Many Best Of programs underperform for one simple reason: they’re marketed the same way year after year.
If participation has plateaued, advertiser engagement feels stagnant, or revenue growth has slowed, the problem may not be your program. It may be your marketing strategy. The most successful Best Of campaigns don’t rely on a single email or a few social posts. They create a coordinated marketing plan that supports every stage of the campaign, from nominations to voting to winner announcements.
Here’s a blueprint for building a Best Of marketing strategy that attracts more participants, engages more businesses, and maximizes the value of your program.
Start With Strong Branding
Your Best Of program is often one of the most visible audience engagement initiatives you run all year. That means branding matters.
For audiences, your branding creates a first impression. For advertisers, it can influence how they perceive the value of participating and advertising alongside the program. Poor design can unintentionally signal a lack of professionalism, while polished branding helps build credibility and confidence.
Build Better Header Images
Effective header graphics should:
- Clearly feature your publication or station brand
- Reference your local market or community
- Include a strong call to action
- Highlight sponsors when appropriate
- Maintain a clean, professional appearance
The best header designs balance branding, information, and visual appeal without becoming cluttered.
Use Color Strategically
Consistency matters. Incorporating your organization’s brand colors throughout the ballot experience creates a more cohesive and recognizable experience.
A clean design should also ensure that key ballot elements remain visible without excessive scrolling. When users can quickly understand where to go and what to do next, engagement tends to improve.
Pay Attention to Group Images
Ballot group graphics often receive less attention than primary branding elements, but they contribute significantly to the overall user experience.
The strongest group images:
- Stay on brand
- Match the theme of the program
- Avoid excessive text and visual clutter
- Create a polished, professional appearance
Details matter, and users notice them. And if you’re including sponsored group images, the graphics should balance advertiser visibility with audience experience.
Sponsors should be clearly featured, but the graphic should still feel like part of the Best Of program rather than a standalone advertisement. This approach benefits both the advertiser and the overall integrity of the brand.
Create a Dedicated Landing Page
A Best Of landing page serves as the central hub for nominations, voting, rules, sponsor information, and promotional messaging.
Whether built with your own CMS or created in the ballot design itself with the promotion designer, a dedicated landing page creates a more professional experience and provides a destination for all marketing efforts.
The landing page also becomes a valuable location for advertiser information, upsell opportunities, and audience education throughout the campaign.
Don’t Overlook Other Ad Areas
The idea is to make your Best Of branding intentional in all areas, even smaller ad locations like category ads and right rail ads.
The most effective ad creatives utilize your ballot branding, include clear calls to action, and maintain visual consistency throughout the campaign.
Expand Your B2B Marketing Strategy
Successful Best Of programs market to two audiences: consumers and businesses. While consumer marketing drives participation, business marketing drives revenue.
Build a Larger Advertiser Database
If your business contact list is limited, use your Best Of program to grow it. Gather local business contacts through:
- Business registration surveys
- Marketing graphics placed behind forms
- Opt-in widgets
- Opt-ins on registration forms
Offering some kind of content (like marketing tips and materials) or the opportunity to register their business or receive emails about future Best Of updates helps you create a larger and more valuable advertiser database over time.
Offer Valuable Resources
One way to increase business engagement is by providing gated resources in exchange for contact information.
Examples include:
- Social media marketing graphics
- Advertising package information
- Marketing guides and tips
- Best practices for promoting nominations and votes
These resources provide immediate value while helping expand your prospect database.
Develop a Consistent B2B Email Strategy
Many organizations place the burden of Best Of sales solely on their sales teams. A consistent email strategy can help educate and convert businesses at scale.
Effective B2B emails typically include:
- Branded header graphics
- Value proposition of your Best Of
- New features or additions
- Important dates and deadlines
- Package information
- Strong calls to action
Additional elements such as participation statistics, advertiser success metrics, early-bird offers, and downloadable resources can further improve results.
