By KATIE MCDOWELL/Managing Editor

It’s time for Shelby Living’s third annual Best of the Best contest!

Each year, Shelby Living, our sister publication, holds a contest asking readers to vote for their favorite businesses, restaurants and events in Shelby County.

This year’s contest has 47 categories, including best burger, best family doctor, best park, best annual festival and best new car dealer. The categories are divided into five sections: dining and nightlife, arts and culture, healthy and beauty, attractions and business.

We hope you’ll take the time to let local businesses know you appreciate their service. We’ll announce the winners in the October issue of Shelby Living and provide them with a certificate.

Here are the rules for contest. Make sure to read them carefully because we’ve made a few changes this year.

1. The contest will run from June 25-July 31.

2. You can only vote online at Shelbyliving.com.

3. Only one vote per person. The contest shouldn’t allow you to vote more than once with the same email address.

4. The contest is fill-in-the-blank, and some categories request a location. That’s just for categories that typically attract a lot of chains, such as best barbecue or best coffee. We want to make sure we receive specific locations, so we can give out the awards to the rightful winners.

5. We only have one round of voting this year. Previously we had two rounds of voting, but we felt it dragged on too long.

I’d love to hear feedback about the contest, especially if you have ideas for new categories for next year. Feel free to email me at Katie.mcdowell@shelbycountyreporter.com. Don’t forget to vote!

Katie McDowell is the managing editor for the Shelby County Reporter. She can be reached at katie.mcdowell@shelbycountyreporter.com.