Fundraising Publications Packages

General Observations

There were a number of entries in this category and the cream quickly surfaced. The winning entries were particularly strong in their articulation of their respective cultures and of their unique communications challenges.

The judges paid great attention to the entry abstracts. Some institutions failed to submit abstracts and were immediately disqualified. Others clearly paid less attention to their abstracts than they paid to their very expensive publications packages, and that weakened them in the judges' eyes. There was a wide variance among the entries in their statement of their objectives and their measurable results; the winning entries paid close attention to these points. One of the winners provided strong, clear, quantifiable results, and showed that they achieved them at minimal cost, all of which propelled an otherwise ordinary package to an award position. In the judges' view, this was significant and should encourage schools with limited resources.

While the judges had high praise for the winners, none was considered worthy of a Grand Gold. "Nothing made me weep," one judge said, which seemed to summarize the feelings of all.

The judges also had a couple additional observations of a very general nature. First, a number of entries contained DVDs or CDs and the judges wondered if people really watched or listened to them. The suspicion is that they do not, and the judges encouraged some research about this. Second, several entries were submitted in large notebooks or binders, which made the judges' job more difficult. The judges recommend that entries be sent in one large envelope with the entry forms and abstract attached to the outside.

Comments on Winning Entries

Gold Medals

St. John’s College (MD)

• The St. John's College package showed a perfect understanding of the audience and was a spot-on match for that audience. The emphasis on words and tasteful visuals was unique and provocative and the packaging delivered a ‘keepsake' quality. The materials were surely appreciated by the audience.

Stanford University

• The Stanford campaign package was a clear gold medal winner. They did an excellent job of linking their theme - ‘The Stanford Challenge' - with the impact Stanford graduates and faculty have on the world. The package was beautifully designed and written and communicated a campaign of monumental size as both reasonable and achievable. But the judges were most impressed by the '50 white papers' that were part of the Stanford entry. They reinforced the scope and depth of the campaign and of Stanford in a very compelling way.

Silver Medal

Bronze Medals

Bowdoin College

• The judges were very impressed by Bowdoin's campaign materials and called them ‘stunning', ‘memorable', and ‘exceptional'. They felt they contained the best photos of all the entries, and they loved the large type and the campaign slogan. But they felt that the abstract was poorly done and was incomplete on many levels, including analysis of results. With a stronger abstract, Bowdoin would have received a gold award. 

Loma Linda University

• The uniqueness and success of Loma Linda's package was what sold the judges. While it did not have the best design, it was phenomenally successful, very personal, and very inexpensive. The abstract did a superb job of articulating return on investment.

National Cathedral School

• The same was true of the National Cathedral School’s annual fund materials. They used a compelling theme (the ‘numbers’) and a modest budget to deliver great results.