You might deliver award-worthy work, but if you’re not recognized, to many prospects you’re just another line item in a spreadsheet. Third-party endorsements separate leaders from the pack.
Benefits of Design Awards: Key Points
Design Awards As Strategic Differentiators
Most B2B buyers review third-party validation, such as awards and certifications, which quickly and effectively build trust and credibility. Let's see how.
How Design Awards Create Business Impact for Agencies
Recognition does more than polish your portfolio — it directly impacts sales cycles and deal outcomes.
When an agency wins a notable award, several things happen in the business development arena:
- Faster trust-building
- Higher deal sizes
- High-prestige clients
- High-authority backlinks for SEO
- Social media virality
- Award site traffic and referrals
Faster Trust-Building
Instead of needing multiple meetings to prove your credibility, a well-known award title often does it at a glance.
It’s an instant conversation starter and confidence booster for potential clients. Some procurement teams even track awards for months and proactively reach out to agencies that win in categories relevant to their needs.
In other words, an award can shorten the distance from “Who are you?” to “When can you start?”
Higher Deal Sizes
Award wins give you leverage to raise your rates or upsell more services.
After winning a Best Design Award on DesignRush, Jean Massad, Founder and Design Lead at Konpo (formerly LIFT), shared: “The award brought around 200 users to our site within a month and landed us a $25,000 project.”
This is supported by broader market data: consumers and B2B clients alike are willing to pay more for products or services that come with award credentials.
High-Prestige Clients
Certain clients, in luxury retail, innovative SaaS, healthcare, VC-backed startups, specifically seek out top creative talent.
Having awards on your agency résumé can qualify you for those “prestige” engagements that might have been out of reach before.
We’ve seen agencies go from local small-business clients to landing Fortune 500 or high-end brand contracts post-award, because the win served as third-party proof of their capabilities.
It’s like earning a credential that opens doors.
High-Authority Backlinks for SEO
Awards often come with listings on the award website or press articles that link back to your site.
Such links not only drive direct traffic but also improve your search rankings as Google values those credible backlinks.
According to a study by Backlinko, the number of referring domains is the top factor correlated with higher Google rankings.
Over time, this means more organic traffic discovering your agency.
Social Media Virality
Award announcements can outperform regular content.
It’s not uncommon to see an award post get 3–4 times the likes or comments on LinkedIn compared to a typical case study. Why?
Awards are inherently shareable as your employees, clients, and partners are more likely to engage, creating a ripple effect that boosts visibility far beyond your first-degree network.
As Denis Misyulya, CEO of Moloko, puts it: “Best Design Awards is not only the recognition of the high level of creative work, but also an effective marketing tool that we use on our website and social networks.”
In other words, awards don’t just validate your work — they market it for you.
Award Site Traffic and Referrals
Winning a design award puts your agency in front of the right audience.
DesignRush showcases winners by category and year, attracting 125,000 monthly views across award pages and featured designs, and over 400,000 monthly views via agency directory listings.
That exposure drives real results:
- 2,200 monthly clicks from awards to agency websites
- 1,000 monthly clicks from featured designs
- 190,000 monthly clicks from directory listings
Being featured is like landing a top spot in a premium niche directory, complete with a backlink or direct contact info.
And the benefits last: many agencies report ongoing referral traffic for months (sometimes years) after their win.
Everything You Need To Know To Win a DesignRush Best Design Award
DesignRush’s Best Design Awards celebrate outstanding creativity and impeccable design work across digital and physical mediums.
The monthly awards honor exceptional designers and teams that push the boundaries of aesthetics and functionality in six main categories:
For agencies and creatives, earning a DesignRush award means industry recognition, a spot in DesignRush’s featured winners, and an improvement in credibility that can attract new clients.
Below, we outline when to apply, how to apply, and how to maximize your chances of winning a DesignRush Best Design Award.
When To Apply
Timing is key because DesignRush runs its awards on a monthly cycle. New entries are accepted year-round, with each month serving as its own contest period.
To enter a specific round of judging, keep this timeline in mind:
- Submit between the 1st and 23rd of the month to qualify for that month’s contest.
