If ever there was a subject to split opinion it is that of the Business Award. Is it something that can help you to win business when bidding or simply a distraction that can be expensive and lead to nothing more than a post party headache?
Let’s look at the two sides of the argument:
In the Red Corner – Business Benefit:
Those who eulogise about awards tend to see the benefit as that of getting very quick credence for their product or service.
In comparison to other methods of getting products certified, in whatever market you’re in, entering awards is actually rather cheap. Those who see this benefit see it as a way of validating their product or service in a very quick way.
And in the Blue Corner – Headache with nothing but a Hangover to show for it:
Firmly in the other camp we have people who see nothing but an exercise in massaging their own, or their CEO’s, ego. They see it as money thrown away as the resulting trophy does nothing in the eyes of their potential customers.
The process of going for and getting an award is considered as nothing more than an excuse for a big old booze up at a posh hotel.
So what do we think? Well without wishing to sit on the fence, it’s a bit of both and isn’t quite that clear cut!
Firstly – it depends on your market and what the award is. In some markets awards can be two a penny and therefore their value plummets.
But in others they can be few and far between which makes their value all the greater. In the IT world for example many software providers are desperate to get in the Gartner Magic Quadrant (specifically in the upper right part of the quadrant anyway!) for whatever part of the IT world they fit into. This is because in the IT world, people typically trust Gartner and see this as a way of determining a number of specifics about a product their looking to buy.
If the award you going for can be a differentiator between yours and a competitor’s product then it can have value.
Secondly, it can be more of a marketing benefit than a real cast iron bid winner (or influencer). Sometimes the flash of an award can get you noticed – but it will be the nuts and bolts of your product and the service you deliver that is more likely to take you over the finish line.
All in we’d not dismiss the value of winning awards, but take the time to evaluate which ones you go for and how you use the kudos when you do win!
Tags: Bid Support, sales, Sales Engine, Sales Presentations, Sales training