MASHSMD Marketing Excellence Awards

The MASHSMD Excellence Awards aim to recognize and reward creative and strategic excellence in healthcare marketing and communications. These awards are given out annually for the prior year's work. 

View the 2023 Excellence Award winners here.  

Information about the MASHSMD Lifetime Excellence Award for Dedication (LEAD) is available here.

Call for Entries
Awards to be Presented at Annual Conference

On behalf of the Mid-Atlantic Society for Healthcare Strategy and Market Development Board of Directors and all MASHSMD members, welcome to the 2024 Excellence Awards competition!

As the region’s premier healthcare strategy and marketing society, we proudly count among our membership many talented professionals—and it is our privilege to host an awards competition that spotlights the fine work they produce.

The MASHSMD Excellence Awards are judged on a variety of factors including creative, strategy, implementation and measurable results. The work entered into this competition not only recognizes the talent of our members, it also serves to highlight the progressive and impactful organizations and agencies in our region.

The MASHSMD Excellence Awards are open to members, member organizations and member agencies that have completed work on behalf of member and non-member organizations. A portion of all proceeds collected are donated to a MASHSMD college internship fund.

All winners will be announced at our Annual Conference, May 7–9 in Richmond, VA. 

Best of luck,

MASHSMD Board of Directors

GENERAL AWARDS INFORMATION

Eligibility 
The competition is open to individual MASHSMD members, member healthcare providers, ad agencies, and creative firms. 

MASHSMD members who are not healthcare providers (e.g., advertising agencies, research, creative or interactive firms, etc.) located in MASHSMD states (Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, D.C., and West Virginia) are welcome to submit entries for any of their healthcare clients, even if the client is not a MASHSMD member.

To be eligible for judging, the program or project must have run in the market between January 1, 2023, and December 31, 2023. 

Entry fees must be received within two weeks of the deadline date.

Deadlines and Entry Fee 
Final Deadline: April 15

We encourage you to submit multiple projects or assets for awards. You may only submit each project one time and in one category.

One entry = $80
2–3 entries = $75 each
4–6 entries = $65 each
7–10 entries = $50 each

Payment is expected at the time you submit your entries. You can pay via credit card or check.

Please mail your check to: 
MASHSMD, c/o  Sarah Yonker
Atlantic General Hospital
10320 Old Ocean City Boulevard
Berlin, MD 21811


When Will Awards Be Presented 
Awards will be presented at our Annual Conference.  

Benefits 

An Excellence Award can boost your organization's reputation and bring a morale boost to your team. To support winning organizations and individuals, we recognize award winners in a number of ways: 

  • Recognition during a special presentation at the MASHSMD Annual Conference
  • Printed certificates to display (perfect for agencies to give to clients)
  • Web badges to post on your website and social channels
  • Promotion through the MASHSMD website and social channels
  • Platinum winners have an opportunity to share their project at the Annual Conference

Judging 

The objective of the MASHSMD Excellence Awards is to recognize and reward creative and strategic excellence in healthcare marketing and communications. Each entry is reviewed by two judges who are acknowledged leaders within their field. Judges are assigned categories based on their professional experience and expertise. One overall winner will be awarded in each category (must have a minimum score of 40 points out of a 60-point maximum). 

Avoid Disqualification 

Entries must be for work completed by or for MASHSMD members. Member agencies can submit work created for non-member organizations. Entry fees must be received within two weeks of the deadline date.


Guidelines to Submit Your Entries 
 

All entries must be completed online.
Entry submission is only available to MASHSMD members.

Step 1: Download the Entry Template   

  • Download the entry template. You will use this document to submit your entries. We recommend filling out the contact information portion and duplicating the file if you will be submitting multiple entries.

Step 2: Complete Template for Each Entry 

  • Create each entry individually by filling out the entire entry template once for each entry.

  • Include the contact information for the individual who is responsible if assistance is needed with the entry.

  • Complete your situation, strategy and success story. This is the meat of your entry and the most important piece (limit 500 words for each area).

  • Name your entry file with your organization and project name.

  • Create a .zip file with your entry and any supporting materials (images, plans, content pages, etc.). Supporting materials must accompany your entry. Supporting materials are how the judges review your entry. There is a maximum of three supporting documents. Videos should be submitted as a LIVE LINK to YouTube, Vimeo or your website.

Step 3: Submit Entry 

  • On the submission page, upload the .zip file(s) containing your entry(s) and any supporting materials by April 15. You will need one .zip file for each entry.

