Caesar, Washington and … Kelly?

Caesar, Washington and … Kelly?

When Caesar led his legions into Gaul, he needed only to point his finger before his men built a 1,200-foot bridge across the Rhine, complete with guard towers and all. And when George Washington rescued Boston from British troops, 60 tons of armament were dragged across 300 miles of winter mountains and rivers to be sneakily placed atop Dorchester Heights. And when Braden and Liz Price chose a remote cabin for their wedding venue, Kelly Christensen turned their big vision into reality overnight.

If you’d seen it beforehand, you would have thought there was no way the location would work for a dream wedding. While it is a darling little cabin, it’s in the middle of nowhere (past Morgan), there’s no power or cell service, and it’s hard to access. We’re not talking about a small wedding, either; the setup covered several acres of land.

Value of Experience

SLC cateringThink about how much packing you’d have to do just to take your family camping there! It wasn’t even my wedding, and I’m already feeling stressed about figuring out how to get the tables, chairs, and a hundred other things out there. So many things could go wrong!

Most of us don’t have experience with this scale of logistical operation, and that’s why you don’t want your wedding day to be your first attempt at figuring it out — it’s why you hire guys like Kelly Christensen.

Liz and Braden’s wedding was not Kelly’s first rodeo. Kelly and Caley Christensen cofounded Caley’s Catering & Events 25 years ago. Catering is simply where their full-service, one-stop shop begins; they can and will take great care of nearly any aspect of your wedding (or other big event) so that you can focus on the fun parts like decorations, or simply just sit back and enjoy the big day. Seriously, they’ve got it.

We’ve Got Golf Carts, People!

Kelly’s little legion brought an entire venue to a blank slate in the middle of nowhere. The team expertly handled everything from food, tables, and chairs to lights, sound, and decorations. They even brought golf carts to help folks move across the large site in their nice clothes. I wouldn’t have even thought to ask about golf carts!

Caley’s Catering took what might have been a chaotic, stressful nightmare and turned it into a fairy tale. Braden and Liz got the wedding they envisioned, and family and guests enjoyed the event because Caley’s staff took care of nearly everything.

5-Star Customer Service

best catererAfter they were named a finalist in our Best Catering category last year, we hired Caley’s Catering and Events for our Best of SLC banquets. But even the best sometimes encounter obstacles that are outside of their control. While the Price wedding went off without a hitch, Caley’s had trouble getting the liquor license for our banquet in time, no thanks to COVID.

“But wait,” you say. “I was there and remember that the booze was flowing just fine!” That’s because Kelly wanted all of you to have a great time and gave it away for free (you can’t sell it without a license, but you can give it away!). If that isn’t a reflection of Caley’s culture, I don’t know what is.

Things don’t always go perfectly. When the unexpected happens, you can always count on Kelly and Caley to see you through it. And if you’re looking for incredible food service and nearly anything else for your big event, look no further than the logistical geniuses of Caley’s Catering and Events.

It’s More Than Just a Car; It’s Your Car

We all customize our appearance and clothing. And even if your home’s exterior happens to appear identical to those around it, it’s a reflection of your family on the inside. If you take a moment to consider everything around you at this very moment, how much of it is personalized to some degree?

To keep it fair, I’ll go first: I have a high-speed customized computer with fancy lights, cables, and liquid cooling. The desk I’m working on is a Frankenstein assembly of features I added, some functional, some aesthetic. Wall decor, devices, cell phone cases, computer backgrounds, color schemes, backpacks, and furniture — all began as default products that I made mine with modifications that improved function or appealed to my liking.

Customization makes us feel unique in a sea of sameness. We are not all the same, and we don’t have the exact same needs, preferences, or desires. When people think of you, you are unique.

Why should your car be any different?

America has long had a love affair with the automobile. And as with virtually every other product in our lives, modern consumers look for the ability to customize their ride. That’s what Auto Trim Design of Utah, the 2021 Best of SLC winner for “Best Auto Customization,” has been doing since they opened in 1976.

auto customizationOwner Curtis Nielson explained the ongoing trend in aftermarket vehicle upgrades: “More people are choosing to enhance the everyday car” with the benefits and features that make it better for them.

Ways to Enhance the Everyday Car
Custom Leather Interiors — Leather is a game changer. It’s easy to clean, and custom leather makes you feel like a total badass in your car. The more refined auto driver can even add seat coolers or heaters to enhance comfort.

Paint Protection — ClearMask is a durable, clear film that is self-healing and very resilient against rock chips and scratches. You may not be able to see the ClearMask, but you know it’s protecting your ride.

