Below is the full list of categories for this year’s PRCA National Awards along with criteria for each category. There are three types of categories recognising Campaign work, Team and Individual performance.
Campaign Award Categories
For each of these categories, there will be a Consultancy and an In-house Award unless stated otherwise.
Automotive Award
This award recognises work across the automotive PR sector, including motor manufacturers, trade bodies, or work aimed at customers and driving sales.
B2B Award
This award recognises work that involves the promotion of products and services from one business to another. Entries can relate to a niche business sector or to the business community at large.
Broadcast Award
This award recognises campaigns that use the broadcast medium effectively, either on its own or as part of an of an integrated programme of PR and targeted marketing activity.
Consumer Award – High Budget (Consultancy only)
This award recognises work that involves the promotion of products or services to consumers, delivered by the private, public or charitable sectors. HIGH BUDGET = More than £50k per annum
Consumer Award – Low Budget (Consultancy only)
This award recognises work that involves the promotion of products or services to consumers, delivered by the private, public or charitable sectors. LOW BUDGET = Less than £50k per annum
Consumer Award – In-house
This award recognises work that involves the promotion of products or services to consumers, delivered by the private, public or charitable sectors.
Corporate Social Responsibility Award
This award recognises work that promotes an organisation’s corporate social responsibility programme, via either a one-off campaign or on-going work.
Corporate, Financial and Investor Relations Award
This award recognises work across the whole range of financial PR, including investor relations, stakeholder engagement, and corporate affairs.
Crisis and Issues Management Award
This award recognises work in a crisis situation managing difficult issues. This might be by promoting an alternative perspective, or indeed by keeping an issue out of the media altogether. Judges are especially aware of the need for discretion in this category.
Digital and New Media Award
This award recognises campaigns that include a large element of digital and new media work, whether on their own or as part of an integrated programme of PR and targeted marketing activity.
Employee Engagement Award
This award recognises campaigns that use internal communications to engage staff, drive organisational change, deliver increased stakeholder value, or change an organisation’s ethos.
Health and Wellbeing Award
This award recognises work across the whole range of healthcare and well-being PR, including the NHS, private healthcare, pharma and medical research.
International Campaign Award
This award recognises work by a UK organisation that engages with international media, clients or stakeholders.
Media Relations Award
This award recognises campaigns that use targeted media relations to achieve excellent results.
Not-For-Profit and Charity Award
This award recognises work by or on behalf of charities and not-for-profit organisations. If there is a fundraising aspect to your entry, you must explain how the entry has contributed to the financial stability or fundraising objectives of the organisation.
Public Sector, Value for Money Award
This award recognises cost effective work by or on behalf of central government, local authorities, NHS trusts, fire authorities, police forces, executive agencies or non-departmental bodies.
Technology Award
This award recognises work focused on telecoms, IT or web-based products, services or brands, targeted at the business, or not-for-profit or consumer markets.
Team Award Categories
In-house Team of the Year Award – Private Sector
This category is open to any in-house private, not-for-profit or public sector PR and communications team. Judges will look for the role PR and communications play in the wider organisation, effective use of resources and general contribution to the organisation’s objectives. As with all team categories, Judges will mark your entry against the following criteria; team performance; staff; financial; and innovation. For more information, please see the Rules of Entry.
In-house Team of the Year Award – Public Sector
This category is open to any in-house private, not-for-profit or public sector PR and communications team. Judges will look for the role PR and communications play in the wider organisation, effective use of resources and general contribution to the organisation’s objectives. As with all team categories, Judges will mark your entry against the following criteria; team performance; staff; financial; and innovation. For more information, please see the Rules of Entry.
International Consultancy of the Year Award
This category is open to any consultancy, whether multi-discipline or niche; UK- or internationally-based. As with all team categories, Judges will mark your entry against the following criteria; clients; staff; financial; and innovation. For more information, please see the Rules of Entry.
Large Consultancy of the Year Award
This category is open to any consultancy, whether multi-discipline or niche; UK- or internationally-based, with a PR fee income of over £5million. As with all team categories, Judges will mark your entry against the following criteria; clients; staff; financial; and innovation. For more information, please see the Rules of Entry.
Medium Consultancy of the Year Award
This category is open to any consultancy, whether multi-discipline or niche; UK- or internationally-based, with a PR fee income between £1million and £5million. As with all team categories, Judges will mark your entry against the following criteria; clients; staff; financial; and innovation. For more information, please see the Rules of Entry.
New Consultancy of the Year Award
This category is open to any consultancy, whether multi-discipline or niche; UK- or internationally-based, founded up to 24 months prior to the entry deadline, 13th July, 2018. As with all team categories, Judges will mark your entry against the following criteria; clients; staff; financial; and innovation. For more information, please see the Rules of Entry.
Small Consultancy of the Year Award
This category is open to any consultancy, whether multi-discipline or niche; UK- or internationally-based, with a PR fee income of less than £1million. As with all team categories, Judges will mark your entry against the following criteria; clients; staff; financial; and innovation. For more information, please see the Rules of Entry.
Specialist Consultancy of the Year Award
This category is open to any consultancy or team within a consultancy that specialises in a specific sector or PR discipline. As with all team categories, Judges will mark your entry against the following criteria; clients; staff; financial; and innovation. For more information, please see the Rules of Entry.
Individual Award Categories
Consultancy Head of the Year Award
This award will be given to an individual (or joint agency heads) who has/have delivered outstanding performance to clients, made a significant contribution to the industry and to their consultancy. Nominations for this award can be made by the individual themselves, or a colleague and organisations can submit any number of entries.
In-house Professional of the Year Award
Judges will look for an individual who has succeeded in making communications a strategic priority within their organisation, supporting or leading the organisation’s broader objectives. Nominations for this award can be made by the individual or a colleague and organisations can submit any number of entries.
Young Communicator of the Year Award
This award will recognise the outstanding performance of a NextGen* individual. Nominations for this award can be made by the individual or a colleague and organisations can enter any number of entries. Entries are welcome from both Consultancies and In-house teams.
*A NextGen individual is anyone under the age of 30 years old at the time of the final entry deadline on 13th July, 2018.