Voting Archives - Best of SLC

2021 Best of SLC Ballots Are In

bestofnetwork on May 13, 2021

Ballots for the 2021 Best of SLC Awards are in, and you folks knocked it out of the park. Both the number of votes and the number of unique voters appear to be records for the whole state!

The businesses and attractions that were up for voting in their respective categories were nominated by Salt Lake residents in March. Those that received enough nominations earned their spots on the ballot.

Tens of thousands of votes were cast to show support for businesses and attractions in our community. We were overwhelmed with the enthusiastic response and can’t wait to share the finalists of each category.

What Happens Now

We want the Best of SLC Awards to be as fair as possible, so our team is working hard to calculate the results and verify the findings. We use a scoring system that relies on a combination of votes from Salt Lake area residents and reviews from Google.

Count Votes

Who had the most votes? Most business awards are prone to spamming, duplicate votes, or cheating. Best of SLC only counts unique votes for each category, and we use text message verification for each ballot. While technology makes counting easy, we still need to verify the results.

BBB Review

The Best of SLC has partnered with the Better Business Bureau to certify our finalists. The top vote-getters must also have a passing grade with the BBB in order to become a finalist. Their rating system utilizes a grading scale just like you used in school, going from an A+ down to an F, graded on 17 different factors. This rating represents a business’s overall trustworthiness and their good-faith efforts to address customer concerns.

Count Reviews

The Best of SLC isn’t like most “Best of” contests, which simply count votes. We realize that the community has already been showing their support for the “best” by leaving reviews all year long, so we’re going to count every 5-star review published on Google within the last 12 months.

Calculate Score

While votes and reviews signify great work in the last year, overall ratings tell us how nominees have done long term. The mean rating from these platforms will be used in conjunction with 5-star reviews and votes to determine the winners.

Number of Votes + (Number of 5-star Reviews x Average Rating) = Score

Announce Finalists

The top nominees of each category will be publicly announced next week once we’ve verified our results. Finalists will also be notified by letter and email as soon as possible.

Announce Winners

Winners will be announced at the Best of SLC Awards Banquet* on June 15th-16th, 2021. Finalists will be invited to purchase tickets for the celebration. The banquet includes a red carpet entrance, a fancy dinner, photos, and other special prizes and opportunities.

*Banquet details might change because of COVID and all of that.

Thank You

We’re grateful to everyone for the support and participation in this year’s Best of SLC Awards. It’s been a lot of fun, and we’re already looking forward to next year’s contest!

2021 Best of SLC Voting is Now Open

bestofnetwork on April 26, 2021

The Best of SLC™ is back for another year to recognize the best businesses in the community. The awards include over 200 individual categories, and uses a combination of 5-star reviews, online ratings, and community votes to determine the winners of each respective category.

Our nominees were selected by Salt Lake County residents in March, and the top ten of each category are moving on to the voting round. Voting takes place online from April 26th, 2021 through May 12th, 2021. Anyone with an SLC area zip code and mobile phone can vote.

When voters register their ballots, a confirmation code will be sent via text message. Enter the code to finalize and submit your votes.

While you can only vote once for each category, feel free to come back during the voting period to support your favorites in the dozens of other categories available.

Don’t Miss the Hump Day Giveaway!

We’re continuing our popular Hump Day Giveaway during the voting period. For every new voter you refer after registering your ballot, you’ll be entered into a weekly drawing for a nice prize. We’ve got a new prize every week while voting is open, and they are fantastic.

Details about the Hump Day Giveaway are available on the voting page.

When Will We Know the Results?

After voting closes on May 12th, we’ll announce the finalists (the top 3 in each category) as soon as we have confirmed the votes and vetted our list with the BBB. But that’s not where it ends!

In addition to votes, the winner of each category is also determined by their online reviews from Google. Overall ratings and the number of 5-star reviews from the previous 12 months are counted. Our team will take a little time to confirm the review scores for each finalist and tally that with the vote total.