Window Tint — Window tinting is one of the most popular aftermarket add-ons for cars, as it not only keeps people from seeing inside your vehicle but also protects passengers from harmful UV rays and heat.
“Every Job Is Different”
Curtis explained that when you work in custom auto, it’s fun because “every job is different.” He loves the way people react when they leave with their new custom upgrades. It gives him a reason to keep improving; it’s his purpose when he starts the day.

To many, a car is not just four wheels and an engine. If you can park it and walk away without turning to look back at it one more time, then your car hasn’t been to Auto Trim Design of Utah.

2021 Best of SLC Awards Banquet

That’s a wrap for Best of SLC of 2021! It was a tough road, but fortunately we were able to cap off this year’s awards with a great event to announce the winners. But first let’s take a quick refresher to see how we got here.

How Best of SLC Winners are Determined

Stage One – Nominations to Determine Which Businesses are on the Ballot
The 2021 season kicked off with a nomination period in March. Every single business on the ballot got there because it was nominated by Salt Lake area residents during this period. As most categories have dozens, hundreds, or even thousands of potential contestants, only those 10 businesses with the most nominations moved on to the voting round for each category.

Stage Two – Voting to Determine Finalists
After a short breather to verify our nominees, voting took place from April 26–May 12, 2021. To obtain the most reliable results, participants were restricted to one vote per category and used text message verification to register their ballots. The top vote-getters progressed to stage three as bona fide finalists.

Stage Three – Reviews and Reputation to Determine Winners
As we say, “Votes make you a finalist, and reviews will make you a winner!” Scoring isn’t complete with just votes. We do a little math involving your reviews from the previous 12 months, which (simplified) looks like this:

Votes + (Number of 5-Star Reviews x Overall Rating) = Score
*Votes and reviews are averaged for multi-location businesses

We also verify that each finalist is in good standing with the Better Business Bureau. Although the grade is not part of the final calculation, you cannot have a grade lower than a B. Not having a grade is okay, but a bad one is not.

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How to Capitalize on Your Best of SLC Recognition

All levels of winners receive digital resources that can be used to promote your new status and show off to your audience, building consumer confidence in your brand. We also have a few other tools that you can utilize for promotion.

2021 Best of SLC Plaque

 

 

Best of SLC Plaques
Proudly display your Best of SLC award with a high-quality 8″x10″ engraved plaque!

2021 Best of SLC Magazine

 

Best of SLC Magazine
Designed to be a coffee table type of publication that residents and businesses will hold on to and use as a reference guide, the magazine will give you and your company positive exposure throughout 2021.

Best of SLC Banquet Recognition

We think you folks deserve a big party to celebrate your success, especially since we didn’t get to have one last year! Our best in the business bash took place June 15th and 16th at the Garden Place of This is the Place Heritage Park (we split the categories over two nights).
Those in attendance were looking mighty fine, and pictures from the event will be available for download very soon, compliments of our back-to-back winner for Best Photographer, Laura Kinser of Kinser Studios. Great job, Laura!

A delicious dinner service was provided by Caley’s Catering and Events. We were very impressed with this crew, led by owner Kelly “Pops” Christensen. They were fast, efficient, and very polite — we can’t recommend them enough.

Britta Clark of the Better Business Bureau and Brodie Tyler (founder of Best of SLC) started things off as important business people talking about important business things.

The banquet wasn’t all business, however. Our hosts for both evenings were comedians Austin Von Johnson and Mollie Harmison. They kicked things off with some improv comedy, and kept things light as we presented awards throughout the evening.

I’d like to extend a special thank you to Stephen Holloway, owner of Ace Audio and Visual Services, for helping us with lighting and sound.

We thank all of you for your incredible support, particularly our sponsors, without whom this event would not have happened.

Vincent Team OrthodonticsLegacy Roofing

Coil Law

Bustos Real EstatePenny Anns Cafe 10 yrsExpressions Dance

Stubbs Dental

The Best of SLC Awards Banquet is Right Around the Corner

Awards Banquet Tickets

At this time we are 100% SOLD OUT of tickets for each of our awards banquets next week. If you still want tickets, contact us here to be put on a waiting list in case of a cancellation by another attendee.

If you already bought tickets, a single ticket for your entire group will be emailed to the address on record for the purchase. Expect this group ticket to arrive on Monday. (Also, please arrive as an entire group to avoid slowing down the line to enter.)

Announcing the Winners

We are only announcing the results for categories being represented by finalists in attendance at the banquets.

However, if you bought tickets for another finalist in a different category, let us know right away so we can be sure to announce their category as well.

By the end of next week we will announce the results for all categories on our site.

