When I talk to female leaders about nominating themselves for particular awards, I am often met with hesitation around nominating yourself. I want to break this stigma. There is no shame in nominating yourself. In fact, everyone in our network is busy. As much as they would love to spend the days thinking and nominating others for great awards, they don’t have time. So, don’t dilly dally. We think you are wonderful and your name should be in lights. If time is the issue, then outsource it. Many people in our network are professional award writers! Here are three reasons why awards are good for you and your business.
1. OWN YOUR SUCCESS. BE PROUD OF IT AND SHARE IT WITH OTHERS, SO WE CAN ALL LEARN.
I take issue with the Tall Poppy syndrome in Australia. Let’s support our tall poppies and put them on higher pedestals. Let’s create an environment where other poppies want to spring up around them. Using award nomination processes to reflect on your success is a great exercise to go through. It forces you to be honest with yourself about your achievements and how far you have come.2. IT’S GREAT PR.
Awards generate their own PR. They increase your exposure, networks and visibility in a very noisy internet. They are also a stamp of approval, which helps build trust. The awards process can also help you refine your key messaging for your own marketing and communications strategy.3. IT’S PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT.
Just the nomination process itself can be a good way to health-check your business. One of our members completed the Telstra Business Awards nomination process and as a result she changed her brand’s business model. Fronting up to a panel of judges who have never heard of you before is scary. More often than not they will ask you some curly questions and it will test you to think on your feet. Good. These experiences are an invaluable way to learn. Reflect on the experience with the team to involve them in the third-party feedback, so everyone can learn from the experience.Plan Your Award Submissions
Awards should be part of your marketing and communications strategy. Build a calendar of awards you would like to apply for and make sure you allocate enough time to the submission. The Awards should be strategically relevant to your business. If time on the awards’ submission is impacting your business negatively, then outsource it, or add it to your calendar for next year. To help you plan your award season, we’ve listed some of the annual awards. If you have others to suggest, please contact us and we can add them to this post.- Cosmopolitan Women of the Year Awards
- iAwards
- #TechDiversityAwards
- Telstra Business Awards
- Telstra Business Women’s Awards
- The Australia Post Online Retail Industry Awards
- Women2Watch in Business Disruption
- Women’s Leadership Awards
- World Retail Awards
- Look through the Government Award programs available in your state or territory
