Giving Customer Voice

The Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council seeks your views on how global marketers are Turning Customer Pain into Competitive Gain. Part of a new strategic research initiative aimed at Giving Customer Voice More Volume, their latest audit seeks to benchmark how well brands listen and respond to customer input, concerns and issues.

Using their quick, multiple-choice questionnaire format, please take 15 minutes of your time to assess your company’s level of commitment to customer experience and your organization’s effectiveness in turning detractors into disciples, and objections into opportunities. Your responses will be kept confidential and we will share aggregated findings with you on completion of the study in January, 2009. Thank you for your time and assistance in this initiative.

The survey is located at http://www.cmocouncil.org/programs/current/customer_voice/survey.asp

'Gorilla' Is Most Awarded Ad of '08

In an article in AdWeek Magazine, 'Gorilla' Is Most Awarded Ad of '08 according to The Gunn Report, a global ranking of winners compiled from the major annual industry awards shows.

The article said that a TV ad by Fallon, London, for Cadbury featuring a drumming gorilla was the most-awarded ad in the world in 2008t. BBDO, New York, was the most awarded agency, and BBDO was the most awarded agency network, followed by Leo Burnett and DDB Worldwide.

The question is whether or not The Gunn Report included the results for the WebAwards and the IACAwards. In their calculations.

Your customers are Online - can they find your Website?

Now in its 10th year, the global SES Conference and Exposition Series educates tens of thousands of marketers each year, with a 98% satisfaction rate. SES Chicago, the only major Search Marketing Conference and Expo in the Midwest, will be packed with 60+ sessions, multiple keynotes and Orion Strategy sessions, exhibitors, networking events and more. We hope to see you there.

December 8-12
Chicago Hilton
720 S. Michigan Ave
Chicago, IL

Search Engine Strategies Training - Boston

Search Engine Strategies Training
November 6, 2008
Hilton Boston Back Bay
40 Dalton Street
Boston, MA 02115

These workshops will provide you with the practices, applications, and hands-on exposure you need to become (and remain!) a top performer in your field. In the end, you will not only walk away with the knowledge and skills you need to be a successful search engine marketer, you will also jump-start your career and enhance your professional know-how. This in-depth training in a small class setting means that your instructor is readily accessible for informal one-on-one or small group discussions. Whether you are a consultant, site designer, website owner, or in-house marketing professional, you cannot afford to miss this opportunity to experience firsthand the latest developments in search engine strategy. No matter where you are in the SEO & SEM process, you will leave these intensive workshops with the necessary skills and tools to improve your business results and take your search engine marketing to another level.

Web Marketing Association members can receive a 15% discount by using code "15WMA".

Internet Advertising Competition Awards 7th Annual Call for Entries

The Web Marketing Association announces the launched of it’s 7th annual Internet Advertising Competition (IAC) Awards. The IAC Awards are the first and only industry-based advertising award competition dedicated exclusively to online advertising. The Competition Web site is located at www.iacaward.org and the deadline for entry is January 31, 2009

“We created the IAC Awards to highlight the best in this unique advertising medium by industry, and also to help advertising professionals validate their efforts to clients and senior management,” said William Rice, president of the Web Marketing Association, Inc. “During a difficult economy, clients are looking for third party confirmation that they are getting the best creative for their ad dollars. Winning awards is a great way to demonstrate your creative potential. As spending for online advertising continues to explode, it is important to make sure the ads delivered to advertisers are up to the challenge”.

The Internet Advertising Competition Awards are open to all organizations and individuals (advertising and interactive agencies, corporate marketing departments, etc.) involved in the process of developing Internet advertising. Entries may be submitted online at www.iacaward.org. The deadline for entry is January 31, 2009 and will be judged on creativity, innovation, impact, design, copywriting, and use of the medium.

Awards will be presented within each of the industry categories and advertising formats such as online ad (including banner, pop-up or interstitial), rich media online ad, email message, online newsletter campaign, Website, integrated ad campaign and ads the client did not choose. Best of show award for each medium will be selected from among the industry winners. Ads eligible for entry in the competition must have run during the period from January 1, 2006 through January 31, 2009, except for “Ads the Client did not pick, which do not need to have run..

Judging for the IAC Awards will take place in February, 2009, and winners will be notified by e-mail one week prior to the general announcement of winners in March, 2009. Judges will consist of a select group of Internet advertising professionals with an in-depth understanding of the current state-of-the-art in Web advertising. Past competition judges have included top executives from leading corporations, institutions and media organizations such as Ogilvy Interactive, Saatchi & Saatchi, Blattner Brunner, Comedy Central, Sun Microsystems, National Cable & Telecom Association, Refinery, Euro RSCG, EPB Interactive, New York Post Interactive, The Cincinnati Enquirer, J. Walter Thompson, Xerox, Art Institute of Pittsburgh, Modem Media, and Answerthink.

The 2008 Internet Advertising Competition Awards are sponsored by Burst Media, BGT Partners, PRWeb, AllBusiness, ExactTarget, ad:tech conferences, Microsoft PopPhizz, Snap.com, Internet World UK, Search Engine Strategies, Webmaster Radio, Rovion and Website Magazine.

McCain vs Obama: Who Has The Best Website? The WebAward Judges Decide

The 2008 Presidential election is being fiercely contested by Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama. Both candidates are using the Internet to help their campaigns woo volunteers and campaign contributions. But who has the better Website?

The Web Marketing Association has been judging Websites through their annual WebAward Competition for Website development since 1997. More than 18,000 site evaluations have been tabulated during that period and they took up the task of evaluating both candidates Websites.

During the first week of October 2008, 110 Internet Website experts who serve as WebAward judges reviewed both www.johnmccain.com and www.barackobama.com using the same criteria used in the annual WebAwards program. The sites were judged side by side on seven criteria of a successful Website.

Here are the results:

Design - Asked "which Website has the most pleasing design?" WebAward judges selected the Obama site 4 to 1 over the McCain Website.84.5% of them voted for Senator Obama's Website and 15.5% selected Senator McCain's Website as better looking.

Innovation - Website innovation also went in favor of Barack Obama. By the same margin as design, the vast majority of WebAward judges (82.4%) thought the Obama Website seems more innovative, while only 17.6% favored McCain's.

Content - In terms of having the most appealing content, judges again selected the Obama Website over John McCain 's Website, although by a narrower margin than the first two criteria. 71.6% of the WebAward judges felt barackobama.com has more appealing content for visitors compared to 28.4% for johnmccain.com. WebAward judges also found that the Obama Website is more effective for telling the candidate's story and attracting contributions and voters to its cause (72.2% Obama vs 27.8% McCain).

Ease of use - Senator Obama's Website was seen as easier to use by the WebAward judges than Senator McCain's. 73.8% selected barackobama.com as easier to use compared to 26.2% of WebAward judges who felt johnmccain.com was easier.

Copywriting - It is obvious that both campaigns have excellent writers on staff. Neither Websites have any of the editing issues some large organizations can experience. However, the WebAward judges gave the advantage to the Obama site (70.1% over the McCain site 29.9%).

Interactivity - Interactivity makes a Website more than just an online billboard and both candidates were effective in giving visitors to their Websites plenty to see and do. Nevertheless, once again the WebAward judges gave the edge regarding interactivity to the Obama Website (75.2%) over the McCain Website (24.8%).

Technology - Use of technology is evident in both candidates' Websites, however, the clear favorite for the WebAward judges was barackobama.com winning 82.4% of the votes compared to johnmccain.com with only 17.6% of the votes.

"Regardless of who you will be voting for in the next presidential election, Websites are going to play an ever increasingly important role in how candidates get their messages across to the American voters," said William Rice, President of the Web Marketing Association "Based on the findings of this survey by some of the top Internet professionals available today, the Web Marketing Association names barackobama.com the winner of the McCain vs Obama Website Challenge. We wish both candidates the best of luck in their efforts to become the next President of the United States in the November election".

This survey was first used during the Democratic primary race between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. Senator Obama’s website won that challenge and he went on to win the Democratic nomination.

When the WebAward judges were asked "If the election was to be held today. Which candidate would you be more likely to vote for?" 54.6% responded Barack Obama, 15.7% responded John McCain, 11.1% voted neither and 18% reported that they are a non-US judge and can not vote for anyone in a US election.

Methodology

An email was sent to all past WebAward judges requesting that they participate in an online survey between October 6 and October 13, 2008. 110 WebAward judges agreed to participate in the project. They reviewed each site and completed the brief online survey.

Judges for the annual WebAward competition consist of a select group of Internet professionals who have direct experience designing and managing Web sites,-including members of the media, interactive creative directors, site designers, content providers and webmasters. These WebAward judges have an in-depth understanding of the current state-of-the-art in Web site development and technology and they apply that knowledge to the entries they review. Past judges have included top executives from leading organizations such as A&E Television Networks, Agency.com, Blattner Brunner, Bridge Worldwide, The Cincinnati Enquirer, Comedy Central, Disney, Euro RSCG, Ion Global, J. Walter Thompson, John Deere Company, New York Post Interactive, Organic, Inc., Refinery, R/GA, Saatchi & Saatchi, SAP, Starwood Hotels, Sun Microsystems, Warner Bros. Online, Xerox and Zugara.

