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Hong Kong ranks 10th in the world for its export services, and the Export Marketing Award recognises excellence achieved by businesses in this area.

Export services refer to anything other than tangible goods; these could be financial and information technology services, professional services, entertainment or even infrastructure development.

The award, organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), aims to enhance the importance of export marketing and public knowledge of its role in the economy.

'Participating in this award is great for a company's marketing because the winner gets to display the award logo in all its promotional material for a year,' says Rachel Chan Ka-yee, HKTDC director of services promotion.

'Each applicant also receives a free assessment by a professional consultancy, which critiques its marketing plan and strategy.'

The award organiser helps to promote the winners.

Ms Chan stresses the importance for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) of a comprehensive, pro-active exporting marketing strategy.

'We are looking for a company's level of market research, its marketing strategy, its export sales performance, the organisation's vision and its human resources function,' she says.

Last year's grand winner, Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals (HACTL), had a clear vision of Hong Kong as a regional logistics and transportation hub and gateway to China, and tailored its policies accordingly. HACTL responded swiftly to market changes and provided one-stop services for its clients, Ms Chan says.

About 20 applications were received in the export marketing category last year. Ms Chan says the HKTDC would like to encourage more participation from the services sector, 'especially from areas not traditionally represented in the awards'.

'We have had many applications from the transport and logistics industry, but we would like to see more from IT [information and technology] and telecoms, entertainment, and even companies involved in infrastructure development,' she says.

The Hong Kong Tourism Board, organiser for the Tourism Services Award, is seeking greater awareness of the importance of tourism for the city's economic wellbeing.

The Tourism Board wishes to acknowledge and reward companies that maintain high standards of service and support Hong Kong and its development as a major travel destination.

It also hopes to encourage SMEs to take part in the awards to raise public awareness of the sector's contribution to Hong Kong's tourism industry.

Lastly, the awards will help raise the standard of services provided to visitors in Hong Kong.

Tourism Services was the most popular category last year, receiving 71 entries.

The Productivity Award seeks to encourage, promote and recognise organisations that continually improve their service productivity while enhancing sustainable growth and global competitiveness.

The award organiser is the Hong Kong Productivity Council.

One benefit of taking part in this category is that shortlisted companies receive an assessment from the judging panel. This gives them an opportunity to benchmark themselves against their competitors.

A three-stage judging process begins with a preliminary screening followed by a more detailed assessment. Shortlisted companies then go through a final judging process.



Winners accrue benefits beyond the prize