Email Throughout Every Phase
Business outreach should not stop after one announcement. Here are the recommended communication schedules for each phase:
Nomination Phase:
- 2 months before nominations
- 1 month out
- 15 days out
- 7 days out
- When nominations begin
Voting Phase:
- As soon as you confirm all entrants
- 1 week before voting starts
- 2 days out
- When voting begins
Winners’ Phase:
- As soon as you confirm winners/finalists
- 2 weeks before deadline
- 1 week before deadline
- Last day before deadline
Consistent visibility keeps the program top of mind and creates more opportunities for your sales team.
Treating B2C Marketing as a Priority
One of the most important truths of any Best Of program is simple: You will not achieve the participation you want without promotion.
Many organizations underestimate how much marketing is required to sustain nominations and voting activity throughout a campaign. The data shows participation is heavily influenced by outreach efforts, particularly email.
In one comparison, a program that stopped sending invite emails experienced a 64% decline in overall participation, illustrating the direct impact email marketing can have on engagement.
B2C Email Best Practices
Consumer-facing emails should include:
- A branded header image
- Program timeline
- Voting or nomination instructions
- Advertising highlights
- A clear call to action
For timing, email campaigns often perform best when sent during business hours on Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, rather than early mornings, late evenings, or weekends. Communications should also target opted-in audiences.
Maintain a Consistent Email Schedule
During both nomination and voting phases, multiple email sends should be planned across the entire campaign. Here are the recommended communication schedules for each phase:
Nomination Phase:
- The day nominations begin
- Once per week throughout the entire phase
- The day nominations end
Nomination Phase:
- The day voting begins
- Once per week throughout the entire phase
- The day voting end
In addition to dedicated invitation emails, you should incorporate Best Of messaging into your regular newsletters. This repeated exposure helps drive awareness and participation among subscribers.
The winner phase represents another opportunity to engage audiences.
Use winner announcements to:
- Reveal results
- Promote recognition events
- Drive attendance to celebrations
- Highlight commemorative publications or broadcasts
- Extend sponsor visibility
Too many organizations stop marketing once voting closes, leaving audience engagement opportunities untapped.
Create New Revenue With Sponsored Emails
Sponsored email inventory can become a valuable extension of Best Of advertising packages.
Sponsored Nomination and Voting Emails
These can be incorporated into premium sponsorship packages and sent to third-party advertising opt-in audiences. Send up to 2 per sponsor (inventory of 8-10 sponsors) per phase.
Sponsored Thank-You Emails
Thank-you campaigns can continue long after the program concludes, creating year-round inventory that advertisers can leverage to drive awareness, promotions, and engagement.
Build a Multi-Channel Marketing Plan
Email may be the most powerful channel, but it should not operate alone. The strongest Best Of campaigns combine email with promotion across multiple touchpoints, including:
Digital
- Run-of-site placements
- Homepage takeovers
- Promotional videos
- Pop-ups
- Rich media advertising
- Pencil pushdowns
Core
- Print advertisements
- Editorial coverage
- On-air promotion
Social Media
- Promotion across every major social channel
When channels work together, audiences encounter the campaign repeatedly, increasing awareness, participation, and advertiser value.
The Takeaways
A successful Best Of program isn’t built solely on a great ballot. It’s built on great marketing.
Strong branding creates credibility. B2B marketing fuels advertiser participation. Consistent email outreach drives nominations and votes. Multi-channel promotion amplifies reach. And thoughtful sponsor integration opens additional revenue opportunities.
If you’re hoping for dramatically different results this year, don’t simply repeat last year’s marketing plan. A deliberate, phase-by-phase strategy can increase participation, strengthen advertiser relationships, and unlock significantly more value from your Best Of program.
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Kristen is a Customer Success Manager and Content Creator. She works to create useful content with thought-leadership our partners can use to drive revenue, engagement, and audience growth with promotions.