2009 Better Business Bureau Torch Awards
The Better Business Bureau recognizes local companies for commitment to ethical business practices in the marketplace. The Torch Award is presented annually to a respected and ethical business in our region.
Please Contact Cache Valrey at (209) 320-6030 for additional information.
How to Enter
Companies may nominate themselves or they may be nominated by employees and/or customers.
The Award winners are not announced until the day of the luncheon.
The size categories are: 1-10 employees 11-50 employees 51 + employees
Make sure entry is thorough. Keep criteria sections consistent in size. Keep it balanced throughout and keep it professional yet simple. You do not need to use elaborate colors and graphics, but there are some rules & guidelines to follow: You may also use a highlighter for emphasis on criteria sections.
Assembling Your Submission Book:
You must put together an entry book to submit. The book must be in 3-ring binder no larger than a 2” spine. The executive summary must be specific - keep in mind if you were the judge and had never heard of the company and did not know what they did, give a complete explanation. Also include what you think is good about your company and why your employees like to work for you. What benefits do you provide for them? Employees may write letters explaining why they love working for the company, etc. Do not let summary section exceed 2 pages. A ½ page to 1 full page is best. Back up this information with a mission statement from your company. Use page protectors for each page, and use the backside of the page to save space.
It is very important to label each page at the top so the judges know immediately what they are looking at, you don’t want them to have to search to find things in the book, everything must be in order.
It is a good idea to put a cover page on the outside of the binder, get the kind of binder that has a plastic cover you can slip a page into as a cover. Keep the graphics light, don’t use too many colors, keep it neat and concise. Put the name of company at top and say something to the effect of: BBB Torch Award Nominee, etc. Maybe place a picture or drawing in the middle (then and now pictures are a good idea) and at the bottom, a brief description of what the company does or is known for. Example: Escondido Toyota, No. 1 Toyota Dealer in Escondido, CA, etc.
Pictures and text only are allowed in the entry submission book.
Make sure everything in is the correct criteria section. Ask someone who knows you but doesn’t know much about your business to look at the final product and have them look at it to see if they can follow it easily.
Ask employees if they have any ideas to contribute to this process.
Make a copy of your entire submission book. The BBB keeps the original. If you win an award, you will get an automatic entry for the International Torch Awards for the next year.
You may ask customers or employees if they would like to write compliment letters about the company for you to include in your book. Letters do not have to be current, they can be from when the company first started, this shows consistency. Include 2-3 old letters, and 3-5 new letters. You may also include printed out compliment emails and ‘thank you for your business’ cards/notes that you send out to customers. If you use thank you cards and thank you letters from customers, keep your original and make clear copies of them for submission book.
You may include a completed customer surveys along with any compliment letters, etc.
In all criteria sections, make the first page and the last page ‘WOW’ pages, to really make an impression on the judges.
When you put in your ad copies, put a couple examples in, use only the best ones.
It’s a good idea to use your company logo on most of the pages at least on a background page.
If you are a restaurant owner: For the employee count: 2 part-time employees count for 1 full-time employee in this type of business.
Completing the Entry Application:
Address every criteria listed, if some do not apply, advise as to why not. You may say something to the effect of, “Our company does….in lieu of…..” always make it a positive explanation of why that doesn’t apply, do not leave anything unanswered. The application may be neatly hand-written or typed.
Judging:
The judges are non-members with no affiliation with the Better Business Bureau. They are usually from other businesses within the community and appointed by our CEO and Board of Directors.
Scoring is 0 – 10 points per criteria.
After the ceremony:
If you did not win a Torch Award, you still have the submission book put together so you can alter and improve for future entries. We would be happy to go over your scores with you. You have already completed the hardest part and you can prepare a stronger submission for next year. This process may give you some insight of areas you may need to work on for your business, etc.
2009 Torch Awards Entry Form