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Call for Entries Deadline: July 19, 2024

Recognizing the best in visual creativity and virtual experiences!

Ragan’s Video, Visual & Virtual Awards recognizes the most captivating and engaging videos, visual designs and virtual events – internal or external – from the past year.

From captivating videos or visual designs to innovative and engaging virtual events, our program celebrates excellence in a wide range of categories. Whether you excel in visual editing or virtual employee engagement, your organization’s or client’s work deserves to be seen and celebrated.

Join us in honoring the most compelling and impactful videos, visual designs and virtual events of the year. Don't miss this opportunity for your organization or client to receive the recognition they deserve.

Submit your entry today and be part of this exciting celebration of creativity and innovation in the world of video, visual design and virtual experiences. Winners will be recognized with a featured write-up in a special section of Ragan’s websites and in associated newsletters and social media. Winners will also receive an elegant trophy, a digital badge and other materials to help you tout your honor.

CATEGORIES

GRAND PRIZE

 Best Overall Video

We want to see videos that elicited an extraordinary response from your audience. Your video can be about anything. As long as the story is great and the results are impressive, you’re in the running for the grand prize.

 Video Team of the Year

Your team’s creativity took center stage in its well-crafted visual storytelling. What video projects was your team part of? What were the messages you were delivering? We want to know how your team captivated audiences with its outstanding videos.

 Virtual Event of the Year

You made a splash with your virtual event this past year. We want to hear about the unique features, innovative tactics and impressive execution that delivered an outstanding virtual event for your audience—internal or external. What was the goal of your event? What made it so engaging? What were the results? We want all the juicy details.

 Virtual Events Team of the Year

We will honor a team that excels in creating, managing and executing outstanding virtual events that engage and captivate audiences. Tell us all about your amazing team.

 Visual Design of the Year

Tell us the story behind your stunning visual design. How did you use visual art to communicate an idea, cause or product? Was your design informative, powerful or humorous? Show us your top-tier design. What was the design for? What was its effect? Prove that you possess originality that instantly arrests attention.

 Visual Design Team of the Year

This category celebrates a team that consistently delivers exceptional visual designs that captivate and engage audiences. Share the story of your remarkable team and their outstanding achievements.

VIDEO CATEGORIES

 Animated Video

With whimsical yet relatable characters and a fun and engaging storyline, your video attracted a broad audience. We want to see the methods, feedback and results of your outstanding animated video.

 Augmented or Virtual Reality Video

Your video helped viewers immerse themselves in an experience. What were the benefits of offering a virtual or augmented reality experience to your audience? Did it make viewers feel as if they were at an event or help them preview a product? Share the details and the outcomes.

 B2B Video

Were audiences absorbed in your video about your B2B product or service? Tell us how you attracted, retained or converted new prospects and customers using video.

 B2C Video

Your video captivated consumers and had them rushing to purchase your product or service. We want to know how. What made your video stand out? How did you deliver the benefits of your product or service in a way that compelled viewers? Don't forget to share the goals, tactics and results.

 Beauty, Fashion or Lifestyle Video

Your video looks amazing and delivered amazing results. Tell us how your video led to success for a new or established beauty, lifestyle or fashion brand. Standout videos are those that creatively. Share your goals and vision, show us the video and include results and metrics.

 Cause-Related Video

How did your video raise awareness, spread vital information or rally people to act for a cause? Show us how you've promoted your cause with a clever, passionate and engaging video. Tell us how you did it.

 Celebrity/Influencer Video

This category honors exceptional videos featuring celebrities or influencers that effectively engage audiences and drive impactful results. Submissions should showcase creative collaboration, compelling content and measurable success in achieving campaign objectives.

 Company Overview Video

Video was the perfect way to showcase your company—we want to know why. How did your video portray the benefits and features of your company? Did you share your company's values in a unique way using video? Tell us why video was the ideal medium for delivering results.

 CSR Video

Your organization is doing its part to make the world a more sustainable and socially responsible. We want to know how you conveyed your organization's CSR efforts using video. What message were you trying to deliver? What made this video so successful? Share all the details and results.

