The 39th edition of the Best of News Design Creative Competition will take place one month from now at the St. Petersburg Coliseum. As the deadlines approach, those who are considering entering have a handful of reasons to join in this year, and help for newcomers to the competition is coming this week to snd.org.
If you’re on the fence, you still have time: SND will accept all entries that reach us in St. Petersburg by the Feb, 8, 2018, international deadline. This includes U.S. publications and Category 20 entries. (Please note that the digital portion of all Category 20 entries must be input by Feb. 8. Late entries cannot be accepted in this category. The call for entries, rules and shipping information may be found here.
Help for newcomers is coming this week: We realize this has been a year of turnover in the industry, and part of our job on the competition committee is to make entering a clear, stress-free (well, except for the editing part!) and straightforward process. As such, we will feature back-to-back articles here at snd.org this week with advice for individuals entering their own work for the first time and for art directors and managers entering for their publication or studios for the first time. These will post right here on Thursday and Friday.
Why enter? The reasons are plentiful:
• Showcasing your best work in a tightening industry. The nature of our business the past three years has brought about fewer jobs, of course, but it has also meant more competition for the jobs that are out there. Hiring managers at the world’s top publications still use the SND competition as a barometer for scouting and networking with talented designers.
• Emphasizing your dedication to visual journalism. Whether you’re in a studio, a startup, or a publication with a history of strong presentation, photos and graphics, your importance to readers has never been greater. Getting your best work in front of your peers, and having the best of THAT work recognized forever, makes a statement of intent to contribute to journalism in whatever form is necessary that can be understood by everyone from readers to prospective job candidates to management and corporate boards.
• It’s the best value in the industry: SND’s single-page entry rate is either $15 or $20, and multi-page rates are either $30 or $35, both of which are still the lowest rates of any major international visual journalism competition. For that price, your work will get in front of a panel of the best editors, art directors, photographers and designers in the world, judged independently of every other entry in the competition, and held to a uniform standard of excellence.
You have time. Help is on the way. The competition will pay off for you and your publication just as it will for the society. Best of luck!
Josh Crutchmer, on behalf of SND’s print competition committee