- Judging happens during the first two weeks of the following month.
- Winners are notified at the start of the month.
- Public announcements go live around the 15th on DesignRush.com, followed by newsletter and social media features in the third week.
This monthly cadence offers regular opportunities to enter. Whether you’re submitting for the first time or sharing new projects throughout the year, there’s always a rolling deadline coming up.
Staying aware of these timelines, and planning at least a month ahead, makes sure you never miss your shot.
How To Apply
Applying for a DesignRush Best Design Award is a straightforward process.
Follow these steps to submit your work:
- Check if you’re eligible: Agencies, freelancers, in-house teams, and brands can all submit, as long as it’s original work. If you’re a brand, don’t forget to credit your designer or agency.
- Get your project ready: You’ll need a live URL or link to the design, plus a short description of the project’s goals, creative approach, and what makes it shine.
- Submit the form: Head to the official DesignRush submission page and fill out the details. Make sure your links work and everything’s accurate.
- Pay the fee: It’s $150 per design. If you’re planning multiple entries, check out the monthly packages starting at $375.
There are six winners in total each month (one per category), and you can enter as many categories or projects as you like, provided each meets the criteria of its category.
Winning entries receive a dedicated write-up on DesignRush, an official Best Design Awards badge/certificate, and promotion via DesignRush’s newsletter and social channels.
How To Win
Submitting your project is just the first step.
To improve your chances of winning a DesignRush Best Design Award, consider these strategic tips drawn from DesignRush’s own criteria and the successes (and missteps) of past entrants.
- Know what the judges look for
- Present a compelling story
- Showcase quality and polish
- Avoid disqualifiers and mistakes
- Learn from past winners
- Emphasize user-centric design
Know What the Judges Look For
The DesignRush jury uses six core criteria to evaluate each submission: Impact, Creativity, Functionality, Execution, Branding, and User Experience.
In practical terms, this means your design should:
- Grab attention and resonate = Impact
- Showcase original thinking or innovation = Creativity
- Serve its purpose effectively = Functionality
- Be polished and well-crafted = Execution
- Reflect or strengthen the brand’s identity = Branding
- Be user-friendly = UX
Before submitting, honestly assess your project against these points — a winning design often excels in all or most of these areas.
Present a Compelling Story
How you present your work can be almost as important as the work itself.
Use the design rationale to your advantage by clearly articulating the project’s objectives, target audience, and the problem your design solved or the value it added.
Judges appreciate a concise narrative:
- What inspired the design?
- What challenges did you overcome?
- What results or feedback has it earned?
Avoid vague statements; instead, highlight specific features or decisions that make your design special.
This is a chance to stand out from other entries that might simply drop a link with no context.
Showcase Quality and Polish
Treat the submission like a portfolio piece — ensure that the link you provide is accessible and that it truly shows off the best version of your design.
If it’s a website or app, make sure all visuals and interactions work smoothly at the time of judging.
For static designs (like logos or print work), consider uploading them to a dedicated page that shows high-resolution images, mockups in use, or even a short video presentation.
The goal is to let judges experience the design as intended.
Conversely, avoid common pitfalls like broken links, missing images, or lack of any description — these can undermine an otherwise great design.
Avoid Disqualifiers and Mistakes
Double-check that your submission follows all the rules. A few common slip-ups can ruin a great entry:
- Forgetting to credit collaborators.
- Submitting work you don’t fully own or have rights to.
- Entering the wrong category or missing the deadline.
A great design won’t win if it’s late or mislabeled. The best entries are on time, in the right category, properly credited, and 100% original.
Learn from Past Winners
A smart way to elevate your entry is to see what kinds of projects have won in the past.
- Winning projects blend creativity with usability or storytelling.
- Top designs are innovative and well-executed.
- Aim for creative impact without sacrificing function or user experience.
Take note of the balance: you want your work to stand out creatively, but never at the expense of functionality or user experience.
Emphasize User-Centric Design
Especially in digital categories, remember: usability and storytelling go hand-in-hand.
To stand out:
- Ensure smooth navigation and clear content.
