We're expecting a record attendance - a sellout of 360 - for the 6th annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service on Monday, February 27 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.   These are the world's top sales awards, contact center awards, and customer service awards.

This will be the historic first-ever ceremony at which Silver and Bronze Stevie Award winners will be announced.  We've introduced Silver and Bronze Stevies this year as part of our celebration of the 10th anniversary of the founding of the Stevie Awards movement.  Henceforth all honorees in Stevie Awards programs will be Gold, Silver or Bronze Stevie winners.

So who's coming to Las Vegas next week?  Here's the list of organizations that will be represented at the gala, as of this morning:

ABF Freight System, Inc., Fort Smith, AR
Achievers  San Francisco  CA          
Aditya Birla Minacs  Moncton  New Brunswick Canada   
Agility Recovery  Charlotte  NC            
Air National Guard Recruiting and Retention  Arlington  Virginia               
American Equity Investment Life Insurance Company, West Des Moines, Iowa
American Support, Chapel Hill NC
APAC Customer Services  Bannockburn  IL            
Archipelago Learning  Dallas  TX             
Arizona Public Service (APS)  Phoenix AZ            
Avaya, Basking Ridge, NJ                
CenturyLink   Monroe  LA                   
Bluegreen Corporation, Boca Raton, Fl                 
Bombardier Aerospace  Toronto  ON  Canada         
Borro  London  United Kingdom             
Brooks Group  Greensboro NC             
Bulldog Solutions, Austin, TX
CenterBeam  Inc.  Sunnyvale  CA               
CHEP USA  Orlando  FL                
Coloredge New York • Los Angeles  New York  NY        
Comcast Cable   Philadelphia PA                  
Constant Contact, Waltham, MA                  
Con-way Freight  Ann Arbor  MI  
Datapipe, Jersey City, NJ              
DeVry University  Downers Grove  IL             
DHL Express  Tempe  AZ               
DHL Global Forwarding  Columbia  SC            
DiCentral  Houston TX  
Dubai First, Dubai, United Arab Emirates            
eCornell, Ithaca, NY                    
Enterasys  Andover  MA                 
Enterprise Fleet Management  St. Louis  MO       
Envision   Seattle WA                   
Everything Everywhere  Hatfield  Hertfordshire United Kingdom 
Family Heritage Life Insurance Company of America   Cleveland  OH   
FedEx, Memphis, TN / Nuance Communications        
Force 3  Inc.  Crofton  MD                   
GES- Global Experience Specialists, Las Vegas, NV    
GoDaddy.com  Scottsdale  AZ    
Groupon, Chicago, IL              
Heartland Payment Systems  Princeton  NJ  
HomeAway, Austin, TX             
IDentity Theft | 911  Scottsdale AZ                
IHG  Salt Lake City  UT                        
Imparta Ltd  London  England                       
inContact  Salt Lake City  UT                       
ING Direct USA  Wilmington DE                     
International Checkout Inc.  Van Nuys  CA             
iolo technologies  Los Angeles  CA            
ISOdx Solutions, LLC, Columbus, OH            
iSpeak  Inc.  Round Rock  TX              
John Hancock  Boston MA               
kCura, Chicago, IL                  
Language Services Associates, Horsham, PA           
L-com Inc., North Andover, MA               
LifeLock, Tempe, AZ                    
Macy's  Inc.   Cincinnati  OH                
MaintenanceNet  Carlsbad  CA                 
MarketBridge  Bethesda MD                    
Marriott Intl  Inc.  Bethesda  MD                    
Marriott Vacation Club International  Orlando  FL       
Marsh U.S. Consumer  Urbandale IA               
MBX Systems  Wauconda IL                  
Merchant e-Solutions  Redwood City  CA                 
Merchant Warehouse  Boston  MA                
Métier  Ltd.  Santa Rosa  CA                
Nationwide Bank  Columbus  Ohio                
Nationwide Financial  Columbus  OH                
NEW Customer Service Companies, Sterling, VA       
New York Community Bancorp, Inc.   Cleveland OH       
nFocus Solutions, Phoenix, AZ               
NYCM Insurance, Edmeston, NY              
Office Depot  Boca Raton  FL                
OnStar  Detroit  MI                 
OppenheimerFunds Inc.  Englewood  CO             
PacketVideo, San Diego, CA                     
PaySimple  Denver  CO               
Photodex  Austin  TX                
Prescription Solutions by Optum Rx  Costa Mesa CA   
ProShares & ProFunds  Bethesda MD
PSAV Presentation Services, Long Beach, CA           
QBE FIRST  Atlanta GA               
Rackspace Hosting  San Antonio TX             
Reputation.com  San Francisco  CA               
Rosetta Stone  Arlington  VA               
Salt Lake County Government  Salt Lake City  UT       
Schedulicity  Bozeman  MT                   
SDL  Superior CO                 
SecurityMetrics  Orem  UT    
Siemens Enterprise Communications  Munich Germany               
Smith & Nephew Biologics Division, Durham, NC   
SquareTrade Inc, San Francisco, CA      
SurePayroll,  Glenview, IL                
The Knowland Group  Lewes  DE                   
Tracker Corp  San Francisco  CA               
TRX  Inc.  Atlanta  GA                 
Turkiye Ekonomi Bankasi  Istanbul Turkey          
UPC Austria, Vienna, Austria                       
UPS Social Media Customer Service Team  Salt Lake City  UT      
USHEALTH Advisors, L.L.C.   Grapevine TX            
Valerus,  Houston, TX                    
ValueSelling Associates, Rancho Santa Fe, CA          
VerticalResponse  San Francisco CA               
Vestmark  Wakefield  MA                  
Visualize,  Birmingham, MI                    
VIZIO  Inc.  Irvine  CA                
Vodafone Turkey  Istanbul Turkey                    
Volkswagen  Herndon VA                 
Wheels, Inc.,  Des Plaines, IL              
Zions First National Bank  Salt Lake City UT               
ZocDoc  New York  NY           

