Timeline Clarity & Essential Information – Our Criteria
Understanding Our Grading for This Section
For Timeline Clarity & Essential Information, we assess how comprehensively and clearly your competition publicly states its critical dates and other essential information for entrants. This covers details such as open and closing dates, judging duration, winner announcements, and prize issuance timelines. Our internal evaluation uses a 0 to 5-point scale. A score below 3 stars indicates a fundamental failure to meet our standards for fair practice. Should your competition’s terms fall into this ‘Non-Compliant’ category, they indicate a failure to meet the minimum standards for fairness and photographer protection as defined by TRUST PCS.
- Non-Compliant: For publicly available information that lacks clarity or completeness on key dates and essential details.
- 3 Stars: Good Practice – Meets Expectations
- 4 Stars: Very Good Practice – Exceeds Expectations
- 5 Stars: Excellent / Exemplary Practice
Use this comprehensive guide to understand what defines each level of performance and to pinpoint areas for improvement in your competition’s public information and timeline presentation.
Understanding Clear Timelines: What Good Looks Like
Transparent communication of competition timelines and essential details is vital for photographers to plan their entries and manage expectations effectively. For you, the organiser, clear and consistent public information reduces common queries, builds trust, and showcases your professionalism. Beyond just a closing date, comprehensive timeline clarity includes all critical milestones from opening to prize delivery.
Exemplary Practice: ★★★★★ (5 Stars)
To achieve an exemplary rating, your publicly available information must demonstrate:
- Comprehensive & Explicit Dates: All key dates are explicitly and clearly stated, including:
- Competition open date. (if applicable)
- Any early bird or discounted entry deadlines (if available).
- Final entry closing date.
- Stated duration or period for judging.
- Specific winner announcement date.
- Date or timeframe for prize issuance.
- Prominent & Consistent Display: All dates and essential information are highly prominent, easy to find (e.g., dedicated timeline page, top of rules), and perfectly consistent across your entire website and public materials.
- Proactive Information: Details for all future stages (judging, announcement, prizes) are provided from the outset.
- Clear Contact Methods: Easily discoverable and clear public contact methods are provided for general queries.
Very Good Practice: ★★★★☆ (4 Stars)
To achieve a very good rating, your publicly available information must demonstrate:
- Clear Statement of Critical Dates: The following critical dates are clearly stated:
- Competition open date (if applicable).
- Any early bird or discounted entry deadlines (if available).
- Final entry closing date.
- Stated duration or period for judging.
- Specific winner announcement date.
- Easy to Find & Consistent: Dates and essential information are easy to find and consistently presented across primary sections of your website.
- Clear Contact Method: A clear public contact method (e.g., a dedicated email address) is readily available for queries.
Good Practice: ★★★☆☆ (3 Stars)
To achieve a good rating, your publicly available information must demonstrate:
- Minimum Essential Date Present: At a minimum, the final entry closing date is present.
- Discoverable Information: This information is discoverable on your website (e.g., within the rules or an FAQ), even if not highly prominent.
- Basic Contact Method: A basic public contact method is available (e.g., a general enquiry email address).
Non-Compliant
This category applies if your publicly available information fundamentally fails to meet minimum standards for clarity and completeness on timelines and essential details. This includes instances where:
- Critical Dates Are Missing or Vague: Essential dates like the final closing date, winner announcement date, or prize issuance timeframe are entirely absent, extremely vague (e.g., “winners announced soon”), or hard to locate.
- Inconsistent or Contradictory Timelines: Different sections of your public-facing information provide conflicting dates or details, causing confusion.
- No Clear Contact Information: It is difficult or impossible for potential entrants to find a public contact method for queries regarding the competition.
- Information is Hidden or Dispersed: Key timeline details are not readily accessible on the website or are scattered across multiple obscure locations, requiring excessive effort to find.
IMPORTANT LEGAL DISCLAIMER: This content provides general best practices and illustrative examples for understanding photo competition terms. It is not legal advice. Competition organisers MUST seek independent legal advice from a qualified legal professional to draft, review, and ensure their specific Terms & Conditions comply with all applicable laws.
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