Call for Entries Deadline: March 21, 2025

Celebrating the Best in Nonprofit Communications!

PR Daily’s Nonprofit Communications Awards honor the groundbreaking work and powerful storytelling that advance the missions of nonprofit organizations. This is your chance to spotlight the creativity, strategy and heart behind your campaigns—and gain industry-wide recognition for your impact.

Whether you’re increasing awareness for a critical cause, launching a new initiative or creatively engaging donors and supporters, your work deserves to be celebrated. From social media and digital campaigns to media relations, crisis response and advocacy efforts, this program honors all areas of nonprofit communications.

Finalists and category winners will be recognized at an exclusive live event this September in New York City, where the industry’s most innovative communicators will gather. It’s your opportunity to join the ranks of those who are driving real change through strategic and compelling communication.

Earn the recognition you deserve for your influential work. Showcase your efforts that have made a difference, inspired action and transformed your mission into measurable success.

CATEGORIES

AWARDS OF DISTINCTION

 Nonprofit Communications Campaign of the Year

This category honors outstanding PR campaigns that have elevated the mission and visibility of nonprofit organizations. Submissions should demonstrate strategic storytelling, audience engagement and media coverage that amplified the organization's impact.

 Nonprofit Communications Professional of the Year

Their passion and dedication to communicating on behalf of an organization that they felt strongly about was unmatched. We want to hear how this person was instrumental in building awareness for their cause or organization. What challenges did they face? How did they overcome them? What were the results? Share all the details that make them the best nonprofit communications professional around. Individual nominations, as well as nominations on behalf of colleagues or clients are accepted.

 Nonprofit Communications Rising Star of the Year

This category honors emerging leaders in the nonprofit sector whose innovative and impactful communication strategies show exceptional promise and potential for shaping the future of nonprofit storytelling.

 Nonprofit Communications Team of the Year

You hustle hard, overcome obstacles and champion your cause with unrelenting determination. This is your time to get recognized for the incredible work you do and the lives you’ve changed. Share an overview of your major challenges and even bigger wins over the past year.

 Corporate/Nonprofit Partnership of the Year

This category recognizes outstanding collaborations between corporations and nonprofit organizations, celebrating impactful partnerships that have led to success through innovative and purpose-driven communication initiatives.

CAMPAIGNS AND COMMUNICATION

 Advocacy or Awareness Campaign

How did you raise awareness for your organization’s or client’s cause, or a cause your organization or client advocates for? Share the channels that led to success. Tell us about the obstacles, goals, strategy and results of your campaign.

 Annual Report

Annual reports are useful tools for nonprofits. We want to see how you collected data and stories to share the success of your organization over the past year. How did you design your report to create an easy yet captivating reading experience? What insights did you think would be most valuable to your audience? Print and digital versions are equally welcome.

 Article

Your articles aren’t only great storytelling pieces, they’re an essential marketing tool. Tell us about the feature you published about your organization’s founder or the interview series you created about people whose lives were changed by your nonprofit’s work. How did your article showcase your organization’s strengths and mission? We want to see stories written for your publication, along with op-ed pieces, online articles and other examples of great storytelling. We’d love to see the comments you got from readers as well.

 Artificial Intelligence – Use of

We will celebrate work that is using technology, recognizing outstanding applications of artificial intelligence in communication strategies that enhance engagement, optimize outreach and contribute to the overall effectiveness of nonprofit initiatives.

 Blog

Keeping your blog content up to date is a huge undertaking. How have you created a steady stream of content that’s original, informative and entertaining for your audience? We want to see blogs that give an inside look at the day-to-day operations of your nonprofit, share the stories of people you serve or provide insights into the problems you’d love to abolish. Please include a link to the blog and a minimum of three posts. As always, include measurable results of its success.

 Branding or Rebranding Campaign

Did your brand need an update? Did you modernize your creative assets, redefine your organization’s mission or build a new brand from the ground up? Share how your branding campaign elevated your public profile and captured attention from your audience. Tell us about the changes that defined your rebranding effort.

