumbnail shot and the first photo the judges see. Use the best photo you have to make a good first impression, and add the interior detail shots or the floor plans after.
6. Do not forget to upload plans and drawings: Floor plans are so important to entries, because once the photos pull the judges in, they want to understand how the project is laid out. If an entry does not have a plan, it definitely deters the jurors.
7. Get the entry in on time: It takes time to craft an award-winning entry. Start the process as early as possible, and mark it in your calendar to get it in before June 21. You can always start applications and come back to finish them.
Time and time again, a worthy project will make it to the final round, and the entry is missing something. By following the above, you will give your project a better chance of being considered for an award.
