Trade suppliers are currently being rated by our travel agent audience, a process which ends on May 17.
TTG will then contact the eight top-rated suppliers in each category and invite them to complete an online submission by June 16, which will be assessed by a judging panel.
This year there will be at least two travel agents on every supplier category judging panel, drawn from our TTG Top 50 Travel Agencies 2017 list wherever possible. Here are hints and examples to help you write an outstanding supplier entry for 2017…
- There is no mystery to what we hope you’ll include. When you begin your online submission, you will find an extensive list of suggested inclusions that always impress judges.
- We believe evidence of financial stability and business is important, but we also appreciate that some companies are unable to share financial information, or simply do not have access to UK-specific figures. Consequently this year, wherever “the financial question” appears, we have reduced its weighting from 10 points to 5, so it plays a smaller part in overall scores.
- Judges might well check with Companies House to see if financial information is publicly available. Better to present those figures yourself with your own context than let them draw their own conclusions from the accounts.
- Testimonials from agents or other partners can be helpful but don’t swallow up your word count with feedback. A few brief highlights should do the trick.
- The focus is always on the last 12 months, so give dates so judges know this activity fell within the judging period (June 2016 to May 2017). Make it clear what was new or what you tried for the first time, remembering that judges are most impressed by true innovation – not simply catching up with what your competitors are already doing in this space.
- This year we are restricting what “supporting information” can be uploaded to only one PDF document and/or one video. But you should include all relevant information within the words of your submission itself. Uploading dozens of adverts and photos or generic corporate videos doesn’t tend to be helpful.
To give you an idea of what to include, we’ve compiled the best parts of a number of 2016 entries into a dummy entry.
See a supplier sample entry here
Travel company of the year
We have redesigned the mechanism for the Travel Company of the Year category, so it is decided entirely by agents. When agents complete their ratings form online, they are asked to nominate three companies (in no particular order) which they think most deserve to win Travel Company of the Year. The eight companies which win the most votes will form the shortlist. Those eight suppliers will then be invited to come and give a face-to-face presentation to a judging panel formed solely of travel agents (chaired by TTG) in July. There will be no charge to enter this category.
