Awards: The true value of entering and winning them
Why do we enter awards? On one level, the reason’s pretty obvious. We enter awards to win them. For any firm, winning an award boosts morale, improves reputation and brings in new business. And it can (let’s be honest) be great for the careers of the winners.
That’s fair enough, but the more awards entries I write for my clients, the more I reach another conclusion. The true value of entering an award is effectively the “inside story” or narrative it creates– it is a means by which all in the business truly understand what has been done, what has been achieved and, crucially, what needs to come next.
Lots of businesses think about entering awards but don’t because, let’s face it, it can take time. Maybe it’s time you think you don’t have. Bringing together the materials needed for an awards entry is laborious, which is probably exactly why you should do it.
An awards entry forces you to think about what is actually important, not just the process of what you’re doing, but actually the results. If it’s a good set of awards, they’ll expect you to show results and they’ll give you feedback. So there’s a benchmark element to what you’re doing.
Most importantly, your “inside story” improves the chance of attracting staff, motivating them while they’re with you and of course hanging on to them.
The more I do in this area, the more I realise that the last value of awards lies in this inside story. Clarity of word IS clarity of mind. It records your past, celebrate what is being achieved and shapes what comes next ….
Merriborn Media is a business dedicated to developing clever content, engaged online communities and effective collaborative working and learning for clients. Both Merriborn Media and its founder Trevor Merriden were ranked in the Top 3 of social learning evangelists for 2016 in a recent major study.