Big Brands Take Top Honors at 2013 Content Marketing Awards

CLEVELAND, Aug. 1, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Disney, Allstate Insurance, American Airlines, ExactTarget, Google, Scholastic, Inc. and University of Phoenix are just a few of the brands to receive honors from the 2013 Content Marketing Awards, the largest awards program in North America for people who create content for organizations.

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The Content Marketing Awards were launched in 2004 as the Magnum Opus Awards. Since 2011 they have been conducted jointly by the Content Marketing Institute and McMURRY/TMG, the leading independent content marketing agency.

"While I was gratified by the number of blue-chip brands that entered our first annual CMAs—we had more than 800 entries in all—I was taken aback by the brilliance of the best work," said David Murray, program chairman. "Content marketing is growing in quality even faster than it's growing in quantity."

"Getting these content marketing case studies out to marketers is critical for the industry," said Joe Pulizzi, Content Marketing Institute founder. "And the winners come from around the world…and shows how content marketing is growing in North America to Europe to Asia Pacific. It's truly astounding."

Most prominent among the winning entries were the Gold Award recipients in the All Star categories, so named because they're essential to content marketing work:

Best Overall Print Magazine: KircherBurkhardt GmbH, Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, Christophorous Magazine
Best Overall Digital Magazine: Pace, Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts Digital Content Program
Best Overall Website: Huge, Google, Google Think Insights
Best Overall Corporate Blog: Cvent, Cvent's Event Planning Blog
Best Social Media Content Program: Veterans United Home Loans, Veterans United Network
Content Marketing Project of the Year (Employee Focused): Optum, Perspectives from the C-Suite
Content Marketing Project of the Year (Customer/Prospect Focused): KircherBurkhardt GmbH, Volkswagen AG, Das Auto. Magazine (Crossmedia)

The full list of 2013 award winners may be viewed here.

Content Marketing Awards finalists (yet to be announced) for Program of the Year, Agency of the Year and Content Marketer of the Year, will be recognized at Content Marketing World 2013, the largest content marketing event in the U.S. It is Sept. 9–12, 2013, in Cleveland, Ohio, and is still open for registration.

Entrants were judged by an esteemed panel of leading content marketing industry influencers and experts in more than 100 categories, which covered every aspect of content marketing and recognized excellence in each element of editorial, design, production and management among digital, print, video, audio-visual, text and social media.

About Content Marketing Institute (CMI)
The Content Marketing Institute is the leading global content marketing education and training organization. CMI teaches enterprise brands how to attract and retain customers through compelling, multi-channel storytelling. CMI's Content Marketing World event, the largest content marketing-focused event, will be held in Cleveland, Ohio, USA, September 9-12, 2013. CMI also produces the quarterly magazine Chief Content Officer, and provides strategic consulting and content marketing research for some of the best-known brands in the world. CMI is a division of Z Squared Media, a 2012 Inc. 500 company.

About McMURRY/TMG
McMURRY/TMG is a leading content marketing agency in the U.S., dedicated to delivering strategic, transformative brand experiences that engage customers and drive measurable results. Its 270 staff members are located in five offices in New York, Arizona and Washington, D.C., and they work together to help clients extend brands, boost engagement, build communities and deliver revenue through powerful, meaningful content. Clients include industry leaders such as WebMD, Amtrak, CBS Television, The Ritz-Carlton, CDW, Reed Exhibitions, 21st Century Insurance, Verizon, HP and Baylor Health Care System.

SOURCE Content Marketing Institute