BEST OF SVG, best of our people : Show some love

Today, February 14, being Valentine’s Day, will kick off what is expected to be a weekend where people are inclined and encouraged to “show some love”. In its own creative way, Interactive Media Limited (IML), the publisher of the popular SEARCHLIGHT newspaper, will be doing just that when on the evening of Sunday 16th, it will be staging its third Best of SVG (People’s Choice) Awards ceremony at the SVG Community College Auditorium.

The initiative began in 2017 and was repeated the following year. However such was the response from the public that for logistical reasons, including accurate computing of voting responses, it was decided to hold the ceremony biennially instead. This year the online voting has been for winners in 115 categories covering a wide range of entrepreneurial and social skills.

The categories, with sub-sets, include Food and Dining with awards for the popular choices for Best Farmer, Best Butcher, Best Fish Vendor and Best waitress among those from whom the public has chosen; Groups and Organizations (Community, Dance, Drama, Schools and even the category Best Place to worship); and Home and Business Services, including IT services.

The growing popularity of the Best of SVG awards can be judged by the fact that a total of 176,332 votes were cast by almost 15,000 persons for this year’s awards. This is not SEARCHLIGHT giving awards to persons of its own choice but the public indicating by voting those businesses, organisations and individuals which it considers to be providing outstanding services. The voters themselves have a chance to be rewarded with those who voted in 25 categories being entitled

to be part of a draw to win a $1000 prize.

It fits perfectly with the idea behind the awards – expressing recognition, appreciation and encouragement of that much-needed quality, EXCELLENCE. Naturally, each year since the inception of the Best of SVG Awards, there has been public feedback about the exclusion of this or that category. There are already some nationally established processes such as the national sporting awards and Fisherman’s Day ceremony, but IML has been responsive to concerns expressed and tried to be more inclusive, spreading the net wider each year.

What has emerged has been a win-win situation. The aim has been to give businesses a boost, by being able to legitimately claim that their services have been chosen by popular voting as the “Best in SVG’. They can now use that as part of their own advertisement and branding. It has proven to be a means of growing their businesses and popularizing their work and community service. We have had numerous testimonials since 2017 from top nominees and winners about how such exposure has attracted new business for them.

This is precisely what we had hoped for, and represents another aspect of our contribution to national development. IML sees its role as not just another media house, but one devoted to promoting national development, spurring our people to greater heights in the pursuit of excellence in service and production. It is a role we are happy to champion and we encourage all our readers to come out to the ceremony on Sunday evening with the red carpet being rolled out for the top nominees from 6 p.m.