 Community Impact Report

 Community-Nonprofit Partnership

Whether your nonprofit works to solve problems locally or abroad, your community can be a driving force for positive change. How did you collaborate with your community to champion an important cause or initiative? Did you host a 5K, a charity ball or a golf outing to inspire a mass audience to give back to your organization and community? We want to hear the inside story of how you partnered with a local government, civic group or school this past year. What was the goal? How did you achieve it?

 Content Marketing Strategy

This category celebrates nonprofits for their innovative and impactful content marketing efforts, recognizing outstanding strategies that effectively engage and inspire audiences, drive meaningful action and advance the organization's mission and objectives.

 Corporate-Nonprofit Partnership

Corporate resources, especially volunteer manpower, are just what a nonprofit needs to achieve regional or national prominence. How did you combine forces with your for-profit partner? We’re especially interested in seeing how both organizations benefitted from the partnership. Tell us about your partnership and how you worked together to achieve amazing results.

 Crisis Communications

How did you communicate the work of your nonprofit during a crisis this past year? What was the crisis, and how did you address this and help overcome it? We want to hear it all.

 CSR or ESG Report

We will recognize outstanding Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) reporting, recognizing comprehensive and impactful communication strategies that transparently showcase an organization's commitment to sustainability, social responsibility and ethical practices.

 CSR/ESG Initiatives

We want to hear about the work that is making the world a healthier and more sustainable place. Tell us about your CSR or ESG initiatives and programs.

 Digital Publication

Do your e-newsletter subject lines put The Skimm to shame? Did you create on online magazine to share information with internal or external audiences? Tell us how the design and content of your publication inspires readers to share it. We want to see lively writing that provides practical benefits to readers. Tell us all about your print, electronic, weekly, monthly or quarterly publication. Show us what makes it a hit. Share your reader feedback with us.

 Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Communications

Your nonprofit or client promoted diversity, equity and inclusion. What was the communications plan for delivering upon this commitment? What were the goals? How did you use your communications platform to combat discrimination against the marginalized group(s) you were supporting?

 Donor Relations Strategy

We will honor nonprofits with exemplary approaches to cultivating and stewarding donor relationships, showcasing innovative and effective communication strategies that foster engagement, trust and lasting support.

 Email Marketing Campaign

Share the email strategy that resulted in great success for your organization. Why was email the right strategy for sharing news, promoting events, seeking donations or finding volunteers? Did you segment audiences based on their past donations or event attendance? What messaging did you employ to meet your goal? Share powerfully crafted subject lines, open rates and other metrics for success.

 Email Newsletter(s)

Do you excel in the art of email communication? We are looking for outstanding newsletters that effectively engage audiences, deliver compelling content and demonstrate innovation in using this essential channel to advance the organization's mission and goals.

 Employee Communications

Tell us about your internal comms campaigns and initiatives at your nonprofit that engage your workforce, promote collaboration and innovation, foster an amazing work culture and more.

 Event PR and Marketing

Your event—live or virtual—was created to raise awareness about a cause, raise funds, honor those affected by an issue or recognize your donor base. How did you drum up excitement about this event? Tell us what PR and marketing tactics you used to encourage RSVPs and make invitations a hot commodity. What was the attendance, fundraising or engagement goal for your event? How did you measure its success?

 Executive Visibility Campaign

Your executives are the chief champions of your organization’s mission. Tell us about the PR campaigns you developed to share the story of their connection to your nonprofit and goals for the future. We want to see the media relations efforts, speaking engagements, partnerships and other executive visibility efforts that were a success for your organization this year. How did this affect organizational goals like securing donations, building brand awareness or recruiting volunteers?

 First-Time Donor Acquisition Strategy

 Fundraising Campaign

Your nonprofit depends on funds to make a difference. How did you find creative solutions to your lack of funding? How did you appeal to the generosity of your audience? Tell us about your fundraising campaign and its goals. We want to see how you met or exceeded your objectives.

