The Azbee Awards Celebrate the Best in B2B Media

The American Society of Business Publication Editors (ASBPE) accepts entries for its annual Azbee Awards of Excellence from Nov. 1 through mid-Jan. each year. The Azbee Awards are highly competitive and celebrate the highest quality reporting, editing and design in business-to-business, trade, association and professional publications. The awards honor all types of publications including magazines, newspapers, e-newsletters, websites, and social media. Take a look at the 2024 winners gallery for inspiration.

About the Azbee Awards

ASBPE’s Azbee Awards of Excellence program is one of the most competitive there is for business-to-business, trade, association, and professional publications. The awards recognize outstanding work by magazines and digital media — websites, e-newsletters, digital magazines, social media and blogs.

The competition is open to all U.S.-based publications. ASBPE membership is not required for entry, but members receive a discount on entry fees.

The top entries nationwide receive national awards across 64 categories, from our All Content, Design, Online, Print and Overall Excellence divisions.

Entries also compete against others in their own regions for regional awards. The regions for the Azbees are as follows:

For more information about judging the Azbee Awards, please visit out About Judging page.

Previous Azbee Awards of Excellence winners coverage

Read about previous Azbee Awards of Excellence winners and other previous honorees.

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Overall Excellence Categories

The Society’s top awards each year go to the business publications that demonstrate consistent excellence and provide extraordinary reader service in pursuit of their mission. The Overall Excellence division recognizes the core editorial products that business publications typically offer their audiences, from print magazines and websites to email newsletters and social media.

Magazine of the Year

Magazine of the Year is awarded to publications that demonstrate consistent editorial and design quality and provide extraordinary reader service in each of our two publication frequency groups: 12 or More Issues per Year and 11 or Fewer Issues per Year. Judging is based on:  1) quality of writing, reporting and editing; 2) value and usefulness to the reader; 3) editorial organization; 4) interaction with readers; and 5) layout and design, in regard to the flow and style of individual issues, as well as across three consecutive issues.

Previous Magazine of the Year Winners

Digital Magazine of the Year

Introduced for the 2022 Azbee Awards, Digital Magazine of the Year honors the best of flipbook-style digital publications. Submitting magazines must demonstrate consistent editorial and design quality, as well as extraordinary reader service from the digital platform. Judging is based on:  1) quality of writing, reporting and editing; 2) value and usefulness to the reader; 3) editorial organization; and 4) layout and design, in regard to the flow and style of individual issues, as well as across three consecutive issues.

Previous Digital Magazine of the Year Winners

Website of the Year

Entries for the Website of the Year category are judged based on quality of writing, reporting, and editing; value and usefulness to the reader; layout and design, especially consistency in style throughout the website; use of web technologies; and interactivity.

Previous Website of the Year Winners

Project of the Year

The Project of the Year category (formerly Multi-Platform Package of the Year) recognizes the best overall topical package of content by a B2B publication across platforms and mediums. Entrants submit a cohesively-themed package of a least three pieces of content from three different platforms. Judges examine how the submissions use the best qualities of each platform to deliver a cohesive package for its audience.

Previous Project of the Year/Multi-Platform Package of the Year Winners

Social Media Account of the Year

The Social Media Account of the Year category recognizes well-thought-out and executed social media efforts within a single social media account from either a publication’s social media team or an individual journalist. The category was introduced in 2021 and allows entrants to document and celebrate their most effective social efforts, recognizing strong audience reach and participation, community influence, and traffic brought to their website.

Previous Social Media Account of the Year Winners

Email Newsletter of the Year

Introduced in 2024, the Email Newsletter of the Year category recognize the ever-growing importance of industry email newsletters by honoring the best in the inbox. Judges examine the efficacy of item summaries or teasers and content marketing qualities.

Previous Email Newsletter of the Year Winners

Best Body of Work

Very few ASBPE awards recognize the work of individuals rather than the collective efforts of editorial teams. Beginning in 2025, one staff journalist, one freelance journalist and one designer will earn a coveted Best Body of Work award for their portfolio of work. Winners must demonstrate creativity, range, impact, skill and craft across their top five work products from the prior year. Additionally, judges will score each group on the following criteria:

• By a Staff Journalist – Staff journalists’ portfolios should display carefully crafted writing/reporting skills, a keen sense for developing a story, a developed and thoughtful journalistic voice, breadth, depth of understanding, creativity, as well as work that provides immense value to the audience and makes an impact on the industry(ies) or profession(s) covered.
• By a Freelance Journalist – Freelance journalists’ portfolios should display carefully crafted writing/reporting skills, a keen sense for developing a story, a developed and thoughtful journalistic voice, breadth, depth of understanding, creativity, as well as work that provides immense value to the audience and makes an impact on the industry(ies) or profession(s) covered.
• By a Designer – Designers (staff or freelance) should submit a portfolio of work displaying carefully crafted presentation, layout and typography skills; an intuitive sense for graphics and imagery; a clear ability to develop design suited to a topic and the publication’s mission; breadth and depth; and work that immediately captures attention and conveys meaning. Designers may submit work completed for the publication and the wider publishing company (e.g., conference materials, social media, annual reports, media kits, etc.).

 

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Other ASBPE Awards

Journalism That Matters Award

First presented in 2009, the Journalism That Matters Award was inspired by ASBPE’s book of the same title, which featured case studies of B2B journalists and publications whose coverage brought about change within their industries. Because of its high bar, the honor has been bestowed to only five journalists and editorial teams since its creation.

