Categories

Select the first category you wish to enter from the list below. Expand the category, Click ENTER NOW.

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General 

The Growth Finance Leader of the Year award celebrates an individual within the growth finance industry who has made a demonstrable and widespread impact on SMEs over the past 12 months. This award can be entered independently or in partnership with a finance provider.

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Growth Finance Leader of the Year

1. Personal overview: Summarise the nominee, including where they are based, who they work for and their role in the industry (100 words max)

2. Case Study: Tell the judges how the nominee has contributed to or enabled the growth of SMEs over the past 12 months. Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of their scale-up plan, use of finance, product/service creation or improvement, innovation, marketing, feedback, and business impact, demonstrating how they supported customers with an approach that demonstrates ‘more than finance’. (1200 words max)

Our highest accolade for providers of growth finance. This Growth Finance Provider of the Year award will recognise an exemplary company, one that has a clear and demonstrable focus on delivering ‘more than finance’ to its customers and can evidence impact on UK businesses.
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Growth Finance Provider of the Year

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Aims: What have been the aims of your service, product, or the specific initiative you would like to enter, over the past 12 months? (300 words)

3. Actions: Describe the specific activities you have undertaken in order to achieve your aims. (500 words)

4. Achievements: What has been the impact of your product, service or approach? Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of success where possible. (500 words)

5. More than finance: Demonstrate how you have offered ‘more than finance’ to your customers, partners or the wider business community over the last 12 months. (200 words)

The Best Fund Manager - Credit award will be presented to the Fund Manager that can demonstrate a clear impact on SMEs through their debt-based, alternative credit or direct lending funds over the past 12 months. This could be a specific case study, project or innovation that has created outstanding results. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of growth, innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and business/industry impact.
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Best Fund Manager - Credit

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Aims: What have been the aims of your service, product, or the specific initiative you would like to enter, over the past 12 months? (300 words)

3. Actions: Describe the specific activities you have undertaken in order to achieve your aims. (500 words)

4. Achievements: What has been the impact of your product, service or approach? Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of success where possible. (500 words)

5. More than finance: Demonstrate how you have offered ‘more than finance’ to your customers, partners or the wider business community over the last 12 months. (200 words)

The Best New Finance Business award is presented to a NEW growth finance provider that has launched in the past 24 months and can show a demonstrable business impact on its SME customers. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of growth, innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and business/industry impact.
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Best New Finance Business

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Case Study: Tell the judges how you have planned, implemented and delivered an outstanding experience for your customers over the past 12 months. This could be a specific case study project or a wide-reaching initiative that has created outstanding results. Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of customer growth, innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and business impact - illustrating how you have offered ‘more than finance’ to your customer(s) every step of the way. (1200 words max)

The Specialist Lender of the Year award recognises the creative use of finance to businesses in a specific sector, or in a specialist or niche way that has delivered a clear and demonstrable business impact over the past 12 months. This could be a specific case study, a project or a wide-reaching service that has created results worthy of recognition. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of customer growth, innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and impact on the business, sector or industry.
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Specialist Lender of the Year

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Aims: What have been the aims of your service, product, or the specific initiative you would like to enter, over the past 12 months? (300 words)

3. Actions: Describe the specific activities you have undertaken in order to achieve your aims. (500 words)

4. Achievements: What has been the impact of your product, service or approach? Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of success where possible. (500 words)

5. More than finance: Demonstrate how you have offered ‘more than finance’ to your customers, partners or the wider business community over the last 12 months. (200 words)

The Growth Finance Broker of the Year award will be presented to a broker that has significantly improved access to growth finance, matching up borrowers and lenders to deliver all round success. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of success, customer satisfaction and feedback.
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Growth Finance Broker of the Year

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Case Study: Tell the judges how you have planned, implemented and delivered an outstanding experience for your customers over the past 12 months. This could be a specific case study project or a wide-reaching initiative that has created outstanding results. Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of customer growth, innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and business impact - illustrating how you have offered ‘more than finance’ to your customer(s) every step of the way. (1200 words max)

"The Impact Through Finance award invites finance providers to submit a case study of one of their *SME customers who they have supported to achieve business success. *The SME must have received some or all of the funding in the past 12 months. *The finance provider submitting the entry must be able to demonstrate how the proceeds have directly supported growth. When assessing the SME’s success, judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of growth, customer satisfaction and business/industry impact."
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Impact through Finance

