Ten Handy Tips For Entering Ad Competitions

The advertising industry is getting more difficult  to step  into without any real working experience, or an extensive portfolio.  So what is the inexperienced filmmaker or print artist supposed to do to make their advertising dream come true? what about entering an advertising competition, there are a ton of companies asking for user-generated commercials and print ads for their brands. There is also a lot of money awarded in winning one of the many contests out there.

If you’re already used to concepting, storyboarding, organizing, shooting and editing, then why not throw your hat in the ring for some of these advertising competitions? It can be a great way to make some side money- to fund more extensive projects, to purchase equipment, or just to fund your lifestyle. Who knows? Maybe you’ll decide you dig advertising.

Josh Barnes of Zooppa.com, a people -powered brand energy  site shared with me some tips for when it comes to entering advertising contests.

First, select your contest wisely.
1) Money. You want to make it worth your while if you win, but too muchmoney can mean steep competition. See about balancing these interests against your confidence as an ad maker.

2) Time frame. Simple. How much time is left in the contest? How much time will it take you to make a finished product?

3) Prize types. This could easily be it’s own post. Jury prizes require high quality film making. For prizes based on views or votes, while quality is still important, it is equally important to be a good promoter.

4) What’s it about? Can you immediately get ideas? It’s not necessarily a bad thing if you can’t, because maybe nobody else can, either. What’s the flavor of the submissions so far? Do people seem to be riffing on the same theme? Can you think of an idea that will really shake things up?

Concepting
READ THE BRIEF. STUDY THE BRIEF.
People/companies are putting on these competitions for a purpose. In general, advertising contest sponsors are looking for two things

A) Creative that they can use (for broadcast, closed caption, trade shows, online, etc.)

B) Viral exposure

An entry that succeeds in furthering the first type may not work so well for thesecond, and vice versa.

If they’re looking for creative they can use, then you should try to do somethingmore polished and conventional. If they’re looking for the second, you can go more lo-fi, and push the boundaries of taste more.

Study the requirements. Advertising contests can be very specific with their requirements. To make sure you don’t doom your submission from the start,

check for these:

5) Is there a time length requirement for the videos?

6) What visual elements do you need to include? Do you have to
have a product shot? Do you need to show a dog? A mother?

7) Is there a general point of view or perspective you’re supposed to follow? Is it supposed to be a public service announcement, or is it supposed to look like a game show?

8) Many times they will require you to include specific branding elements
– Do you need to include a logo? Is there a tagline that needs to be
included? A specific call to action?

On Advertising in General
Think about who the client is trying to appeal to with this ad: who is the target market? What kinds of themes would resonate with that target audience?

How does the client want the product or brand positioned versus its competition? This is something you’ll have to try to glean from the creative brief. Levis wants to be seen as rugged, yet urban and sexy. McDonalds wants to be regarded as fun and youthful. Mountain Dew wants to be seen as alternative or counterculture. The homiest of home runs in advertising is the creation of a franchise advertising theme. If you come up with an idea, a situation, a setup, that can be extrapolated across many different ads, you’re gold. Think of the Energizer Bunny. DDB Chicago came up with that little gem in 1989. How many commercials have been
made featuring that stupid little bunny? Every time one of those commercials gets aired, the creator of that bunny gets paid. If you can come up with a repeatable theme like that, you can live the rest of your life on the residuals. Because of this, you may want to find out:

9) Who will own the content you upload?
When you upload to a contest, you may be giving up the rights to your work. Check into the term & conditions of the contest to find this out.

10)Finally, I want to leave you with this thought. In advertising contests you have 15 seconds, 30 seconds or one minute, usually. You have time for one theme. One joke. Don’t over complicate it. Keep it simple.

Good luck, and I hope to see you competing!

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