How to Prepare for Red Stick Awards
We asked winners from the 2025 Red Stick Awards to share their tips for preparing for PRAL-BR's annual awards program. Here's what they had to say!
"I work on entries a little at a time, scheduling an hour or two each week leading up to the deadline. If time allows, it's helpful to get feedback from a colleague-- no matter how many times you look at it, there's always room to improve. It might be refining the wording of a sentence or adding information to make the entry clearer. I also think about the entry from the judges' perspective and ask myself: Would I want to read this?"
Alicia Davidson, Associate Director of Communications & Public Affairs - Greater Baton Route Industry Alliance
2025 Bill Michelet Best in Show Award Winner
"I start by carefully reviewing the award criteria and aligning each entry with the stated goals and judging standards. From there, I select work that demonstrates clear strategy, strong execution, impact, ensuring the narrative clearly communicates results and lessons learned."
I'Tyonnie Jackson, Director of Communications and External Affairs - Southern University Law Center
2025 Red Stick Award Winner
- For research, make sure you highlight formal/informal, qualitative/quantitative, and primary/secondary types of research and how it shaped your planning.
- For planning, make sure you highlight key publics, goal, objectives (MAKE SURE THEY ARE SMART!), and strategies.
- For Implementation, ensure you have included tactics, budget (both paid and staff-hours/time used).
- Finally for evaluation, make sure to include lessons learned and a conclusion as to what you would take from this moving forward."
Dr. Chris Yandle, APR - Associate Commissioner of Strategic Communications - Louisiana Board of Regents
2025 Red Stick Award Winner