Once the final scores have been determined, we’ll announce the winners at the Best of SLC™ Awards Banquet first before publishing them online. The banquet is slated for two nights on June 15th-16th, though we’ll keep you updated in case anything changes.
For more details about the 2021 Best of SLC™, see our awards details page.

2020 Best of SLC Ballots Are In!

bestofnetwork on April 25, 2020

Ballots for the 2020 Best of SLC^TM are in, and it looks to be a phenomenal success. The businesses and attractions that were up for voting in their respective categories were nominated by Salt Lake residents in March and April. Those that received enough nominations earned their spots on the ballot.

What Happens Now

We want the Best of SLC^TM Awards to be as fair as possible, so our team is working hard to calculate the results and verify the findings. We use a scoring system that relies on a combination of votes and reviews from Google and Yelp.

Count Ballots

Who had the most votes? Other contests are prone to spamming, duplicate votes, or cheating. Best of SLC^TM only counts unique votes for each category. This year we stepped up our game by using text message verification for each ballot. While technology makes counting easy, we still need to verify the results.

Check with the BBB

The Best of SLC^TM has partnered with the Better Business Bureau to certify our finalists. The top vote-getters must also not have a negative grade with the BBB in order to become a finalist (no rating is still okay). Their rating system utilizes a grading scale just like you used in school, going from an A+ down to an F, graded on 17 different factors. This rating represents a business’s overall trustworthiness and their good-faith efforts to address customer concerns.

Count Reviews

The Best of SLC^TM isn’t like most “Best of” contests, which simply count votes. We realize that the community has already been showing their support for the “best” by leaving reviews all year long, so we’re going to count every 5-star review published on Google and Yelp within the last 12 months.

*Events of the last 2 months have meant that many reviews left haven’t yet been posted to Google. We won’t lock in the results until we’re sure that every review has been counted.

Calculate Score

While votes and reviews signify great work in the last year, overall ratings on Google and Yelp tell us how nominees have done long term. The mean rating from these platforms will be used in conjunction with 5-star reviews and votes to determine the winners.

Number of Votes + Number of 5-star Reviews + Average Rating = Score

Announce Finalists

The top nominees of each category will be publicly announced next week once we’ve verified our results. Finalists will also be notified by letter and email as soon as possible.

Announce Winners

Winners will be announced at the Best of SLC^TM Awards Banquet on June 4th, 2020*. Finalists will be invited to purchase tickets for the celebration. The banquet includes a red carpet entrance, a fancy dinner, photos, and other special prizes and opportunities.

*Banquet date is subject to change due to recent events

Thank You

We’re grateful to everyone for the support and participation in this year’s Best of SLC^TM awards. It’s been a lot of fun, and we’re already looking forward to next year’s contest!

2020 Best of SLC Keeps on Rollin’

bestofnetwork on April 3, 2020

Voting for the 2020 Best of SLC^TM opened on March 16th, and the results have been fantastic. Tens of thousands of votes have poured in, confirming the Best of SLC^TM as the most popular business awards in the state.

But you ain’t seen nothin’, yet.

It seems no amount of votes can satiate our contest overlord (pictured above), so for this and other reasons we are extending the voting period through April 24th, 2020.

Voting Ends April 24th, 2020

It’s been a tough few weeks for just about everyone. Social distancing has obviously resulted in some sudden changes to the state of business in Salt Lake, as everyone takes measures to limit the spread of It Which Must Not Be Named.

But nothing is stopping community residents from voicing their opinions, something that can easily be done from the comfort of home. We’ve already got a ton of momentum, so please keep the votes and reviews coming. Our local businesses need your support now more than ever!

Mark Your Calendars for June 4th, 2020

You know what sounds great after a month or two of sheltering in place? Getting out of the house for a fun night of gourmet food, entertainment, and awards. The Best of SLC^TM Awards Banquet is THE event where we’ll announce the winners of this year’s competition.

The banquet is to be held June 4th, 2020, so get the mothballs out of those penguin suits and pull those glittery dresses out of the closet.

Hump Day Giveaway

New for 2020, we have been doing a weekly contest we’re calling the Hump Day Giveaway. For every new voter you refer after registering your own ballot (through the on-page link), you’ll be entered into a drawing for a great prize!