 DE&I Video

We're looking for videos that showcase how your organization champions its diverse employees and fosters an atmosphere of acceptance. Show us how diversity and inclusion are woven into the fabric of your organization. You've taken this beyond a statement and made it part of your organization's mission.

 Documentary

Your nonfiction video captured the attention of audiences. Who or what was the subject of your documentary? What was the purpose of the video? Document your success by sharing the goals, channels used to deliver the message, tactics and results.

 Educational Video

Who was your audience? What were you hoping to teach with your video? How did you use the expertise of your employees, executives or outside influencers to add credibility to your message? We want to know your mission and, most importantly, the results.

 Employer Branding Video

This category honors exceptional videos that effectively promote an organization's employer brand, engaging current and potential employees. Submissions should demonstrate creative storytelling, compelling content and measurable success in enhancing the organization's reputation as an employer of choice.

 ESG Video

This category honors exceptional videos that highlight an organization's commitment to Environmental, Social and Governance principles. Submissions should showcase compelling storytelling, clear messaging, and measurable success in promoting sustainability, social responsibility and ethical governance.

 Explainer Video

Your video showcased your product or service in a compelling way—and we want to hear about it. Tell us the goals of your explainer video and how it delivered for your organization or client.

 Financial Services and Banking Video

This category celebrates videos that skillfully promote financial services and banking brands, products or initiatives. Submissions should demonstrate innovative storytelling, clear communication and measurable impact in engaging audiences and achieving business objectives.

 Food & Beverage Video

Tell us about your fresh, exciting food and beverage video, and how it delivered success for your organization or client. Were your promoting a new food or restaurant? Or, was your video for an established, beloved brand or restaurant? Share the details and results.

 Health & Wellness Video

Tell us about your wellness initiative, health care institution, health related cause or study. How did your video help build awareness around the great work you’re doing? Share your strategy for creating a health care video that delivered results.

 Humorous Video

Your video tickled audiences’ funny bone. What made it so funny? What was the purpose of the video? Tell us about your humorous video, and don’t forget to share it with us.

 Informational Video

This category celebrates videos that serve as informative resources for audiences, providing valuable insights and knowledge on various topics. Submissions should exemplify clear communication, engaging presentation and measurable impact in enhancing viewer understanding and awareness.

 Inspirational Video

We want to hear about compelling videos that inspired audiences to act. What made your video so powerful and motivational? Who was your audience, and what was your goal? Share the video, the strategy and the results.

 Instructional/How-To Video

Your video gave direct instructions, and audiences loved it. What were you helping your audience complete? Were you aiming to help them solve a problem? Tell us why your how-to video successfully scored tons of views.

 Internal Communications Video

This category showcases videos designed to effectively communicate information, updates or messages within an organization. Submissions should demonstrate engaging storytelling, clear messaging and impact in fostering employee engagement, alignment and communication effectiveness.

 Interview or Profile

Video captures human wisdom and emotion more powerfully than any other medium. Why did you choose video to bring a person’s passion or story to life? Did you interview an employee to share his or her experience at your organization? We want to know what made your interview video a success.

 Live Video

How did you use live video to drive engagement with your organization, event or campaign? Did you ask for feedback or participation from your audience? Tell us all about it.

 Long-Form Video (3 Minutes or Longer)

This category honors compelling videos that captivate audiences with immersive storytelling and depth of content. Submissions should showcase creative narrative development, engaging visuals, and impact in holding viewer attention and delivering meaningful messages or experiences.

 Marketing Video

We're looking for the most creative and effective marketing videos. How did your video achieve desired goals and lead to success for your organization or client? What made your video stand out from the pack? Don't forget to share goals and results.

 Nonprofit Video

How did you use video as a storytelling tool for your nonprofit or charitable initiative? Share the video you created to raise awareness about an issue, foundation, charitable service or nonprofit organization. Entries from nonprofit or for-profit organizations doing charitable work are eligible.

 Product or Service Video

This category celebrates videos that effectively showcase a product or service, highlighting its features, benefits and value proposition. Submissions should demonstrate creative storytelling and clear messaging to engage audiences and effectively promote the offering.