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Case Study: Tell the judges how you have planned, implemented and delivered an outstanding business growth over the past 12 months. Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of your scale-up plan, use of finance, product/service creation or improvement, innovation, marketing, feedback and business impact, demonstrating how you were supported by receiving 'more than finance' along the way (1200 words max)

The Deal of the Year award recognises an outstanding finance transaction, one that provided business critical finance that deserves a place in a hall of fame. The deal might be a significant use of a new type of finance, or financing a business to reach new heights, access finance for the first time or solve real world challenges of people or planet. Judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of what makes the deal unique, valuable or noteworthy.
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Deal of the Year

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Case Study: Tell the judges how you have delivered an outstanding deal in the past 12 months, making it the best deal of the year in the industry. Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of the unique or noteworthy aspects of how the deal works and what it delivers to your company and the relevant SME, feedback from the SME and overall impact. (1200 words max)

Business Banking 

The Best Business Banking Innovation award will be presented to the bank that has delivered a clear and demonstrable business impact for customers over the past 12 months through an innovative product or service. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and impact on a specific business, type of business and/or the business community.
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Best Business Banking Innovation

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and services you offer customers. (100 words),

2. Aims: What have been the aims of your service, product, or the specific initiative you would like to enter, over the past 12 months? (300 words)

3. Actions: Describe the specific activities you have undertaken in order to achieve your aims. (500 words)

4. Achievements: What has been the impact of your product, service or initiative? Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of success where possible. (500 words)

5. More than finance: Demonstrate how you have offered ‘more than finance’ to your customers, partners, employees, or the wider business community over the last 12 months. (200 words)

The Best Bank for SMEs award will be presented to the bank providing an SME offering that has delivered tailored solutions that demonstrate a clear understanding of the banking issues faced by innovative growth businesses and a genuine desire to address them. Examples evidencing this might be initiatives to reduce bureacracy, guidance on better business banking processes, or increased digitisation of SME related services. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of an overall commitment to ease of onboarding and transactions, innovation, customer experience, customer satisfaction, feedback, and on a specific business, type of business and/or the business community.
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Best Bank for SMEs

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Case Study: Tell the judges how you have delivered an outstanding SME service over the past 12 months, making you the best bank for SMEs in the industry. Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of your focus on tailoring products to SME needs, digitization of SME solutions, reducing friction points for SMEs, personalising service provision to business life stages, providing access to competitively priced finance, feedback and overall impact. (1200 words max)

The Best Bank for Start Ups award will be presented to the bank providing a defined offering for Start Ups, and can demonstrate a clear understanding of the banking issues faced by new businesses. Examples evidencing this might be initiatives to reduce application time, cost and onboarding support packages. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of an overall commitment to ease of onboarding and cost savings, innovation, customer experience, feedback and customer ratings from the start-up business community.

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Best Bank for Start Ups

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Case Study: Tell the judges how you have delivered an outstanding Start Ups service over the past 12 months, making you the best bank for Start Ups in the industry. Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of your focus on the ease of onboarding and cost savings, innovative online tools such as expense tracking and invoice management, fast routes to enabling a range of client payment methods, credit and credit care solutions, customer experience and overall impact. (1200 words max)

Specialist 

Open to entrants in all award categories that have placed a particular focus on sustainable finance in their service or offering. The judges will assess certifications, transparency and disclosure, independent ratings, best practice, the sustainability of outcomes, delivery of sustainable finance commitments and embedding sustainability goals into company culture.
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Sustainable Finance Provider of the Year

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, the core services you offer customers and how you take account of sustainability. (150 words)

2. Aims: What have been the aims of your service, or the specific initiative you would like to enter? (300 words)

3. Actions: Describe the specific activities you have undertaken over the last 12 months in order to achieve your aims? (500 words)

4. Achievements: What has been the impact of your product, service or initiative? Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of success where possible. Please refer to the category criteria in your answer (500 words)

5. Demonstrate how you have offered this to your customers, partners, or the wider business community since in the last 12 months. (200 words).

