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It’s been a little more than a month since we celebrated the 2023 Contractor of the Year Awards with our fabulous Gala event. And now it’s time to start prepping for next year’s awards submission cycle! Yes, really.
There are a few things you should be doing now to make sure you’re ready to go when the awards submission window opens (hint: it’s in about 4 months!).
1.Get the Picture. Photos are a huge part of Contractor of the Year (CotY) award submissions – it’s the only way the judges can “see” the work you’ve done! You need “before” and “after” photos, and if you didn’t snap photos before you started a job you’re considering submitting, now is the time to reach out to the homeowner to see what they have that they can share. And, you still have time to head back to a finished job and take some “after” photos if need be.
2. Maximize Your Impact. There’s no limit to how many projects you can submit and in how many categories. Got an amazing project that encompasses a few different rooms? Submit it to the interior, bath, interior element and basement categories, for example! It’s one submission, but you just quadrupled your chances to bring home some hardware.
3. Grab a Partner. Did you work with an amazing fellow NARI of Greater Chicagoland member designer, vendor or supplier on a project? You can include them in the submission so you both get the glory. Start reviewing those projects that have the NARI Chicago touch on them to be ready to submit.
4. Campaign for Vendor of the Year. There’s some stiff competition for the Vendor of the Year award with incumbent Cosentino. Take a page from their playbook though and get involved in chapter events and business to make your mark. Sponsor upcoming events – we’ve got Design Night on May 18, our Summer Social, Remodeling Education Expo and Annual Meeting still to come!, introduce new businesses to apply for membership and support the chapter on social media by sharing and engaging with posts on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.
5. Start early. You can start laying out your submission even before the window opens with our customizable submission template. Start dropping in photos and adding project overviews, challenges and details while they’re fresh in your mind. You can come back to it when you have free time to finesse and update as needed, so you aren’t trying to cram in everything at the last minute.
Stay tuned to our social media channels and website for announcements about next year’s CotY Awards. Meanwhile, we hope to see you at an upcoming event – don’t forget the inaugural Design Night is taking place on Thursday, May 18 at our Vendor of the Year Cosentino City Chicago!