Yes, if both the following two conditions apply:
- Your entry must not have won an award in the previous year’s program.
- Work on the project and/or measurement must extend into the current year.
All work must have originated in Canada and be implemented, published or broadcast between Jan. 1, 2022 and the day of submission. If a long-term strategy was developed prior to Jan. 1 of the award program year, and hasn’t been entered in this competition, it is eligible for entry.
You may submit the same entry in any category where it fits the category description. For example, if you are submitting a multimedia campaign targeted at several audiences, you may enter it in Marketing Communication, Community Relations, Multi-Audience Communication and Customer-Member Relations. You may submit elements of the campaign in different categories within Communication Skills. You must pay a separate entry fee for each category you enter and provide separate supporting documents with each entry.
You may submit as many entries as you wish. If you are entering several different projects, submit a separate entry form, work plan and work sample for each entry. A separate fee applies for each entry.
The entrant should be the person who is principally responsible for the development, management and execution of the entry. If you want to recognize your team, submit the entry form and the work plan with your name and refer to the team, such as Jane Oliver and Team Canada. The name on the entry form must match the name on the work plan.
Either one can enter, if the entrant includes a letter of consent acknowledging the distinct roles in the project, and written permission to disclose corporate information as part of the entry requirements. If the material is proprietary, be sure to clearly indicate this on your entry and entry form. Entries that do not include this letter of permission will be disqualified.
To confirm if your entry has been received, log into the submission platform and look on the left column for “Complete” under the “My Applications” header. You can also verify that your entry has been received by clicking on the “Invoices” tab. Invoices are only provided once an entry has been finalized and received. For any other questions regarding your entry status, please don’t hesitate to reach out to the Silver Leaf program administrators.
Evaluators evaluate entries on a seven-point scale with zero being the lowest score and seven being the highest. An entry is considered to be competent if it scores at least four. Entries must receive 5.25-5.74 to receive a Merit award. Entries scoring at least 5.75 receive an Award of Excellence. We’ve modelled the Silver Leaf evaluation forms after the ones used for the IABC Gold Quill Awards. See Evaluation Criteria to check out the judging forms.
Winning entries must demonstrate that they met clearly stated objectives, show originality and demonstrate results based on measured outcomes. Evaluators consider how well a program was conceived and executed, how appropriate the chosen strategy and objectives were for the desired results, and how the outcomes are measured and achieved. For Communication Management, Communication Research Management and Communication Training and Education entries, 50 per cent of the score will be based on the work plan and 50 per cent on the work sample. For Communication Skills and student entries, 35 per cent of the score will be based on the work plan and 65 per cent on the work sample.
For each entry submitted, entrants receive a completed evaluation form with scores and brief comments from evaluators. All evaluation forms will be emailed to entrants by the end of October.
Award-winning entries will be notified by the end of October in the entry year. Winners will be recognized nationally by IABC Canada through our communication channels (website, social media, etc.), and at the IABC Canada West Conference (every other year).
Entries are electronic, so they will not be returned. This is also true for the Publications category for which hard copy work samples are accepted. Please do not send irreplaceable material. We are not responsible for lost or damaged entries.
For questions about specific categories and divisions, please email the Silver Leaf Awards administrators. We will help you find the category and division that best fits your submission.
Yes, they do! Entrants are allowed four pages for work plans across Divisions 1-3. For Division 4, entrants must fully complete the brief entry form. Margins must be at least 0.5 inch or 1.27 centimeters on all sides using the standard paper size (8.5”x11” or A4), and fonts may be no smaller than 10 points. Work plans exceeding the maximum length will be disqualified.
To support your work plan, you will be able to upload a maximum of five work sample files. Your work samples must be in PDF, PNG, JPG, GIF, MP4, WMV, or M4V formats. If you have more than five work samples, you should combine them into fewer PDF files. Each file is limited to 2 GB (2,000 MB) in size. Include examples that best demonstrate your work, not absolutely everything you did. Work samples larger than 100 pages will be disqualified.
Your work sample can be only submitted in PDF, PNG, JPG, GIF, MP4, WMV, or M4V formats. If you would like to have a microsite or any other online material reviewed by the evaluators you may provide a PDF document that includes the appropriate URL address and a short description of the link.
After you submit your entry and upload all the required files, you will see the checkout button on the summary page. You must pay by credit card. To receive the IABC member rate, the entrant must be an IABC member.