The Stevie® Awards is pleased to show you the first photo of the real Silver and Bronze Stevie Awards trophies which have been introduced as part of our 10th anniversary celebration of the start of the Stevie Awards movement. The new awards are manufactured by R.S. Owens in Chicago, the longtime manufacturer of the Stevie and other major awards including the Oscars and the Emmys. 

The Silver and Bronze Stevie Awards will be introduced at the 6th annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, which recognize the achievements of call center, customer service, and sales professionals worldwide, on February 27 at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas.  The business awards banquet, which will confer sales awards and customer service awards, will be the first Stevie Awards program in which Silver and Bronze winners will be named. (Tickets are still available; support your organization's good customer service and sales excellence by reserving a table today.) Henceforth, all honorees in Stevie Awards programs will be Gold, Silver, or Bronze Stevie Award winners. 

Finalists that receive the top scoring qualifying entry in each category will receive a Gold Stevie Award. Finalists that receive a final average score of at least 8.0 out of a possible 10 will be named Silver Stevie Award winners. All other Finalists will be designated as Bronze Stevie Award winners.

Gold Stevie winners will automatically receive a Gold Stevie trophy.  Silver and Bronze Stevie winners will automatically receive a Silver or Bronze medal and will have the option to purchase their Stevie trophy. With the introduction of our new corporate awards distinctions, there will no longer be Finalist certificates.

Leave us a comment and let us know what you think about the new Silver and Bronze Stevie Award trophies!

Jason Copeland, Senior Manager, National Sales Group at SurePayroll, Inc., Glenview, Illinois USA, is chairing one of the final judging committees for the sales awards categories in the 2012 Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service. Final judging is now underway, and sales excellence and customer service awards winners will be announced on February 27 at the 6th annual awards banquet in Las Vegas. Get your tickets here.