About the WebAwards

The 12th annual international WebAwards competition sets the standard of excellence in 96 industry categories by evaluating Web sites and defining benchmarks based on the seven essential criteria of successful Web site development. The goal of the Web Marketing Association, sponsor of the WebAwards, is to provide a forum to recognize the people and organizations responsible for developing some of the most effective Web sites on the Internet today. Entrants benefit from a Web site assessment by a professional judging panel and the marketing opportunities presented to an award-winning Web site. The Web Marketing Association also hosts the Internet Advertising Competition Awards.

Judges Comments for the McCain Obama Website Survey

Below are some of the actual comments from judges regarding the McCain and Obama Websites reviewed for the McCain Obama Web site Challenge. The views expressed are those of the individual judges and not of the Web Marketing Association.

"McCain's site feels more "real" and in touch with the audience. Obama's site is more technologically savvy but it has an ""empty suit"" feel to it. What I'm trying to say is that McCain / Palin (inspite of whatever their shortcomings may be) still come across as real people with real care and real concern for people -- they may not be perfect but they really care. On the other hand, Obama / Biden "look right" and "sound right" but they still come across as unconnected, polished politicians talking DOWN at people. For all their rethoric, they just do not come across as sincerely caring for people. I believe it is foolish to elect our next president on the basis of their political party alone. Our country finds itself in a dangerous situation, both at home and abroad. Our problems are beyond pointing fingers to "this or that administration" and their mistakes. We are beyond that. Yes, we do need change, but not merely as a "platform" or "change" for its own sake. What America needs right now is a president with the EXPERIENCE to LEAD US out of our problems rather than a ""rock-star presence"" without the track record or experience (not even that of a "lowly" governor) to run our nation. Walk the walk - not just talk the talk."
Frank de la Cruz
President
delacruz interactive design

"John McCain's website was actually better than I had expected, but I think barackobama.com offers a far superior user experience and more innovative use of technology. It succeeds at engaging the audience."
Lisa Garvey,
Senior Manager, eBusiness & Advertising,
Rambus Inc.

"There's a reason he hired the co-founder of Facebook. Obama has redefined fundraising and elections via his web campaign."

"Mcain site is more visually cluttered. Too many promo areas, too many fonts vying for my attention. Obama site is more monochromatic, calming with a better page layout. "
Richard Parr
CEO,
Executionists, Inc.

"Obama's site is a lot more intuitive and straight forward in terms of finding information. It allows the user to easily scan content and find desired action items and topics fast. The donation button is clearly visible on every page. The design itself is a lot more open and clean and leaves to user room to think and breathe rather than overwhelm with content on every pixel of the screen. Easy choice even if I was not a supporter."
Joy Busse
CEO,
Busse Design USA

"Generally on most of these I could have gone either way. I think Obama's site overall is better, cleaner, lighter, to the point. McCains had a lot going on but was a little more confusing and the type faces were a bit of an odd choice. Overall neither were horrible like in past years so for supporters of either candidate, the sites are just fine. One note on McCain's site, it almost seemed more geared towards Palin."

"The McCain site is too cluttered and seems to appeal to those viewers who need to be hit over the head with the message. The design is more like one for a sports or gambling site. As to the effectiveness they may be very close but the Obama site is cleaner and faster. To buy merchandise on the McCain site I had 4 browsers pop out. That would make me nervous if I were really buying. The Obama site allowed purchases and donations to appear seamless and within the same browser. FYI I am a republican but McCain's site reflects his and Palin's lack of comprehension for technology and real ideas. I would suggest they redo the site now and stop the personal attacks."

"Both sites had a lot to offer. I liked the clean look of Obama's site, but I thought there was a lot going on. McCain's site was much easier to find things and to navigate. Copy on Obama's site was confusing at times to read. Both were pretty effective to get volunteers to sign-up, but the component that is used on Obama's site stood out to me, whereas the Donate link was easier to see on McCain's site. Very cool opportunity to judge both sites. "

"To be honest, johnmccain.com is more deceitful in terms of web usability. Icons and links do not meet current web usability standards; they don't do what I expect them to do, and they have the effect of deceiving the visitor. For example, the use of a plus sign underneath an article is used on most websites to indicate that clicking the plus sign will expand the content. On johnmccain.com, the plus sign takes you to a link, which is not the behavior you expect. There are several links, that are in the main navigation menu as drop-downs, that take you outside the site to other sites, automatically play video, or work in other ways from standard links; in some cases this is quite jarring, such as when a link takes you to a page with a black background and starts playing a full screen video. Such behavior leads many visitors to click out altogether."

"BarackObama.com has the benefit of more pleasing visuals, higher-end graphics, and even more attractive coloring (""Obama blue""). There is a consistency throughout the site. Also, the call to actions are well defined -- donate, volunteer. JohnMcCain.com has the benefit of solid copy writing and content. McCain's stance on the issues take prime position -- it is clear the website serves to educate potential voters. In the end, it appears that the candidates are focused on different goals. Obama seems to focus on persuasion for donation and volunteering, with a secondary goal of education of stance on issues and current events. In essence -- mobilizing voters. And he does all this in a very visually pleasing, consistent, professional way. McCain seems focused on educating potential voters on the issues. However, the approach is less than consistent, sometimes confusing, and often unattractive. Interestingly (and a political statement) the very things that define the websites also define the candidates. The sites closely reflect the candidate's values and target audience."
David Felfoldi
Sherpa! Web Studios

"Obama's site was more simplistic - easier on the eye and not overwhelming. His list, while lengthy, of ""issues"" was more comprehensive and there was less emphasis on special interests groups/factors, giving a feeling of ""we are all in this together"". He did not rely on foot, right up front, in large size, of his running mate but then Biden isn't as ""controversial/physically appealing"" to the masses so I guess McCain is ""working that angle"" which to me is not related to the issues whatsoever. I didn't like the fact that one almost feels you have to provide email address and zip code on Obama's website - the ""skip sign up"" is not very prominent - McCain's allows easy entry. I indicated that McCain uses the video more effectively but that is only is defined purely by frequency (in my use of ""effective)...I found there were TOO MANY video ops - depending upon a person's OS and brower, a video can be a pain in the ass and scroll and reading almost every one can do. I felt Obama's site was cleaner, more "simplistic, less cluttered, less "urgent" and more "with it". The latter two descriptives are purely subjective. I have always voted Republican and will probably do a split ticket in my state so my ""zeal"" for Obama's site isn't driven by some ""favorite"" party posture. "

"I didn't like the extra click to get into Obama's website but once there, I liked his site better."

"The Obama website was most definitely geared toward ""kids"" it used clever icons and small words. The McCain site seemed more geared toward the over 40 crowd. Did anyone find it interesting that both candidates sites used the same background color. The sites looked like they were created by the same person. I was a bit dissappointed in the lack of originality."

"At the end of the day, the final, true measure of each Presidenital Candidate's website will be its ability to promote ""conversion"" of website visitors to voters."" -
Rebecca Murtagh
SEO & internet marketing expert consultant, trainer and speaker.
Karner Blue Marketing"

"From a marketing point of view, the McCain website has overtaken Obama in terms of clear call-to-actions and engaging visuals. Obama's website is certainly more stylish but it may have succumbed to style over function as some of the content is a little ambiguous."
Steve Morgan,
Corporate Web Designer, London, UK"

"Load times and splash page are cleaner on BarackObama.com Also, User-Generated Content (UGC) and Viral capabilities seem prevalent on BarackObama.com... JohnMccain.com seems to be more of a boilerplate web 2.0 design but lacks utility because there seems to be not that much true UGC. A clear barometer also is how many friends/members are on each respective MySpace/Facebook site-- and how they were channeled there-- by friends or by directly being pushed via bo.com jm.com. "
Ahin S.
CEO
Filmport

"If a tree falls in the forest""...Since John McCain doesn't even use the Internet, does he know his site exists? Front page design to McCain -- the content inside to Obama. It's clear, uncluttered and to the point. The writing is better. I don't like the fact that Obama attempts to get users to sign up to get inside (the bypass button is hidden within the blue at the bottom)."

"Barack Obama's web site has taken into consideration the needs of people with disabilities, while John McCain's site seems to have ignored this group."

"Seemed kind of wimpy that McCain has Palin be the feature on the first video. Also, although it looks good on high speed, all that flash would be a pain for dial-up users. On the other hand, Obama's started with a pitch to buy a button -- stupid! and the video it featured is gone, with nothing explaining why. And the video they do still have is boring shots of roads."

"This was one of the most difficult sites to compare as both of them were pretty much neck to neck on all the judging criteria -- I've never toggled so much. The one thing I would have to take points off for would be the annoying splash/entry page on Obama's page. Hats off to both sites!"

