The Azbee Awards, which open for submissions on Nov. 1, are an institution in B2B media and have been recognizing the best of the best in B2B for 47 years. Every year, the experts on ASBPE’s Awards Committee work hard to keep the Azbees fresh and modern. ASBPE updates the awards annually to best reflect the types of work being done in the B2B community and the different technologies, mediums, story formats, and the journalistic skills and techniques that are at the forefront of our profession.

Enter the Azbee Awards Through Jan. 16

Here are some noteworthy improvements made for the 2025 Azbee Awards of Excellence:

• One staff journalist, one freelance journalist and one designer will earn a coveted Best Body of Work award for their portfolio of 2024 work.
• The Best Social Media Campaign category has been updated to Best Use of Social Media to better reflect how today’s publishers are using social media platforms to attract readers and interact with their audience, to provide context to the news they’re reporting, and to show how their work is done.
• The Multi-Platform Package of the Year category has been updated to Project of the Year. The category now recognizes the best overall topical project with a cohesive theme.
• The Email Newsletter Design category will reflect the growing importance of email newsletters and recognize industry newsletters with thoughtful and engaging design.
• A designer/art director’s work isn’t limited to creating compelling layouts — it also includes having an eye for finding or creating the perfect imagery to complement the style and tone of content. Azbee Awards now recognizes this key skill and awards photographers, illustrators and graphic designers for their Best Original Photo, Best Original Illustration and Best Original Photo Illustration.
• And much more – read the full list of updates and changes here.

ASBPE is also making it easier to submit award entries by reducing the number of required entry fields and simplifying the submission form into a single page. Costs are stable with no increases, while also adding a new discount for freelancers. All ASBPE members receive a $25 per entry discount, and freelance members now receive an additional $20 per entry discount. ASBPE will also host Azbee Office Hours several times in the coming months for anyone with questions related to submissions.

In addition, ASBPE has scheduled exciting webinars to share insights from past winners and judges:

• The 2024 Azbee Website of the Year winner didn’t even exist in 2022. But that may not even be the most impressive part of its creation. Attend the Nov. 7 webinar to learn the story behind Craft to Crumb’s development, from idea to launch to winning ASBPE’s prestigious Website of Year award.
• Azbee Award judges have seen it all when it comes to B2B editorial and design awards. Attend the Nov. 20 webinar for your exclusive chance to hear from experienced Azbee Awards judges about what they look for in award-winning entries, how judging enriches their own newsroom experience, what it takes to be a judge and more.

ASBPE’s Awards Committee is actively recruiting a team of judges for the 2025 Azbee Awards. Would you like to help us rate the best of B2B media editorial and design? Do you want a sneak peak of other publication’s best work? Want ideas for how to handle certain types of work or topics? Learn more and join us for judging in January and February 2025.

2025 Azbee Awards Deadlines:

Early-Bird Entry Deadline: Dec. 16, 2024, at 8 p.m. ET. Save $30 per entry by submitting early.
Regular Entry Deadline: Jan. 10, 2025, at 8 p.m. ET.
Late Entry Deadline: Jan. 16, 2025, at 8 p.m. ET. Continue to submit for an additional fee of $10 per entry.

Remember, ASBPE members save $25 on each entry and freelance members save an additional $20 per entry. Renew your ASBPE membership today.