2023 CPAQ Awards

Judges are asked to determine how well the nomination addresses the questions asked and the award criteria (e.g. have all of the questions been answered, and has the appropriate additional information been provided).

Each question, or piece of information requested, will be allocated a score (maximum score included with the question). Judges will score the answer of each question out of that score and give the nomination a total score out of 10 - these scores will be added up (maximum 100 points) and used to the determine a winner.

Additional points may be allocated if the judges believe that the (short) length of time for the turnaround is exceptional (up to 5 points)

Questions for judging

1. Park Name

2. Date Park Purchased

3. About the business when you took over (worth up to 10 points)

4. What changes did you make? (worth up to 10 points)

5. What are the results? (worth up to 10 points)

6. What lessons did you learn through this process? (worth up to 10 points)

7. Is there anything else you would like the judges to know to assist them with the judging process? (worth up to 10 points)

Other information to be supplied

• Maximum of 10 before and after photos (worth up to 10 points)

• Maximum of 4 pieces of evidence of the improvement (worth up to 10 points)

• Maximum of 2 letters of reference (worth up to 10 points)

• Park logo - please supply as a JPG or PNG file (worth 5 points)

Please note, a nomination may be marked down if all of these items are not included.

With all nominations it is important that the judges can see clear empirical evidence of how the answer addresses the question, not just anecdotal evidence.  Empirical evidence makes it easy for a judge to justify their reasoning in terms of scoring each nomination.

About the business when you took over

Provide a short overview of the business when you took over.  This may include the appearance, financial performance, guest feedback about the park.

Consider what information you will be including in the results since you have made improvements to the business and include the starting point for each of these so that you can show a clear improvement.

What changes did you make?

Provide an overview of any improvements you have made to the park, whether appearance related or otherwise, and the reason these were the areas you paid attention to.

Consider including information on how you got staff buy-in with the changes and what steps you took to bring your guests and/or residents along for the journey.

What are the results?

Clearly show the improvement to the business. Focus on areas which can be measured and show the improvement. This may be a % increase or a pure number increase (e.g. a $ increase in turnover).

You may wish to visit www.parkbenefit.com.au to determine the increase in the economic contribution you have made to your local community.

Look at any improvement in customer ratings on review sites including, but not limited to, TripAdvisor, WikiCamps, Booking.com, ReviewPro as well as changes to the physical appearance of the park.  From a business perspective, review key metrics such as turnover, occupancy, and RevPAR and include appropriate examples of improvement in your submission.

What lessons did you learn through this process?

This is a chance to share any learnings which other park operators could learn from.  This may be in relation to the purchase process, the transition or anything else which you wish you had known before you started.

Anything else you would like the judges to know

Is there anything else you would like the judges to know to assist them with the judging process?

It is important in any awards application to give as much information as possible and take every opportunity to showcase the achievements of the nominated team. Use this question to provide additional information, this may be why you are proud of the turnaround, the impact it has had on the local community, what winning the award would mean to you or something else you feel is important for the judges to know.

Other information to be supplied

It is important that you include each of the items requested in the other information supplied section, this is a chance to get some easy points and in the past has been the difference between the winning nomination and the nomination that came second.

Maximum of 10 before and after photos

Provide clear photos which show the changes around your business.  Ensure that it is clear which photos are the before photos and which are the after photos.  It is important that the judges can tell which before photos match which after photos so clearly name your files.

If you wish to submit large files (or a video) please contact the CPAQ Team and we will supply you with an online folder you can upload the images into.

Maximum of 4 pieces of evidence of the improvement

This is an opportunity to provide evidence of the improvement in your business.  You may wish to include extracts of guest feedback, ReviewPro reports, occupancy or revenue reports for your park

This information should tie into the results you outline in question 5 (What are the results?).

Maximum of 2 letters of reference

Consider speaking to your local council, tourism organisation, accountant or any other individual or body who may be willing to write you a letter of reference showing the turnaround in your business.