Login to Complete an Application or to Access Judging Panel

When active, the first step in entering involves creating an account via the 2024 ANA In-House Excellence Awards entry page. Once you create a username and password (ANA members will need to use their ANA account credentials), you will be able to begin the submission process for one or multiple entries across as many categories as your campaign qualifies. You may save and return to your work at any time during the competition period.

*Note: Word processing programs often include hidden formatting characters that can cause issues with word or character counting across different programs. If you are experiencing this simply copy and paste your content from the source, into Notepad - removing all hidden formatting - and paste into the text box.

Once you’ve completed your entry, you will be prompted to finalize and pay your entry fee(s) before the final deadline. If payment for an entry is not submitted by the deadline, it will not qualify to be included in the subsequent judging rounds and will be removed from the competition.

When are the deadlines?

The call for entries to the 2024 ANA In-House Excellence Awards is now closed. Judging begins on February 29.

Early-Bird Deadline: December 1, 2023
Standard Deadline: January 5, 2024
Final Deadline: February 9, 2024
Extended Deadline: February 16, 2024 (All entries submitted after February 9 will incur a $100 processing fee)

What are the entry fees for each entry?

ANA Member / Non-Member

Up to Early-Bird Deadline: $375 / $475
Standard Deadline: $475 / $575
After Standard and up to Final Deadline: $575 / $675
In-House Agency of the Year Category: $400
In-House Leader of the Year Category: $400
In-House GEM Award Category: $350
In-House Entry Audit: $200 (visit our Entry Audit page to learn more about ordering an audit)

I am an ANA member. How do I ensure I get the member rate for my entry fee?
Please make sure to use your ANA login credentials which include your business email when logging into the application. If you use another email such as a personal email, you will get the non-member rate.

Who can submit an entry?
Anyone working as part of an internal team, whether within a client-side marketer, retailer, media company, non-profit, or educational institution.

What campaigns are eligible?
Eligibility for the 2024 ANA In-House Excellence Awards: Any marketing asset or project created by an in-house agency, team, or department to promote their company's brand, product, or service that went live/ran in-market from January 1 to December 31, 2023.

All entries must be submitted in English, but creative containing all languages are welcome. Please be sure to include English translations for creative materials written or spoken in other languages.

What campaigns are elibigle for the In-House GEM Award?
Any submission into the 2024 In-House Excellence Awards may also enter the In-House GEM Award. A simple check box is available in the entry system to have your submission(s) considered for this award. Only the highest scoring submissions from the In-House Excellence Awards main round of judging will be contenders for an In-House GEM Award. GEM Award contenders will have their creative work go through the GEM^®testing process* to provide a shortlist of finalists, with the In-House GEM Award going to the top three submissions achieving the highest GEM^® scores. Click here to learn more about the In-House GEM Award.

All submissions into the In-House GEM Awards specialty category (regardless of finalist or winner status) will receive a full GEM^® Report on their submission(s) which will provide insight into the key themes and drivers of their GEM^® Score.

Creative Requirements:

At least one creative execution which must include women and/or girls (animated/virtual humans not applicable).
Any type of creative is acceptable, including video (linear or digital), digital display, audio, print, out-of-home, or social posts.

There is a flat fee of $350 per submission in the ANA In-House GEM specialty category.

*To help benchmark success in creating this positive change, ANA SeeHer developed the Gender Equality Measure (GEM^®), the first research methodology that quantifies gender bias in ads and programming. GEM^® has become the global measurement standard for uncovering unconscious bias, with over 200,000+ ads tested in markets that represent 87 percent of worldwide ad spend.

Can I submit more than one entry?
Yes, you can enter as many entries in as many categories as you wish with the exception of the Big Idea category. If you submit work for Big Idea, it cannot be submitted into any other category of the 2024 ANA In-House Excellence Awards.

Often, campaigns will involve multiple marketing techniques that could fit into more than one category that are worthy of individual recognition.

If you choose to enter the same campaign in multiple categories, you will be asked to explain how it fits into the parameters of each. Entering your campaign into more than one category will increase your chances of winning, but it is important to clearly explain why it is appropriate for each to improve your chances with the judges.

How easy is it to enter the ANA In-House Excellence Awards?
Easy! The ANA In-House Excellence Awards system is easy to use and leads you clearly through the entry process. You will be able to register, submit your application, and copy your entries into various categories with one fluid process.

What do I need in order to complete my entry?
In order to enter the ANA In-House Excellence Awards, you will need to fully complete the entry submission form. Please refer to sample entry form found in the question below.

You will need to be able to answer the following questions:

Project Overview/Objectives (200 words maximum)
Provide context on the purpose of the project and share the primary objectives for the effort.
Key Insights and Strategy (300 words maximum)
Share the key insights and how they were applied.
Concept/Big Idea (300 words maximum)
Unveil your Big Idea as simply as possible. What was that “a-ha” solution you developed?
Tactics/Creative Execution (200 words maximum)
Describe how your Big Idea was presented.
Results (200 words maximum)
Describe how the work met or exceeded objectives. We understand there may be concerns with sharing actual figures in the entry. Data reflecting the effectiveness of the work can be provided as indices or percentages.
Additional Information, Insights, Comments (200 words maximum)
Share any information that provides additional context for the judges.

Please note: On the entry form you will be asked for additional data points regarding duration of campaign, media/engagement channels, industry sector, and team structure. The Special Showcase categories have unique requirements regarding creative elements.

