| 1. Can you tell us a little bit about where you are located/live? ( you can include any personal
information you wish to share, such as family life etc. ) |
 I live in Queensland, Australia with my dog and cat. The Aussie's would say I live in the woop woop, meaning I
don't live in the city. I love the bush and the wildlife.
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| 2. How did you get interested in starting a web awards program? |
I was working for ONZCDA as an evaluator and I loved the team spirit and friendships made, I also love surfing the web so I decided to start my own AP.
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| 3. How long has your AP been in operation? |
Valkyrie's Awards has been in existence since January 2002.
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| 4. What are the benefits to running an AP? |
There are many benefits, its a wonderful learning experience and due to the diverse subjects, I have seen sites I may never have seen and developed added interests.
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| 5. What are the pitfalls to running an AP? |
I
haven't come across many pitfalls, maybe the time factor is a pitfall as running an AP does take a lot of time and dedication.
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| 6. What gives you the most satisfaction running an awards program? |
Knowing I am doing something I really enjoy!
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| 7. What is the first thing you look for when you do an evaluation? |
| The first thing I look for is an "About Me" page or similar, I like to get to know a little about the applicant. This way I never forget there is a real person behind the site.
~Top~
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8. Who, if anyone, influenced you the most when you were first beginning
your awards program? |
Thats easy, Rhonda Serong who owns ONZCDA :)
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| 9. How did this person or AP influence you? |
Rhonda's standards and
guidance have influenced me greatly, she is somebody who I respect and admire a great deal.
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10. In your opinion, what is the biggest mistake a newly forming awards program
might make? |
In my opinion it would be trying to please everybody. Stay true to YOUR goal and be prepared to be flexible.
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| 11. In your opinion, what is the biggest mistake an Award Seeker might make? |
The biggest mistake is not reading an AP's criteria.
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12. What tips can you give to AP Owners who are looking to improve their
program? |
I don't feel I am qualified to give tips, but if somebody asked me for
advice I would say to make sure your AP complies with your own criteria, otherwise you don't look credible and it simply isn't fair to the applicants.
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| 13. What tips can you give to Award Seekers? |
Check your site against each AP's criteria!!
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| 14. Looking back, knowing what you know now, would you do it all over again? |
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Yes I certainly would, my AP has become part of my life :)
~Top~
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| 15. What is your fondest memory with regards to your awards program? |
My fondest memory was watching a site go from Bronze to Gold. I saw the improvements each time this person applied and when he got the gold, I was so excited!!
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| 16.
If you could be any creature in the ocean, what would you be & why? <grin> |
Well, I never seem to have enough arms to do everything at once that I want to do so I would love to be an octopus. Imagine, an octopus with a laptop under the sea, you could surf the net, eat your chocolate, write notes and pat your dog all at the same time :)
And just imagine how many Tim tams you could
be opening at the same time!!! hehe
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