When is an award more than an award?

By Peter McDonald, MEA CEO

When it’s an industry-bestowed award; one one’s peers have deemed worthy to hand out as recognition of ‘Best in Show’.

I’m really hoping that across social or trade media this week you will have seen that we’ve launched the 2023 MEA Awards.

We’ve done it nice and early cognisant that the industry is about to get even busier in the rundown to Christmas and New Year before, commonly but not in all instances, checking out for a bit during January ahead of hitting the ground running upon return to work to get the jump on the 2024 event calendar.

We’ve given a gift of time knowing that preparing an awards submission is no mean feat or quick job that can be just done in a spare moment. There’s now no need to leave it until February – unless of course, the event is still to be delivered in 2023. The eligibility period is for events held 1 January 2023 – 31 December 2023 inclusive.

Our being an industry peak body makes ours an industry awards program. There are several compelling reasons for both businesses and individuals to enter an industry-managed awards program, and what’s more, a plethora of benefits that can come as a result of winning one. But what are they?

Winning an industry award can bring prestige and recognition. It much more contextually acknowledges excellence and achievement, both internally and in the eyes of peers, customers, and the industry at large. Awards serve as third-party validation of expertise, quality, and commitment to excellence. They can help build trust and credibility with customers, partners, and investors.

In competitive industries such as ours – with acknowledgement that there is also plenty of collaboration – an award can set you apart from your competitors. It can be a powerful marketing tool, helping you stand out and attract more customers. It's an earned point of difference that affords leverageable distinction from ‘the alternative’. Yes, that is true of any award, but when an award is conferred by an authority that walks the walk in step with the industry as MEA, it inspires trust and confidence in competence because of the potential reputational damage to the industry overall if it’s gotten wrong. It’s a case of MEA putting the sector’s money where its mouth is when it hands out a trophy.

Award wins are newsworthy and can generate media coverage, helping gain exposure and reach to a wider audience. It's an excellent opportunity for free publicity.

Of course, there’s the complementary state/territory and national awards events that afford networking with peers, potential partners, and clients which can in turn lead to valuable business connections.

Submitting for awards can motivate employees, bind teams, and boost morale. Winning them can be a source of pride for a team and reinforce their commitment to excellence. Not to mention that the process of preparing for an award submission can encourage businesses to reflect and critically evaluate their operations, innovate, and strive for continuous improvement.

Awards can be used as a recruitment tool, attracting top talent who want to work for a company with a track record of excellence. They can also help with employee retention. In any industry, the workforce knows who the top-of-town operators are. Everyone wants their piece of that.

Benchmarking performance against industry standards and best practices is a feature of MEA’s program and part of compiling – and assessing – a submission. It provides valuable insights for businesses and people who go through the process. But winning after having done that can be used to establish oneself or one’s business as a leader in an industry, which can in turn lead to opportunities to influence industry trends and standards.

Satisfied customers often take pride in doing business with an award-winning company. This can lead to increased customer loyalty and word-of-mouth referrals. A weight of industry endorsement behind a win only enhances the likelihood of pride being taken.

As the old saying goes though, you’ve got to be in it to win it. Whether you want to get on top of it straight away, or whether you’re a last-minute doer who performs best under pressure here’s the place to go to get in it: 2023 MEA Awards

Good luck!