A great idea is only the beginning.
In pharmaceutical and healthcare communications, where regulation, complexity and multiple audiences can place considerable constraints on creativity, the craft of bringing an idea to life matters enormously. It’s the difference between something that simply communicates and something that people notice, engage with and that ultimately shifts what they think and do.
As healthcare communications become more complex, more channel-diverse and increasingly shaped by automation, the human disciplines that transform good ideas into memorable experiences are becoming more valuable, not less. That’s why we’re expanding our craft categories this year.
Craft has always had an important place in the PM Society Awards. For agencies, these categories provide an opportunity to celebrate the specialist skills that can sometimes sit behind the bigger campaign idea: the animator who brings a complex mechanism of action to life, the illustrator who makes an abstract subject instantly understandable, the filmmaker who finds the human story, or the designer who makes every detail work together.
And this year, we’re adding two new categories: Art Direction Craft and Copywriting Craft.
Art direction is about much more than making something look good. It’s about creating a distinctive visual world that transcends channels. It’s about making intelligent choices about imagery, typography, composition, colour, tone and style that reflect the brand. We’re looking for work where the visual thinking is original, unexpected and purposeful – whether that’s across a campaign, a film, digital experience, print, gaming or virtual worlds.
And then there’s copy.
In an industry increasingly surrounded by AI-generated content, crafted writing has arguably never been more important. AI can generate words. But great copywriting requires a human understanding of people: knowing what to say, what not to say, finding the unexpected thought, the perfectly judged phrase, or the idea that makes a complex message feel simple and relevant.
And healthcare copywriting has another layer of complexity. It has to balance persuasion, accuracy, regulation and empathy. Great copy means achieving clarity without oversimplification, impact without exaggeration, and emotion without compromising accuracy.
The new Copywriting Craft category celebrates that skill – headlines and body copy where the writing itself is integral to the impact of the work.
Ultimately, craft is about care. It’s about people who know their discipline, understand the detail and keep refining until something is not just finished, but right.
That’s worth celebrating.
Review the categories and enter now.