We asked Jason why small businesses should be optimistic in 2012

What are the top 3 reasons for small businesses to feel optimistic in 2012?

1. They’re in business in 2012! 2012 is shaping up to be the year of small business. If you've survived the recession, the rising tide should lift your boat. And if you're just starting a business...
   
2. Potential new U.S. policies could spark a startup renaissance. U.S. small businesses and their owners will get a lot of attention this Presidential election cycle. The American business owner's voice is stronger than ever and business owners will need to use their voices to help shape tax and regulatory policy for the next few years. Organizations worldwide will benefit from the attention placed on the importance of small businesses.
   
3. In late January, Chase and Citibank announced they significantly increased small business lending in 2011 from, roughly, a combined $17 billion in 2010 to almost $25 billion in 2012.  Additionally, Thomson Reuters data shows venture capital funding increased 22% to over $28 billion in 2011.With more lending opportunities now available, organizations will greatly benefit on a global scale.

What item of news recently caught your eye and why? 
The Costa Concordia disaster. Sadly, the actions of the captain and his lack of leadership made the tragedy that much worse.  Appalling.

What is your favorite sport or hobby?
Spending time with my son, playing poker, and golfing. To be clear, I do not play poker with my son … yet. 

If you could choose another profession, what would it be?
Political or sports commentator/analyst.

What quality or qualities do you most value in your business associates?
I look for committed problem-solvers with integrity, a good attitude, drive, and tenacity. 

As someone at the top of your profession, what keeps you inspired or makes you hit the ground running in the morning?
I strive every day to make a positive difference in the world for my family, my team, my company, and our customers. 

About Jason Copeland:
An accomplished sales professional, Copeland joined SurePayroll in 2005 as the company's Accounting Channel Manager. In just three short years, Copeland led the channel to record growth of more than 113%. In 2008, Copeland moved into his role as National Sales Manager during which he rebuilt the company's sales training program. Over the next few years, Copeland was responsible for leading unprecedented growth. He was promoted to Senior Manager of the National Sales Group in 2011. Copeland is largely credited with his team's recognition as the Stevie Awards’ 2011 National Sales Team of the Year. Prior to joining SurePayroll, Copeland worked in various sales and sales management positions for RPS, Advantage, Paychex, and Enterprise.

About SurePayroll:
SurePayroll, The Online Alternative, is dedicated to providing a convenient and easy-to-use small business payroll service that keeps business owners in control. Over 30,000 customers rely on SurePayroll to process payroll-on-demand in as little as two minutes. In addition, SurePayroll offers efficient online solutions for managing 401(k) plans, health insurance, workers' compensation, employee screening, and more. SurePayroll provides private-label and co-branded services that enable accountants and banking partners to offer online payroll processing to their small business clients. SurePayroll is a wholly owned subsidiary of Paychex. For more information, please visit www.SurePayroll.com.

About Paychex:
Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ:PAYX) is a leading provider of payroll, human resource, and benefits outsourcing solutions for small- to medium-sized businesses. The company offers comprehensive payroll services, including payroll processing, payroll tax administration, and employee pay services, including direct deposit, check signing and Readychex®. Human resource services include 401(k) plan recordkeeping, section 125 plans, a professional employer organization, time and attendance solutions, and other administrative services for business. A variety of business insurance products, including group health and workers' compensation, are made available through Paychex Insurance Agency, Inc. Paychex was founded in 1971. With headquarters in Rochester, New York, the company has more than 100 offices serving approximately 536,000 payroll clients nationwide as of May 31, 2010. For more information about Paychex and its products, visit www.paychex.com.

Finalists in the 6th Annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, an international competition recognizing excellence in disciplines that are crucial to business success, were announced today.    

