The Insurance Marketing Communications Association said its annual contest to recognize professionals in its sector will include seven additional award categories this year.
IMCA, based in Tacoma, Wash., said the Showcase Awards, which are taking entries now, recognize "Best of the Best" in outstanding marketing communications in the insurance industry.
Currently in its 49th year, the 2007 competition features entries in 42 categories–up from 35 last year. Categories cover such areas as advertising, sales promotion, multimedia campaigns, TV/radio, the Internet, employee communications, annual reports, e-commerce, community service and public relations.
IMCA said in 2006 its Showcase competition drew a record number of entries, with top winners including Nationwide Insurance, The Hartford, SAFECO Insurance, AMS Services and Foremost Insurance Group.
Cora Barran, IMCA president and advertising manager at Farmers Insurance, said this year the competition is expected to attract even more entries from a broader range of insurance entities and lines of insurance.
"We responded to IMCA member feedback by refining our entry categories and broadening the competition," Ms. Barran said. "This year's Showcase Awards will be more competitive for smaller insurance entities and demonstrates our commitment to commercial lines, as well as to all personal lines, including auto, homeowners, life and health."
Changes to this year's Showcase categories include:
o Categories previously identified as targeted to commercial or personal audiences are now identified as business-to-business or consumer.
o Certain categories are now divided by the campaign's total budget, rather than by the company's size.
o The annual report category is split between publicly traded and private companies.
This is the third year that the awards are open to all firms in the insurance industry, not just IMCA members.
Jack Makuch, chair of the 2007 IMCA Showcase Awards planning committee and a marketing communications manager at Allstate Insurance Company, said, "We encourage marketing communications professionals from insurance firms of all sizes and all lines to explore our awards and submit an entry."
Contest winners will be announced at the IMCA annual meeting, June 3-6, at the Newport Hyatt in Newport, R.I.
The deadline for materials receipt and entry is March 30. Entry forms can be downloaded from www.imcanet.com. Information about the competition and entry are available from Temie Seibert, IMCA executive director at 206-219-9811 or tseibert@imcanet.com.
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