Posted by Jon
A wander through one of London’s nicer areas after dinner with a friend recently took us past the window of a shoe shop. There, it proudly proclaimed its award-winning track record:
A wander through one of London’s nicer areas after dinner with a friend recently took us past the window of a shoe shop. There, it proudly proclaimed its award-winning track record:
“So what does that tell you about them?” I asked, interested to test a theory.
“That they’ve been really useless for the past couple of years,” my friend immediately replied.
There’s always a fine line when mentioning prestigious awards in a proposal. The fact that you were acclaimed “Company of the Year” this year means you’re at the top of your game, the very best in the industry. Why wouldn’t the buyers buy from you?
If it was the last calendar year’s prize then, hey, they might not yet have got round to holding the awards ceremony this year! But two or more years ago? There’s someone better than you out there whose been walking off with the silverware.
Even if you’re not the remaining champions, there can be certainly value in quoting a long list of successes that demonstrate a consistent level of excellence year-in, year-out. But if said list stumbles to an abrupt end three years ago, it feels to the potential customer as if you might be a little tired as a supplier, and that they might be better shopping elsewhere.
“That they’ve been really useless for the past couple of years,” my friend immediately replied.
There’s always a fine line when mentioning prestigious awards in a proposal. The fact that you were acclaimed “Company of the Year” this year means you’re at the top of your game, the very best in the industry. Why wouldn’t the buyers buy from you?
If it was the last calendar year’s prize then, hey, they might not yet have got round to holding the awards ceremony this year! But two or more years ago? There’s someone better than you out there whose been walking off with the silverware.
Even if you’re not the remaining champions, there can be certainly value in quoting a long list of successes that demonstrate a consistent level of excellence year-in, year-out. But if said list stumbles to an abrupt end three years ago, it feels to the potential customer as if you might be a little tired as a supplier, and that they might be better shopping elsewhere.
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