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Home > Awards > Pinnacle Awards > 2025 Pinnacle Awards
Call for Entries

Celebrating 30 Years of IFEA/Haas & Wilkerson Pinnacle Award Success!

Is your festival or event making waves in your community? Has your Volunteer Programs set a new standard of excellence, or does your Sponsorship Program exemplify how perfect partnerships elevate an event? Perhaps your Parade stole the show, your Ad Series boosted attendance, or your Social Media Campaigns are setting the internet abuzz with record-breaking analytics. Maybe your Event Website turns heads, your On-Site Décor creates unforgettable experiences, or your Merchandise Program delivers outstanding profits. From jaw-dropping TV Promotions to must-read Event Programs, this is your time to shine.

In 2025, we’re celebrating 30 years of the IFEA/Haas & Wilkerson Pinnacle Awards, a milestone made even more special as the IFEA marks its 70th year of supporting the global festival and event industry. For three decades, these awards have honored the creativity, innovation, and excellence that drive our industry forward. What better way to join the celebration than by showcasing the incredible work you’ve done?

The Pinnacle Awards Competition features 64 categories, offering a stage for every type of achievement—from social media and sponsorships to community outreach, programming, and beyond. Whether you’ve created a dynamic Digital Ad Series, captured a perfect Photo, or launched a Green Program, this is your chance to earn international recognition.

The competition is open to events of all sizes and types—large or small, cities or chambers, universities or parks, even vendors—ensuring everyone has the opportunity to compete. With a modest entry fee, the rewards are monumental: enhanced visibility, elevated credibility, and your name among the best in the business.

Join us in celebrating 30 years of award-winning events, 30 years of Haas & Wilkerson sponsorship, and 70 years of IFEA excellence! Submit your entries today and let your festival or event’s success inspire the world.

ALL ENTRIES SUBMITTED ONLINE

All IFEA/Haas & Wilkerson Pinnacle Award Entries are submitted online only, saving you not only financial resources but much needed time.

To get started, just create digital versions of all your entries, enter them through our online entry form, and pay for them all at one time!* (*If wishing to pay for your Pinnacle Entries by Check or need to be invoiced, please contact Nia Hovde, CFEE, BEFORE you start your entry process.) For more details on specific format types accepted, how to name the file names of your entries and how to submit online, see complete details in the Pinnacle Brochure.

So, what are you waiting for? Start creating your entries TODAY! Complete the online entry form, upload or provide a link to your entries and then click SUBMIT, so they can be judged against the best of the best, in the fes­tivals and events industry. Then get ready to hear your organization’s name announced at the next Annual IFEA Convention, Expo & Retreat when we once again get to say . . . “And the winners are . . . !”

Questions?

For questions on any of the IFEA Awards Programs, contact: Nia Hovde, CFEE, Vice President/Director of Marketing & Communications, at Email: nia@ifea.com.

2025 PINNACLE ENTRY DEADLINES

Deadlines Subject to Change

1st EARLY BIRD ENTRY DEADLINE:
11:55 p.m. (MST), WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2, 2025

Entries received on or prior to 11:55 p.m. (MST), Wednesday, April 2, 2025 will receive the 1st Early Bird rate of $40 per entry or $150 per Grand Pinnacle Entry.

2nd EARLY BIRD ENTRY DEADLINE:
11:55 p.m. (MST), WEDNESDAY, May 14, 2025

Entries received between Thursday, April 3, 2025 and 11:55 p.m. (MST), Wednesday, May 14, 2025 will receive the 2nd Early Bird rate of $45 per entry or $200 per Grand Pinnacle Entry.


FINAL ENTRY DEADLINE:

11:55 p.m. (MDT), WEDNESDAY, JUNE 25, 2025

Entries received between Thursday, May 15, 2025 and 11:55 p.m. (MDT), Wednesday, June 25, 2025 will receive the Final Entry rate of $50 per entry or $250 per Grand Pinnacle Entry.

Eligibility Period

June 27, 2024 – June 25, 2025

Entries must have been produced and / or used for the first time between June 27, 2024 and June 25, 2025.
  • NOTE: We understand that events which occur close to the eligibility deadlines have a limited window to enter their event into the IFEA/Haas & Wilkerson Pinnacle Awards Competition before the final entry deadline. If your event occurred just prior the start of the 2025 Pinnacle eligibility period (June 27, 2024 to June 25, 2025) and you DID NOT enter your event into the 2024 Pinnacle Competition, please contact Nia Hovde, CFEE at nia@ifea.com to enquire if your event may be eligible to be entered into the 2025 Competition.

2025 PINNACLE ENTRY BROCHURE

BEFORE you start getting your entries ready, be sure to download and thoroughly read through the 2025 IFEA/Haas & Wilkerson Pinnacle Entry Brochure to view complete entry details and requirements for each Pinnacle Category.

DOWNLOAD PINNACLE ENTRY BROCHURE HERE

IFEA MEMBERS ENTER HERE

The IFEA/Haas & Wilkerson Pinnacle Awards Competition will begin accepting entries on Monday, February 3rd, 2025.