Door Prizes

We made a call out for door prize donations and you guys came through like we couldn’t have anticipated! We received more than we could handle and for that, we thank you. Here’s just a handful of the prizes we’re giving away at next week’s banquets:

  • Fun & Unique Gift Baskets
  • Martial Arts Uniform + Month of Lessons
  • $100 Visa Gift Cards
  • The Secret Garden Tickets @ Hale Centre Theatre
  • Yoga & Circuit Training Passes
  • Two Hours of Onsite Interior Design & Space Planning

Personalized Engraved Plaques

2021 Best of SLC PlaqueA lot of you have already ordered your plaques. Kudos for thinking ahead!

After the plaque order deadline on Friday, June 25, we will send the order to the manufacturer as a single batch. You should expect your plaques to be delivered in mid-July.

Haven’t ordered yet? Plaques will be personalized with your company name, category, and either Top 3 or Winner, depending on the final results. Just be sure to order by the 25th!

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2021 Best of SLC Ballots Are In

 

Ballots for the 2021 Best of SLC Awards are in, and you folks knocked it out of the park. Both the number of votes and the number of unique voters appear to be records for the whole state!

The businesses and attractions that were up for voting in their respective categories were nominated by Salt Lake residents in March. Those that received enough nominations earned their spots on the ballot.

Tens of thousands of votes were cast to show support for businesses and attractions in our community. We were overwhelmed with the enthusiastic response and can’t wait to share the finalists of each category.

What Happens Now

We want the Best of SLC Awards to be as fair as possible, so our team is working hard to calculate the results and verify the findings. We use a scoring system that relies on a combination of votes from Salt Lake area residents and reviews from Google.

Count Votes

Who had the most votes? Most business awards are prone to spamming, duplicate votes, or cheating. Best of SLC only counts unique votes for each category, and we use text message verification for each ballot. While technology makes counting easy, we still need to verify the results.

BBB Review

The Best of SLC has partnered with the Better Business Bureau to certify our finalists. The top vote-getters must also have a passing grade with the BBB in order to become a finalist. Their rating system utilizes a grading scale just like you used in school, going from an A+ down to an F, graded on 17 different factors. This rating represents a business’s overall trustworthiness and their good-faith efforts to address customer concerns.

Count Reviews

The Best of SLC isn’t like most “Best of” contests, which simply count votes. We realize that the community has already been showing their support for the “best” by leaving reviews all year long, so we’re going to count every 5-star review published on Google within the last 12 months.

Calculate Score

While votes and reviews signify great work in the last year, overall ratings tell us how nominees have done long term. The mean rating from these platforms will be used in conjunction with 5-star reviews and votes to determine the winners.

Number of Votes + (Number of 5-star Reviews x Average Rating) = Score

Announce Finalists

The top nominees of each category will be publicly announced next week once we’ve verified our results. Finalists will also be notified by letter and email as soon as possible.

Announce Winners

Winners will be announced at the Best of SLC Awards Banquet* on June 15th-16th, 2021. Finalists will be invited to purchase tickets for the celebration. The banquet includes a red carpet entrance, a fancy dinner, photos, and other special prizes and opportunities.

*Banquet details might change because of COVID and all of that.

Thank You

We’re grateful to everyone for the support and participation in this year’s Best of SLC Awards. It’s been a lot of fun, and we’re already looking forward to next year’s contest!

2021 Best of SLC Voting is Now Open

The Best of SLC™ is back for another year to recognize the best businesses in the community. The awards include over 200 individual categories, and uses a combination of 5-star reviews, online ratings, and community votes to determine the winners of each respective category.

Our nominees were selected by Salt Lake County residents in March, and the top ten of each category are moving on to the voting round. Voting takes place online from April 26th, 2021 through May 12th, 2021. Anyone with an SLC area zip code and mobile phone can vote.

When voters register their ballots, a confirmation code will be sent via text message. Enter the code to finalize and submit your votes.

While you can only vote once for each category, feel free to come back during the voting period to support your favorites in the dozens of other categories available.

Don’t Miss the Hump Day Giveaway!

We’re continuing our popular Hump Day Giveaway during the voting period. For every new voter you refer after registering your ballot, you’ll be entered into a weekly drawing for a nice prize. We’ve got a new prize every week while voting is open, and they are fantastic.

Details about the Hump Day Giveaway are available on the voting page.

When Will We Know the Results?

After voting closes on May 12th, we’ll announce the finalists (the top 3 in each category) as soon as we have confirmed the votes and vetted our list with the BBB. But that’s not where it ends!

In addition to votes, the winner of each category is also determined by their online reviews from Google. Overall ratings and the number of 5-star reviews from the previous 12 months are counted. Our team will take a little time to confirm the review scores for each finalist and tally that with the vote total.

Once the final scores have been determined, we’ll announce the winners at the Best of SLC™ Awards Banquet first before publishing them online. The banquet is slated for two nights on June 15th-16th, though we’ll keep you updated in case anything changes.
For more details about the 2021 Best of SLC™, see our awards details page.