NIMA Awards Process

The process begins with NIMA Association members and fans (general public) submitting nomination entries, which are then screened for eligibility and category placement. The NIMA’s voting members and the fans then participate in the final voting process which determines the NIMA winners.

Nominating
Nomination requests are sent to NIMA voting members in good standing. To help ensure the quality of the nominations, members are directed to nominate only in their fields of expertise; they may nominate in the three (3) general categories (Artist Of The Year, Song Of The Year, Album Of The Year) and in no more than twelve (12) out of the 21 remaining categories.  Fans (general public) are also given the opportunity to submit online nominations in all categories.  Fan nominations represent a percentage that will be calculated to help determine the top 6 nominees in each category.  After screening (see below), ballots are tabulated by an independent accounting firm.

Screening
Reviewing sessions by a group of NIMA Association members are held to ensure that nominations meet specific qualifications and have been placed in their appropriate fields. The purpose of screenings is not to make artistic or technical judgments about the entries, but rather to make sure that each entry is eligible and placed in its proper category.

Final Voting
Final-round ballot information is sent to NIMA voting members.  In this final round, members may vote in the three (3) general categories (Artist of the Year, Song of the Year, Album of the Year) and in no more than twelve (12) of the 21 remaining categories.  Fan votes represent a percentage that will be calculated to help determine the winner in each category.  Ballots again are tabulated by an independent accounting firm.

Results
Voting results are not announced until the NIMA Awards presentation ceremony when names of the winners are delivered to the presenters in sealed envelopes.

Important Dates (subject to change)

April 1st , 2011 – Nominations begin online.  NIMA Voting members must have an active membership in order to receive a nomination request.

May 15th, 2011 – Nominations end and entries are submitted for eligibility screening and then tabulated to determine the top 6 in each category.

June 1, 2011 – Voting begins online.  NIMA Voting members must have an active membership in order to receive a voting request.

July 31, 2011 – Voting period ends.  Votes are tabulated by independent accounting firm and results are sealed until the NIMA Awards presentation ceremony.

August 2011 – 5th Annual NIMA Awards Show