Case Study: Chicago Innovative Awards – A Robust, Online Voting Platform
Client: Chicago Innovation Awards (CIA)
Industry: Tech & Career Building Startup
Solution: Build a robust, secure online nomination & voting platform
Background and Initial Development
Doejo was approached by the Chicago Innovation Awards in 2009. The CIA, a prestigious annual event recognizing Chicago’s most innovative companies, sought a fresh, modern approach to their nomination and voting processes.
Tom Kuczmarski, founder of CIA, turned to Doejo for a complete overhaul of their online presence and award system. The goal was to create an intuitive, user-friendly voting platform that would streamline nominations, judging, and voting, making the process accessible to thousands of participants. At the heart of this transformation was a custom content management system (CMS) tailored to CIA’s needs.
Doejo’s Key Contributions
Brand Refresh: Doejo reinvigorated CIA’s brand to reflect its commitment to Chicago’s innovation ecosystem. The new design emphasized the awards’ importance in fostering local business growth, honoring companies ranging from startups like Groupon to established players like Abbott Laboratories.
Web Development: Doejo built a robust online nomination platform with an integrated judging system. The interface allowed nominators, judges, and voters to seamlessly navigate through hundreds of submissions, ensuring a smooth experience for all parties.
Introduction of the People’s Choice Award: Doejo innovated the CIA program by creating the “People’s Choice Award,” giving Chicagoans the opportunity to vote for their favorite local innovation.
Growth and Expansion
The platform’s launch marked a record year for the CIA. More than 11,000 votes were cast for the first-ever People’s Choice Award, with about 40,000 visitors and 250,000 page views on the award site.
Key results from Doejo’s contributions:
- Improved Efficiency: The new nomination and voting system significantly reduced administrative burden, saving CIA both time and funding.
- Engagement Boost: The introduction of a public voting category spurred community engagement, raising awareness of CIA and its mission to honor Chicago’s brightest innovators.
- Award-Winning Year: The People’s Choice Award in 2009 was a standout success, with Abbott Laboratories taking home the honor alongside startups such as Groupon and Everyblock winning other categories.
Current Status
Today, the Chicago Innovation Awards continues to thrive, with the People’s Choice Award becoming an integral part of the program. The platform created by Doejo laid the foundation for an evolving and dynamic system that remains critical to the awards process.
The impact of Doejo’s work extended beyond just the CIA. Tom Kuczmarski, impressed by Doejo’s work, enlisted the agency to redesign his management consulting firm’s website as well, showcasing their expertise across different industries.
Conclusion
Doejo’s partnership with the Chicago Innovation Awards reflects its deep understanding of brand evolution and digital transformation. The development of an online voting platform not only revolutionized the CIA’s process but also solidified Doejo’s role as a leader in supporting Chicago’s most innovative businesses.
For more information about the Chicago Innovation Awards and their current offerings, you can visit their official website.