"I think they are technically, comparable side-by-side. I objected to Obama opening page a request for money or email - obnoxious. McCain seems stuck on serif font that's much more difficult to read. McCain site was re-loaded in 5 mins I first visited and retn'd to home page - do it in wee hours best. McCain photos of week slow to enlarge, some seemed doctored. McCain too busy. way to busy."

"Obama site keeps asking to download files, annoying. I'm surprised there is no question about accessibility and there should be choices for both or the same; a lot of these questions would fall under equal."

"The deep blue palette and rounded design of BarackObama.com speaks to his change mantra - it's soothing. And his use of Web 2.0 technology enables supporters to get involved on many levels beyond mere donation. Finally, the prominent use of video helps to define a politician whom many once knew very little about.""
Kent Hunter,
DMD

"I think both sites are impressive in their own ways and speak to their respective party members in a 'take action' kind of way. I would have to say BarackObama.com is more compelling since his site has a message from the Presidential candidate himself talking about the changes he plans on implementing vs. JohnMccain.com which has a message from VP candidate Sara Palin asking for help recruiting more people to vote for the Republican party."" Brian K. St.Ours
eWareness Inc.

"Barack Obama's web-site breaths more ""elegance"" and gives the audience the look and feel of austerity and honesty while promoting a strong leader. However, for the mass audience Mcain's- Palin web-site might more effective. In fact, Palin has these kind of presence 's someone you must trust. An advanced user should vote for Obaam and understand his campaignis based upon donations and people. Proximity, sense of being near and more show-bizz stuff is pereceived on McCain's site."

"Barack Obama's website is one of the smartest websites I have ever encountered. I joined up on it about 9 mos ago and visit it nearly every day. His campaign has mastered the internet as a promotional medium and I believe his website has contributed significantly to his campaign's success."

"Overall design is more pleasing and feels more modern on barackobama.com The content is written to be consumed online - short scannable sentences with the ability to click to get more information. The content on Johnmccain.com visitors are presented with long dense blocks of copy with no headlines or bullets to help in scanning. On barackobama.com the use of a spare color palette keeps visual confusion down and uses red to draw visitors attention to the key areas, like donate or make calls. Also, video is user initiated while on John McCain the video starts to play on some pages."

"Barack's site is like the love child of Apple and Nike (oh wait... that was Nike+). John's site feels like Microsoft's response."

"Yeah, I know, I voted straight down the line for Obama's Web site (and I intend to vote for him). However, let me qualify: One thing I despise more than anything in a Web site are videos that play automatically. I really find that annoying and aggravating; if I want to watch it, I will! That, and McCain's took too long to download (and I'm on a T-1 line). So, right there, the site annoys, which doesn't predispose me to want to stick around (loads too long and starts playing unwanted videos). Then, in terms of social networking, Obama's got it all over McCain; if there's a Facebook or My Space for McCain, I couldn't find it."

"While John McCain's web site seemed to use more of the latest social networking technology (and encourage users to get involved to spread the message), I felt that the Barack Obama web site was the most pleasing in terms of design, richness of content (better copywriting that more quickly got to the point to tell the story) ease of use and overall user experience. One thing that turned me off about the John McCain web site was that it offered to provide 'different' or more 'customized' content based on whether the user was undecided or already for John McCain. While it sounds innovative on the surface, the thought that certain content would only be available to undecideds seemed to lack transparency...and in the long run, hurts McCain's brand in my opinion. It's a good example of good technology poorly (or not thoughtfully) implemented."

"The relationship between these two sites can be seen as a microcosm of their respective campaigns. Obama's has been innovative, clear and accessible from the beginning. McCain's has been very traditional and a little clumsy. Over time, I've noticed that the McCain site has incorporated many of the innovations that were always central to the Obama campaign's web experience. Similarly, McCain has co-opted many of the Obama campaign's messages of change, etc. The McCain site feels a lot like the McCain campaign — playing a lot of catch-up but always appearing to be a poor imitation of the original.
Christopher Simmons
Principal/Creative Director, MINE™ Instructor of Design,
California College of the Arts
President Emeritus, AIGA San Francisco"

"The Barack Obama site is well-branded and intuitive with a refined touch. The video section is nicely designed and the issues are easy to access from anywhere. Bill Finch, President, Creative Flavor Inc."

"McCain's site looks like a rip-off of the beautifully crafted, innovative and thoughtful Obama one."

"The Barack Obama website gets it. Bottom line. Everything from visual design to user paths to technology."

ad:tech New York

ad:tech is an interactive advertising and technology conference and exhibition. Worldwide shows blend keynote speakers, topic driven panels and workshops to provide attendees with the tools and techniques they need to compete in a changing world.

ad:tech returns to New York this November for its annual powerhouse event with a speaker line-up of top executives from Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble, Unilever, Nike, Time.com, NYTimes.com, MTV and BusinessWeek.com to name only a few. ad:tech – it’s where today’s marketers gather to discuss, network and learn about how digital is transforming all media.

Exhibit Hall is FREE when you register by October 3. More than just the expo, an Exhibit Hall pass gives you access to keynote presentations, parties, sponsored forums, meeting rooms and more.

Save 20% off a Full Conference Pass when you use discount code: BRNYZ9

B@B Magazine Names 10 Great Web Site

Each year, BtoB highlights 10 business-to-business Web sites that are particularly good examples of how companies can use the Web to communicate with customers. These sites turn out to be ones that do an exceptionally good job with the basics year after year, allowing visitors to find product and company information quickly and easily, providing a brand experience consistent with other marketing channels and offering a way to take the relationship to the next level.

Once again William Rice, President of the Web Marketing Association, was ask to be one of the experts naming the sites for the article 10 Great Web Sites: Getting the basics right keeps sites useful, effective by Karen J. Bannan.

Web Marketing Association Names the Best Web Sites

The Web Marketing Association is pleased to announce the winners of its twelfth annual WebAward Competition for Web site development. More than 2,400 sites from 45 countries were adjudicated in 96 industry categories during this year's competition. Entries were judged on design, copy writing, innovation, content, interactivity, navigation, and use of technology.

A complete list of the winning sites can be found at the WebAward Web site at www.webaward.org.


Best of Show

The 2008 Best of Show WebAward is presented to Trailer Park for their exceptional work on Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix website. The site was also awarded Best Movie WebAward.

Trailer Park created a fast loading website as mystical, magical and visually stunning as the movie itself. Aesthetically, the all-Flash site transports users into a dark, smoldering world of wizards and monsters via brilliant images, ominous music, and crisp, clean layouts. Three engaging games, Duel with the Death Eaters, Room of Requirement,and Thestrial Flight, immerse users in interactive challenges based on elements from the film. Downloads like, wallpapers, MySpace skins, banners, and buddy icons give fans a way to express their Harry Potter enthusiasm.


Top Agency

Risdall Advertising Agency was named Top Agency at the 2008 WebAward Competition, taking home 29 awards – the most ever by a single agency in a WebAward competition. The Top Agency Award is given to recognize the consistently outstanding development going on at interactive firms. Risdall, headquartered in New Brighton, Minnesota, took home Best B2B Website, 4 Outstanding WebAwards and 24 Standard of Excellence WebAwards.

Agencies or companies winning five or more WebAwards in 2008 include:


Agency - # of awards
Risdall Advertising Agency 29
Biggs|Gilmore 20
Avenue A | Razorfish 16
Walt Disney 16
TravelCLICK, Inc. 16
VML 14
Hubbard One 12
TMP Worldwide 12
AGENDA (H.K.) Limited 11
Arc Worldwide 11
Tribal DDB Worldwide 11
Bridge Worldwide 10
JWT INSIDE 10
Digitas Health 9
Disney Channel 9
Euro RSCG 4D 9
Zugara 9
BrowserMedia 8
E-site Marketing 8
Blenderbox Inc 7
Cendyn 7
Ektron 7
Hitchcock Fleming & Associates Inc. 7
Sapient 7
USA Network 7
Weber Shandwick 7
WSI 7
Acsys 6
Azavar Technologies 6
bbdigital (Blattner Brunner) 6
Boston Interactive 6
Greater Than One 6
MRM Worldwide 6
RED Interactive Agency 6
RFI Studios 6
Starwood Hotels & Resorts 6
180 Interactive 5
Airfoil Public Relations 5
Aristotle Interactive 5
Atmosphere BBDO 5
BGT Partners 5
Brulant, Inc. 5
Cartoon Network 5
Cheil Communications America 5
Emakina 5
Extractable 5
G2 Interactive 5
Hunt & Gather 5
Larsen 5
Milestone 5
Thomson-FindLaw 5
TIG Global 5
usdm.net(R) 5
Valassis 5
Web Associates 5


Competition format

The competition was judged by a team of independent Internet professionals representing a variety of relevant disciplines of Web site development. Judges included members of the media, advertising executives, site designers, creative directors, corporate marketing executives, content providers and webmasters.