- Design with purpose — every element should serve the user's journey.
For websites or apps, pay attention to:
- Load times
- Mobile responsiveness
- Accessibility
- Overall UX flow
A beautiful interface that’s confusing to use will lose points on usability. Likewise, a functional but uninspired design may fall short on creativity.
Aim for the sweet spot: great visuals + great UX.
Post-Award Strategy: Activating Recognition Across the Funnel
Now, a trophy on a shelf (literal or metaphorical) is a missed opportunity if that’s where the journey ends.
The real value comes from how you activate and use that recognition everywhere in your business funnel.
- Awards as a client acquisition strategy
- Monetizing recognition: Turning awards into revenue
- Use the awards to attract and retain top creative talent
Awards as a Client Acquisition Strategy
Design awards convert browsers into buyers — especially when you showcase them strategically across your marketing funnel.
In fact, 75% of decision-makers trust brands more when they’re endorsed by industry experts.
To fully capitalize on an award:
- Website real estate: Drop award badges on high-traffic spots like your homepage hero, About page, or contact forms. Third-party kudos help build trust fast.
- Pitch decks and proposals: Add an “awards” slide to your creds or RFP deck. Don’t just name-drop, say why it matters to your audience.
- Marketing campaigns: Treat every win like a mini-launch: press release, blog post, email blast, and team-wide LinkedIn posts. People love celebrating success — it drives engagement.
Monetizing Recognition: Turning Awards Into Revenue
Smart agencies treat an award as a lever to drive pricing, expansion, and new service offerings.
Here’s how you can turn the validation into tangible revenue:
- Premium pricing power: Awards justify raising your rates, often 10–30%, with less resistance. Use the win as proof you’re top-tier, not just another option.
- Turn wins into content: Don’t let the trophy gather dust. Spin it into a report, e-book, or “what we learned” post to drive leads and spark convos.
- Grow partnerships and visibility: “Award-winning” opens doors. Use it to land guest posts, speaker spots, and more, as it builds credibility that compounds.
Use the Awards To Attract and Retain Top Creative Talent
It’s not just clients who care about your awards — your current and future employees do, too.
In creative industries, talented designers don’t just want a paycheck; they crave recognition and growth. Winning awards can significantly increase our agency’s ability to retain talent and hire the best in the field.
- Retention through pride: Winning boosts team morale. It validates their effort and gives them something to be proud of. Gallup found that recognized employees are way less likely to quit — about 45% less over two years.
- Recruitment magnet: “Award-winning agency” sounds like a great place to work. It shows you value great work and attract top talent. Mention your awards in job posts, they help draw better candidates.
- Culture of recognition: Make awards part of your culture. Run internal contests, celebrate nominations, it shows the team you care about creativity and quality. It’s not about ego; it’s about raising the bar.
Final Word: Best Design Awards as Scalable Growth Assets
So, are design awards vanity? Far from it. In the hands of a savvy agency, they are multipliers of growth, credibility, and competitive advantage.
They can open doors that were previously shut, whether it’s the door to a mega-client’s office or to a talented designer’s resume landing on your desk.
The agencies that win are those that understand this equation and work it to their benefit.
Our team ranks agencies worldwide to help you find a qualified partner. Visit our Agency Directory for the top design companies, as well as:
- Top Web Design Companies
- Top Graphic Design Companies
- Top Product Design Companies
- Top Logo Design Companies
- Top UI/UX Design Agencies
Benefits of Design Awards FAQs
1. What’s the best way to promote awards without sounding boastful?
The key is to tie the recognition to client impact and team achievement, rather than ego. By focusing on outcomes (e.g., improved conversion rates, user delight, innovation) and giving credit to the team/clients, you make the promotion about value, not vanity.
2. Can small agencies realistically win?
Definitely. In fact, being small can be an advantage in creative awards: you might have more daring work in your portfolio precisely because smaller clients let you take risks, whereas big agencies sometimes have more conservative client work.
3. How often can agencies submit to Best Desing Awards?
You can submit every month, as long as it’s a different design that meets all the criteria.
