Day in and day out, our job is the same: to get to the finish line, on time and within budget. We could make it easier on ourselves. Play it safe. Stop at enough. But if we operated that way, what would we stand for?

The ADDY Awards is the advertising industry’s largest and most representative competition, attracting over 40,000 entries every year in local AAF Club (Ad Club) competitions. The mission of the ADDY Awards competition is to recognize and reward the creative spirit of excellence in the art of advertising.

Conducted annually by the American Advertising Federation (AAF), the local Ad Club phase is the first of a three-tier, national competition. Concurrently, all across the country, local entrants vie to win ADDY Awards – recognition as the very best in their markets. At the second tier, local ADDY winners compete against winners from other local clubs in one of 15 district competitions. District ADDY winners are then forwarded to the third tier, the national stage of the ADDY Awards. Entry in your local Ad Club competition is the first step toward winning a national ADDY.

Entering the ADDY Awards supports the entire advertising industry, because the AAF and its local and district affiliates use the proceeds to enhance advertising through programs such as public service, internships, advocacy groups, advertising education, and consumer awareness.

Selection of the most creative entry in each category is affected by a scoring process in which a panel of judges evaluates all creative dimensions of every entry. A GOLD ADDY is recognition of the highest level of creative excellence and is judged to be superior to all other entries in the category. Entries that are also considered outstanding and worthy of recognition receive a SILVER ADDY. The number of awards given in each category is determined by the judges, based on the relative quality of work in that category.

Copyright infringement and/or plagiarism (be it intentional or unintentional) will result in the disqualification and, if applicable, removal of awards from any entry deemed in violation. All entry fees will be forfeited.

Questions:
If you have questions on how to prepare your entry, please email info@phxadclub.com for assistance.

How to Enter
Please review all the information for this year’s competition hosted on this page. Once ready – to submit your entries you will need to click the “ENTER HERE” button above. Review category list to find where your work should compete, and follow the simple drop down menus to enter your information. Make sure you credit the members of your creative team, so that they will be recognized properly in press releases and other AAF winner publications. Submission of entries acknowledges the right of the AAF to use them for publication, exhibition and marketing of the ADDY Awards show.

Pick up an entry sleeve at any of these three locations:

Anderson Agency – 5800 E. Thomas Rd, Suite 100, Phoenix, AZ 85257

Big Yam – 7077 E. Marilyn Rd, Bldg 5, Scottsdale, AZ 85254

LaneTerralever – 725 W. McDowell Rd, Phoenix, AZ 85007

NOTE: You will need to register to use the competition software.

Please note entry categories have been revised to include several new opportunities to submit your creative work this year. Be sure to read the revised rules and categories documents for complete details. Some of the new categories include:

• Specialty Advertising Campaign
• Single and Multiple Events
• Branded Content & Entertainment – In any Print Medium
• Tools & Utilities for Apps
• Website Takeovers
• Blogs
• Music Videos
• Non-Broadcast Branded Content & Entertainment
• Integrated Brand Identity Campaign
• Integrated Brand Content Campaign • Public Service Online Film, Video & Sound
• In Elements of Advertising
o Still Photography Art Direction
o Video Editing
o Voiceover Talent
o Augmented Reality
o Mobile Interaction
o User Experience
o Data Driven Media
o Innovative Use of Interface/Technology

Submission Deadline
This year’s deadline has been extended to allow for submissions that may have not run until after the deadline in past years. The new deadline is also intended to prevent any hardship in preparing the submissions during the busy holiday season.

Every entry must first be submitted online. ALL entries must be submitted both online and in person by Friday, January 22, 2016 (regardless of the type of piece or campaign – digital or print). See “Entry Submission” for further explanation of preparation steps. After preparing your entries in the manner outlined in this guide, deliver your entries, before the deadline, to the location indicated.

Eligibility
All work entered in the ADDY competition must have first appeared in the media between January 1 and December 31, 2015. With the exceptions of Public Service Advertising, Advertising for the Arts, and Advertising Industry Self Promotion categories, work entered must have been the result of paid creative services and media placement in the normal course of business (excluding student entries). Entries must be submitted in the CBSA, DMA or MSA where the work was created (as defined by Arbitron or Nielsen for your local market). In the event that there are entrants located in markets not served by a local ADDY affiliated show, the acceptance, processing, judging, forwarding and fees of those entries will be decided by the governing body of the district in which the entrant is located. Additional geographic considerations are covered on page 10. For Student eligibility requirements refer to the Student American Advertising Awards Rules & Categories available at www.AmericanAdvertisingAwards.com.

Entry Fees
Active individual and corporate members of Ad 2 Phoenix and Phoenix Ad Club are eligible for special members-only entry fee pricing. If your membership is not active we recommend signing up or renewing prior to submitting your entry(s) to take advantage of this discounted pricing. To review the full list of benefits and membership options please visit Ad 2 Phoenix or Phoenix AdClub Here are the fees:

All Entries Must:
• Meet all eligibility and deadline requirements.
• Be entered in the correct category and be correctly identified.
• Include a completed and signed invoice/manifest form.
• Conform to defined submission requirements.
• Conform to all copyright laws.

Invoice/Manifest Form
After filling out the entry forms, you will be required to sign an Invoice/Manifest Form, listing all of your entries. This form states that by signing below you:
1. Verify that the above information is accurate.
2. Acknowledge that proper rights were obtained for use of any elements of the entry that were not original.
3. Agree to submit documentation deemed necessary for review.
4. Release the entry for Internet, broadcast and/or print (allow reuse of material).
5. Verify that the entry was created within the local MSA of the competition.

Category List
Note to entrants: All entries must be submitted in the form in which they ORIGINALLY appeared.
Any physical and/or printed entries, such as newspaper or magazine ads, photographs, collateral, product packaging, sales kits, newsletters, posters, menus, book and magazine designs, specialty advertising, etc. MUST be submitted for judging in their physical form (tear-sheets are not required) – in addition to being digitally uploaded in the online entry system. Large format physical pieces such as outdoor advertising etc should be submitted as physical photographs. Digital files ONLY are not acceptable.

The exceptions to this rule are entries which originally appeared in digital or electronic form, such as websites, TV and radio spots, multimedia videos etc. For these entries, a physical entry form is still required for official submission.