Gearing up for the final countdown
Today is the last opportunity that vendors, distributors and resellers have to enter the 2005 Channel Awards
Today is the last opportunity that vendors, distributors and resellers have to enter the 2005 Channel Awards – so if you have not done do already, it’s time to swing the marketing machine into motion and get that entry in right now, says Simon Meredith.
If you are rushing to get your entry in right now, ahead of today’s deadline, you need not panic. You can still enter the Awards online, through the Channel Awards web site. But of course, those of you who have given yourselves plenty of time should do a final read through and press the submit button.
The number of entries already received this year is impressive and the standards that many companies have striven to reach with their entry is very high indeed.
It looks like there will be a great deal of work for the judges to do and some very difficult decisions to be made. Well-prepared entries with strong testimonials will undoubtedly be at an advantage – but this does not mean that the chance to be short-listed is gone. Even if you have not entered yet, there is still time – and our quick-fire guide to preparing a late entry should help you to get any last minute submissions to us in the nick of time (see box, below right).
The most hotly contested areas this year, judging from the entries so far, looks like being the Specialist awards in both the Vendor and Distributor categories. Among the reseller awards the most heavily entered so far are the Corporate, SME and Specialist categories, but anyone entering the Service Provider or Consumer categories could still be in with a chance.
In the Vendor and Distributor categories, there are a number of entries very conspicuous by their absence that are bound to come in before the deadline expires.
Looking at the entries so far, one could easily assume that the bigger the organisation, the longer they are likely to take to submit their entries.
If you still need persuading, here is a reminder of what companies, that have either won awards or been short-listed, have said about being recognised in the Channel Awards.
Frank Salmon, managing director at CMS, said: “Having won in two consecutive years we have noticed a beneficial effect. The awards seem to endorse our business and increase our visibility in the channel. This is why they are so hotly contested.”
David Ellis, director of security at Unipalm, echoed this view: “Winning has proved to be extremely useful when talking to new customers as it provides a high level of credence.”
Simply making it onto the shortlist is useful, according to managing director of reseller Ramsac. “It generated a lot of compliments and good feeling.
“People like to know that they are working with someone who is doing well. It also had a positive impact on our staff because they like to know that they are part of something successful as well.”
Finally, it is worth sparing a thought for the judges, who will have to examine the scores of the entries that are put forward.
One of the judges, Keith Humphreys, director of EuroLan Research said: “Any entry should NOT be a cut and paste of marketing blurb or the web – it should be specific to its channel activities.”