Awards, Recognition and Other Publicity Add to Your Credibility
January 22, 2009 by Mary Ellen
Thunderous applause. Fabulous trophies, medals and citations. Recognition for you and your company that’s difficult to buy. These are the byproducts of recognition you might earn.
Every year hundreds of honors recognize leadership, service work, outstanding achievement, sales success, women-owned businesses, professional development, community service and more. Your decision to expand your visibility might simply mean applying for awards in your local community, state or trade organization. Here are five tips to help you succeed in your quest:
- Plan ahead. The elements required for each award differ and yet, some of the background information can be gathered in advance. A good bit of the time involved in submitting an important application goes into organizing information the first time around. For example, while you may have five or six versions of a bio, it could be more difficult to list your accomplishments by year. Or, if you have testimonials, it might be important to track customers or vendors who would go into greater detail about how you worked to solve their problem.
- The Small Business Administration offers a series of awards each year during National Small Business Week, May 18 – 22, 2009. Nominations for these awards are due in November of the preceding year and winners know their status in April. (It’s not uncommon to apply six months in advance for an award.)
- Applying for an award is no guarantee of winning it, or even being acknowledged for the work involved.
- Some industries provide a listing of awards available as do a few communities. For the most part, you must research this information on your own.
- Check the criteria, review the application and study the organization before beginning. In other words, read the fine print. If possible, talk with a previous award winner. You may discover some organizations require membership in order to be considered. Others give preference to those nominated by other organizations, rather than individuals. (The National Association of Women Business Owners, NAWBO, frequently encourages its members to apply for specific awards in their community.) As you research awards, keep in mind that you may have to call on the same person more than once to nominate you. Be considerate of the time involved in producing a nomination. Whenever possible, provide complete information, making the nominator’s job smooth and hassle-free.
- The Albuquerque YWCA hosts “Women on the Move” an annual awards program; applications are due on/before January 31.
- New Mexico Business Weekly is currently searching for Women of Influence; applications are due on/before February 20.
- Customize your entry to the specific questions on the application. If the question is about community service, your strength in sales may not matter. If participants are judged on contributions to legislative concerns, someone not in the political arena could be disqualified. One word answers won’t earn recognition. The nominations that win are clear, concise and offer strong reasons in favor of the candidate.
- Proof your work and submit prior to deadline. Enough said. In a tight competition, typos and misspelled words make the difference. (Imagine a “Women on the Move” application that referenced the YMCA instead of the YWCA.) In some cases, late applications are disqualified.
- Never give up. In story after story, companies and businesses owners win awards the second or third time they apply. Why? Because you get better with practice.
So go ahead. Apply for an award. Gather your information and vow to put yourself “on the map.” Good luck! Let me know how you do.
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