Already voted? That’s fine — while your vote only counts once for each category, you’re welcome to come back and vote for any of the dozens of other categories.

Our Hump Day Giveaway Winners Thus Far…

Snider Bros. Meats generously donated a tasty meat bundle worth $218.85! The prize includes their Four of a Kind Package (6 lbs each of top sirloin steak, pork chops, boneless chicken breast, and lean ground beef), aprons, and a full selection of sauces and rubs. This incredible package was won by Natalie N.

Robyn C. of West Valley City was the lucky winner of a Premier Couples Massage Package (valued at $218), compliments of Spavia.

The Stern Team provided a $250 gift card to Ruth’s Chris Steak House, which was won by Casey E. This is the same restaurant that won both Best Fine Dining and Best Steak in last year’s Best of SLC^TM Awards.

Stephanie D. was the big winner of a HydraFacial + Botox package from Utah Facial Plastics, last year’s Best of SLC in Plastic Surgery.

We have a fantastic prize coming every week until voting ends. So, let’s continue the momentum and recognize the best companies and places that SLC has to offer!

The Ballots for Best of SLC™ Voting Are In!

bestofnetwork on April 4, 2019

Salt Lake, you did it! Just moments before this published, polls for 2019 Best of SLC™ voting were closed. It looks like this contest was a huge success!

We were positively stunned by the great response from our community. Well over 100,000 votes were cast by local residents over the last month for their favorite businesses and attractions in SLC.

What Happens Now?

We want the Best of SLC™ to be as fair as possible, so our team is working hard to calculate the results and verify the findings. The Best of SLC™ uses a scoring system that relies on a combination of votes, online ratings, and online reviews from sites like Google and Yelp.

Votes + 5-star Reviews + Review Rating = Final Score

Our mathematicians are hard at work determining the winners!

Counting Votes (← we are here)

Technology makes counting easy, but we are working hard to verify the results. Other contests allow for vote spamming, daily voting, or just make fraudulent votes a cakewalk. For optimal results, the Best of SLC™ only counts unique votes for each category and uses both software and keen minds to protect the integrity of our contest.

Counting Reviews

As much as we would like to pat ourselves on the back for collecting over 100,000 votes, we realize the community has been showing their support the SLC’s best by leaving reviews all year long, so we’re going to count those too! Every published 5-star review on sites like Google and Yelp within the last 12 months will count towards the final score of each business.

Calculating Ratings

Overall ratings on review platforms give customers an idea of how a nominee has been doing long-term, at a glance. The mean rating for each nominee is used in conjunction with 5-star reviews to determine a review rating, which is then added to the overall score.

Best of SLC™ Finalists – Coming Soon!

The top 3 of each category will be publicly announced next week once we’ve verified the results of voting. Finalists will also be notified by letter and email as soon as possible.

We’re grateful to everyone for the support and participation in Best of SLC™ voting. It’s been a lot of fun, and we’re already looking forward to next year’s contest!

And We’re Off!

bestofnetwork on March 12, 2019

Best of SLC Voting Open Through April 4th, 2019

We’re glad we ponied up for those extra servers, because Salt Lake County residents have been blowing up the ballots for the Best of SLC contest. Voting began at 6am, March 11th, and we received over 33,000 votes on the first day and a half! If you haven’t voted yet, don’t worry. You can still vote online through April 4th, 2019.

The Best of SLC contest aims to recognize the best businesses and attractions in the community. There are 179 individual categories up for voting. Anyone with a valid email address and an SLC zip code can vote, but you can only cast your vote once for each category (we check for that sort of thing).

The nominees were selected by the community in January and February. After reviewing thousands of admissions, only the top ten nominees in each category moved on to the voting round.

Remember that we count votes and reviews to determine the winners. Learn more about how the Best of SLC contest works on this site. To help your favorite business win, share the link to vote with friends and family on social media and review them on Google, Yelp, and Facebook.

Finally, if your company was nominated, it’s not too late to claim your nomination.

The Best of SLC™ finalists will be announced in early April.