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CALL FOR ENTRIES!

Accepting Submissions November 11th, 2024 to January 17, 2025

Use the buttons below to submit both online and physical entries. Additional information regarding physical submission of your entry can be found below.

Important Competition Information

Online-Only Judging

Due to a new mandate from the national-level American Advertising Federation’s Council of Governors, all American Advertising Awards at all levels must be judged online, exclusively. Judges will review entries in digital formats only. Therefore, physical entries will not be accepted in this year’s competition.

*NEW* Explainer Write-Ups

We have decided to allow an additional explainer write-up, written using 500 characters or less, to be added to all entries to provide added context to the work being submitted. 

AAF-ND understands that many entrants prefer their work to be judged in-person, in a tangible manner, and the new, online-only judging mandate no longer makes that a possibility. To help remedy the situation, this policy will create an opportunity to provide context that may have otherwise been lost due to online-only reviewing by judges.

See full rules for this policy here: Explainer Write-Up Policy – PDF

How to submit an explainer write-up: Add your write-up document as one of the file uploads in your submission. This can be added in addition to any already allowed files. You may also still submit an optional video upload unless specified otherwise.

If you have already submitted an entry OR are unsure of how to attached your write-up, please send the file to awards@aaf-nd.org and include the title of your entry in your message.

Example Explainer Write-Up – PDF

Tips, Resources & Guides

Judges’ Tips for Submitting Physical Entries in a Digital Format – PDF

We asked our judges… “What can entrants do to make their physical work look just as good in a digital format as it would have looked in person?” Together they gave us 5 helpful tips to make your work really stand out on screens.

Entry Fees and Deadlines for Registration:

Professional Competition Fees

Single Entry Fee

AAF-ND Member

  • $65 Early Bird – Submission Deadline: December 15, 2024
  • $75 Regular Price – Submission Deadline: January 12, 2025
  • $100 Late Pricing – Submission Deadline: January 17, 2025

Non-Member

  • $100 Early Bird – Submission Deadline: December 15, 2024
  • $110 Regular Price – Submission Deadline: January 12, 2025
  • $135 Late Pricing – Submission Deadline January 15, 2025

Campaign Entry Fee

AAF-ND Members

  • $90 Early Bird – Submission Deadline: December 15, 2024
  • $100 Regular Price – Submission Deadline: January 12, 2025
  • $125 Late Pricing – Submission Deadline January 17, 2025

Non-Member

  • $130 Early Bird – Submission Deadline: December 15, 2024
  • $140 Regular Price – Submission Deadline: January 12, 2025
  • $165 Late Pricing – Submission Deadline January 17, 2025

Student Competition Fees

  • $30 Early Bird – Submission Deadline: December 15, 2024
  • $40 Regular Price – Submission Deadline: January 12, 2025
  • $60 Late Pricing – Submission Deadline January 17, 2025

Additional Information

  • Deadline for Early Bird Pricing: December 15, 2024
  • Deadline for Regular Pricing: January 12, 2025
  • Final Deadline for Submissions (Includes Late Fees): January 17, 2025.
    • All entries are due by January 17, 2025.
    • All entries will be judged digitally, online, this year. No physical entries will be accepted.
  • All work entered in the American Advertising Awards competition must have first appeared between January 1 and December 31, 2024.
  • Work entered must have been the result of paid creative services and/or media placement in the normal course of business.
    • Exceptions include: works of Public Service Advertising and Advertising Industry Self Promotion categories, as well as student entries.
  • Entries must be submitted in the CBSA, DMA or MSA where the work was created (as defined by Arbitron or Nielsen for your local market). If multiple Ad Clubs are in the same CBSA, DMA or MSA the Ad Club located nearest to the entrant geographically will be the entry site. In the event there are entrants located in markets not served by a local American Advertising Awards affiliated show, the acceptance, processing, judging, forwarding and fees of those entries will be decided by the governing body of the district in which the entrant is located. Additional geographic considerations are covered in the Professional Rules and Categories document that can be found on aaf-nd.org/addyawards
  • For Student eligibility requirements refer to the Student American Advertising Awards Rules & Categories that can be found here.

The expressed intent of the American Advertising Awards competition is to recognize and reward creative excellence in the legitimate everyday workplace of advertising. Occasionally, an entry is submitted that appears to have been created outside the conventional agency-to-client-to-media marketing structure, as if the entry was created solely for the purpose of winning an award. This type of work is not accepted.

After filling out the entry forms, you will be required to sign an Invoice/Manifest Form, listing all of your entries. This form states that by signing below you:

  1. Verify that the above information is accurate.
  2. Acknowledge that proper rights were obtained for use of any elements of the entry that were not original.
  3. Agree to submit documentation deemed necessary for review.
  4. Release the entry for Internet, broadcast and/or print (allow reuse of material).
  5. Verify that the entry was created within the local MSA of the competition.

For the first time ever, this year’s competition will be DIGITAL ONLY. That means no physical entries will be accepted and all entries will be judged exclusively online. This is a decision that was made at the national level by the American Advertising Federation (AAF).

While this is certainly different than previous years, we want to assure that the change will not put your entries at a disadvantage. We have consulted with our judges to get their feedback on how they best can review your entries digitally, even if they may have been submitted physically in the past. Please stay tuned for updates on that guide along with other great resources coming soon.

Single to Medium Campaigns:

  • A SINGLE-MEDIUM CAMPAIGN is no less than two and no more than four total pieces in the entry.

Integrated Campaigns:

  • An INTEGRATED CAMPAIGN is defined as a campaign or series of ads, commercials or executions that utilize more than one medium. The American Advertising Awards allows entries in all Integrated Campaign categories to submit up to ten executions for judging. Integrated Campaign entries may be accompanied by a written or digital (video) summary not to exceed 250 words (written) or 3 minutes (digital). Digital summaries must be submitted by uploading the video file during the online entry process. Failure to adhere to these limitations may result in a portion or all of the noncompliant entry to be removed from judging.

Online/Interactive Advertising:

  • For Websites and all Online/Interactive entries, submit the URL addresses. For multiple URLs in a campaign category entry, create a web page that contains each of the individual links and provide the single URL to your newly created page, i.e.- http://www.somedomain.com/addy_ entries.html. Do not submit a URL that leads directly to a “swf” file. Judging of online entries will be done online, using the URL whenever possible. URLs should not require any username or password for access. In cases where this already exists, the entrant should create an independent URL. URLs, banners and menus must not contain any references to the entrant.

Questions? Concerns?

Email awards@aaf-nd.org with any feedback, questions, or concerns. We will get back to you as quickly as we’re able. Thank you!

Save The Date!

2025 AAF-ND American Advertising Awards

Friday, February 28, 2025
Avalon Events Center
Fargo, ND

Ticket sales open:
Tuesday, January 7, 2025 @ 12:00pm (Noon)

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Rules & Categories Reference Guide

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