Step 4: Submit Payment 

  • Complete this step only after you have uploaded all your entries. You may pay by credit card online or pay with a check. Checks are due to MASHSMD within two weeks of the deadline date. If we don’t receive your check-in time, it could result in disqualification. 

  • A portion of all entry fees collected for the MASHSMD 2023 Excellence Awards will be donated to the MASHSMD Student Intern Scholarship Fund.

Entry Completion 

  • Follow the step-by-step guidelines carefully, and be sure to SUBMIT YOUR ENTRY by the deadline. Entry fees are based on the date of submission.

 

CATEGORIES 

You may submit project nominations under six (6) different categories. You may submit multiple nomination entries but you may not enter the same project in multiple categories. For each category, there will be a Bronze, Silver and Gold award. There will also be one Platinum award (best overall). 

Integrated Marketing Campaigns 

  • Includes multi-channel initiatives working toward the same goal. Entries can include social media, email, website content, print collateral, advertising, events and other marketing and advertising efforts.  

Advertising 

  • Includes content, creative and planning for all forms of advertising. Including but not limited to:
    • TV, print, and radio ads
    • Online and digital advertising
    • OOH, billboard and transit advertising  

Public Relations and Communications 

  • Includes, PR campaigns, crisis communications, community outreach, grassroots, and events
  • Internal communications  

Content Creation and Management 

  • Includes blogs, articles, newsletters and other written content
  • Ebooks and whitepapers
  • Content strategy and management 

Branding, Design and Visuals 

  • Includes photography, video and graphic design for marketing materials
  • Logo and visual branding design  

Innovative and Emerging Strategies 

  • Includes the use of AR/VR, AI and other cutting-edge technologies in campaigns
  • Innovative data analytics applications
  • Creative use of resources to solve a problem
  • Strategic plans
  • Marketing plans

SITUATION, STRATEGY, SUCCESS STORY

The information you’ll share with the judges is collected in a series of fields on the online entry form. Below are recommendations for the kind of information that should be included in each field. These parameters are guidelines, not requirements. 

The Situation
Describe the marketplace or organization factors that created the need for this publication/project/campaign, etc. Explain the problem(s), opportunity(s) and objective(s) that guided the development of the strategy/project/campaign, etc. 

The Strategy 
Discuss the techniques, methods, and approaches you used to achieve your objectives and/or solve the problem. Include an explanation of strategic and tactical considerations. 

The Success* 
Where appropriate, provide documentation of the success of the project, such as inquiries, patient visits, views, impressions, press clippings, or positive feedback that demonstrate that you met objectives. The results documentation must contain factual information and should confirm the achievement of the set goals. All supporting materials should be uploaded as part of your entry. 

*We acknowledge that results in design and creative categories such as logo design, graphics, photography, writing, etc., are often difficult to quantify, and these creative categories should be evaluated on more qualitative criteria. Design category entries will be judged on the visual that conveys strategy, brand, or product/service line messages in a distinctive way and takes into consideration relevant to the audience and uniqueness. For writing entries, judges will be asked to consider the quality of the writing—is it coherent, does it hold their attention, does it have a resonance that stays with them after reading it, and how well does it communicate a strategic message.

For entries in creative categories (Graphic Design, Logo, Photography, and Writing Project): Provide qualitative documentation of the success of the project, including all the elements that went into your creative process, so that judges can evaluate your entry on how successfully it was executed. What was your original theme/idea? How does creative work answer the problem/challenge you set out to solve? How is the style of the creative work suited for your target audience? What is unique and memorable about creative work? What visual and/or emotional experience were you striving to create?  

MASHSMD Student Intern Scholarship Fund 

MASHSMD will award one intern scholarship in 2024 in the amount of $1,000. Future scholarship amounts will be determined annually.  

Eligibility requirement and scholarship guidelines 

  • Applicants must be a full-time, undergraduate or graduate student attending an accredited college or university in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, D.C., or West Virginia.
  • Applicants must be pursuing a bachelor’s or master’s degree in Marketing, Communications, or a related course of study (i.e., general business, advertising, public relations, market research, etc.)
  • Applicants must be scheduled to graduate no sooner than May 2025.
  • No applicant shall receive the MASHSMD Student Scholarship Award more than once.
  • All applicants must complete and submit the application and essay prior to the posted deadline. 

Past Winners