Winning an award is a brilliant moment. It gives you and your team a reason to celebrate, provides valuable external recognition and can help demonstrate the quality of your work.
With The Travel Marketing Awards recently shining a spotlight on some of the industry’s best work and talent, it felt like the perfect time to ask what should happen after the trophy has been collected.
That’s why we asked the Travel Marketing Group Community how they would make more of an award win, so the win doesn’t fade after the initial announcement. From strengthening pitches and attracting talent to sharing the lessons behind the work, here are some of the best ways to turn an award win into longer-term value.
Tell the Story Behind the Win
Most of us know to post about an award win, but the strongest announcements go beyond simply sharing the good news.
Explain why you won. Share the challenge you were trying to solve, the thinking behind your approach and the results the work delivered.
This gives people a much clearer understanding of what the award represents and shows the expertise behind it. After all, “We won!” is great news, but the story behind the win is usually the more interesting part.
As one member of our community put it, explain why you won and use that story to help others.
Turn It Into a Case Study
Do not let all the detail from your award entry disappear once the ceremony is over.
Turn the winning work into a case study for your website, newsletter or social channels, covering the brief, the approach, the results and what you learned along the way.
A social post may only be seen for a day or two, but a strong case study can continue to support pitches, proposals and new business conversations for months or even years.
Turn the Work Into a Talk or Case Study
The story behind an award-winning campaign could also work well as a conference session, webinar, panel discussion or guest article.
Offer to present the case study at industry events, universities, training sessions or professional networks. Focus on the practical lessons, including what worked, what did not and what you would do differently next time.
This can extend the life of the original project, build the profile of the people behind it and create new opportunities for conversations with peers and prospective clients.
Our community also suggested offering award-winning work as a case study for events aimed at emerging talent, where the lessons could be particularly useful.
Take the Story Beyond Your Own Channels
An award-winning campaign can make a strong conference session, webinar, panel discussion or guest article.
Think about what others could learn from the work, then shape the story around the practical takeaways. That might include the original challenge, what you tried, what worked, what did not and what you would do differently next time.
Offering to share the case study through industry events, professional networks or training sessions can extend the life of the campaign, raise the profile of the people behind it and open up valuable new conversations.
Add It to Your Credentials
An award can provide valuable proof when speaking to prospective clients, partners or investors, so make sure it appears in the materials they are most likely to see.
Add the accolade to decks, proposals, pitch documents and relevant sales materials. You could also include it on key website pages, in staff biographies and in email signatures.
The goal is not to mention the award everywhere without context, but to place it wherever it helps reinforce your experience, credibility and ability to deliver strong work.
Use It to Start Media Conversations
An award win can give you a useful reason to get back in touch with trade or local press, particularly if there is a strong story behind it.
Rather than simply sending out the news that you won, think about what makes the achievement interesting. Was the campaign especially innovative? Did it deliver impressive results? Is there a strong local connection or a great personal story behind the winner?
A well-targeted pitch can help the award reach a much wider audience, while also building the profile of the business, team or individual involved.
This was another practical suggestion from the community, with both trade titles and local media highlighted as possible routes depending on the story.
Celebrate the People Behind It
One point came through particularly strongly from the Travel Marketing Group Community: an award win should be used to recognise the people behind the work, not just promote the result.
Take time to celebrate the wider team and reflect on what everyone contributed. That might mean a team lunch, an internal write-up, a thank-you from senior leaders or simply making sure the people involved get their moment.
Several community members highlighted the impact this can have on morale. One described an award win as giving the team a real “shot in the arm”, while another pointed out that a happier, more motivated team ultimately delivers better work for clients and the business. Done well, an award win can give a team a real lift and create momentum that carries into the next project.
Use the Win to Attract Talent
Success can make your business more appealing to prospective employees, particularly when the award reflects the quality of the team and the work they are producing.
Include relevant awards in recruitment materials and careers content, but go further than simply displaying the logo. Show what the project reveals about your company culture, the opportunities available to employees and the types of problems your team gets to solve.
Awards can help potential candidates picture themselves joining a successful, ambitious business where strong ideas are recognised.
Keep Referencing It Over Time
There is no rule that says you can only talk about an award immediately after winning it.
Revisit the story when it reaches its anniversary, when someone involved reflects on the project or when a related industry issue becomes topical. You can also reuse the accolade when pitching for similar work or introducing the business to a new audience.
The key is to find fresh and relevant reasons to mention it, rather than repeatedly sharing the same announcement.
Our Final Thoughts
The greatest value of an award is not necessarily the trophy itself. It is the story, evidence and momentum that come with it.
Used well, an award can strengthen credibility, support new business, improve team morale, attract talented people and help others learn from your work. Rather than treating the win as the end of a campaign, think of it as the beginning of a new set of opportunities.
Join the conversation!
This article was inspired by a conversation in the Travel Marketing Group WhatsApp community, where members regularly exchange ideas, experiences and advice from across the industry.
A huge thank you to everyone who shared their experiences and suggestions for this article. To take part in future discussions and connect with other travel marketing professionals, join the Travel Marketing Group WhatsApp Community.