The WebAward competition format allows Web sites to compete head to head with other sites within their industry to win the Best of Industry award. Entries also compete against a standard of excellence to win Outstanding Website and Standard of Excellence WebAwards. Each site is judged on seven different criteria and earns a score between 0 and 70 points. The highest score in a given category wins Best of Industry for that category. If the remaining entries receive a score of 60 or greater, they receive the Outstanding Web site award. Entries that score higher than their industry average and below 59.9 receive the Standard of Excellence.

The 2008 WebAwards are sponsored by the following leading organizations: Burst Media, PRWeb, Misukanis & Odden, B2B Magazine, AllBusiness, Small Army, ExactTarget, ad:tech conferences, eComXpo, MediaPost’s OMMA conference, , Microsoft Silverlight, Snap.com, Internet World UK, Search Engine Strategies, Webmaster Radio, Rovion and Website Magazine. The Web Marketing Association thanks all of its sponsors for helping to make this annual competition possible.

About the Web Marketing Association

The Web Marketing Association is working to create a high standard of excellence for Web site development and marketing on the Internet. Staffed by volunteers, it is made up of Internet marketing, advertising, PR and design professionals who share an interest in improving the quality of Website development and marketing on the Internet. Since 1997, the Web Marketing Association’s annual WebAward Competition has been helping interactive professionals promote themselves, their companies, and their best work to the outside world. Now in its 12th year, the WebAward Competition has become the premier award event for Web developers and marketers worldwide.

Results of the WebAward Judging Now Available

If you are a nominator in the Web Marketing Association's 2008 WebAwards, we would like you to know that the results have been posted in your nominator account for your review. The results will be released to the general public on September 16th - one week from today.

If you have won a WebAward this year, you may edit your entry information prior to public release of the results. The deadline for making these changes, if any, is September 15th at 5:00pm EST.

Thank you for your participation in this industry standards setting event.

You can sign in to your nominator account at http://www.webaward.org/nominator_default.asp

Winners Announcement Date Set

The winners of the 2008 WebAward Competition for Website Development will be announced September 16th on this website and to the media.

As in past years, nominators will receive results on September 9th in their nominator account and can begin to prepare their marketing efforts.

2008 WebAward Judging Complete

Just a quick update to let everyone know that the judging of the 2008 WebAwards is now complete and we are tabulating the winners in 96 categories. We will announce the winners in September.

WebAward Update

The Call for Entries has been completed and the Judging of the Web Marketing Association's WebAwards are well underway. Winners will be notified in September a week before the public announcement of winners.

Good luck to all who entered.

WebAward Deadline for Entry Has Been Extended

The Web Marketing Association has announced that the deadline for entering its 12th annual WebAward Competition has been extended until June 13th to allow final entries to be submitted and existing entries to be edited if needed.

While all entries submitted after the original May 31st deadline are subject to a late fee, you still have the opportunity to have you best Websites judged by the Web Marketing Association panel of experts and win glory and recognition for yourself, your company and the award-winning Website.

The final deadline is Friday, June 13th and this deadline will not be extended as the judging phase of the competition begins June 16th.

Today Is The Deadline To Enter 2008 WebAwards

The WebAwards are the premier internet award competition that judges website development against an ever increasing Internet standard of excellence and against peer sites within an industry.

Today is the deadline for entering for 2008.

Entering is easy. If you have not already done so, you can create a Nominator Account or log in to an existing Nominator Account. Complete the entry form information and you site will be judged by our panel of Internet experts and be on its way to win the recognition you deserve.

Good luck to everyone who enters.

Paying Entry Fees by Wire

Some international participants of the WebAwards may find it easier to pay for their entry fees by sending a direct wire from their bank to the Web Marketing Association bank. If this is the case, please contact us for wire instructions.

It is important that you submit your entry prior to sending the wire and also emailing us your entry number when you have confirmed the wire has been sent. We have no way of matching the wired funds received by our bank with any entry until we receive your email notification.

Also note that there is a $25 USD wire fee to cover the fees we are charged by our bank.

Submitting Sites on CD-ROM

Web sites that are not currently available online may be submitted via CD-ROM. Please complete the Online Entry Form available in a nominator account and in the URL field, enter "CD-ROM".

Submit three copies of the site on CD-ROM with the entry number assigned by the online entry submission process on each disk. Send your CD-ROMs to:

Web Marketing Association
WebAwards Entry#
P.O. Box 249
W. Simsbury, CT 06092

Overnight packages can be sent to:

Web Marketing Association
WebAwards Entry#
7 Cedar Glen Road
W. Simsbury, CT 06092

Entry Database Not Being Updated

We have received several emails from people who have nominated Websites for the WebAward competition and paid their entry fee, but the system reported that the payment was not showing up in the system.

This is caused when the final button is not clicked during the payment process. The Web Marketing Association uses a leading third party credit card processing gateway in order to protect the financial information of our award participants. If the final button is not clicked, the information is not passed from the card processor's servers to our servers which results in our database not being updated.

If this happens to you, please email us a copy of your credit card receipt and we will use the information from that email to update your entry or entries.


The Web Marketing Association is accepting entries into the 2008 WebAward competition until May 31st. Just remember to complete the payment process by clicking the final button which takes you back to the WebAward Website.

What Kind Of Budget Is Required To Create An Award Winning Website?

There are many that think you need to break the bank in order to create an effective Website that will win awards. Well, this is just not true.

Using data from the participants of the 2007 WebAward competition, the Web Marketing Association has determined that more than half (51%) of websites which won a WebAward were reportedly created on a budget of less than $50,000. Only 5% of the sites which won a WebAward last year had a budget of more than $1 million.

The Web Marketing Association is accepting entries into the 2008 WebAward competition until May 31st, so both small sites and big budget sites will be well represented. While you need to be a huge brand to win some Website award programs, that is not true for the WebAwards.

Who is Developing Award Winning Websites?

Using data from the participants of the 2007 WebAward competition, the Web Marketing Association has determined that 51% of websites which won a WebAward were designed by an in-house team while the other half were developed with the input of an agency or agencies. In fact, 23% of the winning entries reported that they were developed solely by an agency, 4% were a team effort of multiple agencies and 22% a combination of an in-house team with the expertise of an agency.

The Web Marketing Association is accepting entries into the 2008 WebAward competition until May 31st, so both in-house development departments and agencies have an opportunity to get their best work entered.

Award Winning Website designers use PCs.

Using data from the participants of the 2007 WebAward competition, the Web Marketing Association has determined that 58% of websites which won a WebAward were designed on a Windows-based PC compared to 42% of award-winning sites which used a Macintosh-based computer.

When you look at which computer was used in the programming of the award-winning Websites, PC were used in 81% of the winning entries verses only 19% that used Macs.

The Web Marketing Association is accepting entries into the 2008 WebAward competition until May 31st, so we will soon see if this trend of Microsoft supremacy in Web design will hold true for another year.

Who has the Meatballs?

Congratulations to Valerie Neuschwander of Web Associates, Gail E. Hageman of Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP and Kimberly Brookes of Wyndham Hotel Group for being selected to win a copy of Seth Godins book from last month’s Web Marketing Association Interactive Briefing newsletter. In addition, Margaret Lahey of Mailer Mailer responded to our blog posting about a drawing and she was selected to receive a copy as well.

We hope they do as well in the 2008 WebAward competition!

With less than one month to go until the deadline for entering the 12th annual international WebAward competition, we hope to provide a series of hints on how to increase your changes of winning this prestigious Website award. Be sure to check our WMA blog regularly or subscribe to its RSS feed for greater insight into putting your best foot forward and winning a WebAward.

5 Tips to Impress the WebAward Judges

1) Provide a Direct URL to the entry – One mistake agencies that submit multiple entries make is to create a page that shows all of the entries and uses the same URL for all of the entries. It is much better to provide a direct URL for each entry, the judges do not need a landing page to be impressed with your entry, they just want to review the site and multiple sites on the same page increases the chances that they might review the wrong site.

2) Make sure the URL works – The last thing you want is to find out that your entry was not judged because the URL was invalid or the changed before the site was reviewed. If the judges can’t see the site, they can’t score it and it will be disqualified. One thing that causes a URL to fail is nominators that include instructions in the URL like “www.webaward.org - click on the big button”. Instructions belong in the instructions field, not the URL.

3) Be brief and to the point - The Audience and mission statement helps the judges understand the goals of the site before the review. Their advice is to keep the narrative short and sweet. Who is the site’s audience? What are you trying to accomplish with the site – direct sales, branding, information, etc? What are some of the features that might not be apparent? These are what the judges are looking for.

4) List the requirements necessary to view the site – Some sites using the latest technologies require specific versions of products (Shockwave 11.0 or Adobe Flash version 9.0 for example) or the download of plug ins or executable programs to review an entry. They will be more willing to comply if they know what is expected when they review the entry form. Also, let the judges know if your site only works on Internet Explorer because they may be using other browsers.

5) Make sure the password works - If the site is password protected, please make sure the user name and password are active until August 15th. This point mirrors Tip #2 - . If the judges can’t see the site, they can’t score it and it will be disqualified. Passwords that change during the competition can be updated by email

WebAward Update

The Web Marketing Association's 2008 WebAward competition Call for Entries deadline is less than one month away. Now is the time to enter! All entries received after the deadline of May 31, 2008 are subject to a late fee.

