5 Awards Ceremony Secrets

Sherri Lindenberg, senior vice president, Crump Life Insurance Services, says she and her marketing and events team have struggled over the years to present an awards ceremony with the right timing and mix of honorees. In 2015, they hit the sweet spot during the annual sales meeting at the Westin Charlotte. Here’s how the events team put it all together, recognizing Sales Aces (the company’s highest achievers; two percent of the sales force; 11 recipients), the Circle of Excellence (the top 10 percent; 44 people), the President’s Club (the top 20 percent; 40 people), and keeping things moving:

1. The Power of Perception

Crump first handed out awards on stage at its annual sales meeting in 2006. To boost the prestige, they had the company president present them to each recipient. Lindenberg and her team ultimately realized that having one presenter, no matter how prestigious, can make an awards presentation feel drawn out. (Think of how many presenters you see on the Oscars stage!)

So this year they proposed a change: Leaders of the company’s five business units would present the awards to earners in their units. “In reality, this probably made the ceremony a little longer,” Lindenberg says, “but the perception was that it was shorter.”

There were challenges: More presenters meant more rehearsals, more prep, and more timing to be worked out with the production company. But the benefits of a more engaging program—and a significant burden lifted from the president—were acknowledged by senior leaders to have been worth the work.

2. Tell a Shorter Story

In addition, because the business unit leaders likely knew their award recipients personally, their delivery of personal anecdotes about each one (collected and written by Lindenberg’s team) felt more natural.

Even at only a few sentences each, these stories—an obstacle the person overcame, a big case they succeeded in winning, the fact that they just had triplets or ran a marathon—are a lot of work to collect and shape into on-stage nuggets. But they’re important. “It’s something to humanize them,” Lindenberg says. It makes them relatable, so those in the audience feel they know them, and can imagine themselves in their award-earning shoes.

Of course, there can also be too much information. “We always tried to have something more than name. But sometimes we went too far, and delved too deeply for too many people.” The year of the ceremony’s peak length, award winners in all three categories were introduced with a story and came up to the stage. “It was painful. It was too long.”

3. But Don’t Cut Too Much

The following year, the pendulum swung too far in the other direction, with Crump inviting only the cream of the crop—fewer than a dozen people—up onto the stage.  “The program went more quickly, but it was not motivational enough,” Lindenberg says. “Not enough people from the company were up there,” leaving the audience feeling the goal was unreachable.

This year’s happy medium: Stories were shared about the Sales Aces and the Circle of Excellence, all of whom walked up to the stage. The President’s Club names were announced from the stage, and those winners stood and were cheered but did not walk up to collect individual awards.

4. The Power of Production

After years of her own team calling the awards show in partnership with hotels’ in-house audiovisual staff, Lindenberg hired executive producer Joe Schmelz and his full-service production company, Wolfgang Films, to create the evening’s look, feel, and flow. “We’ve had many great hotel AV people to work with in the past, but it is nothing like having a whole team there with you,” she says. “I handed over my script and they ran with it. We relied completely on his team to coordinate the music, the lights, the entertainment, and to call the whole show.”

The result was better timing, spotlights on stage, and easily flowing musical accompaniment. A small band was set up to play music that kept up the energy as winners made their way from seats to stage. The jazzy numbers were in keeping with the Cotton Club theme, and the band expanded and played dance music after the ceremony was over.

5. Grip and Grin Off Stage

In previous years, each award winner would pose for a photo and handshake with the president and then a second photo with senior executives. “That’s another awkward pain spot for the audience,” Lindenberg says, “and we always hired a local photographer, some of whom were better than others at being efficient.”

This year, there was still the on-stage snap with the presenting executive, but then each winner moved off to the side of the stage in front of a “step and repeat” banner with Crump logos in order to do the photo with the group of senior executives. “This way the audience didn’t have to watch, and it also allowed the winner and the execs to chat briefly, while the person presenting could immediately move on to the next person.”

When the awards ceremony was over, Lindenberg also used that offstage area for an exclusive champagne toast for the 11 Sales Aces.

The Executive Producer's Notebook

“Everyone has been to a million meetings,” says Joe Schmelz, owner of Wolfgang Films in Minneapolis, who produced Crump’s event in 2015. “It’s always good advice to do something a little different. And it can be done in a big or small way, with a big or small budget. A lot can be done with just lighting and sound.” Here are his top tips for great awards ceremonies:

1. Hire an Emcee

“If you have to go with execs as presenters, the big thing is to rehearse them well. But anytime you can get a pro to host, you take out a lot of uncertainty.” Your CEO can still announce names, shake hands, and be in the photos.

2. Bring Your Night to Life

The power of music, lights, and graphics to add engagement, focus, and energy can’t be overstated. For Crump’s Cotton Club setting, says Schmelz, “the room became a character in the play. We gave it a 1930s feel with graphics, and we added haze, as if the attendees were in a smoky club.” Even the “voice of God” narration was in a 1930s vocal style and had a unique script. (“Sorry you got kicked out of the speakeasy…” he intoned to welcome them.)

3. Plan Some Surprises

Especially in awards shows, little surprises are great for keeping people engaged. For example, break up the recitation of names with a video montage or an entertainer as a refreshing way to lead into the next category. Another example: Schmelz once produced an awards show for an extremely traditional insurance company, using red velvet décor and having a mild quartet play entrance music. Unbeknownst to the guests, it was actually a rock quartet, and there was a rock band waiting in the pit. As nearly all the attendees had filed into the room, the quartet and the band broke into Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir.”

4. Share Your Thoughts

“I love when I have a creative planner come up with ideas,” Schmelz says, “and then they let me make that come to life.”