How to Submit an Entry

Marketplace Excellence Category Guidelines

Entries for the BBB International Torch Awards will be reviewed by an independent panel of judges. While the program welcomes entries for the Marketplace Excellence award from businesses throughout the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean, entries will only be accepted in English.

Judges for the Marketplace Excellence award may request additional information from the business regarding any of the four judging criteria. If the nominee has been the object of major lawsuits, including class action suits, or government actions in the past three years, information must be disclosed as part of the entry. Judges decisions are final.

Submission Instructions

Entries for the Marketplace Excellence award must include a completed entry form, a two-page summary (maximum), and materials corresponding to the four judging criteria.

Enteries must:

  • Explain why the business merits consideration for the Marketplace Excellence award
  • Highlight specific business and management practices relevant to the award (see judging criteria)
  • Illustrate the business’s commitment to standards that build trust in the marketplace
  • Explain the business’s position on integrity and standards of conduct in relationships with all stakeholders – including a formally adopted policy or mission statement

Entries may be submitted in electronic form on a CD (preferred option). Electronic documents on the CD may be Microsoft Word or PDF file types. Or entries can be submitted on 8.5” x 11” paper, with the total entry limited to a 2-inch, three-ring binder. Tabs must separate the binder into four sections corresponding to the judging criteria, and include materials (mission statement, policies, publications, news articles, advertising, customer testimonials, etc.) that speak to the business’s strengths regarding each of the criteria. Judges will not review video or Web-based products.

Nominees may enclose a self-addressed stamped postcard for use in acknowledgment of receipt of the firm’s entry.

Nominees should retain a copy of their entry. All entries become the property of CBBB and cannot be returned. A business advancing to the next stage of the competition may be required to forward up to five complete copies of the entry for the judges’ review.

A non-refundable fee of $100.00 is required. Payment can be made by check, money order (payable to CBBB) or credit card (Visa, MasterCard or American Express). Fees and entries may be sent to the Council of Better Business Bureaus, Attn: Sheila Adkins, 4200 Wilson Blvd, Ste. 800, Arlington, VA 22203-1838.

Businesses advancing to the next stage of the competition may be asked to provide contact information for customers, vendors, and suppliers whom the judges may contact about the firm’s entry.

Businesses may also be asked to allow judges to conduct a site visit. To determine that the business is meeting financial obligations, judges may obtain a Dun and Bradstreet report.

**Legal Actions: If your company has been involved in major lawsuits, class actions or government action in the past three years, please provide a summary of the nature of the legal/government action. Recent independent auditor reports may be submitted in place of a summary. For large-size or publicly-traded companies, copies of the two most recent Annual Reports will suffice.

2012 Awards

Deadline date to be determined.