It’s Not the Oscars But…

EAG Advertising & Marketing Reviews the Kansas City Business Award Scene

Oscars, Golden Globes, Emmys – step aside. It’s award season and Kansas City’s business awards are in full swing. With bated-breath we eagerly await the upcoming Oscars, as well as our local Addys, Phillys and Fountain Awards. For some award festivities, we’ll cozy up on the couch with a bowl of popcorn. For others, we’ll don our snappiest party dress and black tie, cross our fingers and hope our name gets called.

Here are just a few of the annual Kansas City award contests we are familiar with at EAG Advertising & Marketing. Some we’ve not only won, but remain intimately involved with as host and sponsor. Other Kansas City business awards tease us to enter each year knowing full-well that we won’t win (yet). Other industry award shows beckon us to submit entries, each year testing our worthiness as creative talents. (See the full award show list below.)

Should your business enter industry award contents? Consider the positives.

Five Benefits of Participating in Kansas City Award and Recognition Programs

1. Pat yourself on the back

Other than an occasional paycheck, business owners seldom win praise and recognition. More times than not, a business owner’s appearance in the newspaper is not a good thing. Want to finally earn some praise, recognition and appreciation for your 60-hour work week? Enter an award or recognition contest.

2. Any PR is good PR

Well, not really. In fact we often counsel clients to carefully consider each and every public relations strategy both long- and short-term. However, the public relations that accompany a Top 10 selection are seldom a bad thing. Just be sure that the organization touting your business as “Best of” is one with which you want to be associated. You probably don’t want to be the winner of “Best Business” by an ex-convict.

3. Find your next employee

Want to be popular? Win the lottery. The moment you win the lottery everyone from your past will rediscover you. The same is true when you win an award. Long-lost relationships will bloom again during your brief period of popularity. But instead of Cousin Fred trying to borrow money, you will become a rich target for hungry job seekers. If you’re hiring – this is a good thing.

4. Find your next customer

Believe it or not, deals do get made at award shows, dinners and networking events. Mostly the deals get made among the winners, not the followers. Once you become part of the inner circle of award winners, relationships deepen. There’s no better example of this than Women Who Mean Business in Kansas City. This Who’s Who of women business leaders are so connected they even travel together to Mexico each year to unwind and reflect. Think business gets done in Mexico? You bet it does.

5. Be the best of the best

If you were looking for an accountant or better yet, a heart surgeon – wouldn’t you want to hire the best one possible? By winning industry recognition you gain instant credibility. Becoming the Best of (fill-in-the-blank) should pay dividends in all aspects of your business including recruiting and new business development.

Get Your Party Dress and Black Tie Ready

Here are just some of the upcoming Kansas City business awards for 2014. There are many more specific to industries and cities. See one we’ve missed? Let us know.

25 Under 25® Presented by Thinking Bigger Business Media

We think 25 Under 25® is the cat’s meow of business award shows in Kansas City. As a winner in 2007 and a long-time sponsor, we are a proud participant and believer that small business really does drive the Kansas City economy. And they know how to party. These twenty-five winning businesses possess the brains to conceptualize a sound company vision, the guts necessary to overcome obstacles, a solid financial backbone, and heart through their community involvement. Each of these individual parts meld to give rise to Kansas City’s best-in-class small businesses. (Their words, not ours – but we believe.)

Kansas City Chamber of Commerce Small Business Celebration

Also known as the Mr. K Award named for Ewing Kauffman, Founder of Marion Labs and the Kauffman Foundation, the Small Business Celebration has become a staple event for the Greater Kansas City Chamber and Kansas City small business. This event is a seven month slate of activities and promotions to celebrate the regional small business sector and recognize the area’s top small businesses. The celebration culminates with an awards luncheon where the Top 10 Small Businesses are recognized and the Small Business of the Year is awarded the annual Mr. K Award.

American Advertising Awards – Addys

Presented by the American Advertising Federation of Kansas City, the Addys represent the true spirit of creative excellence by recognizing all forms of advertising from media of all types, creative by all sizes and entrants of all levels from anywhere in the world. Kansas City’s version of the American Advertising Awards has historically been one of the largest advertising award shows in the country. The Addys were recently held at Kansas City’s Midland Theatre.

Business Marketing Association – Fountain Awards

Presented by the Business Marketing Association of Kansas City, the Fountain Awards recognizes the best in Business-to-Business marketing and advertising. From print advertising to business identity to the best integrated multi-media campaign to public relations to channel support to all forms of digital marketing, and of course the Best of Show and much more, the Fountain Awards celebrate the very best in B2B. This year’s Fountain Awards are just around the corner, March 24, 2014 at Boulevard Brewery. EAG is a winner of many Fountain Awards over the years and hopes to be a recipient again in 2014.

Kansas City Direct Marketing Association – AMBIT Awards

Also just around the corner on March 14, and also at Boulevard Brewery is the 2014 edition of the Ambit Awards presented by the Direct Marketing Association of Kansas City. The KCDMA is one of the nation’s largest and most active direct marketing associations. KCDMA provides ongoing education and networking for anyone involved in direct marketing. The AMBITS should be a great event.

Women Who Mean Business Presented by the Kansas City Business Journal

The Kansas City Business Journal names 25 area women executives and entrepreneurs who make up the class of Kansas City Women Who Mean Business each year. The program, now in its 14th year, recognizes and helps link the area’s leading businesswomen. To be eligible for the honor, applicants have to be engaged in for-profit business and be an entrepreneur, a top-ranking corporate woman in the Kansas City region, a partner leading a practice group or serve on an executive committee. EAG is proud to have many Mean Women (our affectionate term) clients on our roster.

And so many more…

Philly Awards Presented by Nonprofit Connect
EAG has won several Philly Awards for our work with area organizations including Sertoma International and the Park Hill School District.

Best Places to Work Presented by Ingram’s Magazine
EAG won this title in the Small Business category in 2010 and 2013.

Kansas City Top Businesses Presented by KC Business Magazine (Anthem Media)
EAG won this title in 2013 in the Small Business category.

Best Places to Work Presented by the Kansas City Business Journal
EAG made this list in 2010.