Organizations as diverse as E*Trade, Dubai Bank, Japan’s Lifenet Insurance Company, and ZocDoc are among those recognized in the customer service awards, call center awards, and sales awards categories.  Organizations with Finalists in multiple categories include DeVry University, the UK’s Everything Everywhere, GoDaddy.com, Nationwide Bank, PetRays, Rosetta Stone, UPC Austria, and Vodafone Turkey, among others. For a full list of Finalists, visit www.stevieawards.com/sales. 

Stevie Award winners will be announced during a gala banquet on Monday, February 27 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada.  Tickets are now on sale.  The awards are presented by the Stevie® Awards, which organizes several of the world’s leading business awards shows including the prestigious International Business Awards. The Stevies are widely considered to be the world’s premier business awards.

For the first time, Stevie Awards will be conferred in three levels of distinction: gold, silver and bronze.  To date, only overall category winners have received gold Stevie Awards.

More than 1,000 entries from organizations worldwide were submitted to this year’s competition, an increase of almost 30% over 2011. Finalists were determined by the average scores of 93 professionals worldwide, acting as preliminary judges.  Entries were considered in 27 categories for customer service professionals, including Contact Center of the Year, Award for Innovation in Customer Service, and Customer Service Department of the Year; 38 categories for sales professionals, ranging from Senior Sales Executive of the Year to Sales Training or Coaching Program of the Year to Sales Department of the Year of the Year; and categories to recognize new products and services and solution providers. 

More than 100 members of seven specialized judging committees will determine Stevie Award placements from among the Finalists during final judging, to take place January 30 - February 10.  

Beginning today, the general public will be able to cast their votes for their favorite providers of good customer service in the People’s Choice Stevie® Awards for Favorite Customer Service Department.  Voting is open at http://www.stevieawards.com/Service.peopleschoice.  Winners of the People’s Choice Stevie Awards for Favorite Customer Service in multiple industries will be determined in mid-February and honored at the awards gala in Las Vegas on February 27. 

About The Stevie Awards
The Stevie Awards are conferred in four programs: The American Business Awards, The International Business Awards, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, and the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service.  Honoring organizations of all types and sizes and the people behind them, the Stevies recognize outstanding performances in the workplace worldwide.  Learn more about the Stevie Awards at http://www.stevieawards.com/, and follow the Stevie Awards on Twitter @TheStevieAwards.   

Sponsors and supporters of the 6^th annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service include American Support, Coloredge Los Angeles * New York, Competence Call Center, SDL and ValueSelling Associates.

Press Contact:  Amy Nizwantowski, amy@mediashoppr.com
Mediashop PR, (212) 867-8778 x232

 

The following professionals participated in the preliminary judging of the 2012 (6th annual) Stevie® Awards for Sales and Customer Service, the world's premier customer service awards, contact center awards, and sales awards, in November-January. Their average scores determined the Finalists. We thank them for their dedication, time, and insights. This year's Stevie Awards winners will be announced at our annual awards ceremony at Caesar's Palace resort in Las Vegas, NV, on Monday February 27. Learn more about the event and reserve your table today.

