How wasn’t I nominated? I don’t understand. But I’m the best! You must hate me.
It’s important to keep in mind that the nominations you’re able to vote on during the voting period are submitted by the PUBLIC. We held a month-long nominations period in June where we accepted more than 40,000 nominations! If you don’t see yourself for a category you *swear* you should be nominated for, it’s only because you didn’t nominate yourself or someone forgot to nominate you. We promise we value your contribution to the community!

Can you please please please add me to nominations?
Unfortunately not. Once voting is live, we cannot add anyone to the ballot. There’s always next year! We will hold an open nominations period in June 2020. Just come back to this site for additional information next year.

Why don’t you have a specific category? How do you choose the categories?
We hold an open category suggestions period each year and take suggestions for new categories. If you think something should be added next year, just come back to this site for additional information. Category suggestions are typically held in May.

So, the nominations are submitted by the public? Does Creative Loafing choose any awards?
Yes! Best of the Bay is split up into two sets of awards: Readers Poll and Critics Picks. The Readers Poll Awards (what you’re currently voting on now) are submitted and voted on by the public. The Critics Pick Awards are curated awards selected by Creative Loafing staff. We do not accept nominations for these awards and, instead, are some of our staff’s favorite things about the Tampa Bay area right now.

I was nominated, but what should I do if I notice a misspelling, or I’m listed twice and want my votes combined, or (fill in the blank)?
Since all nominations for the Readers Poll are submitted by the public, there might be some errors we didn’t catch. We do our best to sort through nominations to make sure the most accurate information is available, but are happy to make any changes, if necessary. Please submit your inquiry here.

I really really really want to win. How can I win? What should I do to win?
Make sure you spread the word about your Best of the Bay nomination! We have some voting assets available for you to use as you please here. Votes will be accepted once per day per hour until voting ends on August 28th. This year, we’re also allowing you to stand out from the crowd with the option to enhance your nomination listing with an image, URL, social media handles, and more! Click here if you’d like more information.

How will I know if I win? How will you contact me? I won last year and didn’t know!
After voting ends, we do our best to gather contact information for all winners. If you’re nominated and would like to make sure we have the correct and most current information on file for you, please submit your contact information here. After voting ends, we will take some time to tally votes before contacting all winners prior to the Best of the Bay Awards Party and winners announcement online and in the paper. If you’ve won an award, you will receive and e-mail with more information.

So, if I receive an e-mail that I won, that has to mean I won “Best (fill in the blank)” in the Readers Poll, right?!
Fingers crossed, but necessarily! You could have won a Critics Pick, so get excited that you won, and you’ll have to wait until the party to see WHAT you won!

Do all winners get a complimentary ticket to the Awards Party?
Once you’re contacted that you’ve won, you will receive an e-mail with an invite to the party and to RSVP for a complimentary ticket. We ask that you choose one representative to receive the complimentary ticket, no matter how large your company/band/entourage/etc is. In the e-mail, we will also provide a super exclusive discount code for to share with additional guests, where you can get tickets for less than a tank of gas!

If I can’t make it to the Awards Party on September 25th, how can I pick up my award?
After the event, we send out information on post-party award pickup. We want all winners to proudly display their certificate(s)!