The WebAwards are the premier internet award competition that judges website development against an ever increasing Internet standard of excellence and against peer sites within an industry.

A Best of Industry WebAward, a handsome plaque with the image of the winning site embossed, will be given in each of the 96 industry categories, including financial services, blog, medical, small business, travel, advertising, transportation, and government.

It's easy to enter and you can't win if your not entered, so go to the WebAward Website and create a nominator account and submit your entry today.

Clickz Online Video Advertising Forum

Clickz Online Video Advertising Forum - July 22, 2008 - Millennium Broadway, New York City

Interactive video advertising is one of the fastest-growing interactive sectors. What are the implications for marketers? Digital and traditional ad agencies are changing their notions of formats and strategies and are learning to work with interactive video technologies to produce and distribute compelling, effective content.

Join ClickZ and its experts in this immersive, one-day forum when we uncover the strategies, innovations, tools, formats, strategy, metrics, and creative to building an effective online video campaign. This immersive, one-day forum is for senior advertisers, marketers, publishers, and content providers who are using or considering this very fast-moving medium. Its aim is to educate, inform and provide a comprehensive overview of online video advertising innovations, tools, formats, strategy, metrics, and creative.

Early Bird Registration: SAVE $300 now through May 23rd Web Marketing Association members SAVE and additional 10% with CZ10WMA.

Ten reasons why you should enter your website into the 2008 WebAwards

With only one month to go until the entrty deadline, we though we would give you our 10 reasons you should enter the Web Marketing Association's 12th annual WebAward Competition for Website development.

10) If you wait until after the May 31st deadline, you'll have to pay a late fee.

9) Your mom would be proud of you.

8) You will receive important benchmark data for your entire industry and where your site ranks in each of the seven judging criteria.

7) Think of the PR opportunities - industry publications, blogs, websites, by-lined articles, podcasts, press releases, interviews - the sky is the limit.

6) A best of industry plaque containing your award winning site will look great in your office.

5) The WebAward logo on your site is like receiving the "Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval" for Web development.

4) Your clients and customers will be impressed at your industry recognition and so will your potential clients.

3) A link to webaward.org will help your site's search engine rankings because you will be linked to an 12-year old .org authoritative site with a high Google PageRank.

2) A Best of Industry award means you're the best and you can prove it!

1) If you don't win, we won't tell anyone - and you still get the feedback.

Recognition and feedback, that is what you will receive when you enter the 2008 WebAward Competition for Website development. Winning accolades in the 2008 WebAwards - the Internet's premier award recognition program, is a great way to stand out from others in your industry. You will also receive valuable feedback from our judges and benchmarks for your industry. But you won't get anything if you don't enter!

The 12th Annual WebAward competition deadline for entry is May 31st, only a month away, and you can submit your site for review at www.webaward.org. Avoid a late fee by completing your Web site entries before the deadline.

Enter the 2008 WebAwards today and receive the recognition you deserve!

The Best Of Digital Marketing

1st July 2008
The Grange City Hotel, London

Monetise Your Digital Channels And Inspire Consumer Engagement By Capitalising on the Future of Digital Marketing.

Reserve your place at Revolution's high-level review of 2008’s digital marketing brand best practice, showcasing handpicked award-winners and pioneers from the hottest brand case studies, spotlighting new digital channels that are about to hit the big-time, and looking across the digital landscape to make sure you can create an integrated cross-channel campaign guaranteed to capture attention and keep ahead of the competition.
Special Feature: To guarantee you leaving the conference with expertise that you can apply directly to your campaign, we’ve dedicated time to allow you to book small group time with our speakers

• Multi-Channel Fluidity Develop cross-platform campaigns for the best multi-channel mix
• Monetise Social Media From the creative to the commercial: make social networks produce real business benefits
• Optimise Your Website Explore new options for attract new traffic and streamline your site to convert visitors into customers
• Navigate The Search-Affiliate Landscape Maximise brand potential as the search environment evolves
• Quantify Creativity In Display Advertising Create captivating campaigns with calculable affect
• Perfect Email Campaigns Inspire with fresh design innovations, personalisation shortcuts and attention-grabbing ideas
• Debate Mobile Marketing Is it ever going to be the year of the mobile? Get involved with our down-to-earth, hype-free debate with cross-channel representation

A 360 degree brand-led showcase for all Marketing, E-Commerce and Digital teams wanting to keep their brands at the cutting-edge.

Win a Copy of Seth Godin's New Book

We are giving away several copies of Seth Godin’s newest book Meatball Sundae: Is your marketing out of sync. Please email your contact information to (meatball at webaward.org)
and if you’re selected, we will mail you a copy of this interesting book courtesy of our friends at Search Engine Strategies.

Win a Free PPC Summit Conference Pass Contest

Pay Per Click Summit is searching for the most effective Search Marketing strategy, tip or technique that increased your conversions!

We're calling all internet marketers to submit your proven technique or strategy here on this Search Marketing strategy Contest Form:

All you have to do is answer the following questions (noted on the form at the above link). What Increased Your Search Marketing ROI Last Year? What one thing could you point to and say “THAT made the difference!” Please provide two paragraphs describing your most effective SEM tip, technique or strategy. Only one submission per person and make sure to include your name and email in the spaces provided on the submission form. Stand by to see if your Best Strategy submission is chosen as the winner, and you will win a FREE FULL CONFERENCE PASS TO THE NEXT PPC SUMMIT!

PPC Summit will review all submissions and choose one overall winner on May 9. The winner will be notified by email and posted on all contest blog hosts by May 12. If your submission is chosen as the winner, you will win a FREE two-day conference pass to the PPC Summit of your choice (San Francisco May 19-20 or Los Angeles Sept. 25-26).

The PPC Summits are educational two-day Internet Marketing workshops which connect you with the world’s leading pay per click experts. You won't want to miss the upcoming PPC Summit to learn from the Microsoft Keynote and other industry leaders during two full days of expert SEM and SEO lead generation and sales producing strategies. Stay tuned! The lucky winner will be announced and notified by May 12. The winner will also be recognized on all participating blog host sites.

Reserve your seat today and SAVE 10%, PLUS $200 off with code WMA10 www.ppcsummit.com/overview.html?blog

We hope to see you in San Francisco May 19-20.

The WebAwards is the Best Website award competition

When the Web Marketing Association begin the WebAwards back in 1997, there were plenty of advertising award programs, and some even included a category for online media, but none were devoted to recognizing and improving overall Web development. We changed that!

We think we the WebAwards is the Best Website award competition for many reasons:

We have a transparent process. We tell you what the seven criteria for a successful Website are and let the judges determine how to apply them each year.

Our judges are Internet Experts from around the world that volunteer their time because they are leaders in their industry and understand the value of the WebAwards to Internet community.

All of our sites get sent to the judges – not just a handful of “finalists”. In fact, each site is reviewed by 3-6 judges and the final score is an average of the top two scores.

The awards are industry specific with 96 categories that you can enter. You are judged against your peers, not each industry has a different standard of excellence – just like in real life.

The year we are introducing a new award image plaque with a modern look that will look great on your office wall or in your company’s trophy case.

Winning a WebAward is also a great marketing opportunity. Winners can use press releases to drive traffic to your site and will receive links from our site to help with SEO efforts.

Everyone who participates gets feedback. Some will get specific comments from the judges reviewing your site, but everyone will receive their scores on each of the seven criteria and benchmark those scores against your industry averages.

Everyone who participates will also receive a copy of the 2009 Internet Standards Assessment Report which provides more than a decade of benchmarking data for your industry.

It is simple to enter and last years sites can be reentered with a single click from your nominator account.

If you have not entered theWebAwards yet, now is the time to give it a try. It’s effortless to enter. Simply go to the WebAward Website, create a nominator account and enter information about your site. The Web Marketing Association will send their independent expert judges to visit the site using seven criteria for an effective Website. If your Website has the highest score in your industry, you will receive a Best of Industry WebAward and a beautiful plaque for your trophy case. Other sites will be recognized with an Outstanding WebAward or a Standard of Excellence WebAward. All entries will receive their scores in each of the criteria benchmarked against their industry and overall Web development.

But you can't win if you don't enter, so don't delay, enter the 2008 WebAwards today.

The deadline for entry is May 31, 2008. A complete list of past winners and this year’s entry form can be found at www.WebAward.org.

Angry Websites Take Action

I have ambition. I have drive. My entire life – from when I was a wee pop-up trying to gain everyone’s attention to the grown-up full-fledged, content rich homepage that I am – I have always wanted to be the best. Get the best visitors. Shout out the best content. Have the newest, most innovative design around. My goal has always been to be the best.

So I wake up extra early in the morning – earlier than some of those other sites, whom we wont mention – spiff myself up quite a bit, and head into work. I put on my best content, shine up my title tag and even do a little dance for Google every once in a while to let her know I’m still around.

