For years now, the Angler’s Choice Award has been our nod to the best charter fishing guides in the business. We’ve just released the latest edition of the award, and we want to say congratulations to all the winners!
Later this year, we’ll also be releasing a brand new version of Angler’s Choice. We’re working on a few big improvements, and we’re excited to tell you all about them!
The Upcoming Angler’s Choice Award
Last February, we announced the then new Angler’s Choice award. For all the excitement it brought, the award was’t perfect. A number of you were very vocal about what you thought of the requirements, and rightly so.
For many of you, the realization rate requirement wasn’t a fair metric. While it did a good job of showing how many trips you were running, it didn’t paint an accurate picture of your reliability and quality of service. We want to say a big thank you for pointing this out!
What’s new?
Goodbye Realization Rate – Hello Reliability Score!
The Angler’s Choice Award is meant to highlight the best fishing guides out there. Just like you, we think reliability is a big part of that. We also don’t want to make you feel like you need to take customers out when it’s unsafe to do so. To make sure that the award goes to the most reliable captains, we’re replacing the realization rate with the reliability score.
What does this mean? Looking at the reliability score puts the reins in your hands. The metric tracks how often you run your trips versus how often you cancel or decline. It doesn’t look at customer cancellations, sudden boat malfunctions, or cancellations due to bad weather and extenuating circumstances.
In other words, the reliability score only looks at trips that you could have actually run. That takes luck out of the equation, and gives you full control of your chances of winning.
To make sure that Angler’s Choice showcases the most trustworthy captains, we’re aiming for a reliability score in the high 90s. While it may sound like a lot, it’s actually very attainable. In fact, over 30% of FishingBooker captains have a reliability score of 98%! Stay tuned for updates on the exact criteria in the next editions of Captain News.
All Your Listings Show Your Success
Opening up a new listing on FishingBooker was always an opportunity for extra business. But for some captains, a new listing felt like starting a business from scratch. Finally, there’s a way for you to connect the accolades achieved across multiple listings.
The new Angler’s Choice Award will look at listing averages to determine the winners. As long as you keep up a good overall score, all your listings will get the Angler’s Choice badge!
You’ll Be Able to Win More Often
FishingBooker’s Angler’s Choice used to be an annual award. But things move swiftly in the charter business, and a lot can change in a full year.
To make sure that the award paints a good picture of captains’ current level of service, Angler’s Choice will now be awarded every three months. We’ll still be looking at your performance over the past 12 months, but the count will reset on a quarterly basis.
Why is this a big deal?
- For you, the higher frequency will mean that you’ll have more opportunities to win. Captains who keep consistently exceptional service will, of course, keep the award for a full year, just as before.
- Resetting the count gives customers more up-to-date information about who the best captains are.
Full Verification
It’s no secret that customers care about feeling safe on a charter. And we know how deeply you care about us promoting legitimate captains only. To make sure you’re in true elite company, Angler’s Choice will only go to captains whose listings are fully verified.
You can now easily stay on top of verification with your revamped Credentials Dashboard.
What else is coming?
The new Angler’s Choice Award isn’t just about a new set of requirements. Here are a few other things we’re working on:
- A new Progress Tracker. We’re working on a new Progress Tracker, so that you can keep tabs on the new requirements and how close you are to winning. Look out for updates on this in the next edition of the newsletter.
- A new Angler’s Choice badge on your listing. Winners of the award, and your profile will feature a sleek new stamp to showcase your achievement and attract more customers.
What would you like to see?
At the end of the day, the Angler’s Choice Award should be all about you. That’s why we’d like to know what you think the recognition should bring you. How would you like us to make your achievement more prominent? This can be anything from sending you physical material like Angler’s Choice stickers and decals, to getting more exclusive access to our support teams, or anything else. Let us know!
If you’re just getting ready for the season – be sure to check your listings to make sure everything’s up to date. An accurate listing will give you a running start to winning the next edition of Angler’s Choice. And if you’ve got any questions about the award in general, feel free to reach out!
