2009 Utah Social Media Awards
The world’s first Social Media Club awards event was held in Utah on Nov. 6, 2009. The Social Media Club of Salt Lake City began efforts to present the Utah Social Media Awards earlier this spring. Those efforts culminated in presenting 20 Utah Social Media Awards to individuals and companies in Utah accomplishing great things in the social media space.
The Utah Social Media Awards, affectionately known as the USMAs (#usma on Twitter), recognized 18 people with awards for the best use of a particular new media platform and provided two overall awards, the People’s Choice and Best of Show Utah Social Media Awards.
“More than 140 people gathered at Noah’s in South Jordan for the awards networking, dinner, keynote address and program,” said Pete Codella, program director for the Social Media Club of Salt Lake City and chair of the Utah Social Media Awards. “We couldn’t be happier with the support we received and the outcome of the first annual Utah Social Media Awards. Congratulations to each and every recipient.”
Best of Show was awarded to XanGo for its “impressive online and social media presence, from Web sites to blogs and podcasts,” according to the USMA judges, comprised of members of the awards planning committee with help from the Social Media Club of Phoenix. XanGo also received an USMA for XanGo.tv for Best Video Blog.
The People’s Choice recipient received an impressive 15 percent of the overall vote. It was clearly a crowd favorite. Comments included: “Tons of new content — podcasts, stuff to read, recommendations, Tweet stream and tips,” “A crisp layout, great navigation, right column showcase of ads, links to iTunes feed, RSS, Twitter, etc.,” “This is the cream of this crop,” and “I absolutely love this site.” The People’s Choice USMA was awarded to The FredCast by David Bernstein.
Utah Social Media Awards recipients received a custom made acrylic trophy with the USMA logo etched into it, a printed certificate, an electronic Web banner to display online that they’re a 2009 Utah Social Media Award recipient, and a rose with the USMA logo printed on it courtesy of Speaking Roses.
The judges said XanGo has an impressive online and social media presence, from Web sites to blogs and podcasts. Even in their sponsorship of a Utah sports franchise they use YouTube in addition to traditional media to broadcast commercials. The judges did note this recipient’s apparent large budget and complimented them for producing beautiful Web sites, using video effectively and engaging with their audience through interactive content and on various social media platforms.
I was given the privilege to accept the award for XanGo. It was a great evening for myself and more importantly for XanGo. We’re doing great work there and this is only the beginning.
The Utah Social Media Awards were presented by the Social Media Club of Salt Lake City, with support from the Social Media Club of Utah Valley and Cache Valley, to recognize excellence in social media practitioners and practices throughout Utah. SMC of SLC plans to build upon the success of this year’s event when it presents the second annual Utah Social Media Awards in 2010.
