{"id":52822,"date":"2024-12-19T14:51:19","date_gmt":"2024-12-19T14:51:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/?p=52822"},"modified":"2025-11-27T12:16:09","modified_gmt":"2025-11-27T12:16:09","slug":"the-5-metrics-to-drive-growth-for-your-awards-competitions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zealous.co\/about\/insights\/the-5-metrics-to-drive-growth-for-your-awards-competitions\/","title":{"rendered":"These 5 metrics will help you grow your Awards"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Running a program successfully means understanding what’s working – and what isn’t for your candidates. Whether you’re using spreadsheets or a dedicated awards management platform<\/a> knowing what to measure to understand the impact of your actions is vital to run a successful award or competition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This can be daunting when presented with an overload of data. What do you focus on first? And how do these measurements translate into meaningful actions to guarantee the success for your competition?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So instead of getting lost in the labyrinth of possibilities, let’s focus on 5 key metrics that help you grow submissions to your program. No fluff, just practical stuff you can use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before diving into these metrics, it’s worth noting that tracking them manually is hard. A good awards management platform will automatically captures this data, letting you focus on insights rather than spreadsheets.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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It’s not numbers, it’s a journey<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s easy to get lost when thinking solely in terms of data. This article isn\u2019t really about metrics, it’s about understanding your candidates’ behavior and journey to submit. Although the numbers will allow you to discover patterns, each user will have their own experience which fits within the wider context of their own lives (more about that later).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To keep things simple at this stage, think of submitting to your program as a shared story for all your candidates. They discover your program, gets excited enough to click through, starts their entry, and (hopefully) submit. Each stage gives you opportunities to learn about what works and what doesn’t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A typical journey to submitting to an award, competition, open call, etc. looks like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. Candidate discovers your program (website visits)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Shows interest (clicks that submit button)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Starts their entry (creates a draft)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Completes their submission (the goal!)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

    Focussing on resolving issues candidates face at the step with the biggest drop-off will have the biggest impact on improving your program. You might also want to consider resolving these issues before running expensive marketing campaigns \u2013 allowing you to capture more value from the money spent.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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    Travellers beware<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Before we dive in, it\u2019s worth acknowledging two important things:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    First, numbers will only tell you part of the story. Your program exists in the real world, where economic conditions, industry changes, and even global events impact participation. What worked last year might not work this year (if people can\u2019t afford it this year, they won\u2019t enter).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Second, tiny changes can have a big impact \u2013 this is a double-edged sword, a change in your guidelines can vastly improve participation in your program, however, it can also work against you. Changing your criteria to reduce the number of users who can participate is likely to lead to fewer (but maybe more meaningful entries).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    While we can’t control everything, understanding our metrics helps us adapt to what we can.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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    1. Program Discovery (Landing Page Visits)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Let’s start at the beginning – how many people are finding your program? This is your foundation metric, and it’s straightforward to track through Google Analytics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The total number will allow you to understand how many people drop off as they follow your journey, but they also provide you with some other interesting insights, such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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