Until then, as you begin preparing your entries, please thoroughly review the Pinnacle Entry Brochure to ensure that you are familiar with all the specific requirements for each category you wish to enter and that you have everything in order for a successful entry submission process!

2025 IFEA/Haas & Wilkerson Pinnacle Budget Categories Include:

All Pinnacle entries are not only separated in to 64 individual categories, but also into four individual budget categories within each category. This is to ensure that like size festivals & events compete against like sized festivals and events. A Gold, Silver and Bronze winner is then awarded within each budget category within each specific entry category. Therefore, there could ultimately be four Gold winners, four Silver winners and four Bronze winners within an individual Pinnacle Category. Judges may combine budget categories within a specific category, if the number of entries warrants it.

The specific budget category you enter is based on your organization's event expense budget. Budget categories* are as follows:
*Budget Categories Updated for 2025

Budget #1: Under $50,000
Budget #2: $50,000 to $500,000

Budget #3: $500,000 to $1.5 Million
Budget #4: Over $1.5 Million

2025 IFEA/Haas & Wilkerson Pinnacle Entry Categories Include:

Complete descriptions for each category along with requirements, judging criteria and instructions on how to submit your entry for each category can be found in the 2025 IFEA/Haas & Wilkerson Pinnacle Awards Brochure.

BEFORE YOU START WORKING ON YOUR PINNACLE ENTRIES, be sure to download and thoroughly read through the 2025 IFEA/Haas & Wilkerson Pinnacle Entry Brochure where you will find the specific entry requirements and required information for each category.
DOWNLOAD PINNACLE ENTRY BROCHURE HERE

  1. Grand Pinnacle
  2. Best TV Promotion
  3. Best Full-Length TV Program
  4. Best Video Promotion
  5. Best Radio Promotion
  6. Best Single Social Video
  7. Best Multimedia Component
  8. Best Event Website
  9. Best Organization Website
  10. Best Event Mobile Application / Adaptive Website
  11. Best Facebook Site
  12. Best Instagram Site
  13. Best Single Digital/Social Ad
  14. Best Digital/Social Ad Series
  15. Best Event / Organization E-Newsletter
  16. Best Event Program / Guide
  17. Best Newspaper Insert / Supplement
  18. Best Promotional Brochure
  19. Best Printed Materials (Multiple Page)
  20. Best Printed Materials (Single Page)
21. Best Cover Design
22. Best Single Newspaper Display Ad
23. Best Single Magazine Display Ad
24. Best Ad Series
25. Best Promotional Poster
26. Best Commemorative Poster
27. Best Promotional Photograph
28. Best Outdoor Billboard / Signage
29. Best Installation / Wrap
30. Best Invitation / Ticket
31. Best Street Banner
32. Best On-Site Décor
33. Best T-Shirt Design
34. Best Pin or Button
35. Best Hat
36. Best Festival / Event Merchandise
37. Best Sponsor Gift
38. Best Give-Away Item
39. Best Overall Merchandising Program
40. Best Targeted Sponsor Solicitation Proposal
41. Best Individual Sponsor Follow-Up Report
42. Best Sponsor Partner
43. Best Sponsor Activation
44. Best Sponsorship Program for Individual Sponsor
45. Best Overall Sponsorship Program
46. Best Volunteer Program
47. Best Green Program
48. Best Parade
49. Best Educational Program
50. Best Accessibility Program
51. Best Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Plan
52. Best Children’s Programming
53. Best Overall Entertainment Program
54. Best Community Outreach Program
55. Best Event / Program Within an Event to Benefit A Cause
56. Best Event (Within an Existing Festival)
57. Best Emergency Preparedness & Risk Management Plan
58. Best New Festival or Event
59. Best Product or Service
60. Best Vendor / Supplier
61. Best Overall Media Relations Campaign
62. Best Event Management Bachelor’s Degree
63. Best Festival & Event Management Master’s Degree
64. Best Festival & Event Management PhD Program

About the Winners

For all entries, each winning festival/event receiving a Gold, Silver or Bronze award is selected from those festivals and events who enter the IFEA/Haas & Wilkerson Pinnacle Awards Competition and are judged on the overall excellence of a festival / event based on the specific criteria and requirements of the specific category(ies) being entered, within each of the four separate budget categories. Festivals / Events recognized as an “IFEA/Haas & Wilkerson Award Winner”, are entitled to use that specific language in sharing the news about a Pinnacle win, for the specific category(ies) won. Language declaring a Festival / Event / Parade / Program etc., as the “Best in the World by the IFEA”, is not correct or in line with the nature of the competition and will not be supported or endorsed by the IFEA.

Sponsor of the IFEA Pinnacle Awards 

Haas & Wilkerson Insurance has proudly supported the IFEA and festivals and events industry for three decades. As the title sponsor of the IFEA/Haas & Wilkerson Pinnacle Awards Program, they have helped to raise the quality and standards of excellence for festivals and events around the globe.

With over 80 years of entertainment industry experience behind them, they provide insurance programs designed for each event’s specific needs and have a long list of clients that includes festivals, fairs, parades, carnivals and more. Learn more about them at www.hwins.com.
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