The Direct Lending Platform of the Year award will be presented to the platform providing a growth finance product or service that has delivered a clear and demonstrable business impact over the past 12 months. This could be a specific case study, a project or a wide-reaching service offering that has created results worthy of recognition. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of customer growth, innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and impact on the business and/or industry.
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Direct Lending Platform of the Year

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Aims: What have been the aims of your service, product, or the specific initiative you would like to enter, over the past 12 months? (300 words)

3. Actions: Describe the specific activities you have undertaken in order to achieve your aims. (500 words)

4. Achievements: What has been the impact of your product, service or approach? Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of success where possible. (500 words)

5. More than finance: Demonstrate how you have offered ‘more than finance’ to your customers, partners or the wider business community over the last 12 months. (200 words)

The Best Trade Finance Product award will be presented to the lender offering a product or service that has enabled SMEs to sell their goods or services abroad. It’s open to lenders of all shapes and sizes that are committed to helping SMEs reach new markets, and considers the full range of export finance support – including letters of credit, pre-export funding, insurance, and more. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of overseas growth, new market opportunities, customer satisfaction, feedback, and business/industry impact.
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Best Trade Finance Product

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and services you offer customers. (100 words)

2. Aims: What are the aims and objectives of your product? (300 words)

3. Actions: Describe the specific activities you have undertaken in order to achieve your aims. (500 words)

4. Achievements: What has been the impact of your product over the last 12 months? Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of success where possible. (500 words)

5. More than finance: Demonstrate how you have delivered ‘more than finance’ to your customers, partners, employees, or the wider business community over the last 12 months through your innovation. (200 words)

The Best Invoice Finance Provider award will be presented to an invoice finance provider that has delivered a clear and demonstrable business impact over the past 12 months. This could be a specific case study, project or a wide-reaching service or innovation that has created outstanding results. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of customer growth, innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and impact on the business and/or industry.
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Best Invoice Finance Provider

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Aims: What have been the aims of your service, product, or the specific initiative you would like to enter, over the past 12 months? (300 words)

3. Actions: Describe the specific activities you have undertaken in order to achieve your aims. (500 words)

4. Achievements: What has been the impact of your product, service or approach? Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of success where possible. (500 words)

5. More than finance: Demonstrate how you have offered ‘more than finance’ to your customers, partners or the wider business community over the last 12 months. (200 words)

The Best Leasing or Hire Purchase Product award celebrates a finance provider allowing SMEs to access valuable equipment that would otherwise be too costly to use, thus helping them to grow. It’s open to any company providing leasing or hire purchase agreements to SMEs, regardless of the equipment type. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of growth, customer satisfaction, feedback, and business/industry impact.
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Best Leasing or Hire Purchase Product

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Case Study: Tell the judges how you have planned, implemented and delivered an outstanding experience for your customers over the past 12 months. This could be a specific case study project or a wide-reaching initiative that has created outstanding results. Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of customer growth, innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and business impact - illustrating how you have offered ‘more than finance’ to your customer(s) every step of the way. (1200 words max)

The Asset-based Lender of the Year award will go to an outstanding growth finance provider using the assets of its SME customers as security for lending. Recognised by the British Business Bank as one of the fastest-growing sources of capital for SMEs in the UK, asset-based lending is celebrated for the first time at this year’s awards. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of success, customer satisfaction, feedback, and business/industry impact.
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Asset-based Lender of the Year

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Case Study: Tell the judges how you have planned, implemented and delivered an outstanding experience for your customers over the past 12 months. This could be a specific case study project or a wide-reaching initiative that has created outstanding results. Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of customer growth, innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and business impact - illustrating how you have offered ‘more than finance’ to your customer(s) every step of the way. (1200 words max)

The Venture Debt Provider of the Year award will be presented to a provider of venture debt that has delivered a clear and demonstrable impact over the past 12 months. This could be a specific case study, a project or a wide-reaching service that has created business results worthy of recognition. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of customer growth, innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and impact on the business and/or industry.
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Venture Debt Provider of the Year

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Aims: What have been the aims of your service, product, or the specific initiative you would like to enter, over the past 12 months? (300 words)

3. Actions: Describe the specific activities you have undertaken in order to achieve your aims. (500 words)

4. Achievements: What has been the impact of your product, service or approach? Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of success where possible. (500 words)

5. More than finance: Demonstrate how you have offered ‘more than finance’ to your customers, partners or the wider business community over the last 12 months. (200 words)

The Best P2P Business Lender award will be presented to the P2P lender providing a growth finance product or service that has delivered a clear and demonstrable business impact to SMEs over the past 12 months. The platform will demonstrate a best-in-class digital platform, transparency, as well as ample resources for both borrowers and lenders. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of customer growth, innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and impact on the business or industry.
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Best P2P Business Lender

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Aims: What have been the aims of your service, product, or the specific initiative you would like to enter, over the past 12 months? (300 words)

3. Actions: Describe the specific activities you have undertaken in order to achieve your aims. (500 words)

4. Achievements: What has been the impact of your product, service or approach? Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of success where possible. (500 words)

5. More than finance: Demonstrate how you have offered ‘more than finance’ to your customers, partners or the wider business community over the last 12 months. (200 words)

