What’s in a prize challenge name?

Considerations for naming your prize challenge

If you scroll through the archives of Challenge.gov, you will find prize competitions with a variety of naming conventions. Some agencies go with the simple and straightforward like the DOJ Data Challenge. Some go with memorable puns like Tick Tick Bloom: Harmful Algal Bloom Detection Challenge. And yet others align with a consistent branding strategy like the xTech challenges. There’s no right or wrong way to name a Challenge, but we wanted to know: what’s in a prize challenge name?

At the July 2024 Challenge and Prize Community Office Hours, we discussed why you might consider different strategies to name your prize challenge. Colleagues from NASA described how a compelling name, like the Lunar Loo Challenge, can capture the interest of potential participants and stakeholders, communicate the goals of the competition clearly and memorably, and distinguish it in a crowded marketplace.

The challenge manager from FentAlert: Empowering Youth for Safer Choices – SAMHSA Fentanyl Awareness Youth Challenge shared how their team consulted with a youth focus group in the early stages of the challenge design. Their valuable input led to a name change and an updated logo design for the challenge.

The next time you and your team are getting ready to launch a challenge, take a look at the name, and decide what approach to use. By thinking outside the box, you may reach a wider audience of solvers.

Office Hours are for Federal challenge managers, the Challenge & Prize Community of Practice, and other federal employees interested in learning more about prize competitions. They are held on the 4th Wednesday of the month at 12 pm ET via Zoom.gov. Register here.