Published on May 5th, 2018 | by Sunit Nandi

Industry Awards Create Buzz for Businesses

Capturing people’s attention is perhaps the number one concern entrepreneurs have when building up a business. It’s not always easy to stand apart from the crowd when you have yet to establish a proper following of your own, but one of the most frequently overlooked ways to do it is to enter your business for consideration in various industry trophies and awards. Even if you don’t think you’ll win, you never know – and if you do walk away with the title, the benefits can be significant. Here are just a few of the ways that industry awards can help you get some of that coveted market momentum going for your business.

1. Increases Legitimacy and Drives Sales

Before you have an award or two under your belt, your prospective customers have no way of knowing that your business is good at what it does (beyond taking your word for it, that is). A win places it above the competition and validates that implicit claim. For those who hesitate to financially commit to something without some further assurance, seeing that your business has been recognized in a competitive arena can be the deciding factor that prompts them to go through with a purchase.

2. Attracts the Attention of Investors

Setting your sights on financial rewards can also help you grow business and securing you some additional funding. Investors value proof of a business’ competence perhaps even more than customers do; after all, they’re risking much more than temporary dissatisfaction with their purchase. If your business goes under, as many do, they risk losing all the money they put into it. An enterprise that produces an award-winning product, however, is likely to remain financially viable in the future and even to see healthy growth in market share. This often gets potential investors excited, as they have good reason to be confident of a solid return in the future.

3. Build Brand Recognition

Some businesses have to endure through many years of slowly building sales to make a name for themselves; others know there’s a better way through marketing.

Therefore, when you enter the running for industry awards, your business name is automatically circulated to a large number of people who are following the proceedings. That alone is a favorable effect, but if you win, your business then becomes synonymous with ‘winner’ in the minds of this new audience but with luck, it’ll be the first name they think of the next time they need your particular product or service, and the name they pass on to their acquaintances when they need the same things. This is how household names are born.

4. Motivates Existing Employees and Brings In New Ones

There’s a reason that Fortune 500 companies get their pick of the very best employees out there – smart, capable people want to put their abilities to work for businesses that most closely match them in quality. For such people, awards signal a strong, vital company that might makes a great place to build a career. Those who already have a position in your organization might aspire to a higher one now that they know they could have a real future with you, and outsiders might be more inclined to answer your job postings over those of your competitors. Over time, your company’s talent pool will become stronger and stronger, boosting its blossoming growth even further.

Industry awards might seem like something you ought to let come your way naturally over time, but there is much to be gained by pursuing them a little more aggressively. A little extra support or attention at the right time can make or break businesses, so don’t hesitate to put yours in the running for these titles. The worst that can happen is that you lose, and in that case, there’s always next year.

Tags: awards, business, buzz, industry

About the Author

Sunit Nandi I'm the leader of Techno FAQ. Also an engineering college student with immense interest in science and technology. Other interests include literature, coin collecting, gardening and photography. Always wish to live life like there's no tomorrow.