 Public Health Video

We want to hear about the videos you created for delivering engaging, informative and essential videos to all audiences—internal or external. What was the purpose of the video? What channels proved most successful? What were the results? We want to hear all about it.

 Public Relations Video

Your press releases weren’t getting attention anymore, so you went a different route. What story did you tell in your public relations video? Was your video created to pitch a story to journalists? Did you want to generate a more favorable image of your client or brand? What did you achieve?

 Public Service Video

This category celebrates videos created to raise awareness about social issues or support community causes. Submissions should showcase impactful storytelling, clear messaging and creative approaches to inspire action and positive change.

 Recruitment Video

Your organization would be nothing without good people. How did you use video to attract great candidates for your team? Share the video that touched the hearts and minds of a bright, demanding pool of potential new hires. What was the response?

 Science & Technology Video

We’ll honor outstanding visual storytelling that brings scientific and technological concepts to life. These exceptional videos demonstrate a creative and engaging approach in explaining these subjects, making science and technology captivating for all audiences.

 Shoestring Video (Under $300)

You didn't let little to no budget limit the effectiveness of your video. You may have even been thrust into the director's role with little or no experience. How did you make a powerful video using limited budget and resources? What message did you aim to deliver? What proved most successful in your video storytelling journey?

 Short-Form Video (Less than 3 Minutes)

This category celebrates concise and engaging videos, showcasing creativity and effectiveness in storytelling. Submissions should captivate audiences with clear messaging, creative visuals and effective use of time to deliver impactful content within a short duration.

 Sizzle Reel

Your sizzle reel dazzled audiences, and we want to know how. Did you combine visuals, audio and messaging to create a fast-paced overview of your product, service, initiative or brand? Tell us about the goals and results.

 Social Impact Video

Your video incited social change. What issue did you aim to address? How did your video bring this issue to the forefront of public consciousness? Why was video essential to educating your community about important issues?

 Social Media Video

Video still dominates newsfeeds—and there is no shortage of video for audiences to consume. How did you stand out on a crowded, noisy online landscape? On which channel or channels did you successfully deploy scroll-stopping videos that caught the eyes of distracted audiences? Share the goals, tactics and results.

 Sports or Outdoor Video

This category celebrates dynamic videos that capture the excitement and spirit of sports or outdoor activities, athletes, brands or products. Submissions should showcase thrilling action, compelling storytelling and captivating visuals that immerse viewers in the world of sports or outdoor adventures.

 TikTok Video

Your quick-hitting video on the popular visual platform was an instant success. How did you tap into TikTok to engage your audiences? What was the purpose of your video, and how did you manage to stand out on the social media channel? We want all the details.

 Travel, Hospitality or Tourism Video

Your video sold an experience to potential guests, and we want to hear about it. Share your video that compelled travelers to book with you or your client. We want to hear the overall goals, how you achieved them and any feedback you received as a result. Don't forget to share the video.

 Use of AI

This category celebrates innovative videos that incorporate artificial intelligence to enhance storytelling, production or viewer engagement. Submissions should highlight creative applications of AI technology, demonstrating how it has been used to create unique and impactful video content.

 User-Generated Content

Your users add a new perspective to your brand story. User-generated videos can tell you a lot about how your products or services are viewed. Share the user-generated videos you collected and tell us how you used them. What inspired people to create them? Share the videos and the results.

 Video Series

You told a rich, exciting story in multiple parts. Why was each video spectacular on its own and even better when put together with others? Tell us how you were able to make these interesting segments add up to more than the sum of their parts. How did your series increase engagement and keep viewers coming back for more? Don’t forget to share the results.

 YouTube Video

Tell us how you used YouTube to connect with your audience. Did you post product marketing or demonstration videos? Did you create a video series that your audience came back for week after week? Tell us about the personalities that starred on your channel, and your overall strategy.

 Other

Anything we missed? Enter your video here.

VISUAL DESIGN CATEGORIES

 Editing

Your visual design editing made for captivating images that captured audience attention. How did you help create striking visuals? Take us through the editing process and share the results.

