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Awards help business development efforts by elevating firms above their competitors. They also provide valuable visual assets for marketing and social-media content. Another benefit of entering professional awards is that prominent jury members review the submissions; jury members are often media professionals or other architects who sit on approval boards, project competition juries, and conference committees. The primary challenge is prioritizing which awards programs are the best matches for our clients’ budgets and goals—whether recognition for a specific project, firm, or individual.
Taylor & Company was hired by CO Architects to maximize exposure for Palomar Medical Center (PMC), a $1-billion sustainable hospital in Escondido, CA. The architects conceptualized a functional and flexible vertical garden hospital thought of as “the hospital of the future.” At the time of its groundbreaking, PMC was the largest building under construction in California. Because of PMC’s size, scope, and pioneering elements, there was great potential for a wide range of stories throughout the project’s lifecycle. Taylor & Company was brought on more than six months prior to groundbreaking and successfully met the challenge of generating excitement for a project that was years from completion.
Taylor & Company created a public and media relations program to highlight CO Architects’ deep bench and extraordinary expertise in modern hospital construction. While the campaign started with a general release summarizing PMC as a pathbreaking archetype for the healthcare industry, subsequent initiatives explored specific programmatic elements—and how CO Architects’ design, vision, and solutions have informed the facility and the process of building it.
Taylor & Company has chaired awards committees and uses this insight to council clients on which programs can provide the best platform for uplifting clients and their projects. We maintain a growing calendar of awards that includes deadlines and eligibility requirements. In addition to awards consultation, Taylor & Company can manage the submission process. This usually entails our team writing text to fit word-count requirements, gathering additional information, and re-formatting photography according to specifications. Each submission has different parameters.
Diverse subject matter was targeted through a regular, ongoing series of releases and bylined articles that spotlight the thought leadership of CO Architects principals. As the project began to win awards, we used each opportunity to release news. With this strategy, Taylor & Company gained placements throughout the course of the project, from announcement and construction to completion and post-occupancy, as well as a look back 10 years later.
The leading typology publication, Healthcare Design Magazine, followed the project in print and online for eight years, with three bylines from the design team, interim news, cover story upon completion, and post-occupancy follow-ups two and four years after implementation. Additional bylined articles appeared in Hospital Build Magazine (Dubai), Medical Construction & Design (two separate articles), and Environmental Design + Construction.
Among the 46 outlets that ran articles and aired interviews (many of them on several occasions) are Architectural Record, Design-Build Dateline, “DnA: Design and Architecture on KCRW-FM,” ENR California (five covers), Health Facilities Management, Interiors & Sources, Metal Architecture, Landscape Design (China), and SmartMarket Report: Green BIM. Based on the successful promotion of this singular project, CO Architects contracted Taylor & Company to represent the entire range of the firm’s work. It’s a partnership that has continued for more than 16 years and currently includes another $1-billion-plus high-tech healthcare project.
Often overlooked, local awards offer opportunities to stand out in the community. Many business journals and urbanism groups offer awards programs that recognize local projects and staff for a variety of accomplishments. As well, several awards programs offer opportunities to support younger team members with “40 Under 40” and similar commendations for new talent. On the other end of the spectrum, senior staff may be eligible for “Life Achievement” and “Legacy” awards.
Awards wins are marketing tools with impact, as they recognize important industry achievements. They provide engaging web and social-media content, and they bolster “About Us” boilerplates with impressive results. Taylor & Company reinforces award wins by creating and distributing announcements, which often result in additional coverage and features.
Individual achievement awards can also help fuel future campaigns for other professional certifications, such as AIA College of Fellows admission, boards of directors candidacies, and other committees and endeavors. All previous project and individual award wins fuel submissions for firm awards.
Ready to elevate your company’s presence in the media? Contact us today to learn more about our marketing and public relations team and how we can help you achieve your goals in the industry. Let’s tell your story and make an impact together.
