Competition overview and best practices. 2009

1. Club Achievement
2009 – Presented by the AAF-4th Districtʼs Kate Whatley + the AAF-7th Districtʼs Dawn Reeves

2. What is the club achievement competition?
Formal recognition for chapters running the way the
AAF was designed to function.
• 8 Categories – Eight core values of the AAF

3. AAF Values / Categories
1 ----------- Advertising Education
2 ----------- Club Operations
3 ----------- Communications
4 ----------- Diversity & Multicultural
5 ----------- Government Relations
6 ----------- Membership Development
7 ----------- Programs
8 ----------- Public Service

4. What is the club achievement competition?
Formal recognition for chapters running the way the
AAF was designed to function.
• 8 Categories – Eight core values of the AAF
• Submit in the form of annual reports – “books”

7. What is the club achievement competition?
Formal recognition for chapters running the way the
AAF was designed to function.
• 8 Categories – Eight core values of the AAF
• Submit in the form of annual reports – “books”
• 5 Divisions (4 by chapter size + Ad 2)

8. Divisions
1 ----------- 500+ members
2 ----------- 250 to 499 members
3 ----------- 100 to 249 members
4 ----------- Under 100 members
5 ----------- Ad 2 chapters

9. What is the club achievement competition?
Formal recognition for chapters running the way the
AAF was designed to function.
• 8 Categories – Eight core values of the AAF
• Submit in the form of annual reports – “books”
• 5 Divisions (4 by chapter size + Ad 2)
• Deadline in March
• Winners recognized at the “Solute to Achievers” lunch
at the national conference

12. Why would my chapter want to enter?
• 8 Categories = Road map
• Document your year
• Share your ideas + accomplishments
• Money
• Bragging rights

13. How do you win?
• You have to really want to win
• Dedicated leadership - Executive Director or Chair
• Follow the directions
Hints
• It will take more work than you think
• It will take you longer to write than you think
• It will cost more money than you think

14. Steps + Timing
1 ----------- Plan - - - - - - - - - - - July
2 ----------- Execute - - - - - - - - July to Feb
3 ----------- Track - - - - - - - - - - July to Feb
4 ----------- Compile - - - - - - - - Feb
5 ----------- Write - - - - - - - - - - March
6 ----------- Vacation - - - - - - - - April

15. So remind me why we should enter?

16. Bragging Rights

17. How do you get started?
• Read the Call For Entry
Club Services > AAF Club Achievement Awards

19. How do you get started?
• Read the Call For Entry
Club Services > AAF Club Achievement Awards
• Read some of the Award Winning Ideas
• Decide on one category you chapter excels in
• Follow the steps
• Develop a process

20. Best Practices - Courtesy of the AAF-7th Dist.
1. Appoint a Club Achievement Chair and have them participate in each of
the clubs events so that he/she can be knowledgeable to edit the books.
2. Plan your club activities around the club achievement subjects. There is a
reason we have these eight categories. Yes, you can win awards, but more
importantly, it is an excellent way to plan and manage your clubs.
3. Books can be assigned to each committee chair to write, along with the
rules, the corresponding section of the AAF IDEAS book, and monitored by
the Club Achievement Chair
4. Purchase all 8 notebooks and plastic inserts at the beginning of your
clubʼs year and assemble the information in the books as the events
happen.

21. Best Practices - Courtesy of the AAF-7th Dist.
5. Get the IDEAS book (pdf) free from National featuring each yearʼs first
place winners in each category and see how they did it. READ IT! You will
be amazed that you are probably already doing everything the winning
clubs are doing. You just need to save your collateral, and document your
work properly. Go to HYPERLINK "http://www.aaf.org" www.aaf.org to find
the document, or contact your District Club Achievement Chair (applies to
D7).
6. Prepare a template for each book: fill in the blanks during or immediately
following the event while all the information is fresh.
7. Keep 8-12 copies of everything: invitations, newsletters, postcard
meeting reminders, thank you cards, everything.

22. Best Practices - Courtesy of the AAF-7th Dist.
8. Tell the objective/solution/results in each category. Make sure there are
no typos, or misspelled words. Use good grammar and make sure you
follow the rules to the letter.
9. Enter all 8 categories as you could win prize money on the District level
(D7). Some categories have just a few entries and yours could win.
10. If you do not win at District, you could still win prize money at National
as each book is judged by different judges.
11. Books are judged by the club size, so you compete with your own size
and not the large clubs if you are small.
12. Board members should be responsible for keeping records of the
projects they oversee.

23. Best Practices - Courtesy of the AAF-7th Dist.
13. Type and complete the book as soon as that event is completed. Then
you will not have the big crunch at the last minute trying to get everything
done.
14. Read the Competition Guidelines carefully. Guidelines and categories
can change from year to year. Pay particular attention to binder size, double
spacing, and submission of word documents on floppy or cd. Make sure cd
or floppy is attached so it will not be separated from the book.
15. Numbers and percentages are very important to judges, so emphasize
them in each report. Include goals and results. False numbers donʼt fly…
show proof!
16. ADDYS and other projects could be used in all 8 categories depending
on the objective and event happenings.

24. Best Practices - Courtesy of the AAF-7th Dist.
17. The club achievement year started in March so you should be working
on the books all year long.
18. D7 - Club-of-the-Year scores are based on several things. Club
Achievement scores and participation are the majority of the point system.
Each entry gets 50 points just for entering, and 1st, 2nd and 3rd receive
additional points. Clubs will want to enter all eight categories to be eligible
for Club of the Year consideration. Other criteria for Club of the Year include
involvement in District deadlines, scholarships, conference/convention
attendance, etc.
19. Judges like events that are totally creative and different.
20. Take photos of your events and include them in the books.

25. Best Practices - Courtesy of the AAF-7th Dist.
21. VHS or DVDs of broadcast spots can be included.
22. Tell what bombed, how you handled it, what you learned, and the results.
23. At the very minimum, enter at least one category. If your club really
excelled in any one category, enter it. You deserve to be recognized.
24. Have a non-advertising person read the book for content, clarity, typos etc.
25. Make sure you check the box on the form if you want your book returned.
If not, they are thrown in the trash. The books are a valuable resource for
future club management.
26. Completing the books is not difficult, but a lot of work. Make the
commitment.

26. Questions?
AAF - 4th District
Kate Whatley - - - - - - - - - - - kate@socialforces.com
AAF - 7th District
Dawn Reeves - - - - - - - - - - dreeves@realtysouth.com