Last week I got quite a thrill!  Our company, DoctorDave Computer Repair, won the Best of Lawrence contest.  From the pictures people took of me there, I was pretty excited.  Here’s me in the more calm state.

Many people were surprised I was excited.  After all, I was opposed to the contest last year.  Things change, most notably the Journal-World is no longer locally owned.  I wrote about my meeting with them.  Since they addressed the privacy and business concerns, it was now a fun contest to be a part of.

I still don’t like using the term “voted” or “chosen.”  This wasn’t a scientific poll or election.  It was a contest. It’s more like being picked the King of Prom rather than Student Council president (I was neither in school).  People were allowed to put in an entry each day, so that’s hardly a vote.  Also, according to the Journal-World, 25% of votes were from outside of Lawrence.

It’s still fun though!  

Truly, I’m humbled by the time people took to fill out entries so that way I won the contest.  Sure, it’s a bit of bragging rights.  Does that mean we’re better than everyone else?  No.  Does it mean we’re the most liked?  Maybe.  We have the most dedicated fans, and that’s what really excites me!

Regardless of a company’s placement on the list, it’s an honor to be nominated.  When you pick “Best of Lawrence” they don’t let you mark “second best.”   I’m pleased that throughout the contest it was small, local businesses that placed well.  That means people see the value of choosing to do business with a company that is part of the community, instead of just working here. National chains are great and they employ local people and pay taxes just like locally-owned businesses.  The difference with small business is we have more of a stake in the local community.  If a location in a chain doesn’t do well, they just close the location. They don’t have to work with the community they leave behind.

I’m also excited that participants didn’t see computer repair as a commodity item, they see it as a valuable service to have an opinion on. They could have skipped the category (I skipped a bunch), but they didn’t.

That’s the real winner here,  three years running people in Lawrence are fans of computer repair.  Considering they need to vote on the computer, it’s probably an important service to have an opinion on.

Thank you again for voting us Best of Lawrence!