 Illustration or Animated Design

Done right, animation and illustration provide straightforward explanations for complicated concepts. Why was animation the right medium for your message? Did your illustrations and animations grace a video, infographic or something else? Tell us about the story you created for your characters and how it met your goals.

 Infographic

Did you rise to the challenge when you were asked to turn intimidating data into an elegant infographic? Did you make boring statistics interesting with your creative design? Tell us how your infographic made overwhelming information engaging and valuable.

 Interactive Content

This category celebrates innovative interactive content that engages audiences through dynamic and immersive experiences. Submissions should demonstrate creative design, user-friendly interfaces and effective use of interactivity to captivate and inform users.

 Internal Communications Design

Show us how you inspired your workforce to act. Did you use interactive design to explain a new benefits plan? Did you use gamification to entice employees to complete a boring training session? Show us how you got messages noticed using visual design.

 Marketing Design

This category celebrates outstanding design work that effectively promotes marketing campaigns, products or brands. Submissions should demonstrate creativity, clear messaging and visual appeal in delivering impactful marketing materials that engage and inspire target audiences.

 Motion Graphics

This category celebrates exceptional motion graphics that enhance visual storytelling through dynamic and engaging animations. Submissions should demonstrate creativity, technical skill and effective use of motion to communicate messages and captivate audiences.

 Photography

Stunning photography displays the human experience from a new perspective. How did you use photography to portray your campaign, project or organizational message? What was your goal? How did photography affect your results?

 Print Design

Show us how you brought your message to life with your design of print materials. Why was print the best medium for your message? How was your print design displayed? Was it for an internal or external audience? We want to recognize your work in the industry’s most traditional design medium.

 Publication Design

This category celebrates exceptional design work in publications. Submissions should demonstrate creativity, cohesive layout and visual appeal in crafting engaging magazines, newspapers, brochures or other forms of publication that effectively communicate content to readers.

 Use of AI

This category celebrates innovative design projects that incorporate artificial intelligence to enhance creativity and functionality. Submissions should demonstrate how AI has been effectively used to create unique, visually appealing designs that engage and inform audiences.

 User-Generated Content

This category celebrates exceptional content created by users or customers that effectively promotes brands, products or campaigns. Submissions should showcase the creativity, authenticity and impact of user-generated content in engaging audiences and building brand loyalty.

 Other

Anything we missed? Enter your visual designs here.

VIRTUAL EVENTS CATEGORIES

 Announcement

This category recognizes virtual events designed specifically for making announcements or unveiling new products, services or initiatives. Submissions should highlight effective event planning, engaging presentations and impactful messaging that successfully captivate audiences and generate excitement around the announcement.

 Conference

We want to know how you delivered an innovative virtual conference that offered a unique experience for attendees. Did you offer new features that added to the experience for attendees? Did you land an impressive speaker or speakers? Share the topic, goals and results.

 Customer Engagement

You met your customers at home. What innovative online events did you offer to engage your customers? What was the goal of the event? What were the results? We want to hear it all.

 Educational

What educational virtual events did you offer? What was the purpose of the event and how did audiences respond? We want to hear about how your virtual educational event stood out and delivered for its audiences.

 Employee Engagement

With employees in their WFH offices, wherever that may be, you created a virtual event that kept them inspired, informed and engaged. We want to know how. What were your secrets for engaging your dispersed workforce? What was the goal of the event? What were the results? Share all the details.

 Employee Meeting

Employee meetings, even in-person, can be a little, well, dull. How did you spice things up and create an engaging virtual employee meeting? What were some fun ways you delivered important news? How did you keep morale up? We want to hear all about it.

 Employee Recognition

A little recognition can go along way. We want to hear about the virtual events you planned to show appreciation for employees. What special events were you highlighting?

 Executive Communication

It's important that employees hear from their organization's leaders. How did your leaders deliver important news and inspiring speeches during a virtual event? What did you do to help drive the message home? How did you ensure employees stayed engaged throughout the event?

 Fundraising/Volunteering Program

There are so many virtual platforms available for raising funds for important causes or initiatives. How did you raise funds for the causes and initiatives your organization champions? Tell us how you still made a positive impact on the world, even when in-person opportunities weren't an option, and we want to hear about it.