But maybe Google is upset with me lately. I mean, I did sort of break her heart a couple months ago, but that is a really long story and I’d rather not get into it at the moment. Or maybe somehow my site isn’t being promoted enough. Because lately there haven’t been any good visitors!

And that really aggravates me to my metadata. Come on you guys! I am a great site! And you don’t even seem to care. Well, if I can’t get your attention in a good way, here is a warning on how I am going to get your attention MY way!

1. You know that horrible feeling when your alarm goes off in the morning, and you just want to go back to bed, and you will do anything to make sure that happens? You hit the snooze button for five more minutes of bliss? Yeah, that is how I have felt every day lately. Not wanting to do any work, not caring if I get up out of my server in the morning. You know what I’m going to do to get some attention? CRASH! Haha, that’s what you get for ignoring me.

2. When I’m feeling particularly vengeful and angry that no one is recognizing me, I like to play a little game like not giving visitors the content they need to help them find the product/service that is right for them. This game is called “move around content so no one knows where to find anything!” It’s so fun! Take the company mission statement and move it onto the “Contact Us” page. Take the contact information and hide it under the “Locations” page. And maybe just get rid of the “Customer Testimonials” altogether. I mean, why show that people have said positive things about you in the past when now, in the present I’m being completely ignored?

3. I also like to incorporate some poor grammar into my content. So I’ll go through the work a diligent copywriter spent hours optimizing and I get rid of the keywords altogether and just insert the word “stuff” or “things”. That is always a good time. Then no one knows what you are offering, and my ex-friend Google won’t be poking around my site so much, trying to see what I’m offering.

4. These days, I don’t like having to run too many applications. And I definitely don’t like having visitors stay around and bother me all afternoon. You know those fun interactive bits that are on some websites? Yeah, not on mine anymore! No more visitor polls, no more exciting flash videos, no more “leave your comment here” forms. And while I’m at it, why not get rid of the color and formatting as well? This way, I use less of my very valuable energy to be “flashy” and “exciting” for visitors, and they take one look at my site, see its boring black-and-white format, and leave. I love it!

5. And remember when I said I haven’t been getting any “good” visitors? Well, that is correct. I mean, I have had some visitors, but they are of the rival gang. The kids-from-the-other-side-of-the-tracks. The Spammers! So what’s a guy to do? He’s starved of attention and boom, here comes someone so fantastic, so tempting, so nice-looking. And I just let him right in. But hey, negative attention is still attention right? And I might be a little insecure at times, so I just let Mr. Spam hang around. At least it’s company.

This is the life for me these days. My ambition and drive have gone out the window. Do you really want your site to get as annoyed as me? I don’t think so. That would be bad for your business and your reputation as a website developer.

If you want to boost your site’s recognition and keep it happy, enter it in the WebAward competition by May 31st, 2008. Being judged by internet gods is just the thing that will perk up your site and make sure he knows he is appreciated. And trust me, attention from a WebAwards judge is the greatest honor for a website. Your site might just be working up to his full potential soon to make sure he wins!

Interactive Briefing Featured Articles

Here are two articles from the April issue of the Web Marketing Association Interactive Briefing that you might find helpful.

Build Customers Extranets to retain and increase revenue - Customized Customer Sites can and should be a viable component of your best marketing practices arsenal.

Go Online to Reach the “Online At Work” Audience - Reaching the office worker with relevant advertising has always been difficult. The Internet overcomes these challenges and offers advertisers a true opportunity to effectively reach the “online at work” audience. To better understand the “online at work” audience, Burst Media surveyed over 11,500 web users 18 years or older on the online activities they engage in while at work (PDF).

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Clinton vs. Obama: Who has the Better Website?

The 2008 Democratic Presidential nomination process is being fiercely contested by Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Both candidates are using the Internet to help their campaigns woo volunteers and campaign contributions. But who has the better Website?

Take a look at this video and find out.

The WebAward Judges Take on Clinton and Obama To see Who Has The Best Website?

Our WebAward judges have a lot of experience reviewing Websites. Not only are they all experienced Internet professionals that create and maintain Websites themselves, but as a group they have submitted more than 18,000 site evaluations over the past decade as part of the annual WebAward Competition.

With this in mind, the Web Marketing Association asked past WebAward judges to review both www.hillaryclinton.com and www.barackobama.com using the same criteria used in the annual WebAwards program. The sites were judged side by side on seven criteria of a successful Website. More than 100 Judges responded on short notice (111 to be exact) with additional judges just missing the deadline.

The 2008 Democratic Presidential nomination process is being fiercely contested by Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Both candidates are using the Internet to help their campaigns woo volunteers and campaign contributions. But who has the better Website?

Here are the results:
Design - Asked “which Website has the most pleasing design?” WebAward judges selected the Obama site 3 to 1 over the Clinton Website.74.8% of them voted for Senator Obama’s Website and 25.2% selected Senator Clinton’s Website as better looking.

Innovation - Website innovation also went in favor of Barack Obama. By the same margin as design, the vast majority of WebAward judges (74.8%) thought the Obama Website seems more innovative, while only 25.2% favored Clinton’s.

Content - In terms of having the most appealing content, judges again selected the Obama Website over Hillary Clinton’s Website, although by a narrower margin than the first two criteria. 65.7% of the WebAward judges felt barackobama.com has more appealing content for visitors compared to 34.3% for hillaryclinton.com. WebAward judges also found that the Obama Website is more effective for telling the candidate's story and attracting contributions and voters to its cause (68.5% Obama vs 31.5% Clinton).

Ease of use – Senator Obama’s Website was seen as easier to use by the WebAward judges than Senator Clinton’s. 57.5% selected barackobama.com as easier to use compared to 42.5% of WebAward judges who felt hillaryclinton.com was easier.

Copywriting– It is obvious that both campaigns have excellent writers on staff. Neither Websites have any of the editing issues some large organizations can experience. However, the WebAward judges gave a slight advantage to the Obama site (60.8% over the Clinton site 39.2%).

Interactivity – Interactivity makes a Website more than just an online billboard and both candidates were effective in giving visitors to their Websites plenty to see and do. Nevertheless, once again the WebAward judges gave the edge regarding interactivity to the Obama Website (64.8%) over the Clinton Website (35.2%).

Technology – Use of technology is evident in both candidates’ Websites, however, the clear favorite for the WebAward judges was barackobama.com winning 73.8% of the votes compared to hillaryclinton.com with only 26.2% of the votes.

Regardless of who you will be voting for in the next presidential election, Websites are going to play an ever increasingly important role in how candidates get their messages across to the American voters. Based on the findings of this survey by some of the top Internet professionals available today, the Web Marketing Association names barackobama.com the winner of the Clinton vs Obama Website Challenge. We wish both candidates the best of luck in their efforts to become the Democratic Presidential candidate in the November election.

To see the actual results of the survey please go to the Clinton Obama Survey Results page on our website or view a short video of the results. We also have posted survey comments from some of our judges in another posting on this blog.

The 12th annual international WebAwards competition sets the standard of excellence in 96 industry categories by evaluating Web sites and defining benchmarks based on the seven essential criteria of successful Web site development. The goal of the Web Marketing Association, sponsor of the WebAwards, is to provide a forum to recognize the people and organizations responsible for developing some of the most effective Web sites on the Internet today. Entrants benefit from a Web site assessment by a professional judging panel and the marketing opportunities presented to an award-winning Web site.

Websites in 96 industries can now be entered in the 2008 WebAwards at the award program Website. The 2008 Call for Entry deadline is May 31, 2008. For more information, visit www.webaward.org.

Comments from the judges on Senators Clinton and Obama Websites

The Web Marketing Association asked past WebAward judges to review both www.hillaryclinton.com and www.barackobama.com using the same criteria used in the annual WebAwards program. The sites were judged side by side on seven criteria of a successful Website. More than 100 Judges responded on short notice and named Senator Obama's Website as the Best Websites in head to head competition against Senator Clinton's Website.

One of the main benefits of participating in the annual WebAward competition is the feedback participants receive regarding their Websites. Below are some of the comments from the WebAward judges regarding the two sites being evaluated. They are the personal opinions of the specific judge who made them and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Web Marketing Association. Attribution is given where available.

For compete information on the Clinton Obama Website Challange, please visit our Website at www.TheWebAwards.org.


