Call for Entries

ACCEPTED FORMATS / CREATIVE WORK ADVERTISING MEDIA

Submitting Your Creative Elements

The 2013 Direct Marketing Association International ECHO™ Awards are entered, categorized, judged and presented by 15 Primary Business Categories.

After you have selected the primary business category (See Business Categories), please:

  1. Identify all appropriate Advertising Media used for your entry.
  2. Submit the proper samples with your entry.

    Note: To protect the integrity of the judging, creative samples must not have labels or markings that could identify the creative group or agency. Also, the agency name must not appear in the body text of the entry application. Obviously, self-promotion entries are an exception.

  • Alternative & Insert Media: Non-traditional media channels including package inserts, card packs, billboards, transit advertising, take ones, door hangers, kiosks, point-of-sale materials and all other forms of media not covered by other categories. Submit actual samples. If actual samples cannot be submitted due to size or complexity, please send one or more photographs (8 1/2" x11").
  • Catalog: Promotional pieces that include specific product descriptions of multiple items, designed to generate retail traffic or non-store orders. Includes printed and electronic formats. Submit an actual sample of printed catalog (including order form). For online catalog, upload digital elements to accompany online entry form.

  • Digital Content & Video: Includes vehicles used in the practice of digital content marketing such as blogs, online videos, e-books, white papers, podcasts, webcasts and webinars, blogs, web video series/webisodes and online presentations.

    All entries must be self-running applications and must be submitted for review in an appropriate digital format via URL provided on entry form or uploaded as an attachment to the online entry form. Please submit a list of any special applications needed to view the creative work, as well as any necessary user names/passwords. If the sites or web pages are no longer live, a self-contained version of a site or sites with the ads should be provided. For "static" executions, screen shots are acceptable. Please avoid agency identification as part of the URL. Video entries should be formatted for QuickTime or Windows Media Player.

  • Direct Mail: All direct mail, either flat or dimensional, delivered to home or office by conventional postal services, courier or messenger. Submit one actual sample. If actual dimensional piece is not available, you may send one or more color photographs (8 1/2" x 11"). However, you must send an actual copy of the letter. Do not mount samples. Mock-ups and electronic graphics are not acceptable.

  • E-Mail: E-mail communications sent to personal computers. (mobile messaging is a separate category). All entries must be self-running applications and must be submitted for review in an appropriate digital form via URL or uploaded as an attachment to the online entry form.

    For "static" executions (with no animation or video), screen shots are acceptable. Please submit a list of any special applications needed to view the creative work, as well as any necessary user names/passwords.

  • Mobile: Permission-based marketing communications specifically intended for delivery to mobile phone, tablet or other mobile devices. Marketing messages can either be push or pull, depending on the tactics and vehicles used. The tactics and vehicles include: application development, mobile site development, content distribution (downloaded or streamed), mobile search, web browsing, GPS location services, MMS/SMS messaging, and mobile display advertising.

    Submit mobile messaging samples electronically via URL or uploaded with online entry form, formatted for either QuickTime or Windows Media Player.

  • Print Advertising: Space advertisements, including freestanding inserts (FSI) in publications. Submit one actual sample of tear sheet or insert. Please mark clearly whether it is a magazine or newspaper ad and give publication dates. Mounted samples and electronic reproductions such as PDF files are not allowed.

  • Search Marketing: Search engine optimization (SEO) and paid pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. All entries must be self-running applications and must be submitted for review in an appropriate digital form via URL provided on entry form or uploaded as an attachment to the online entry form.

    For PPC, explain how you used advanced techniques and tools to generate more traffic, improve conversion rates and/or increase return on investment. PPC can include post-click optimization (i.e., multivariate landing page testing, heat maps, web analytics, etc.). Submit screen captures or reproductions of PPC ads posted to a URL or as an attachment. Screen captures or reproductions should reflect both ads displayed on search engines, as well as messaging on landing pages.

    For SEO, explain how you assisted in increasing ranking and streamlining navigation of website(s) through site structure changes, link development, social media and other strategies. Please post relevant web page(s) or site from the ECHO™ entry time window to a URL and submit associated results (screen captures of search rank, report/reproduction of link development strategy, web analytics data, etc.) as an attachment so that we may review your use of SEO. Please submit a list of any special applications needed to view the creative work, as well as any necessary user names/passwords. For SEO, printouts of web site screen shots are not acceptable as source code can be important in evaluation. Also, please avoid agency identification as part of the URL.

  • Social Media: Participatory digital media channels that facilitate dialogue and user-generated content from among a self-selected audience. Includes publicly available channels such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Google+, Pinterest, etc. Does not include blogs or proprietary digital communities that reside on a marketer's own website Does not include display advertising appearing on social networks.

    Submit a self-running application of social media activity as experienced by the target audience at the time of the campaign in digital format via URL or uploaded as an attachment to the online entry form. Please include any necessary user names and passwords. For "static" executions, screen shots are acceptable. Please avoid agency identification as part of the URL.

  • Telemarketing: Outbound Calls — Telephone sales programs. Submit an MS Word or PDF file of the call guide (script) including objection-responses, telephone FAQs, etc. If available, a call recording can be electronically uploaded with the entry from. Inbound Calls — Lead or sales program. Submit source(s) of calls. Also submit a MS Word or PDF file of the call guide (script) including objection-responses, telephone FAQ's, etc. If available, a call recording can be electronically uploaded with the entry from.
  • TV/ Radio: Broadcast advertisements in both spot and program length format. Submit samples electronically (upload with online entry form or post to a proprietary URL) formatted for either QuickTime or Windows Media Player. Identify PC or MAC compatibility. All entries must be submitted without agency identification. A hard copy of the script or storyboard must also be supplied and should accompany a hard copy of the Entry Form. Note: Electronic files uploaded to the ECHO™ entry portal should be no larger than 50MB.
  • Web Display Advertising: Web ads and online paid advertising other than e-mail and search (which are separate categories). All entries must be self-running applications and must be submitted for review in an appropriate digital format via URL provided on entry form or uploaded as an attachment to the online entry form. Please submit a list of any special applications needed to view the creative work, as well as any necessary user names/passwords. If the sites or web pages are no longer live, a self-contained version of a site or sites with the ads should be provided. For "static" executions, screen shots are acceptable. Please avoid agency identification as part of the URL.
  • Websites/Landing Pages: Websites, landing pages, microsites and other forms of web development. This is content that is not paid web advertising. All entries must be self-running applications and must be submitted for review in an appropriate digital format via URL provided on entry form or uploaded as an attachment to the online entry form. Please submit a list of any special applications needed to view the creative work, as well as any necessary user names/passwords. If the sites or web pages are no longer live, a self-contained version of the sites or pages should be provided. For "static" executions, screen shots are acceptable. Please avoid agency identification as part of the URL.

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