Western Virginia Advertising Awards

Call for Entries

Professional and student awards are part of a three-tier competition that starts locally.

AAF Roanoke honors the best advertising created locally during the past year annually through the Western Virginia Advertising Awards.

The annual competition recognizes exceptional professional and student advertising created in Southwest Virginia. The American Advertising Awards honor advertising excellence in all media, including online, non-traditional, print, broadcast, and out-of-home. It is the first level of a three-tier national competition that is the advertising industry’s largest.

American Advertising Awards competition rules, categories, and entry procedures allow online submission and judging at all levels.

Please carefully follow all online submission guidelines provided within the entry system in order to ensure that your work is properly represented during all three tiers of the American Advertising Awards competition.

For all categories, there is an opportunity to submit physical copies of work for display at the annual gala. We highly encourage including a physical submission.

Professional Entries

The 2023-24 competition will open in late October for work completed in the 2023 calendar year. Entry fees are $90 for members/$125 nonmembers for single entries and $100 for members/$135 nonmembers for campaigns.

Student Entries

The 2023-24 competition will open in late October for all collegiate student work completed in 2023. The student entry fee for all categories is $25. Top student award winners are eligible for cash prizes from AAF Roanoke.

Special Awards

AAF Roanoke also accepts nominations for special awards each year that will be presented at the annual gala.

These include:


Awards Gala

AAF Roanoke’s award winners be honored during a gala after the completion of judging. Creative work winning awards at the local level is then eligible to compete in the second level of competition, the District 3 American Advertising Awards, conducted in April. District winners are then eligible for entry in the National American Advertising Awards. National winners are honored at the American Advertising Awards celebration during the American Advertising Federation’s ADMERICA.

The local competition is sponsored by AAF Roanoke, a member association comprised of advertising and media professionals. Proceeds from the American Advertising Awards help support AAF Roanoke’s educational programs, public service projects, and proactive government relations efforts.