I think both designs and architectures were well planned. But on the user experience side, both the Clinton and Obama sites initially forced a sign up page, requesting my email and contact info on my first visit. When I landed on Hilary’s site, I thought I had received a link in error to some landing page see http://hillaryclinton.com/splash/. Both sites request this ahead being allowed in the main area but it went away on a browser refresh, so while I did not study the code, I assumed it was a basic use of a cookie. Overall, I thought this was a poor treatment of the first time visitor by forcing the desire of the campaign to gather information without having served the user. Both sites did offer a “skip this” choice to proceed to the main site but it took some review time to even find that. I tested this with others on my staff and got the same reaction about the treatment of the 1st time visitor. For the record I also checked and McCain’s site did not currently use the same information gathering tactic which may only relate to where he is in the primary cycle. With so many undecided voters, I thought this was a clear cut example of not putting the user first and designing the experience for them rather than forcing them into a model that worked for the campaigns.
Bo Simmons, President, Cool Blue Interactive

Barack's website has a more calming effect and eases you into the different topics on the site. Hillary's feels more clutters and pushy. As far as web design goes Barack's website has a more current web 2.0 look and feel. Both websites are very impressive and the technology used is equally so.
Jon Harrison, Webavt.com

The navigation of the site appear the same -- even the DONATE NOW/CONTRIBUTE button is the same color and placement. Even the language of video (candidateTV) is the same! In the end, Barack seems to be doing a better job visually. There is much more use of white space, which results in homepage scrolling, but this works better than cramming all the content into the homepage like the Hillary site. Content-wise the websites appear similiar just with a different candidate. Obama does seem to make more use of social media, but one has to wonder if it a case of name-dropping ("hey, I represent on MyBatanga!"). Interestingly, Hillary's "bilingual" page keeps navigation and a lot of the call to actions in English. No bueno.
David Felfoldi, Sherpa! Web Studios

I found the design of Barack Obama's site to be lively, consistent and professional and the messaging to be positive and engaging. Every element was handled with finesse and the flow of information invited exploration. The site definitely conveyed "possibilities." If I lived in bubble and this was the only exposure I had to the candidate and his campaign, I would be very impressed. On the other hand, I found Hillary Clinton's site to be uninspiring in both its design and its tone. The site appeared overly conventional and cluttered, the messaging came across as harsh and needy, and the overall experience felt stale. I think the site might actually do the candidate some disservice because it lacked warmth, vision and personality. If I were to vote for a candidate based solely on the merits of his or her Website, Barack Obama would win by a landslide.
Sherry Bastion, ARCHESITE.

Both sites are almost complete copies of the other. The differences are so minor that I believe they are very evenly matched with Hillary's site being more compact and Obama's site is more iconic. The Hillary site is more pure CSS than Obama's but both function nicely. One cool thing that the Obama site has is ring-tones and more focus on the mobile user. Also his layout of the video channel is nicer although her's loads much faster.
Bruce Baughman, President, Design Monkey Artists Domain Inc.

Overall, it was tough to determine a clear winner because both sites were very similar. What made BarackObama.com stand out for me was that through the use of color and his photography, it made the experience more inviting and personable. HillaryClinton.com felt a bit stale and cold, not engaging enough. I did prefer Hillary's story though with the timeline and photography. Another great element was 'The Hillary I Know' microsite that featured video of those closest to her - nice touch.
Jeannie Metz-Fratoni, Creative Director, Red Door Interactive

While both candidate web sites are superb on their own, when judging them side by side, Barack Obama's web site has the edge on every available metric -- from the initial look and feel of the splash page to the way the interior of the site is structured and dressed to communicate effectively. As one example, the Barack Obama web site is much more effective in its use of white space to make each area of the page stand out whereas the Hillary Clinton web site feels more crammed -- with lots of bold colors competing for attention.
Raymond Pirouz raymondpirouz.com/

It is very hard for me to distinguish between the 2 of these sites. if you took the name and photos off, they would look almost exactly the same- color palette, font, layout, menu headings, they have nearly the same content in the same order.

In this campaign Hillary Clinton appears to be trailing in every aspect, including online campaigning. While her campaign has made an effort to include references and connections to most social networking tools, they clearly lack the commitment and resources to make the most of their online opportunities. As a result her Website presents Hillary Clinton as a fairly scattershot candidate. Barack Obama's campaign, on the other hand, clearly started with a strong commitment to using design and online campaigning to engage the public in their campaign story. As with his speeches and other communications, every element of Obama's Website is meticulously crafted. Typography is impeccable, graphics are gorgeous, and his message of hope, community, and vision for a positive future are unmissable.

As an objective judge for the WebAwards for the last 4 years, as well as dealing with web design and communication issues daily in my business, the Clinton site was by far more professional and intuitive than the Obama site. As an Obama supporter I felt quite disappointed in the disparity. Perhaps the answer lies in the financial resource that Clinton has over Obama in hiring the right web and communication managers.
Brian Bickford, President, Strategic Productions

I think Obama's site is much more contemporary, and will appeal to more technically savvy viewers, while Clinton's is not as innovative in structure, technology, etc. As a designer I'd rather be taking credit for Obama's site, although I'm a Clinton supporter.

Both candidates have loaded their sites with the latest media tools and are nearly identical in form and function. They have nailed the technology, but they are missing the human element. Neither Clinton nor Obama have a personal blog where they could connect with voters in their own words and share their daily experiences. Everyone from Moms to CEOs are blogging today, why not the candidates? It's a real chance to make a competitive difference on the web and build a personal connection with voters.
Bob Gilbreath, Chief Marketing Strategist, Bridge Worldwide

Most annoying on both sites was seeing a sign up form very prominent on the page. I almost thought that's all there was until I saw the "Enter site" button. This would turn off a lot of people I think and is almost the same as the annoying "Skip Intro" Flash sites. Clinton's site was more straightforward HTML so it was a little easier to use and the contribution form looked and worked cleaner. However overall Obama's site was better especially in the copywriting it was clearer where he stood on positions or at least was able to find his positions better. Probably the biggest piece of cheese on his site was the "Powered by Hope" emblem on the bottom. It almost felt jokey and if it wasn't, it's taking the "hope" theme too far and making it meaningless. (I hope his t-shirts aren't "built by hope") Overall there's not much differentiation between the sites, it's almost like they bought the same template and went from there. Especially when they aren't going for politics as usual, their sites certainly are.

"The websites of the 3 leading U.S. Presidential contenders reflect, not surprisingly, their various personalities and agendas. The design, contents and use of technologies vary from conservative to very progressive. A look at all three websites gives insight into how modern media planners can integrate technology tools to promote their message and their brand strategy.
Ric Shreves, http://RicShreves.net

While many of the details of their platforms are informed by similar values and proposals, the vitality of Obama's site is inspiring and engaging (even the backgrounds of the Obama site have a vitality lacking in the Hillary site's drab gradients). Will a site change the minds of visitors? I found that it effectively drew me closer to the candidate; in fact I might just go back and volunteer.
Jamie Leo, Creative Director, The Monday Campaigns

In the battle for popularity, the ability to use the Web and Social Media effectively can be a critical determinant of success. The Hillary Clinton campaign has put together a cogent, persuasive website with sophisticated use of technology, including social media. The Barack Obama website however has an earthy appeal to it, and perfectly reinforces the message that the Obama campaign has consistently sought to convey. The Obama site thus strongly resonates with it's target audience.
Dr. V P Kochikar, Assc Vice President and Principal Consultant, Infosys Technologies

It's clear that the Obama website has embraced all that is new about the web. An indication of what he stands for and what he's aiming to achieve. It is clear, concise and beautifully designed. Although not a poor site in many ways, the first impression of Clinton's is of desperation. It is loaded with colours and content that can confuse the user. Being from the UK, I can judge these sites with little affiliation to a candidate, and I would say Obama's site is by far the most appealing.
Nic Sheppard, eBusiness Manager, iShares Europe

Barack Obama needs to make it clear to the user that visitors do not have to provide their name and email information in order to view the site. Currently, you can only use the logo to access the site. Hillary Clinton clearly states it on the home page.
Linda Girard, Pure Visibility

Both sites were slick, but I would have to give a narrow edge to Sen. Clinton. The design was denser, the content seemed richer and the video streaming was clearer on the Clinton page. Both sites reflected the personalities of the candidates -- Clinton's site had more detail (and threw more punches); Obama's site was more inspiring. Both candidates emphasized money raising, no surprise there.
Rob Wray, Rob Wray Marketing

The Clinton site whilst looking very basic on entering it is really full of technology but not in an "in your face" kind of way. Subtle, good copy, nice graphics.
Nic Carter-Jones, New Millennium Internet UK

Internet Industry Conferences

If you are attending ad:tech, April 15&17 at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, please stop by and see us in the exhibit hall in booth 6381. Also look for Dennis Franczak, of FUSE/ideas who was the winner of the conference pass drawing we held in the last issue of Interactive Briefing.

Speaking of winners, congratulations also goes out to Susan Prater, Interactive Marketing Manager at Owens Corning who was selected to receive an iTouch by stopping by our booth at Search Engine Strategies New York Conference (another outstanding industry event)

We are giving away several copies of Seth Godin’s newest book Meatball Sundae: Is your marketing out of sync. Please email your contact information to (meatball at webaward.org)
and if you’re selected, we will mail you a copy of this interesting book courtesy of our friends at Search Engine Strategies.

Manufacturing Web sites Highlighted in Podcast

Bill Rice, President of the Web Marketing Association was recently interviewed on PodcasterNews about the state of excellence in manufacturing Websites. The interview also discussed the seven criteria for a successful Website and what a Website needs to be successful in today's online environment.

Based in Colorado and across the US via Skype, the Better Process Podcast interviews small and mid-sized manufacturing companies, and the companies that service these companies. Shows are free to download from iTunes (search for Better Process Podcast in iTunes music store) and are available most business days. More information on the show can be found at http://www.BetterProcess.com. The Better Process Podcast is the voice of the small and mid-sized manufacturing firm.