Kenneth Amormino, Director of Call Center Operations, GAW, Enfield, CT, United States
Johnny Anderson, Vice President, Bulldog Solutions, Austin, TX, United States
Jeff Billado, Sales Consultant - Customer Interactive Solutions, Dimension Data, Herndon, VA, United States      
Paul Bilodeau, VP Sales & Marketing, The Brooks Group, Greensboro, NC, United States
Jane Blackwell, Community Outreach Manager, High Point Bank & Trust, High Point, NC, United States
Jill Blankenship, CEO, Frontline Call Center, Eastsound, WA, United States
Jeanne Bliss, President, CustomerBLISS, Pacific Palisades, CA, United States       
Bob Botelle, Exec VP. Merchant Services, Chief Customer Officer, Litle & Co, Lowell, MA, United States
Norm Bour, Community Development Director, OPIS Network, Newport Beach, CA, United States
Johnny Bravo, Account Executive, PolyPak America Inc., Sales, Loas Angeles, CA, United States
Patrice  Bryon, Head of Client Services, ProFund Advisors, LLC, Financial Services, Bethesda, MD, United States
Elaine Buxton, President, Confero Inc, Cary, NC, United States
Jon Byers, Manager of Client Relationships, Covisint, Client Satisfaction, Healthcare, Durham, NC, United States
Andrew Christofferson, Customer Service Manager, Cargill, Inc, Feed Products, Blair, NE, United States
Chadwick Collier, CEO, Consumer Driven Solutions and Group Cars, Memphis, TN, United States
Ryan Consigli, CEO, Zoom Technical Services, Inc., Woburn, MA, United States
Tom  Cross, Editor, TECHtionary, Boulder, CO, United States
Kelly Dantas, Media Director, SDI Distributor, Yonkers, NY, United States
Robyn Davis, Owner, When I Need Help, Columbus, OH, United States                 
Brent Dierking, Director, Business Development/Strategic Planning, NorthStar EMS, Birmingham, AL, United States
Kevin Domingue, VP, Customer Services, TRUMPF, Inc., Customer Service, Farmington, CT, United States
Alan Dowler, Customer Service Officer, Hamilton Jewelers, Princeton, NJ, United States
Carolyn K Edwards, AT&T and  WATCh?, San Diego, CA, United States    
Annette Eland, Claims Customer Service Manager, Esurance, San Francisco, CA, United States                   
Evren Erbasol, Phone Banking Manager, AKBANK, Alternative Delivery Channels Management, Istanbul, Turkey
Ron Essig, VP, Products & Services, Marriott Vacation Club, Salt Lake City, UT, United States
Meredith Estep, Vice President Client Services, Unitiv, Inc., Alpharetta, GA, United States
Paul Evans, President and CMO, Evans Media Group, Overland Park, KS, United States
Franck Fielemon, Manager Direct Sales, DHL Express, International, Hoofddorp, Netherlands
Will Garrick, Senior Director, Prescription Solutions/  A United Health Care Company, Customer Service, Costa Mesa, CA, United States
Gina Giordano, VP, Customer Feedback, Macy's, New York, NY, United States
Barb Girson, Principal, My Sales Tactics, New Albany, OH, United States
Jaki Glenn, Regional Sr. Sales Rep., Taleo Learn, Taleo, Belton, SC, United States
Bob Gooderl, Product Manager/AVP, Symetra Financial, Life Division, Bellevue, WA, United States
Justin Grenier, Support Team Manager, Listrak, Lititz, PA, United States
Jimmy Griffith, Director, Solution Center Operations, Assurant Solutions, Extended Protection Solutions, Lawton, OK, United States
Judy Guffee, Senior Manager Customer Service, med fusion/ ClearPoint Diagnostic Laboratory, Lewisville, TX, United States
Josh Hatala, Marketing Specialist, AIReS, Marketing, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
Peggy Heafey, Director - Intermediary Partner Care, Marriott Intl., Inc., Marriott Sales and Customer Care, Omaha, NE, United States
Arne Henrickson, SR Director Client Services, Coinsar/Redbox, Corporate, Bellevue, WA, United States
Greg Ives, Director of Global Services, ChannelAdvisor, Morrisville, NC, United States
Jeanne Jalufka, Sales Marketing Consultant, Pearson, Corpus Christi, TX, United States
Robert Jeppsen, Vice President, Commercial Sales, Zions Bank, Commercial Sales, Salt Lake City, UT, United States
David Johnston, President, Sales Resource Group Inc., Oakville, Canada
Rebecca Jones, Senior Marketing Manager, The Retail Outsource, Coral Gables, FL, United States
Christine Kazor, Customer Service Manager, Bright House Networks, Riverview, FL, United States
