Entries for the UK Xero Awards 2024 at the moment are open for our accounting, bookkeeping and app companions.
Being an award-winning agency isn’t straightforward, and neither is writing an award-winning entry. So how will you put your finest foot ahead when crafting your award submission? In season certainly one of Past Numbers – our new podcast for accountants and bookkeepers – we spoke to Pam Phillips, founder and managing director of award-winning small agency de Jong Phillips, who shared her recommendation on not simply being an award-winning agency, however learn how to pull collectively an award-winning utility.
Why enter the Xero Awards?
Since founding de Jong Phillips along with her father in 2015, Pam and her group have turn out to be specialists of their area by focusing their efforts on offering subsequent stage accountancy companies for artistic companies.
De Jong Phillips was a finalist for Small Agency of the 12 months on the Xero Awards in 2021, and got here again once more in 2022 to win the identical class. Pam additionally took house certainly one of Xero’s highest accolades – Most Priceless Skilled (MVP).
When requested the way it felt to be recognised by the trade by these awards, Pam explains:
“It was thrilling to get acknowledged and actually reassuring – it gave me consolation that we had been on the correct path and that different folks believed in us.”
This was particularly vital for Pam, whose apply makes use of Xero and a bunch of different apps from the Xero app retailer to ship the complete suite of companies one would count on from an in-house finance perform.
The popularity of the awards assist to draw expertise and win purchasers, however Pam additionally highlighted the significance of the award entry course of and the chance it gave her and her group to essentially look again at what they’d achieved and enhance upon it additional.
“Deal with why you’re completely different and why you need to win. It helps to spotlight all of the stuff you need to have the ability to say, however can’t say but – and this helps to set an agenda for the following 12 months.”
The way to write a very good awards entry
Crafting a powerful awards entry takes time. Pam emphasised the significance of permitting a few weeks, from begin to end, to put money into the awards utility.
“Collect all of the proof throughout the group, determine what message you need to give, after which it’s important to write it in a manner that matches [the word limit] – positively don’t attempt to do it in a day!”
In terms of writing the entry, Pam says it ought to be a group effort. She additionally believes the founder or administrators ought to be concerned, to allow them to convey their imaginative and prescient and fervour in an genuine manner.
“For previous awards, we brainstormed as a group, and thought of what it’s that we’ve completed and need to shout about,” Pam explains. “Contain entrepreneurs as nicely – you could be performing some nice stuff, so by having somebody that may write your entry and current it in an enticing manner goes to assist make the entry not solely extra readable, however extra memorable.”
If at first you don’t succeed, attempt once more
Regardless of being the recipient of quite a lot of awards, there have been instances when de Jong Phillips have entered, however not taken house an award. Nevertheless, Pam takes a glass half-full strategy and sees it as a studying expertise.
“I believe it was the primary Xero Award we entered. We couldn’t put any statistics down and I bear in mind studying concerning the winner, and the winners had pointed to their NPS rating – we didn’t even point out Internet Promoter Scores (NPS)! This was not simply good for our award entry, however good for our enterprise – you possibly can at all times be taught from this stuff and make your enterprise higher,” says Pam.
Recommendation for corporations seeking to enter the awards
When requested what recommendation she would give to corporations seeking to enter into an awards programme, Pam highlights 5 key factors:
- Preserve attempting. Even in the event you’ve not been profitable in a single, it doesn’t imply you received’t achieve success in one other. Your online business – and standards – will change.
- Info and figures are an vital element of your award entry. Think about leveraging knowledge factors similar to NPS, advertising outcomes and the agency’s development.
- Testimonials from purchasers or employees can help what you’re saying – so it’s not simply in your individual phrases.
- Honesty is vital. You need to have the ability to authentically speak concerning the work you’ve completed, particularly in the event you win.
- Have readability and confidence about what it’s that you simply do in another way. Actually consider in what you’re doing, talk it and take the time to put in writing the applying.
Pam provides: “I used to be a decide on the Accounting Excellence Awards one 12 months, so I learn a load of functions. And those that stood out had been those that would actually speak about what they had been doing that was completely different.”
Get your entries in
Entries for the 2024 UK Xero Awards at the moment are open and can shut on Friday tenth November. Begin getting ready your utility right this moment. Finalists will probably be introduced just about in February, and winners will probably be introduced in April. Dates and particulars to return.
