Client case study Streamlining success: How Award Force saved the Summit Awards 35% in admin time and thousands in expenses Reviewer:Jocelyn Luciano,Principal/Managing Director, Summit Awards Reviewer: Jocelyn Luciano, Principal/Managing Director, Summit Awards Fast facts about Summit Awards Industry: Media awards Location: Portland, USA Award Force client: Client since 2017 Employees: 0-50 employees Background An awards program that runs three annual prestigious media awards Summit International Awards oversee three distinguished annual award competitions: the Summit Creative Award, the Marketing Effectiveness Award and the Emerging Media Award. The Summit Awards has been a prominent player in the communications and marketing industry for 30 years, and administers three prestigious annual marketing awards, each dedicated to showcasing outstanding work. The organisation’s mission is to recognise, celebrate and promote exceptional creativity and innovation across diverse global media platforms. They work to champion creative brilliance in all its forms, honouring individuals and organisations that consistently push boundaries, inspire audiences and shape the creative landscape. Through their rigorous awards program, educational initiatives and networking opportunities, they work to empower creative professionals to reach new heights and drive positive change worldwide. Program challenges before Award Force Manual processes were bogging down their program management Before using Award Force, the organisation managed their awards program with a mix of manual processes, in-person judging events and systems that struggled to scale, said Jocelyn Luciano, Principal/Managing Director of the Summit Awards. Others Manual processes In-person judging Scalability issues Award Force Automated features Four online judging modes Scalable The Award Force choice The Summit Awards wanted Single Sign-On registration and a more streamlined process. And they found it with Award Force. For our entrants, the ability to access everything seamlessly with one login has been transformative—it set the tone for the professional and user-friendly experience we strive to deliver with the Summit Awards. From that point forward, we haven’t looked back.” “When we first evaluated Award Force nearly eight years ago, their Single Sign-On (SSO) integration with WordPress stood out as a game-changer. In fact, this feature was so important to us that we rebuilt our entire website, moving from Joomla to WordPress, just to harness its potential,” Luciano said. The adoption of Award Force has “eliminated countless repetitive tasks, significantly reduced costs for hosting judging events and allowed us to expand our judging panel geographically since travel was no longer required. It’s hard to overstate how much more efficient and streamlined our operations have become,” Luciano said. “The platform has helped reduce the time spent on manual tasks—by approximately 30-35%. For example, automating the process of preparing entries for our judging shows has saved us days of administrative work. Additionally, moving to virtual judging has saved us thousands of dollars in travel and accommodation expenses for our judging panels.” Favourite features Several features have been valuable to the Summit Awards over the years, Luciano said. These include: Intuitive experience for users “The intuitive submission process, combined with the ability for entrants to edit and resubmit their entries, has saved our team hours of administrative work chasing down missing elements.” Learn more about user-centric features A comprehensive API “We’ve taken full advantage of their API to integrate with other services we use, further reducing staff time and improving overall efficiency. “We’ve used the Award Force API in ways that align with what our organisation needs. For instance, we’ve connected it through Zapier to streamline opt-in emails into our marketing platform, which has reduced manual data entry and improved communication. Of course, the SSO integration with our WordPress site has also been a critical component of improving the entrant experience.” “The email tools, including broadcast and trigger-based notifications, have also allowed us to keep participants informed and engaged—whether their entries are “in progress,” submitted, or part of the winning list.” Learn more about our API and integration marketplace A comprehensive API “We’ve taken full advantage of their API to integrate with other services we use, further reducing staff time and improving overall efficiency. “We’ve used the Award Force API in ways that align with what our organisation needs. For instance, we’ve connected it through Zapier to streamline opt-in emails into our marketing platform, which has reduced manual data entry and improved communication. Of course, the SSO integration with our WordPress site has also been a critical component of improving the entrant experience.” “The email tools, including broadcast and trigger-based notifications, have also allowed us to keep participants informed and engaged—whether their entries are “in progress,” submitted, or part of the winning list.” Learn more about our API and integration marketplace Powerful flexibility and control of awards management “One of the strengths of Award Force is how it empowers entrants to take control of their submissions. The platform’s self-service tools give entrants the ability to manage their entries on their own timeline, creating a more seamless and engaging experience for them while reducing back-and-forth with our team.” Customer support that goes “above and beyond” “Customer support has been another standout aspect of our experience,” Luciano said. “Carl and Cil, in particular, have gone above and beyond whenever we’ve encountered issues or needed guidance. Their creativity and problem-solving have been invaluable, and I always feel confident that they’ll help us navigate any challenges that arise.” Learn more about support The Award Force results Saved 35% in admin time Significantlyreduced costs Expanded judging panel Streamlined operations Highly recommended “For anyone considering Award Force, I can recommend it for the time and effort it saves, as well as for the autonomy and ease it provides to entrants and program organisers alike,” Luciano said. Read more testimonials