Rafal Kucharski, Advertising Manager, Wytwornia Mebli, Swarzedz, Poland
Rebecca Lane, Epitome Health and Beauty, Bushey Heath, United Kingdom
Howard  Lewis, President, Family Heritage Life Insurance, Cleveland, OH, United States
Shane Lewis, Asst VP of Sales, Sundance Vacations, Sales, Kennett Square, PA, United States
Angie  Marchant, CEO / Client Management, Millennium Benefits Consulting, Sandy Springs, GA, United States
Frank Maylett, EVP Sales and Global Alliances, inContact, Midvale, UT, United States
Colin  McKillop , Chief Executive Officer, Butcher Enterprises, Windsor, Canada
Curtis McLaughlin, Customer Support Manager, Debix Inc., Customer Support, Austin, TX, United States
Sharon Metzung, Publications & Graphics Manager, Lake Metroparks, Concord Township, OH, United States
Tiffany Mittal, Director of Sales and Marketing, Multifamily Utility Company, San Diego, CA, United States
Simona Mollova, CEO, Investmen JSPK credit consult - jsk, Sofia, Bulgaria
Stacy Muentzer, Project Manager, Bankers Life and Casualtyy Company, Chicago, IL, United States
Mark O'Toole, Managing Director, Public Relations & Content Marketing, H|B, Newton, MA, United States
Steve Pappageorge, Sr. Director, Business Services, DeVry Inc., DeVry University, Downers Grove, IL, United States
Donald Pillai, International Marketing Executive, Bumbo International, Pretoria, South Africa
Melanie Pope, Director, Australian National Paramedic Support Foundation, Aspley Qld, AL, Australia
Janine Popick, CEO, VerticalResponse, San Francisco, CA, United States                
Amy Pulaski, Manager, UPS, Global Customer Service Group, Richmond, VA, United States
Jesintha Rajaratnam, Partner, Joje India Consultants - Finance HR FZC, Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates
Dennis Reno, Vice President, Global Customer Service, Oracle, San Francisco, CA, United States
Nancy Reynolds, Global Customer Service Manager, Braiform, Asheville, NC, United States
RJ  Riemer, Director - Training & Process Improvement, VIZIO, Inc., Irvine, CA, United States                     
Bruce Rosenblatt, VP of Sales, ITG Holdings, LLC, Bonita Springs, FL, United States
Amanda Running, PR Manager, SecurityMetrics, Orem, UT, United States
Brillian S K, Head - Talent Engagement, AIL, Human Resources, Mumbai, India
Anita Samojednik, VP, Customer Operations, TheLadders.com, New York, NY, United States
Russell Sarder, Chairman and CEO, NetCom Learning, New York, NY, United States
Harry Schechter, CEO, Temperature@lert, Boston, MA, United States
Stu Schlackman, Owner, Competitive Excellence, Richardson, TX, United States
Paula Seeger, Supervisor-Customer Service Hotline, University of Minnesota, Office of Classroom Managment, Minneapolis, MN, United States
Randy Selleck, Sr. Director, Call Center Operations, Assurant Solutions, Atlanta, GA, United States
Bill Shelton, Vice President, USHEALTH Advisors, Insurance, Grapevine, TX, United States
Donnovan Simon, Director, Sales Support, SMART Technologies, Calgary, Canada
Peter Smith, CEO, SDL, Superior, CO, United States
Cate Sommervold, Dr., pharmaCline, Development and Patient Outreach, Sioux Falls, SD, United States
Alec Stern, VP, Strategic Market Development, Constant Contact, Waltham, MA, United States
Will Tarrant, Project Director, FreemanGroup, Richardson, TX, United States
Lucas Tennant, Sr. VP of Sales, CompuPay, Miramar, FL, United States
Dwayne Tharp, Director of Sales, Networking Technologies and Support, Inc., Midlothian, VA, United States      
Kathy Townend, Marketing Manager, Europ Assistance, CSA Travel Protection, San Diego, CA, United States
Heather Valentine, Vice President Global Sales, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Manakin Sabot, VA, United States
Laura Walter, Corporate Marketing Manager, Enterprise Holdings, Inc., St. Louis, MO, United States
Jerry Weinberger, Director, Customer Service Retention Webs, Inc., Silver Spring, MD, United States
Uriel Weisz, Customer Experience Manager & Researcher, Strativity Group, Rochelle Park, NJ, United States
Patrick Williams, Hit-Maker, YOU ROCK!®, Gig Harbor, WA, United States
Pam Young, President, Unique Innovations Inc., Lancaster, PA, United States
Julia Zamorska, VP of Corporate Communications, iolo technologies, Los Angeles, CA, United States       

