Tips For Tourism Awards Nominations

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Tips for Winner’s Circle Tourism Award Nominations

Let’s assume that anyone you feel is good enough to be nominated has certain qualities, such as a positive attitude, a smiling face and a knack for making guests comfortable and happy. Some suggestions are:

  • Focus on specific examples, and describe them in as much detail as possible. People like to hear stories. Use a quote from a guest comment or letter specifying a specific incident or service that the employee provided. “Always kept our room clean” is not as exciting as “made a different special animal sculpture each day out of towels for our toddler.”
  • Mention a specific time when she or he went WAY above and beyond like working a double shift for a colleague who had to leave for a family emergency, or driving to deliver a valuable item that a guest left in their room before their flight from Orlando International Airport was to depart.
  • Highlight something very creative that they came up with that improved your business. Examples include a service idea, a marketing idea, an event, a better way to repair something, a solution to a logistical problem or a suggested new menu item.
  • Describe a time they saved the day. Did they turn an unhappy guest into a happy one? Tell the story!
  • Instead of saying they’re loyal or a long-time employee, give specifics about their many years of service, and make it personal. For example: “He’s been driving to work round trip everyday from Polk County for the last 10 years.” Or “She came to us as a housekeeper, the young mother of a 4-year-old daughter. Over the last 20 years she has risen through the ranks to become Head Housekeeper, inspiring that daughter, now 24, to pursue a hospitality career. Her daughter is now building a career in our marketing department.” That’s a story!
  • Use descriptive phrases in your nomination form when talking about something they do or did in the community. How you word it is important! For example:
  • Good: He volunteers for Habitat for Humanity.
  • Better: He has sacrificed this year’s vacation time volunteering for Habitat for Humanity.
  • Best: He has sacrificed this year’s vacation time volunteering for Habitat for Humanity. He’s part of a team that has built five houses for Habitat for Humanity over the last three years.
  • Remember that you know these people – the judges probably do not. Bring them to life and make the judges fall in love and vote for them!