Two weeks ago, I told you I was working on something special. Today, I am honored and excited to tell you that I won the 2020 Davis Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year award. I’d like to share the speech I was working on with you because there is a special message in it for all of you as we weathered all the ups and downs the past year had to offer. It’s in video format, but there’s also a transcript below. As I mentioned in my speech, THANK YOU for all the ways you showed up to serve this year, despite the obstacles we faced.
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TRANSCRIPT
– [Sam] And now for our main event, there are so many businesses, so many citizens within the community that go above and beyond to support other businesses and our community as a whole. And tonight, we’re going to honor just a few of the great ones that are out there who have been nominated for their contributions in 2020 and beyond. So, the first award that we would like to present in the 2020 Business of the Year Award, the Chamber awards this honor to recognize businesses that exemplify qualities of excellence, service innovation and creativity in our community. And we are pleased to announce that this award recipient is Marketing Simplified. And Vanessa, first of all congratulations. And second of all, are there a few things that you would like to say?
– [Vanessa] All right, I believe I am off mute. Can everybody hear me?
– [Sam] Yes, you’re good to go.
– [Vanessa] All right, wonderful. Well, thank you very, very much. I’m so incredibly honored and thankful to get this award during a year where none of us knew what the future would hold. So thank you again very much.
I’m truly honored. It’s almost unbelievable to imagine that a year ago today, Yolo County issued its first shelter-in-place order. And if we all take a moment to think back, I mean, what did we really think the future held?
I was positive that by last May we’d be free to go carry on life as usual. I mean, that was back in the times where we hugged friends, and Zoom was how toddlers talked about the sound a car makes. I mean last year, how many hands did we shake, how many people did we hug, and how wild does that seem now? We were partying like it was 2019, January 2020, a long time ago.
Now it’s really hard for me at least to believe that the idea of hugging a friend fills me with both longing and fear. I can’t believe I thought this would be over by last May. And all of the businesses here have had just an incredibly crazy year. Last year when things were much different, I was standing in front of you as Member of the Year, largely because of my services to small businesses through my learning and coaching programs. I told you then, and it’s still true now, that it’s my passion that every business, no matter its size has the ability to tell its stories and use the most sophisticated marketing tools to get their message out to the world. Naturally, when the shelter-in-place order was issued, I was deeply worried about all the small businesses I cared so much about. So, I did something I’d never done before.
Apart from my one-on-one clients, I took all my paywalls down. I gave out all the intellectual property that I’d paid thousands of dollars in legal fees to protect to businesses who needed it. I spent hours upon hours advising folks over the phone or on Zoom at no charge. And each time I empowered a business to find a strategy, or flip to an online format, I felt victorious. I measured my success by the passion in my heart and the amount of businesses I could in some way help to stay open.
And then something magic happened. I had my best year ever in business. It’s hard for me to even say that to you because I kind of had survivor’s guilt, but here’s what I found. The power of giving in our community is such a force. I’ll tell you I was not the only one giving freely when stay-at-home orders hit.
Restaurants who were already hurting so much donated to the food bank. Parents who were busy trying to facilitate remote learning, childcare, and everything in between, worked twice as hard in their businesses to keep them afloat and serve others. Service clubs, like my Rotary club, re-imagined fundraisers to remote formats and donated to the community and across the globe more than ever.
I can’t tell you how grateful I am for the restaurants who fought to stay open so that all of us could take a break from making dinner when so many demands were put upon us. I can’t tell you how grateful I am for the banks, financial advisors, businesses and accountants who advised us through this crisis. I can’t tell you how grateful I am to the governmental agencies, associations and nonprofits who came up with loan programs. I can’t tell you how grateful I am to people like Joe DiNunzio and the Chamber of Commerce here for pivoting to an online format and continuing to provide support. All of these people I’ve just described are heroes. And trust me, there’s so many more. But I thought a few representative examples would be enough to make my point because I’m trying to make it in the time limit.
Again, as we all worked to get through this last year, none of us put ourselves first, we put the community first, and this is why this community and this Chamber of Commerce is so amazing. No one taught us how to make it through this. Our nearest case study was 102 years ago and things have changed just a bit since then. We all made this up as we went. It was so much bigger than ourselves and our five-year plans that we let it all go and stepped forward in the most productive and giving ways we could. For most of us that came back, or will come back, maybe not in linear ways, but I don’t think there’s a single one of us who can’t find a small pandemic victory or silver lining.
So, I firmly believe from the bottom of my heart that tonight this award I’m getting is for all of us. Last year I talked a lot about your stories. I said that no one else has your gifts, services, talents or brand. That’s why I love what I do so much. All day, every day, I get to tell your unique story for you. I get to make sure the world knows exactly what you and only you have to offer. So, thank you for fighting so hard to keep your gifts in our community. And to those who fought hard but ultimately had to close, I truly can’t wait to see your next chapter. Because your talents, gifts, brands and ideas are still there waiting to be rediscovered.
Last year, I thanked my husband who is with Ella and Jack entertaining them right now. And my family for supporting my big idea of starting my own business over five years ago. I thanked my mom for all the hours she babysat while I built my business. I thanked my small but mighty team. I thanked my clients for trusting me, and my students for believing in my products. And all those thank yous still stand this year, but there’s more.
First, I would like to thank our healthcare heroes and those who worked on the front lines for us all year. You literally put your own wellbeing after ours, and I’m so grateful. Second, I would like to thank my amazing kids Ella and Jack, who at just six and four years old also had to endure the immense stress of this year. They were so patient when I said, “Mommy just has one more email, honey.”
Finally, we learn a lot about ourselves and each other when our comforts are stripped away. My computer’s been a lot of places this year. It’s had laundry all over it. It’s had kids trying to Zoom from it. And my Zoom filters, they’ve never turned me into a cat, but I have had my kids freshly showered running across my screen butt-naked. That was a moment where Jay was on duty and we slipped a little bit, but it all turned out okay. We all have these stories. We’ve all worked around the clock and juggled it all. And we all kept faith in one another and allowed us to serve one another, however imperfect we showed up.
As things started looking up, we all started earning more because we remembered those who helped us, and we gave back to them in the form of our trust in business. That is who we are, and for that, I also thank you so much. Again, I am truly honored and share this award with you. I am happy for all of us for what we’ve walked through together. As we hopefully emerge from this pandemic, and go back to some semblance of precedented times, let’s not forget to take these silver linings with us. Let’s remain the giving, imperfect, tenacious and loving people that make this community so special. Thank you again.
– [Sam] Vanessa, thank you. Very well said and congratulations. Well done.
