True Local Business Awards Head Office
142-154 Macquarie Street
Parramatta NSW 2150
P: 02 9689 5155
F: 02 9689 5434
E: info@ truelocalbusinessawards.com.au
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What is the 2008 True Local Business Awards and who are the organisers?
Cumberland Courier Newspapers is New South Wales' largest and leading publisher of community newspapers, publishing over 19 titles across Sydney, the Central Coast and Lake Macquarie.
Distributed to over 1.9* million households, and read by almost 2 million people every week, we are the largest suburban newspaper group in New South Wales and the most read community newspaper group in Australia.
Our mission is to produce quality community newspapers that are the voice for our readers, the first choice for advertisers and best reflect the attitudes and aspirations of their communities.
The True Local Business Awards program is a representation of the unique relationship that community newspapers have with their readers, local businesses and the community.
Source: Roy Morgan Research September 2007 (excluding commuter titles)
What areas do the True Local Business Awards program cover?
In its 15th consecutive year, the True Local Business Awards program (formerly known as the Business Achiever Awards) will run across 19 different regions in New South Wales. The launch of the program will be featured in each of our 19 Newspapers listed below:
Blacktown Advocate
Canterbury-Bankstown Express
Macarthur Chronicle
Central Coast Express Advocate
The Glebe
Mount Druitt – St Marys Standard
Fairfield Advance
Wentworth Courier
Hills Shire Times
Hornsby Advocate
Inner-West Weekly
Liverpool Leader
The Manly Daily
The Mosman Daily
North Shore Times
Northern Districts Times
Parramatta Advertiser
Penrith Press
Rouse Hill Times
Wentworth Courier
How many categories are there?
Awards are given across a range of categories with the most prestigious award being The Local Business of the Year. Each region will present awards for most of the following categories:
1. Motor Services
2. Café/ Coffee Shop
3. Casual Dining/takeaway
4. Formal Dining
5. Fresh Food
6. Delicatessen/ Gourmet Food
7. Fashion - Accessories
8. Fashion - Clothing
9. Florist
10. Home & Garden Retail
11. Trades & Services
12. Real Estate
13. Beauty Services
14. Hairdressers
15. Fitness/ Sport
16. Community Service/ Not for Profit Organisation
17. Health Services
18. Pharmacy
19. Hotel/ Clubs/ Entertainment Venue
20. Readers Choice
21. New Business
22. Apprentice of the Year
23. Employee Excellence
24. Community Contribution of the Year
25. Local Business of the Year
* Some regions will present awards for additional categories.
Each winner will receive the following:
Who can be nominated in the True Local Business Awards?
The True Local Business Awards is open to all local businesses in a given community region. This includes small to medium sized businesses, franchises and sole traders.
Anyone! Nominations for businesses can be lodged by using the coupon found in your local paper or by nominating online at this website.
The voting period varies for each region. Your local paper will launch your community 2008 True Local Business Awards starting in April (more information will be available closer to the date)
Are entry forms kept confidential?
All information provided to Cumberland Courier Newspapers adheres to the Privacy Agreement at the bottom of the nomination forms and online. If you do not wish to receive information from Cumberland Courier Newspapers or any of its affiliates please read the information carefully.
The Judging Process consists of three stages. Initial category nominations are made by local readers using either the coupon in their local paper or by completing an online nomination on this website. Based on the nomination results, the top six finalists from each category will be asked to complete a business questionnaire. The questionnaires will then be reviewed by a panel of reputable judges. All six finalists will also be independently audited by A.C. Nielsen, conducted using a Mystery Shopper to assess each business based upon their customer service, product quality and presentation. Results from the business questionnaire and the Mystery Shopper Report are of equal weighting and will be combined to determine final scores and a winner for each category.
The judging panel will comprise of industry professionals including a member of the Department of State & Regional Development.
When will the awards night take place?
Each region will host an awards night. Dates will be available closer to the date.
What will it cost to attend the awards night?
To be eligible to win, finalists must purchase a ticket and attend the Awards Dinner, or, if you personally cannot attend, you must nominate a representative to accept on your behalf. Costs and details about the awards night will be available closer to the event. Your local Cumberland Courier Newspaper will notify you as soon as this information is available.
I'm a finalist. How do I purchase tickets to the awards presentation dinners?
Tickets can be purchased in a number of ways.