 Global Communications Campaign

We will celebrate nonprofits that have demonstrated excellence in crafting impactful communication strategies on a global scale, showcasing innovative approaches that transcend borders and effectively address international audiences to drive positive change.

 Grassroots Campaign

 Influencer Communications

Did working with influencers have a positive effect on your organization’s goals? How did you partner with someone who was passionate about your mission to get the word out? Tell us about sponsored posts, social media takeovers, volunteer initiatives or events that heavily featured influencers. Why did you team up with them and how did it help?

 Innovation in Nonprofit Communications

Creativity is key to successful campaigns and initiatives. We’re looking for comms work that pushed the envelope and challenged the status quo.

 Internal Publication

This category celebrates outstanding publications that inform, inspire and engage employees, fostering a sense of unity, pride and alignment with the organization's mission and values.

 Marketing Campaign

You took advantage of a variety of marketing tools to promote your nonprofit. Did you use print, digital, broadcast or outdoor advertising campaigns, email promotions, online and social media marketing or other tactics? Tell us about your marketing campaign’s success.

 Media Relations Campaign

You harnessed the power of the media to share information about your cause or nonprofit. Did you think locally and work with reporters in your area to gain local newspaper and television coverage? Did your story make national news? Did you put together a press event or gain social coverage from local influencers? Tell us how you created a shareable brand story. Don’t forget to include links to or PDFs of the media coverage.

 Member Communications

This category recognizes nonprofits that excel in engaging and communicating with their members, showcasing outstanding strategies that foster meaningful connections, enhance member satisfaction and effectively convey the organization's mission and values.

 Multi-channel Campaign

This category applauds excellence in integrated communication strategies, recognizing outstanding campaigns that leverage multiple channels seamlessly to amplify their message, engage diverse audiences and achieve impactful results.

 Podcast

We will honor outstanding audio storytelling and communication strategies that effectively engage audiences, share compelling narratives and amplify the organization's mission and impact.

 PR Campaign

 PR or Marketing on a Shoestring Budget

A little budget went a long way for your PR or marketing efforts on behalf of your nonprofit. Tell us how your single campaign or ongoing PR or marketing efforts were successful when funds were limited.

 Print Publication

What materials do you publish that inform your members, stakeholders, community members or the broader public? Tell us about your magazine, pamphlet, mailer or other creative asset. Share your publication with us, along with the feedback you received, and tell us what made it successful.

 Public Affairs Campaign

We are looking for impactful communication strategies in the realm of public affairs, celebrating outstanding campaigns that effectively navigate and influence public opinion, policy and societal issues to drive meaningful change.

 Re-engagement Strategy

We are searching for nonprofits that have excelled in reviving and reconnecting with their audience, showcasing innovative communication strategies that successfully re-engage stakeholders, reignite interest and strengthen connections for sustained impact.

 Social Media Campaign

Social media is a great way to get in touch with your audience. What was the goal of your campaign? Which platforms were most successful for you? Did you take a multichannel approach? Share the social content you created and the metrics that prove its success.

 Video

Mastering the skill of creating powerful videos can generate significant results for your organization. We want to see how you used this popular communication medium to reach your audience. Was your video an emotional TV advertisement, a sharable clip for YouTube, a prepared media reel or a testimonial? Did you go viral? Send us your video. Tell us all about it and how it succeeded.

 Visual Storytelling

Did you upgrade your visual communications efforts? Share how video, original photography or updated design played into your overall marketing strategy. How did you use these creative assets to tell a story across multiple platforms, and what was the impact on your audience? Show us the creative work that was produced, and be sure to include results and responses.

 Volunteer Communications

This category celebrates outstanding initiatives that effectively convey appreciation, provide clear communication channels and foster a sense of purpose and community among volunteers.

