Tell us who is among the 'best' locally

The following first appeared in The Record.

Whether you work on the front lines or in the back office of a local business – or are the owner - it is rewarding to be singled out for excellent customer service and/or products, atmosphere and value.

With that in mind – and to draw more visibility to the local merchants, restaurants and service providers who offer the best service and value in the greater Rennselear County area - the Record launched its inaugural Readers Choice awards this week.

The first ballot focused exclusively on health, wellness, beauty and fitness-related businesses – from home health care agencies to dental practices to day spas. These ballots were published earlier this week in The Record, and in our weekly publications - Greenbush Life, Latham Life and River Life – as well. Two more sets of ballots are coming up; this coming week we will publish a ballot for restaurants and night life venues, and next week, retail stores and service providers. Look for the ballots Tuesdays and Thursdays in The Record, as well as in the weekly newspapers.

In all, we plan out to give out Readers’ Choice certificates to winners and runners-up in roughly 150 categories.

Also, each eligible reader who votes will be put in a drawing to win a $25 gift certificate from a local restaurant; three will be awarded.

All winning businesses and runners-up will be published in a pull-out Readers Choice section of the Dec. 9 issue of The Record. Our hope is that readers will use the information to shop, dine and use service providers locally whenever possible during the holiday season and beyond.

In other developments at the newspaper:

• If you missed our coverage of the inauguration of Dr. Susan C. Scrimshaw, the ninth president of The Sage Colleges, stop by our offices to purchase a copy of Friday’s and Saturday’s paper while supplies last. Our staff did a terrific job of previewing (in a commemorative special section) and covering this special event.
• If you’re looking for a holiday gift for a special someone, consider a gift subscription to The Record. To sweeten the gift, a limited number of these are available with a bonus – two tickets to a holiday performance of either “Scrooge, The Musical” on Dec. 11 or to the Vienna Boy’s Choir on Dec. 20. Both shows are at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall. Look for ads in the paper over the next couple weeks promoting this offer.
• Finally, look for a number of exciting announcements over the next few months including a redesign of some of our products and the launch of some new ones. We have a number of exciting projects designed to enhance the value of our newspapers and Web site.