 Health and Wellbeing

This category celebrates initiatives that promote health and wellbeing, either for your employees or consumers. Submissions should highlight innovative programs, campaigns or products that effectively educate, inspire and support individuals in improving their physical, mental and emotional wellness, fostering a culture of wellbeing within organizations and communities.

 How-To/Tutorial

This category recognizes virtual events that provide informative and practical tutorials or how-to sessions on specific topics or skills. Submissions should showcase clear instruction, engaging presentation and valuable content that empowers participants to learn and apply new knowledge effectively in their personal or professional lives.

 Immersive Experience

This category celebrates virtual events that provide immersive and interactive experiences, transporting participants to captivating virtual environments. Submissions should showcase innovative use of technology, engaging storytelling and seamless integration of multimedia elements to create memorable and impactful experiences that fully engage and delight attendees.

 Interview/Q&A

This category recognizes virtual events featuring engaging interviews or interactive Q&A sessions with experts, influencers or thought leaders. Submissions should highlight insightful questioning, meaningful dialogue and effective audience engagement techniques that provide valuable insights and perspectives to participants.

 Livestream

This category celebrates virtual events streamed live in real-time, providing dynamic and interactive experiences for remote participants. Submissions should showcase seamless production, engaging content and effective audience interaction, creating an immersive and memorable livestream experience that connects and captivates viewers.

 Nonprofit

This category honors virtual events hosted by or for nonprofit organizations, showcasing their mission-driven initiatives and impact on communities. Submissions should highlight effective fundraising efforts, engaging programming and meaningful connections with supporters, demonstrating how the virtual event advances the organization's goals and serves its cause.

 Outstanding Host or Speaker

This category celebrates hosts or speakers who excel in engaging, inspiring, and leading virtual events with professionalism and charisma. Submissions should highlight effective communication, dynamic presentation, and the ability to captivate and connect with audiences, enhancing the overall experience and success of the virtual event.

 Presentation

This category recognizes outstanding presentations delivered during virtual events, showcasing effective communication, compelling visuals and engaging delivery. Submissions should highlight clear messaging, creative design and the ability to captivate and inform audiences, contributing to the overall success and impact of the virtual event.

 Press Event

This category celebrates virtual events designed specifically for media engagement and press announcements, effectively communicating key messages to journalists and influencers. Submissions should highlight strategic planning, engaging presentations and impactful messaging that successfully capture media attention and drive coverage of the announcements.

 Product or Service Launch

This category honors virtual events dedicated to launching new products or services, effectively introducing them to audiences and generating excitement. Submissions should highlight strategic planning, engaging presentations and impactful messaging that successfully captivate attendees and drive interest and adoption of the newly launched offering.

 Recruiting

This category celebrates virtual events focused on recruitment and talent acquisition. Submissions should highlight engaging presentations, interactive networking opportunities and effective communication of employer brand and job opportunities, demonstrating success in attracting and engaging top talent through the virtual event.

 Streaming/Twitch

This category celebrates virtual events hosted on streaming platforms like Twitch, providing unique and interactive experiences for audiences. Submissions should showcase engaging content, creative use of streaming features and effective audience interaction, creating an immersive and entertaining experience that resonates with viewers on streaming platforms.

 Town Hall

This category recognizes virtual town hall events that facilitate transparent communication and engagement between organizational leadership and stakeholders. Submissions should highlight effective dialogue, inclusive participation and impactful messaging that fosters trust, alignment and collaboration within the organization or community.

 Training

This category celebrates virtual events designed to provide educational and skill-building training sessions for participants. Submissions should showcase clear instruction, engaging content and effective use of interactive elements to enhance learning and skill development in a virtual environment.

 Webinar

This category honors virtual events in the form of webinars, delivering informative presentations or discussions on specific topics to engage and educate participants. Submissions should highlight clear messaging, engaging delivery and effective audience interaction, demonstrating success in providing valuable insights and knowledge to attendees.

 Tour

This category celebrates virtual events that offer immersive tours of physical or digital spaces, providing engaging and informative experiences for participants. Submissions should showcase creative storytelling, interactive exploration and effective use of multimedia elements to transport viewers and showcase the unique features and highlights of the tour destination.

