Awards systems are a great way to incentivise staff and encourage the development of community initiatives

The Coronation provides a fantastic opportunity to link into a momentous national event by organising some special awards in your business or locality.

All it takes is a little time and preparation. Decide on your target market – your staff or your potential customers and devise a simple scheme. Perhaps asking for nominations for someone who has made a difference this winter or recognising levels of customer care?

You could give it extra Coronation impact by choosing a related theme. It could be focus on aspects of the Coronation or the King’s interests in conservation and heritage by linking with a relevant local charity or community group.

Gloucestershire pizza makers, CasaGees, have done exactly that – and it is gaining them considerable publicity. They have launched an awards scheme called Takeway2Giveaway as a way of marking the Coronation. Over the Coronation weekend, they plan to donate half their profits from weekend pizza delivery sales to a charity or good cause located within a four mile radius of their business.

Members of the local community are requested to nominate projects that they feel need extra support. It could be a local charity, a sports team or a community group. CasaGees will shortlist 3 projects out of these nominations. People will have to vote for one of these. The project with the most votes will receive the donation within one week of the coronation.

It’s a simple idea but effective and can be set up within days.

One of the big advantages in running an awards system is that it attracts goodwill and makes people feel good. Whatever the scheme, it can create a fantastic promotional activity for the business at every stage of the process. Even just sending out regular social media posts will attract attention. Why not hire an eyecatching character mascot? If your scheme has a conservation theme, you could think about an animal, flower or tree. Such characters definitely attract attention – the British Asparagus Festival has its own Gus the Asparagus Man dressed up as a stick of asparagus! Add in a few stunts with the aid of promotional staff and the publicity potential can easily go viral.

For larger schemes involving several recipients, you can even give it extra prominence by creating a memorable red carpet event complete with comperes and renting a crowd to cheer on the participants.