B2B, association and trade journalists and their publications are well-positioned to contribute important insights into, or shed light on, harmful, unfair or burdensome practices within government or industry. Such impactful journalism often helps trigger changes in law, regulation, policy or business practice, directly or indirectly.

Individuals may nominate themselves or a deserving colleague, editorial team or publishing company through ASBPE’s Journalism That Matters Award nomination form. Nominators must provide coverage that was published in the last five years, however the impact of that coverage must have been realized within the past year (as of the nomination date). A “nature of change” essay and letter of validation or other document substantiating the impact of the coverage are also required.

Recipients of the Journalism That Matters Award, when selected, are honored during ASBPE’s annual National Conference and National Azbee Awards celebration.

Learn about past Journalism That Matters Award recipients and their impactful coverage.

Stephen Barr Award for Feature Writing

Stephen Barr Award for Feature Writing — one of very few ASBPE honors presented to an individual journalist rather than a publication — honors the “best-in-show” among the Azbee Awards’ feature-writing categories: work that displays the qualities of inventiveness in the reporting approach; insight and balance in the presentation of a complex subject; depth of investigation; and impact among the community of readers.

Those qualities are among those exemplified by Stephen Barr, a perennial Azbee Award-winner in his role as senior contributing editor of CFO magazine. Stephen died in 2002, at age 43. The award was originally endowed by Stephen’s family and administered through the ASBPE Educational Foundation. The tradition of the  Stephen Barr Award is continued by ASBPE to encourage continued excellence in feature writing and journalism of the highest quality within B2B media. Recipients receive a crystal trophy, free conference registration and paid hotel stay (if applicable) for ASBPE’s National Conference.

Past ASBPE and ASBPE Educational Foundation president Roy Harris reflected in his blog post on Stephen Barr Award winners present and past, on the judging, and on the fun of giving out this special award.

Learn more previous Stephen Barr Award honorees and read the journalism awarded.

Lifetime Achievement Award

ASBPE’s Lifetime Achievement Award was established in 2000 to recognize editors who have made significant and lasting contributions to our editorial profession and to the industries their magazines serve.

Read about previous Lifetime Achievement Award honorees.

To receive the Lifetime Achievement Award, a candidate must meet four requirements: 

1. Significant involvement (25 years or more) with business publications. Nominees need not currently hold editorial positions, and may be retired, but ideally will have spent the bulk of their careers in senior editorial positions or will have served the industry in some significant way. Nominees need not be members of ASBPE. Past nominees not selected in previous years are encouraged to reapply. Please provide the nominee’s current title and employer/business (if retired, please state such). Provide a brief description of the nominee’s job history or a resumé. Include dates, job titles, magazines, companies.
2. A commitment to editorial excellence. This may be demonstrated by general reputation of their publication(s); industry-related awards (e.g., Azbee Awards, Neal Awards, Folio, Tabbies); internal company awards; or other forms of recognition or other valid measures of editorial success.
3. A commitment to business/professional media. Nominees should be or should have been involved in lending their experience and time to benefit others in the business press. For example, this may be participation in local or national business media or related organizations; corporate or university teaching; mentoring programs; or significant research or publication of articles on business media issues.
4. A commitment to the industry(ies) the nominee’s publication(s) serve. Examples might include committee work with trade or professional associations or standards groups; frequent speaking engagements at industry events; significant research or publication of articles on industry issues; or significant advocacy work with government agencies. The Lifetime Achievement Award winner will receive the award on the evening of the awards banquet, where the honoree also will receive a special tribute. The winner’s name will be announced to the public prior to the banquet. A call for nominations goes out around the beginning of each year.

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Other ASBPE Recognition Programs

Young Leader Scholarship

Sponsored annually by the ASBPE Educational Foundation, the Young Leader Scholarship was created to help young editors, freelancers, designers and videographers who are just starting their B2B media careers — who might otherwise be unable — to attend ASBPE’s National Conference, ASBPE’s largest annual educational opportunity, in order to advance their careers.

Scholarships pay the cost to attend the national conference, including registration fees and hotel room costs, for up to five U.S. applicants. Transportation, non-conference meals and other incurred costs are the responsibility of the winners or their publishing companies.

Applicants must meet the following qualifications:

• Be 30 years of age or younger (as of the application deadline).
• Have worked at least two years in a B2B media role for a business-to-business publication.
• Be sponsored by their publication’s chief editor or supervisor.
• Plan to continue in B2B media as a career.
• Not be a previous ASBPE Young Leader Scholarship recipient.

Visit our Young Leader Scholarship page for more information and to apply for the scholarship.

Diversity Fellowship

The ASBPE Diversity Fellowship, which debuted for 2021-22, was created to aid in developing a more diverse corps of journalists and leaders within the community of B2B specialty publications and to enhance overall awareness of career opportunities in B2B media. The Fellowship provides expenses-paid participation in ASBPE’s national conference (registration and travel costs, if applicable), networking and personalized mentoring opportunities.

An applicant for the ASBPE Diversity Fellowship must be a person of color, member of the LGBTQ+ community, someone with a disability; or belong to an otherwise underserved group. All ASBPE members and students in related curricula are eligible. Preference will be given to applicants with experience in — or at least a demonstrated interest in – B2B journalism who have not attended ASBPE’s National Conference in the past five years.

Apply through our Diversity Fellowship application form, or use our contact form to email the Diversity Committee with questions.