How It Works
How do I enter?
01
Submission details are announced here.
Check the listings to get the exact category for your work.
All entrees are officially handled by the American Advertising Awards portal. If this is your first time entering the competition, you must set up an account through the portal. This is a separate system and login information from your Ad Club Cincinnati account, if you have one.
Members of Ad Club Cincinnati get discounted submissions, along with other perks.
Categories and rules for entree change from year to year. Please check the official categories and rules documents for the most up-to-date information. (Linked to the Right)
View Category Guides & Rules:
02
What is the cost?
Rates Member Non-Member Student
Single $95. $140. $45
Campaign $130. $175. $45
Late Fee +$30 ea. +$30 ea. n/a
03
What Are the Deadlines?
Early Dealine: December 1 - December 17
Regular Deadline: December 18 - January 15
LATE FEE Deadline: January 16 - January 24
04
Can I increase my chances of winning?
Judges only have context about the work you're submitting that is within your submission. If you don't include it, they won't know about it. We encourage entrants to include a well designed .pdf that outlines their efforts, results, or any important information the judges should consider when viewing your work. This is also a great place to highlight your DEI efforts, which may make you applicable for other awards within the competition. It is best to keep your supporting document brief, and well designed for comprehension, as the judges are not required to review the entire document, but may choose to when seeking context about your submission.
05
What file types should I submit?
We accept most conventional media types, including links to external sites and video players. We recommend submitting material that best presents your work. For example, if you are submitting a logo in the Elements of Advertising category, include mock ups of that logo in its intended environment. Help the judges see your work in its best light.
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We also highly recommend including a .jpg formatted to 1920x1080 or 3840x2160 that encapsulates your submitted work. Think of this as a thumbnail, or preview image for your project. For award winners, this .jpg will be used during the ceremony to represent your work, and may appear in the show book as well.
How does judging work?
06
The Cincinnati Addys is judged by a panel of three to five independent judges who do not work or reside in the Cincinnati market. The judges must prove they have no formal connection to any agency, parent/sister company, production company, client company or freelancer from the Cincinnati market. Each year, Ad Club Cincinnati finds a new panel of judges with different areas of expertise, but all with impressive and diverse credentials. We look for judges with broad experience who can fairly assess the widely diverse categories our competition encompasses.
Judging happens remotely over a 1 week period. Each judge is supplied with basic guidelines for each category and a basic outline for the scoring system, but each judge is asked to bring their own experience, opinion, and discretion while judging. Judges submit scores ranging from 0 to 100. They are allowed to review submissions & associated material and change their score as many times as they wish, up until the judging period has ended.
It’s important to know that it is possible to have no winners in a category. Being the only submission in a category is not a guarantee of an award. Submissions must be in the top percentage of all scores across every category to win either a Silver or Gold award.