Greg Simpson, founder of Press for Attention PR, discusses awards and taking advantage of them even if you lose.
As the World Cup is now over (certainly by the time you read this) and with apologies to the greatest manager that the England football team never had, I thought I might provide a little update on the awards I was up for recently.
Which awards you may well ask (if you are not paying attention at the back).
They were the Enterprise Nation Awards, created to “celebrate the best and brightest advisers from across the UK and Ireland, whose support and expertise has shaped some of the most successful small businesses.”
They invited small business owners from across the UK to nominate their favourite advisers across 10 categories and by the end of November, I got a little note to say I’d made the final. The NATIONAL final.
Spoiler alert…I DIDN’T win!
Now why would I tell you that? Why would I “admit” that I lost? Because I know that there will be plenty of people reading this that would have hidden this “failure.” That’s how a lot of people see awards. It is a risk/reward question to some. Some won’t even blog about making a final or a shortlist ahead of the big event in case people “find out we didn’t win.”
Take a look at The East Midlands Bricks Awards this year. I was a judge of one of the categories so I always take a close interest in what the entrants get up to pre and post awards. Being harsh, most of them don’t get up to a lot! Why? Fear of failure? Lack of confidence? Lack of resource? All of the above?
NEWSFLASH
Most people don’t follow your every move and also…you made the final! Take a look at my case. There are thousands of PR consultants out there in the UK and I made the top 5. In the country. Does that mean there are people better than me? Yep. Does it mean I’m better than most? Yep!
On the way to the final, I posted on social media, blogged and ran webinars mentioning the fact that I was in the final. Do you think that some of that might have been noticed? You betcha.
I’m “confessing” to my failure here right now. More awareness of my loss. Am I a masochist? No, I’m a marketer. Often mistaken!
Now, will SOME people go “oh well, Greg’s only in the Top 5 in the UK, probably not worth speaking to.” Well, SOME might. In fact, you might (boo hiss!). Or, you and many more people might think “I’ve been meaning to speak to him” or “our PR is pants, this guy must be half decent.” So loathe as I am to say that it is the taking part that counts, sometimes, it is. So long as you do something with it.
Yours inconsolably better than most,
Top 5 PR consultant in the UK.
A former business journalist, Greg Simpson is the author of The Small Business Guide to PR and has been recognised as one of the UK’s top 5 PR consultants, having set up Press for Attention PR in 2008.
He has worked for FTSE 100 firms, charities and start-ups and conducted press conferences with Sir Richard Branson and James Caan. His background ensures a deep understanding of every facet of a successful PR campaign – from a journalist’s, client’s, and consultant’s perspective.
See this piece in the January issue of East Midlands Business Link Magazine here.
