Guides for Brides Customer Service Awards

The Guides for Brides Customer Service Awards brings a new type of recognition to the wedding industry, with the desire to reward businesses of all sizes who continue to deliver excellent service and customer satisfaction. We have awards for 22 categories, so would you like to be rewarded for your customer service excellence?

Voting opens for the 2018 Awards on May 22nd. Here is how the process works…

1. How do I get nominated?

All you have to do is encourage a bride, groom or other client to go to your listing on our website, and click the “nominate” button. The biggest benefit of getting nominated is that you get the opportunity to ask your couples to write lovely comments in support of their votes. We know brides book businesses with lots of reviews as they love the “social proof” that you are popular, so the more votes and reviews you get, the greater the long term benefit. Please note that only businesses with standard, featured and spotlight listings can take part in the awards, but you can become an advertiser here.

2. What next?

You will receive an email from us confirming your nomination. It will contain a link to your listing on our website and a banner for you to use for social media, website and email marketing to encourage votes.

3. The Voting Process

Ask your clients to vote for you. All they need to do is go to your listing and click “vote”. We will ask them for their email address; this is to prevent repeat clicking of the vote button. They will have the option to leave an additional comment, telling us how you have excelled in your service, and this will be added to the reviews on your listing. Something that makes the Guide for Brides Customer Service Awards different is that the judging is based on what your customers say about you, not how many votes you get. To win your category it is quality not just quantity that really matters.

4. The Judging Process

Successful businesses will be shortlisted based on the of number of votes and supporting reviews. Finalists and winners will then be selected for each category based on analysis of comments. We will take into consideration all reviews left during the year, not just those left as part of the voting process. Our focus on qualitative judging means that the quality of customer service remains at the heart of our Awards.

Categories are as follows:

Audio Visual & Video
Beauty, Hair and Makeup
Bridal wear
Cakes
Cars & Horse Drawn carriages
Caterers, Catering Hire and Marquees
Celebrants & Toastmasters
Discos and DJs
Florists
Hen & Stag
Honeymoons and Overseas Weddings
Independent Wedding Planners
Jewellery
Menswear
Music
Photographers
Stationery
Venue Decorations
Venues – Barns
Venues – Exclusive Use
Venues – Stately Homes/Mansions
Venues – Hotels
Videography

5. The Announcement

Winners will be announced at an Awards Ceremony in March 2018, receiving a trophy and the title of “Winner of the Guides for Brides Customer Service Awards, 2018” for your category.

If you are shortlisted for the Guides for Brides Customer Service Awards, you can display your success on your advert listing to showcase your achievement. Badges will be provided for shortlisted businesses, finalists and winners.

_{2017 Awards Night at No. 4 Hamilton Place}

FAQs

Q. What is the judging criteria? Quality over quantity!

A. Great news for businesses of every size. Something that makes the Guide for Brides Customer Service Awards different is that the judging is based on what your customers say about you, not how many votes you get.

It’s always great to win, but the biggest benefit of getting nominated is that you get the opportunity to ask your couples to write lovely comments in support of their votes. We know brides book businesses with lots of reviews as they love the “social proof” that you are popular, so the more votes and reviews you get, the greater the long term benefit, but to win your category it is quality not just quantity that really matters, so get those votes and supporting comments rolling in and get your brides raving about you!

Q. If I win, what will I receive?

A. There will be 22 Awards in total, one for each category. Winners receive a prestigious trophy to display in their business. All winners, finalists and shortlisted businesses receive a framed certificate to display. Every business that has been nominated will benefit from the increased publicity and prestige of being recognised for their exceptional customer service. It is down to you how much benefit you receive, so shout about it on Twitter, Facebook and on your homepage.

Q. I have a small business and only do a limited number of weddings, so only have a small pool of customers to ask for votes. Will that affect my chances?

A. Shortlisting is done manually so that we are able to consider the type and size of the business. Smaller businesses may actually have an advantage as it is easier to maintain a great relationship with every customer.

Q. My brides have already reviewed me online. Will those comments be taken into consideration?

A. Any feedback left during 2017 will be taken in to consideration along with comments left during the voting process, and the brides who have given feedback will probably be very happy to vote for you now. They are welcome to leave additional feedback if they would like to, or can simply leave a vote.

Q. Can I contact brides from previous years to ask them to vote?

A. Once you have been nominated, anyone can vote for you to support the nomination; however, as these awards cover the service you have given brides during 2017, any comments must relate to weddings or follow up service you have given during that period.

Q. Can I see the comments that brides leave for me?

A. Yes. Since only businesses with a standard, featured and spotlight listing can take part, you will be able to see all of your reviews immediately after they have been left.

Q. Is there an awards ceremony?

A. Yes there is an Awards Ceremony (watch last year’s video here). Attendance to the event will in no way reflect the outcome of the winners.

Q. Who will be judging the awards?

A. For the 2018 Awards, we will be asking a panel of five people to judge our Awards. This will be a mixture of wedding industry experts and real brides. They will be asked to read every review left for shortlisted businesses and make a decision on their favourite based on the quality of those reviews.

If you’d like to take part in our Customer Service Awards 2018, get nominated and let your clients reward you for your excellence. If you have any questions regarding the awards, please email: info@guidesforbrides.co.uk