DEALER OF THE YEAR NOMINEES ANNOUNCED Longlist unveiled today by Service Dealer Editor, Steve Gibbs
November is almost upon us, bringing with it once again a couple of very important dates for dealers' diaries.
First up is the IOG's Saltex show at the NEC on the 1st and 2nd. In the latest issue of Service Dealer magazine, which has hit the presses this week, we have a preview of the event which has well established itself now as an indoors show.
There will be plenty of new machinery on show making a trip to Birmingham well worth the time of specialist dealers. And if you are planning on attending, do come over and say hi to the Service Dealer team who'll be on Stand M030.
Not only will be great to meet as many of our readers as possible at Saltex, there is another opportunity to do just that coming up shortly after the exhibition with the Service Dealer Conference & Awards taking place on Thursday November 16th. The venue is once again the Oxford Belfrey Hotel and the Conference title this year is ‘The Challenge of Change: Embracing & Adapting to a Changing Market.’
The day's talks, breakouts, and interactive sessions will all aim to strike a hopeful and positive tone. There's been too much doom and gloom lately. The conference intends for dealers to experience a day full of great insight, packed full of valuable nuggets that they can take back to their dealerships and put to practical use.
Some dealers will of course be taking home something else from the day as well - a Dealer Of The Year title! And it's our pleasure today to unveil the longlist of dealers nominated across the core categories of Garden, Professional Turfcare, Farm Machinery, Forestry Equipment, and ATV/Quad.
Like last year the nominations for the dealerships in the running for an award, have come from both suppliers putting their most valued dealers forward, as well as dealers entering their own businesses.
The assessment process has principally been achieved via feedback from the most important people to a dealer's business - their customers.
An expert panel now has the unenviable task of assessing all the feedback which has been received in from customers up and down the UK. As well as the masses of customer comments, the judging panel will also consider the feedback from manufacturers and suppliers, taking into consideration any awards they may have bestowed on their dealers during this past year.
How dealers present themselves to their customers will also be taken very seriously, with websites and social media presences considered. Testimonials from customers from sources such as Google Reviews and Yelp, as well as those included on dealers’ own sites, will also be taken into consideration.
The nominated dealers listed below will be whittled down to a shortlist of three finalists per-category and then the winner announced 'Oscars-style' on the evening of the Awards ceremony on November 16th
Also being announced on the night will be awards for individual dealership team members - The Star of the Dealership and The Apprentice of the Year. Service Dealer will also be presenting a Lifetime Achievement Award.
So without further ado, many congratulations and good luck to the all the nominated dealers who are listed below purely alphabetically, across all categories -