 Other

Anything we missed? Enter your virtual event here.

HOW TO ENTER

On the entry form, be sure to include a thorough synopsis explaining the purpose and scope of your entry. The synopsis should be 350 to 900 words and include the following sub-headings (when applicable):

  • Goals
  • Strategy and tactics
  • Execution
  • Evaluation: success, results or ROI

Be sure to follow the guidelines laid out in the category descriptions, as the judges will look for those elements when they select the winners.

You will be able to upload additional documents, links, videos and URLs to your submission. Proprietary or internal information can also be attached and will not be shared with the public.

ENTER

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

The award program is open to in-house teams, agencies and individual practitioners in the private, corporate, nonprofit and government sectors. Vendors may also submit their work or their client’s work. Enter your work, the work of your organization or submit entries on behalf of your clients.

Companies from around the world are welcome to enter as long as the entry is submitted in English.

Contact Brendan Gannon to find the perfect category for your campaign or project. You can email him at brendang@ragan.com.

This year’s program is open to any work executed between July 1, 2023, and July 19, 2024, inclusive.

ENTRY FEES

The fee for this program is $525 per entry into standard categories, and $575 per entry into Grand Prize categories.

A late fee of $275 per entry will be added to all entries received after 11:59 p.m. Central time, July 19, 2024.

Do you have a video, visual design or virtual event you'd like to enter into multiple categories? Pay the original entry fee, and then only $250 for each additional category!

All entries are non-returnable and non-refundable.

W-9 Form / Tax ID Number Request

Frequently Asked Questions

Why should you apply?

Our Video, Visual & Virtual Awards help you measure the success of your work and prove the value of your contributions to your organization or clients. As a winner, you’ll earn publicity for your brand across our websites and social media audiences, a custom write-up about your work and a trophy. Here are a few of the many reasons to enter your work:

    • Showcasing Creative Excellence: This award program provides a platform for organizations and agencies to showcase their creative prowess. Whether it's through innovative video campaigns, visually stunning designs or immersive virtual experiences, these awards celebrate the best of the best in creativity and innovation.
    • Industry Recognition and Prestige: Winning an award not only recognizes the hard work and talent of the teams involved but also brings a stamp of industry recognition and prestige. Being able to display an award from your esteemed work can significantly enhance an organization's or agency's reputation within the industry.
    • Differentiation and Competitive Edge: In today's crowded marketplace, standing out from the competition is crucial. By entering your work, organizations and PR agencies can differentiate themselves by demonstrating their excellence in video production, visual design and virtual experiences. Winning an award sets them apart from competitors and gives them a competitive edge in attracting clients, customers and top talent.
Who can enter?

Entries may be submitted by organizations worldwide. The only requirement is that entries be submitted in English. The program is open to in-house, agency, independent communication practitioners and vendors in the private, corporate, nonprofit and government sectors.

What does it take to be a winner?

We look for top-quality work that shows clear, bold and creative ideas that benefit your business or client. Please provide metrics or results that back up your claims and share creative collateral such as videos, visual design or websites that were a part of your project. Please look at our past award winners to see what gets recognized and rewarded. We encourage you to submit the same project to multiple categories, if you feel they are relevant. Doing so increases your chances of winning. You'll also save on multiple submissions of the same project.

Why are some deadlines extended?

We extend deadlines based on applicant needs and upcoming promotional opportunities.

When will I find out results?
We try to announce a list of finalists eight to twelve weeks after the close of the program. The announcement of the winners comes about four weeks after the announcement of the finalists. Each announcement will be made with a headline on our website, in our daily email newsletter and on our social media platforms. Emails notify entrants in advance of these announcements. As deadlines are extended, so are expected announcement dates.

Additional Questions

If you have any questions about the program or problems submitting your entry, please email Brendan Gannon at brendang@ragan.com.

Sponsorship Opportunities

If you are interested in sponsoring one of Ragan Communications’ award programs, please contact Morgan Einspanier at MorganE@ragan.com. 

Ragan Communications is not responsible for international shipping fees related to trophies or certificates.