The Buy Now Pay Later Provider of the Year will be presented to the provider that has delivered a clear and demonstrable business impact over the past 12 months. This could be a specific case study, a project or a wide-reaching service offering that has created results worthy of recognition. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of customer growth, innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and impact on the business and/or industry.
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Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) Provider of the Year

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Case Study: Tell the judges how you have planned, implemented and delivered an outstanding experience for your customers over the past 12 months. This could be a specific case study project or a wide-reaching initiative that has created outstanding results. Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of customer growth, innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and business impact - illustrating how you have offered ‘more than finance’ to your customer(s) every step of the way. (1200 words max)

Thematic 

The Best Customer Experience award recognises a company delivering a consistent brand experience to UK SMEs, challenging behaviours and assumptions of business lending. Measures taken into account include: service standards, net promoter score, customer surveys and feedback.
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Best Customer Experience

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Case Study: Tell the judges how you have planned, implemented and delivered an outstanding customer experience over the past 12 months. Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of service improvement, innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and business impact - illustrating how you have offered ‘more than finance’ to your customers along the way. (1200 words max)

The Best Digital Product or Service award will celebrate a finance provider whose best-in-class digital product/service has helped SMEs to succeed. The award is open to all kinds of digital products, from customer-facing tools or platforms to back-end processes driving efficiency and improving product offerings. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of impact, innovation, customer satisfaction, feedback, and business/industry impact.
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Best Digital Product or Service

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and services you offer customers. (100 words)

2. Aims: What are the aims and objectives of your product? (300 words)

3. Actions: Describe the specific activities you have undertaken in order to achieve your aims. (500 words)

4. Achievements: What has been the impact of your product over the last 12 months? Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of success where possible. (500 words)

5. More than finance: Demonstrate how you have delivered ‘more than finance’ to your customers, partners, employees, or the wider business community over the last 12 months through your innovation. (200 words)

The Innovative Product of the Year award recognises a growth finance product that has delivered a clear and demonstrable innovation during the last 12 months. This product will have created outstanding results for an SME, a sector, or the industry as a whole through innovation. The judges will be looking for clear differentiators including qualitative and quantitative evidence of innovation, impact on business/industry and customer feedback.
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Innovative Product of the Year

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Aims: What have been the aims of your product you would like to enter, over the past 12 months? (300 words)

3. Actions: Describe the specific activities you have undertaken in order to achieve your aims. (500 words)

4. Achievements: What has been the impact of your product? Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of success where possible. (500 words)

5. More than finance: Demonstrate how you have offered ‘more than finance’ to your customers, partners, employees, or the wider business community over the last 12 months through innovation. (200 words)

This Best Covid Response award recognises a finance provider that stepped up to the challenges of UK businesses as a result of Covid. This new award considers a company's ability to work with and alongside government schemes to pivot, innovate, reach and support businesses most affected by the pandemic.

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Best Covid Response

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Case Study: Tell the judges how you have adapted or innovated your service or offering over the past 12 months, to maximise its effectiveness alongside the Government's Covid response schemes. Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of the changes you have introduced to meet SME needs, such as introducing digital access, education and awareness initiatives, feedback and overall impact. (1200 words max)

The Best Place to Work award will be presented to a provider of growth finance with a clear and demonstrable focus on culture and the employee experience. The award recognises a company’s diversity and inclusion, training and development, Glassdoor ratings, employee benefits, and employee engagement.
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Best Place to Work

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Case Study: Tell the judges how you have delivered an outstanding employee experience over the past 12 months, making you the best place to work in the industry. Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of your focus on training & development, diversity & inclusion, employee benefits, employee engagement, and overall impact - illustrating how your brand supports employees to offer ‘more than finance’ along the way. (1200 words max)

The Best Marketing Campaign Award will be presented to a company that has delivered an outstanding and impactful marketing campaign to UK businesses over the past 12 months. Measures taken into account include: reach, creative execution, innovation and impact.
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Best Marketing Campaign

1. Business overview: Summarise your business, include number of employees, where you are based, the markets you operate in, and the core products and service you offer customers. (100 words max)

2. Case Study: Tell the judges how you have planned, implemented and delivered an outstanding marketing campaign over the past 12 months. Projects may be delivered across any media channels and could be designed to attract a wide range of customers, a specialist group, or to spread a wider industry message. Include qualitative and quantitative evidence of success whilst demonstrating your target audience, planning & KPIs, creativity, innovation, outreach, feedback and business impact. (1200 words max)