Cybersecurity Awards: How to Craft A Winning Entry

Taking home gold in cybersecurity awards can help you stand out from the crowd in an already saturated market. It’s a strong endorsement from a trusted third party that you are at the top of your field.

Here at Code Red, we have years of experience helping our clients win big in the most prestigious IT and cyber security awards, so without further ado, here are four practical tips to help you impress the judges.

Don’t claim to be a leader, prove it

So, you think you’re the leader in MDR/cloud security/incident response/whatever your chosen field is? Well, so does everyone competing against you.

To stand out and have a chance at winning cybersecurity awards, you need to do more than talk the talk. The best way to do this is with tangible proof. If you’re claiming your solution blocks malware, prove it with stats on how quickly and reliably it works. If you’re talking about how fast your company is expanding, come armed with some sales and market share figures.

Whatever you do, stay clear of empty marketing fluff and overly aggressive sales hype. If you make a claim, make sure you can back it up.

And remember, the judges are usually under NDA, so anything you share will be for their eyes only.

Get some references in your corner 

If you say you’re the best, that’s just bragging. If someone else says you’re the best, that’s a ringing endorsement that will catch the judges’ attention.

Including testimonials from partners and clients will make all the difference to the credibility of your cybersecurity awards entries – and indeed some awards require references as part of their entry criteria. The kind of reference you need will vary based on the award and category. If you want to win a security solution or service-based SC Awards category, a testimony from a happy customer will work wonders. If you’re angling for Security Vendor the Year in the CRN awards, it’ll be endorsements from your channel partners.

Quotes from industry analysts about the strength of your solution or service will also work well for a variety of awards, as will commendations from other bodies you’ve worked with.

Make an impact

You’ve got stats, you’ve got support from third parties. Now it’s time to polish that copy until it shines. The judges will see hundreds of cybersecurity awards entries, so your copy needs to be eloquent, dynamic, and interesting to read.

This is where Code Red comes in. Our team knows how to take the statistics, testimonials, and any other evidence of your greatness, and present in a clear and compelling way for the judges.

Go the extra mile

Content is ultimately what will win the award for you, but presentation can help your entry to stand out. If the award allows you to be more creative with the format, it’s always worth taking the opportunity.

PDFs are the most common option, giving you the chance to design elements such as branded graphics for statistics. A short video can also be very effective, enabling your spokesperson to deliver your key messages or a customer to provide compelling testimony in a more engaging way.

If you’re looking to win big with your next cybersecurity awards entry, why not drop us a line to see how we could help?