The following professionals have been named committee chairs for the final judging of the 2012 Stevie® Awards for Sales & Customer Service. Finalists will be notified on January 25 and announced on January 26.

Final judging will begin on January 30 and run for two weeks. 2012 winners will be announced at the 6th annual sales and customer service awards banquet on February 27 at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas.

In total, more than 100 judges will participate in this year's final judging for the sales and customer service awards. Thank you to all of our judges for their participation.

Sales Achievement Chair: 
Jason Copeland, Senior Manager, National Sales Group, SurePayroll, Inc., Glenview, Illinois

 

Sales Department & Sales Team Chair:
Raj Hajela, Co-founder and Chief Revenue Officer,  Salesify,
Redwood City, California

 

Sales Individual & Solutions Provider Chair: 
William Binch, SVP Sales, Marketo,
San Mateo, California

 

 

 

Customer Service/Call Center Individual & Customer Service/ Call Center Team Chair:
Carita Vallinkoski, Expansion Management, Competence Call Center AG,
Vienna, Austria

 

 

Customer Service/ Call Center Department Chair:
Susan Cloutier, Operations Manager, Mayo Medical Laboratories,
Rochester, Minnesota

 

Customer Service Achievement Chair:
Cameron E. Hurst, Vice President, Assurant Solutions,
Asheville, North Carolina

 

New Product & Service Chair:
Ben Saren, Vice President, Marketing, Litle & Co,
Lowell, Massachusetts

 

 

Next week we will publish the names of our committee members.

Today, January 18, is the final entry deadline for the 2012 (6th annual) Stevie® Awards for Sales & Customer Service, the world's premier customer service awards, contact center awards, and sales awards.

If you have not yet requested your 2012 entry kit, you can download your entry kit here. For your convenience, we have also made a helpful video tutorial on how to successfully enter submissions here. 

The Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service has over 90 categories to honor sales excellence  and good customer service for individuals, teams, and departments. We also have new categories this year for products, service, and solution providers. Types of business awards categories include:

• Sales Individuals
• Sales Team
• Sales Achievement
• Sales Department
• Customer Service & Contact Center Individual
• Customer Service & Contact Center Team
• Customer Service & Contact Center Achievement
• Customer Service Department
• New Product & Service
• Solution Provider

All 2012 sales awards and customer service awards Finalists will be notified on January 25th. As part of our 10 year anniversary celebration, Finalists will be recognized as Gold, Silver or Bronze Stevie Award winners. Winners will be announced at the 6th annual sales and customer service awards banquet at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas on February 27th.

If you have questions about the 2012 Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, please email us at help@stevieawards.com or call us at +1 703-547-8389.

In celebration of the 10th anniversary of the start of the Stevie® Awards, we will introduce Silver and Bronze Stevie Awards at our 6th annual Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service banquet. Henceforth, all honorees in Stevie Awards programs will be Gold, Silver, or Bronze Stevie Award winners. (Entries for our 2012 sales and customer service awards, which honor good customer service and sales excellence, are still being accepted. The last day to submit entries is this Wednesday, January 18; download your entry kit here.)

Finalists that receive the top scoring qualifying entry in each category will receive a Gold Stevie Award.  Finalists that receive a final average score of at least 8.0 out of a possible 10 will be named Silver Stevie Award winners. All other Finalists will be designated as Bronze Stevie Award winners.