 Volunteer Recruitment & Retention Strategy

 Website

Your website isn’t just a hub for information and donations, it’s a beautifully designed digital experience for all who visit. We’re seeking industry leaders whose impressively designed, navigable and functional websites tell the story of their mission clearly and creatively. The content and organization of your sites are important as well. We want to see it all. Microsites, custom and mobile websites are also eligible.

 Youth Engagement Campaign

HOW TO ENTER

Awards Criteria

On the entry form, be sure to include a thorough synopsis explaining the purpose and scope of your project. We ask that the synopsis be 350-900 words and include the following sub-headings (when applicable):

  • Goals
  • Strategy and tactics
  • Execution
  • Evaluation: success, results or ROI

Be sure to follow the guidelines laid out in the category descriptions, as the judges will look for those elements when they select the winners.

You will be able to upload additional documents to your submission. We encourage you to include press releases, design concepts, videos, analytics, testimonials and anything else you feel will give us a better sense of your project. Proprietary or internal information can also be attached and will not be shared with the public.

ENTER

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

The award program is open to in-house teams, agencies and individual practitioners in the private, corporate, nonprofit and government sectors. Vendors may also submit their work or their client’s work. Enter your work, the work of your organization or submit entries on behalf of your clients.

Companies from around the world are welcome to enter as long as the entry is submitted in English.

Contact Brendan Gannon to find the perfect category for your campaign or project. You can email him at brendang@ragan.com or call 312-960-4407.

This year’s program is open to any work executed between March 1, 2024, and March 21, 2025, inclusive.

ENTRY FEES

The fee for this program is $450 per entry into standard categories, and $500 per entry into Grand Prize categories.

A late fee of $250 per entry will be added to all entries received after 11:59 p.m. Central time, March 21, 2025.

Do you have a campaign, project, individual or team you'd like to enter into multiple categories? Pay the original entry fee, and then only $250 for each additional category!

All entries are non-returnable and non-refundable.

W-9 Form / Tax ID Number Request

Frequently Asked Questions

Why should you apply?
  • Elevate Your Organization's Mission: Winning shines a spotlight on your communications success, amplifying your message and helping you reach new supporters.
  • Strengthen Credibility and Stakeholder Trust: Earning this award validates your strategic communications efforts, reinforcing confidence among donors, partners and advocates.
  • Showcase Your Impactful Work: Gain recognition for your efforts in driving awareness, advocacy and fundraising for important nonprofit causes.
WHO CAN ENTER THESE AWARDS?
Entries may be submitted by organizations and agencies worldwide. Entries must be submitted in English. The program is open to in-house, agency, independent communication practitioners and vendors in the private, corporate, nonprofit and government sectors.
CAN I ENTER TWO OR MORE CATEGORIES?
YES! In fact, we encourage you to submit your applications in multiple categories. Each category is judged discreetly, and discounted pricing applies to your 2nd category and beyond. This also increases your chances of winning.
WHAT DO THE JUDGES LOOK FOR IN ENTRIES?
Judges look for top-quality work that shows clear, bold and creative ideas that benefit your business or client. Please provide metrics or results that support your claims, and share creative collateral such as videos, visual design or websites that were a part of your project. Please look at our past award winners to see what gets recognized and rewarded.
WHY ARE SOME DEADLINES EXTENDED?
We extend deadlines based on applicant needs and upcoming promotional opportunities.
WHEN WILL I FIND OUT RESULTS?
Finalists will be recognized - and category winners will be announced - at a live event in September in New York City. All entrants will be notified of finalists 3 months prior to the event.

Additional Questions

If you have any questions about the program or problems submitting your entry, please call Brendan Gannon at 312-960-4407 or email brendang@ragan.com.

Sponsorship Opportunities

If you are interested in sponsoring one of Ragan Communications’ award programs, please contact Morgan Einspanier at morgane@ragan.com. 

Ragan Communications is not responsible for international shipping fees related to trophies or certificates.