Consumer Voting for Toy of the Year Awards Reaches Record Number

January 17, 2017 | Consumer votes for the 2017 Toy of the Year Awards (TOTY) reached more than 85,000 votes – a new record that surpassed the 51,000 votes cast by the public last year. Voting was open from November 21, 2016 through January 15, 2017.

“We are thrilled to see so many consumers vote, as this is a testament to the unique and innovative toys and games our industry creates,” said  Ken Seiter, the Toy Industry Association’s (TIA) vice president of marketing communications. “As one of the biggest nights in the toy world, I encourage the toy community to attend the TOTY Awards gala to network, have fun, and celebrate our amazing industry.”

The consumer vote is used to help determine the winners. The public was encouraged to vote across 14 categories at ToyAwards.org, and also offered a chance to win prize packages.

To help promote TOTY voting, online influencers, such as Paul & Shannon’s Toy Reviews and The Mommy and Gracie Show, created unique content that showcased TOTY nominees and encouraged fans to vote on the website. The influencer campaign garnered nearly 7 million online and social media impressions.

In addition, TIA trend specialists promoted the TOTY finalists in several televised holiday/post-holiday toy segments in cities nationwide, including San Francisco, Salt Lake City, Chicago, and Washington, D.C. TIA also distributed a TOTY video package which garnered 6 million impressions in key markets such as San Diego, Tampa, and Atlanta.

Winners will be announced at the TOTY Awards ceremony on Friday, February 17^th at The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York City. The winners in each category will be determined from weighted votes cast by consumers, retailers (mass and specialty), media, and TIA members. The “People’s Choice” award winner will be based solely on consumer votes. The overall “Toy of the Year” award will be decided by retailers, consumers, media, and TIA members.

The awards ceremony will honor each of the TOTY winners and celebrate the Toy Industry Hall of Fame inductees. The evening will also support the philanthropic work of the Toy Industry Foundation. Toy professionals have until February 10^th to purchase tickets for the gala.