Before we close up shop a few days to spend time with our families, I wanted to say Happy Holidays to our friends, followers, alumni, and honorees.
This is the time of year when we find those quiet moments to think about the past twelve months. 2010 has been an amazing year for the Mom’s Choice Awards® … and that is in no small part due to your belief in our mission.
Every day we are inspired by the gifts you share with us. It is not easy to step out of your comfort zone, and you have done it in an attempt to create something that positively impacts others around them. Thank you for all you do to share your gift with others and to support our work to strengthen families.
Celebrating 2010
“This is a very exciting time for all of us at the Mom’s Choice Awards®. We are just a few weeks into the new year – a new decade! – and I am so excited about these programs and the opportunities that await us.”
I said that in a series of posts in January 2010 … who knew I could see into the future? It has been an amazing year. We currently have 500 judges in 12 countries (USA, Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, Ireland, France, Israel, United Arab Emirates, Norway and Colombia), and our logo has been translated into Spanish and French.
Our transition to an open awards cycle is probably the most visible evolution of the Mom’s Choice brand. Our 8-to-12-week turnaround is unheard of in the industry … we’re the first and only program to do it! We continue to receive and evaluate products just as they are reaching the marketplace. We give mom’s access to analysis that won’t be available anywhere else.
We are so thrilled to have Disney and Pampers establish licenses with us. In stores the Mom’s Choice Awards® emblem is on the product packaging for Baby Einstein products. We also made our television debut in an ad with Pampers. Seeing our Mother-Child emblem on television that first time (and every time since) is such a thrill.
We have taken some big technology leaps this year, too. Behind the scenes, our team has been working all year long to make the entry and evaluation processes more efficient. We are close to launching a sophisticated program that will match entries to judges using an automated protocol. It is a sophisticated model that makes the best match based on various criteria — everything from their views on faith, whether or not the audience assists in the judging, the last time we sent an item, and on and on.
We also launched YES! for young authors, illustrators, producers, inventors, and entrepreneurs. YES! [which stands for Youth Endowment Services] provides financial assistance to youth interested in entering our awards program. This year we saw a slight increase in the number of youth entries, and we hope this continues to grow.
Our social networking presence continues to grow as well. This year we shined a spotlight on 28 honorees and added a From the Mailbox feature for the blog. Just this month we retooled the blog to make it easier to read and navigate. Beyond the blog, we’ve expanded our offerings on the Moms Choice Channel on YouTube; and we’ve built additional discussion groups on our Facebook Page and in LinkedIn.
Ringing in 2011
We’ll launch our new entry-matching program. I have always been excited about this project, but now that it’s almost here, I am getting very anxious to get it going. The new system will allow us to expand our reach — both in the number of judges and number of countries — in the coming year.
Entro®, our online magalog [a hybrid publication which blends product information and editorial features], will now be produced twice a year. Look for issues in January 2011 and July 2011. Each issue features stories about our alumni and a full catalog of award-winning, family-friendly products and services.
Earlier this year we launched the Mom’s Choice Academy and we are already planning for 2011. We will continue to sponsor Jenny Finke’s popular So I Won an Award … Now What? webinar, but on a more regular schedule. There will be more offerings in the year ahead … including a number of free, introductory webinars.
We also have a number of projects still in the developmental phase that aren’t ready for prime time quite yet.
In this season of gratitude and reflection, your Mom’s Choice Awards® team is honored to celebrate your creative spirit and help you reach those who can benefit from your gift. We are grateful for your enthusiasm and humbled by your passion for helping help us grow as individuals and become better sisters, mothers, and mentors.
Happy Holidays to you and your family,