Gold Stevie winners will automatically receive a Gold Stevie trophy.  Silver and Bronze Stevie winners will automatically receive a Silver or Bronze medal and will have the option to purchase their Stevie trophy. With the introduction of our new business awards distinctions, there will no longer be Finalist certificates.

Finalists at The 2012 Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service banquet will be the first to receive our new corporate awards distinctions. The annual banquet will be held on February 27 at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas.

How will your organization strive to win a Gold Stevie Award?

The final day for submitting entries to the 2012 Stevie® Awards for Sales & Customer Service is January 18. Showcase your organization's sales excellence and customer service excellence by submitting your entries today. (Request your entry kit here.)

Organizations and individuals worldwide are invited to submit entries. There are dozens of opportunities to win for both private and public organizations, small and large organizations, and non-profit and for profit organizations. The 2012 competition will recognize achievements since July 1, 2010.

How the submission process works:

1. Get your entry kit here.
2. Review all of our sales awards and customer service awards categories. We have more than 90 categories honoring sales excellence and customer service excellence for individuals, teams, and departments, plus new categories this year for products, service, and solution providers.
3. Select the categories you wish to apply for, write your submissions according to the instructions, and submit your entries.

Benefits of submitting a Sales and Customer Service entry:

1. More chances to win
   All Finalists in the Customer Service Department of the Year categories will automatically be included in the People's Choice Stevie Awards for Favorite Customer Service, a worldwide public vote that will commence on January 26.  Finalists in the Customer Service Department of the Year categories will have an opportunity to win two awards: a Stevie Award, as voted by your peers, and a crystal People's Choice Stevie Award, as voted by your customers.
2. New award distinctions
   The Sales and Customer Service awards banquet will be the first to showcase our three levels of award distinction: gold, silver and bronze Stevie Awards. You can learn more about the new awards here.
3. Know your finalist status right away
   There's only a short wait to find out if you and/or your organization is a finalist. All Finalists will be notified on January 25.

Helpful resources to make your submission process easier:

1. Watch our helpful video tutorial on how to successfully enter submissions here. 
2. Review past winners' entries here.  These are great examples of entries that were judged highly in the 2011 awards.
3. Make your entries count:  learn how to submit winning entries here.

Still have questions? Call us at + 1 703-547-8389 or leave us a comment and we'll get back to you right away.

With the holidays upon us, give a gift of appreciation by submitting entries to The 2012 American Business Awards and Stevie® Awards for Sales & Customer Service.  (You can get the entry kit for the ABAs here and an entry kit for Sales & Customer Service awards here.)

Why Give the Gift of the Stevie Awards?
The Stevie Awards are the world's premier business awards.  Not only does a nomination represent appreciation and a recognition of success, but all Gold, Silver and Bronze Stevie Award winners will be recognized on a national and international scale- an invaluable gift!

What is the nomination process?
The nomination process is simple:

1. Get your entry kits for the Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service and/or The American Business Awards.  The Sales & Customer Service awards are open to all organizations and individuals worldwide, with an entry deadline of January 18.  The ABAs are open to all organizations and individuals in the U.S.A., with an entry deadline of March 28.
   
   
2. Review all of our awards categories. We have scores of sales awards and customer service awards categories as well as hundreds of business award categories.
   
   
3. Select your categories and write your nominations according to the instructions.

Need more resources?

1. Understand the value of your gift: Learn more about the importance of corporate awards.
   
   
2. Make your nomination a winning one: Read How to Submit Winning Entries.
3. Know what to say: Review past Sales and Customer Service awards winners' entries here and past American Business Award winners' entries here.

Still have questions? Call us at 703-547-8389 and we'll help you get started!

Happy holidays to you and yours, and best wishes for continue success in the New Year!

How will you use a Stevie Award nomination to reward those in your organization?