A couple of weeks ago, we released the 2023 Readers’ Choice winners in print and online. Within a few days, scammers were already reaching out to winners attempting to sell them overpriced plaques. These scammers have no affiliation with the Hernando Sun, although they claim to be calling from the Hernando Sun. One company, Top Rated Online, tells businesses they are Hernando Sun’s official awards provider. This is a lie.
In the past, we have contacted the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office regarding this behavior, and they informed us that phone scam crimes are very common. They receive dozens of calls a day regarding scam phone callers and only have resources to follow up on the most egregious cases where large amounts of money are involved.
The Hernando Sun provides digital art to all the winners free of charge. You are free to add this art to any product you would like. The Hernando Sun offers two ways for winners to celebrate their success: one way is with the purchase of different size ads thanking their supporters and purchasing marketing materials.
The prices for thank-you ads are as follows Half Page Thank You Ad $485.10, Quarter Page Thank You Ad $242.55, and 1/8th Page Thank You Ad $145.00.
The marketing materials are as follows a 13” x 19” Framed Poster: $75, 4” x 4” Window Cling: $15 for the first ($5 for additional), 3’ x 6’ Banner: $120 (Other banner sizes available, please contact us for details) and an Acrylic Plaque 3.75” wide x 7” tall: $120.
More details on what you can purchase will be sent to winners when they request their complimentary digital certificate by emailing [email protected].
Please include the winner’s name and what they won.
We are looking into scantron voting for the print ballots next year as we spent hundreds of man-hours counting the print ballots.
The Hernando Sun would like to congratulate everyone who participated in the Readers’ Choice Awards. It is a way to recognize businesses, organizations, and leaders in our community.
