You know you're good. Now show the world.
If you have created exceptional digital work, entering the right competition can be a valuable way to recognize the people behind the project, showcase your capabilities and give your work an audience beyond your own portfolio.
Clearly we know there are a lot of competitions to choose from. Some focus primarily on visual design. Others emphasize advertising, technology, user experience, creativity or broader digital experiences. The right competition depends largely on the type of work you have created and what you want the recognition to accomplish.
Here are some of the things to consider when evaluating web design and digital media competitions.
What Makes a Web Design Competition Worth Entering?
Not every competition is the same. Before entering, consider several factors.
History and reputation
An established competition provides context for the recognition your work receives. Look for competitions with a documented history, published winners and a track record of recognizing work from a range of organizations and creative professionals.
Relevant categories
A competition should have categories that actually fit your work.
A corporate website, e-commerce experience, mobile application and interactive installation are very different types of projects. A competition with a broad range of categories can provide opportunities for different kinds of digital work to be evaluated in an appropriate context.
Judging process
Understanding how entries are evaluated is important.
Look for competitions that clearly explain their judging criteria and who participates in the judging process. A meaningful judging process should consider more than visual appearance. User experience, creativity, technical execution, communication and effectiveness can all play an important role in determining whether a digital project succeeds.
International participation
If your goal is broader recognition, consider competitions that attract entries from outside your own market.
International participation can provide additional perspective on how your work compares with projects being produced by agencies, designers and organizations around the world.
Recognition beyond a single project
Some competitions recognize individual projects. Others also provide opportunities for agencies, studios or developers to receive recognition based on multiple winning entries.
For an agency, this can be particularly valuable. An individual award demonstrates that a project succeeded. Recognition across multiple projects can demonstrate the depth and consistency of an organization's work.
Which Types of Digital Work Can Be Entered?
Web design competitions have evolved considerably as digital media has evolved.
Today, outstanding digital work can take many forms, including:
- Agency and portfolio websites
- Corporate and B2B websites
- E-commerce experiences
- Professional services websites
- Mobile applications
- Interactive experiences
- Digital advertising
- Video and motion graphics
- Social media campaigns
- Experimental and emerging technology projects
- Educational and nonprofit experiences
- Mobile experiences
The Horizon Interactive Awards has categories spanning websites, interactive experiences, advertising, mobile apps, video, social media and other forms of digital media. Current entry categories also include experimental, AI and new technology projects.
Web Design Awards Worth Considering
There are a number of established competitions in the digital design and interactive media space. Winning an award in any competition can greatly benefit your team, client relationships and overall creativity in the future.
Competitions such as the Webby Awards, Awwwards, CSS Design Awards, W3 Awards, Communication Arts and other creative and digital competitions each have their own focus and approach.
The Horizon Interactive Awards is one of the longest running competitions for agencies, designers, developers and organizations producing digital work.
Founded in 2001, Horizon is an international competition recognizing excellence in web design, interactive media, digital advertising, video, mobile apps and other digital experiences. The competition has received more than 20,000 entries from around the world and recognizes both individual projects and agencies.
Why Consider Horizon Interactive Awards?
Horizon takes a broad view of digital media. That means an agency does not have to limit its entry strategy to traditional website design.
A website, mobile application, video project, interactive experience or digital advertising campaign may all have a place within the competition.
Horizon also provides multiple levels of individual project recognition, including Best of Show, Best of Category, Gold, Silver and Bronze. Agencies and developers can also receive Best Agency, Best Agency Runner-Up and Distinguished Agency recognition based on their overall award performance.
The judging process considers five areas equally: UX and design, creativity, technical execution, communication of the message and overall effectiveness. Entries are reviewed by a volunteer panel of industry professionals, with end users and non-designers also represented on the judging panel from time to time.
Choosing the Right Competition for Your Work
The best competition is not necessarily the one with the biggest name. It is the one where your work fits naturally, the judging process makes sense for your project and the resulting recognition has value to your team and your clients.
Before submitting, ask:
- Does the competition recognize the type of work we created?
- Are there categories that accurately describe the project?
- Is the judging process clearly explained?
- Does the competition have an established history?
- Is the competition relevant to the audience we want to reach?
- Does it recognize the people and organizations behind the work?
- Will the recognition give our team something meaningful to share with clients, prospects and our industry?
The strongest award submissions are not necessarily the most complicated projects. They are projects that solve a real problem exceptionally well and can demonstrate why the work deserves recognition.
For digital agencies and creative teams looking for an established international competition, the Horizon Interactive Awards is one option worth considering.
Explore the Horizon Interactive Awards and view past winners to see the range of work recognized by the competition.