How do I submit multiple entries? Can I submit the same entry into more than one Category?
The application system will allow you to submit more than one entry. If there are major differences between your entries, you will likely want to begin a new entry from scratch. You can do so by clicking on the "Make Another Application" link on the left-hand side of the submission page; this will create a blank application, and you can enter information that is completely new. You also have the option of copying your entry by clicking the "Copy Submission" link in your account.

Is there a sample entry form that I can review and fill out offline?
A sample entry form listing ALL the essentials, including the file specifications for the creative/content elements, is available in both Word and PDF file formats. Click the links below to download.

Can I view my submission before finalizing?
You can view your in-progress application by clicking on the "My Applications" link on the left side of your account and click "Edit" to make updates.

How often can I edit my entry?
You have access to edit and update your entry as often as you would like until you "Checkout" (finalize and pay for any entries in your shopping cart). Once you have submitted your entry, you will have access to the read-only file. All entries must be finalized and submitted before the deadline. All entries not finalized before the deadline will not be judged.

To edit your entry, log-in to your account and you will see all the entries you have in your account. Click on “Edit” on any of the entries listed to make changes to your submission.

Can I submit a link/URL of a website or microsite that was used in the campaign?
Yes, you can enter a link in the URL field in your entry. However, please be sure the link is live and will be live until at least May 31, 2024. Some judges prefer viewing all the materials in the submission and not linking to a separate window, so we recommend taking screen grabs of the site and putting them in a PDF and uploading the PDF to your submission if possible.

Can I print my ANA In-House Excellence Award entry?
Yes. In order to print your entry while you are still working on it, please press the 'Ctrl' key and the 'P' key. This will print the page you are on. Please click through each page of your application and press 'Ctrl + P' to print each part.

Once your entry is marked as "Complete", you will be able to print your entire ANA In-House Excellence Award entry at once. In order to complete your entry, you must "Checkout" and pay for your entry. Then you will be able to print using the "Print" link.

What are the entry requirements?

Creative you are submitting must have been implemented between January 1, 2021 through December 31, 2023
Entry materials must be submitted through the online entry form
No physical submission required
You must provide downloadable files or URLs for links to websites.
Descriptive fields are each limited in characters, so please be mindful when entering descriptions

Can others view my entry before it is submitted?
Yes, if you provide others with your ANA In-House Excellence Awards entry system log-in information, they can then enter your account and see your entry. You may also print your entry and share that way.

How are winners awarded?
Only the most compelling work showing excellence in the areas of creativity, strategy, and results will make it onto the elite shortlist representing the year’s best work produced by the industry’s leading in-house talent.

One winner and up to two finalists will be recognized and celebrated per each category. Should a particular category prove to be overwhelmingly competitive, expanding the awards to recognize a set of winners and finalists in relative designations will be considered.

Best in Show
Only top scoring submissions will move on to be considered for the Best in Show Award. A select panel of judges comprised of marketing industry leaders will be selecting the year’s winner.

When and where will the ANA In-House Excellence Awards be presented?
Winners will be announced during a live awards gala at the ANA In-House Agency Conference on May 15, 2024 in Carlsbad, California.

How do I become a sponsor of the ANA In-House Excellence Awards?
Sponsorship packages are available and can be customized and tailored to meet your company’s business needs. To learn how to become a sponsor or for more information on sponsorship opportunities, please contact the Sponsorship team today at sponsorship@ana.net.

How do I become an ANA Member?
To learn how to become an ANA Corporate or Associate Member, please click here.

Terms and Conditions

Click here for complete Terms and Conditions.

Results

What if my campaign results are not in before the regular deadline?
Enter as many results as you can at that point in time (i.e., selling results) and indicate that your final results were not available before your submission. There must be some results included in order to qualify.

What if my results are confidential?
The ANA In-House Excellence Awards are judged on results. Your entry should have at the minimum indices to show the judges the results, or handled in such a way to not create any confidentiality issues for you.

What should you do if your company does not want to share results?
Consider including additional program goals that may have been unspoken secondary goals, or even sub-goals. Make sure that the results that you are able to share connect to your program goals in some capacity or use metrics that can show clear value.

Judging and Timelines

When will my entry be judged and winners announced?

Judging February 29, 2024 through March 22, 2024 (online)
Winners will be announced during a live awards gala at the ANA In-House Agency Conference on May 15, 2024 in Carlsbad, California.

Who are the judges?
ANA In-House Excellence Award judges are client-side marketers, agency executives, in-house agency professionals from all areas of the ANA, including committee members, among many others. The candidates are screened by the ANA and are assigned to judge entries from the categories in which they have expertise.

Interested in judging the ANA In-House Excellence Awards? Click here to sign up, or email the In-House Excellence Awards team at inhouseawards@ana.net for more information.

How will my work be judged?
A jury of about 100 of your peers from top client-side marketers and agency executives will scrutinize and score entries on the following criteria:

33.3% Strategy
33.3% Creative Execution
33.3% Results

The Significant Results category will have alternate weighting:

25% Strategy
25% Creative Execution
50% Results

Only the most compelling work showing excellence in the areas of creativity, strategy, and results will make it onto the elite shortlist representing the year’s best work produced by the industry’s leading in-house talent.

How will In-House Agency of the Year submissions be judged?
In-House Agency of the Year submissions will be judged in the areas of Team Culture, Business Growth, and Notable Achievements.

Trophies

When can I expect my trophy? Where will it be shipped to?
After the Awards Gala, all award winners will have the opportunity to arrange for their trophies via a customized ANA In-House Excellence Award trophy website. Stay tuned for 2024 trophy site details.