The interview can be listened to online at PodCasterNews, or you can download the mp3 file here.

We Need Your Help

The Web Marketing Association is a volunteer organization that each year produces the WebAward program. We need your help in spreading the news about our call for entry to other Internet Professionals. Our greatest marketing asset is you our newsletter readers.

You can help by:

Emailing other professionals or site owners and ask them to participate in the WebAwards.

Blog about the WebAwards. Either on your blog or industry blogs, write about our call for entry or your experiences with the WebAwards. You can point them to our blog posting for the Call for Entry.

Tell others within your organization. It is difficult to maintain contact with past participants via email. People change responsibilities, email addresses change and companies get merged. Make sure the correct people within your organization, including offices in other cities know about the WebAwards. The more awards your organization wins, the more recognition you will receive.

With your help we can have the most successful WebAward competition ever!

Call for WebAward Judges

Each year, we look to add experienced Internet professionals to the ranks of our WebAward Judging Panel. We select new judges based on the number of returning judges, the number of entries and the number of qualified applicants. Being a WebAward judge is a valuable experience that helps the individual better understand overall Web development and of course looks impressive on a resume or corporate bio.

"The WebAwards is different from other Web site award programs because we're not just a beauty pageant focused on name recognition and design," said William Rice, president of the Web Marketing Association. "Our judges are handed picked experts who have hands on experience either leading or developing some of today's top Websites. These individuals understand that participating as a judge in the WebAwards is one excellent way to give back to the online marketing community and help it to grow and evolve."

Judges will consist of a select group of Internet professionals who have direct experience designing and managing Web sites,–including members of the media, interactive creative directors, site designers, content providers and webmasters – with an in-depth understanding of the current state-of-the-art in Web site development and technology. Past judges have included top executives from leading organizations such as A&E Television Networks, Agency.com, Blattner Brunner, Bridge Worldwide, The Cincinnati Enquirer, Comedy Central, Disney, Euro RSCG, Ion Global, J. Walter Thompson, John Deere Company, New York Post Interactive, Organic, Inc., Refinery, R/GA, Saatchi & Saatchi, SAP, Starwood Hotels, Sun Microsystems, Warner Bros. Online, Xerox and Zugara.

If you or someone some one in your organization would make a good judge, they can learn more and enter their name for consideration on the WebAward Judges Nomination Form

SES returns to the San Jose Convention Center August 18-21, 2008

Early Bird Special: SAVE $600 on a Platinum Passport now through Tuesday, April 29.

San Jose in the summer is the place to be. Not only is it the center of the famed Silicon Valley, home to the largest concentration of successful internet and high-tech companies in the world, it is also the location for this year's Search Engine Strategies summer event!

There's no debating it, while SES NY is the agency conference, SES SJ is the high-tech and internet company event of the year! If you missed last year's Search Engine Strategies Summer in San Jose, you must be in attendance this August 18-21.

Saving $600 on a Platinum Passport now through Tuesday, April 29th Web Marketing Association members and friends can save more with their discount code – SJ10WMA

Register today for this outstanding event!

ad:tech Awards judging

Choose the best interactive ads and websites for the ad:tech People's Choice Awards! You have until April 4th to vote and winners will be announced at ad:tech San Francisco.

Click here to vote

Web Marketing Association's 12th Annual WebAwards to Honor World’s Best Web Sites

The Web Marketing Association is pleased to announce the call for entries for its 12th annual international WebAward competition. The WebAwards is the standards-defining competition that sets industry benchmarks based on the seven criteria of a successful Web site. It recognizes the individual and team achievements of Web professionals who create and maintain outstanding Web sites. The deadline for entry in the 2008 WebAwards is May 31, 2008. A complete list of past winners and this year’s entry form can be found at www.webaward.org.

“The WebAwards is different from other Web site award programs because we’re not just a beauty pageant focused on name recognition and design,” said William Rice, president of the Web Marketing Association. “The goal of the WebAwards is to not only recognize the people and organizations responsible for developing some of the most effective Web sites on the Internet today, but also provide valuable feedback to entrants on how their sites stack up against their peers and industry standards of excellence. For that reason, we see ourselves more like the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval than the Academy Awards.”

Web sites are judged on seven criteria, including design, innovation, content, technology, interactivity, copy writing and ease of use and receive a numeric score. Each WebAward entry is judged against other entries in its industry category and then against an overall standard of excellence. Entrants also benefit from receiving valuable feedback from the WebAwards professional judging panel on their Web site development efforts.

Using the quantifiable data collected from nearly 18,000 Web site evaluations over the past decade, the WebAwards has defined and recognized industry-specific benchmarks for successful Web sites in each of these areas and release a the Internet Standards Assessment Report to communicate the findings of the study. A copy of the study is available at www.webaward.org.

This year’s top awards will include:

• A “Best of Industry” WebAward, a handsome plaque with the image of the winning site embossed, will be given in each of the 96 industry categories, including financial services, medical, small business, travel, advertising, transportation and government.

• The competition’s highest honor, the 2008 WebAward “Best of Show,” will be given to the one site that the judges believe represents the pinnacle of outstanding achievement in Web development. Last year’s Best of Show winner was Walt Disney Internet Group for its outstanding work on Disney XD web site, which also won Best Design Website. Best of show runner up submitted by Atlanta-based IQ Interactive is UPS Whiteboard.

• The Web Marketing Association will also recognize the interactive agency winning the most awards in the competition with the “Top Interactive Agency” WebAward. The 2007 Top Agency award was Biggs/Gilmore taking home 20 WebAwards. Biggs/Gilmore is headquartered in Kalamazoo, MI and took home Best Food Website, Best Pharmaceutical Website and 8 Outstanding WebAwards and 11 Standard of Excellence WebAwards.

Judging for the 2008 WebAwards will take place in June through August and winners will be announced in September. Judges will consist of a select group of Internet professionals who have direct experience designing and managing Web sites,–including members of the media, interactive creative directors, site designers, content providers and webmasters – with an in-depth understanding of the current state-of-the-art in Web site development and technology. Past judges have included top executives from leading organizations such as A&E Television Networks, Agency.com, Blattner Brunner, Bridge Worldwide, The Cincinnati Enquirer, Comedy Central, Disney, Euro RSCG, Ion Global, J. Walter Thompson, John Deere Company, New York Post Interactive, Organic, Inc., Refinery, R/GA, Saatchi & Saatchi, SAP, Starwood Hotels, Sun Microsystems, Warner Bros. Online, Xerox and Zugara.

About the WebAwards

The 12th annual international WebAwards competition sets the standard of excellence in 96 industry categories by evaluating Web sites and defining benchmarks based on the seven essential criteria of successful Web site development. The goal of the Web Marketing Association, sponsor of the WebAwards, is to provide a forum to recognize the people and organizations responsible for developing some of the most effective Web sites on the Internet today. Entrants benefit from a Web site assessment by a professional judging panel and the marketing opportunities presented to an award-winning Web site. For more information, visit www.webaward.org.

WebmasterRadio.FM presents The Web Marketing Awards Special, Airing April 4, 2008

WebmasterRadio.FM, the premier free, 24/7 Internet business radio network focused on the B2B marketplace and the official radio network of the 12th Annual WebAwards is pleased to announce The Web Marketing Awards Special airing April 4, 2008 on WebmasterRadio.FM

On the WebmasterRadio.FM Web Marketing Awards Special, host William Rice from the Web Marketing Association will speak with Josh Webb, Associate Creative Director and Rocky Hunter, Account Supervisor from IQ Interactive, the Atlanta-based interactive firm that won Best of Show Runner Up in the 2007 WebAwards for their outstanding work on the UPS Whiteboard Website. “The whiteboard ad campaign has been used by UPS to successfully each its target audience across many media platforms, says William Rice, President of the Web Marketing Association. “Josh and Rocky will walk us through the concepts and technology that make the UPS Whiteboard Website so innovating and award winning”.

The show will also discuss how Web marketing professionals and Webmasters can win recognition for their own efforts by participating in the 2008 WebAward competition. Websites can be entered into 96 industries, including financial services, medical, small business, travel, advertising, transportation and government The Web Marketing Association’s independent expert judges will visit each site entered and evaluate it based on seven criteria of a successful Website. Sites earning the highest score in their industry will receive the Best of Industry WebAward. Sites not receiving the top award will be eligible to receive Outstanding Website and Standard of Excellence WebAwards.

Webmaster Radio
Web Marketing Awards Radio Special Bill Rice interviews representatives of Interactive on their winning campaign UPS WhiteBoard In this Web Marketing Awards Radio Special Show: Specials Channel: Specials

The deadline for entering the 2008 WebAwards is May 31st and you can learn more and enter at www.webaward.org. WebmasterRadio.FM is the official radio network of The 12th annual WebAwards competition, the standards-defining competition that sets industry benchmarks based on the seven criteria of a successful Web site.