Will I Be A Small Business Influencer in 2012?

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Small Business Trends, headed by Anita Campbell and SmallBizTechnology, lead by Ramon Ray have teamed up once again to produce the Small Business Influencer Award.

The Awards are brought to you by Blackberry and this is the second year they will select the Top 100 Small Business Influencers from the U.S. and Canada.

“WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO BE A SMALL BUSINESS INFLUENCER?

A small business influencer is a person, app, company or other organization that has made a meaningful and lasting impact on the North American small business market. Impact may mean (i) providing products widely used by significant numbers of small businesses, or (ii) influencing significant numbers of small businesses by being a thought leader, or (iii) providing information or services of note to significant numbers of small businesses.”

I'm nominated in the category of Small Business Expert

I'm very pleased to be nominated for an Award this year in the category of Expert. I was nominated by Susan Payton, President of Egg Marketing,  but you don't have to wait for someone else to nominate you. You can nominate yourself as a Small Business Influencer and here are the six categories that you can choose from:

• Leaders (executives, academics, government officials, or key employees who are part of companies or other organizations serving the small business market)

• Corporations (companies that provide products and services to the small business market, and non-profit organizations, educational institutions, and advocacy and support organizations)

• Journalists (individual journalists, reporters, editors, broadcasters, bloggers, podcasters, freelance writers)

• News Outlets (media companies, newspapers, magazines, broadcasting companies)

• Apps (software applications, software as a service or SaaS, mobile apps, tablet apps)

• Experts (mavens, authors, speakers, consultants, advocates, professionals such as lawyers or CPAs)

I am super excited about being honored with a nomination and I'd like to encourage you to submit at least one nomination in each of these categories. Don't you think it's a great idea to give back to the people who have done so much for you and your business throughout the past year? You have until July 15th to submit your nomination after which time the community voting will begin. I'll be sure to remind you once the voting starts and you can also keep up with the news related to the Awards by following @SMBInfluencer on Twitter.

What you need to nominate a Small Business Influencer

Before you submit your nomination, you'll need to gather some vital information about the nominee. Here's a list of what you need:

  • Full name of the person, organization, app or company
  • Short bio or description (1,000 words or less)
  • Head-shot or logo
  • List of professional memberships if applicable
  • Reason for the nomination
  • Contribution to Small Business in the U.S. or Canada
  • Website, Twitter handle, Facebook Page/Profile and LinkedIn Profile
  • Email address of nominee and yourself
If you gather this information ahead of time, it will make the submission process go smoothly and there is even a spreadsheet that you can download which is very helpful as well. Show your support for small business by honoring the people and organizations that help us thrive on a daily basis. Be sure to tell all your friends about the Awards and don't forget to nominate your favorite Small Business Influencers today!