Wow, more than 300 marketers submitted campaigns to MarketingSherpa’s annual Email Awards competition this year. The awards were handed out at last week’s sold-out Email Summit, Expo & Awards in Miami.

Among the 47 winners are re-engagement emails, entertainment events messages, triggered emails, direct sale or lead-gen promotion and most dramatic test results. Loads of US firms took home awards -- with a fantastic campaign from Germany and a Spanish-language effort sprinkled in.

As in past years, “results” was the most-important factor determining the winners. The quality of this year’s entries was better than ever, said our panel of judges, who inspected every entry’s results first and foremost. Only those with above-average results moved onto the next round.

Next, the judges reviewed strategy -- looking for factors that our research shows are best practices:
- Was testing involved?
- Was there segmentation?
- Was the email highly relevant to recipients?
- Was the strategy specifically devised to meet a particular goal?

Finally, they looked at creative. It broke some ties. But winners were often chosen by virtue of exceptional results and strategy without a creative review. Great-looking emails are a factor, but results say it all.

#1. Best (or Most Dramatic) Test You Learned From
Did you conduct a test this year on subject lines, campaign creative, lists, offers, landing pages ... anything at all? If the results were dramatic, then we want to hear about it. Yes, failed “worst” tests are just as likely to win this award as “happy” tests. The point is you tested and learned.

Gold B-to-B
Southcentral Foundation Company Newsletter
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/10.html

Gold Consumer
Key Messaging Multivariate Test for Kolbe Corp.
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/11.html

Silver Consumer
Insurance.com - CYQ Urgent Email
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/12.html

#2. Best Automated Series (Auto Responder)
Do you send an automatic series of messages that are pre-canned to folks who sign up? Perhaps you call it an “e-course” or “welcome series” or something else.

Gold B-to-B
VMWare - Customer Cost Savings
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/1.html

Silver B-to-B
Dell - Customer Ratings & Reviews
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/2.html

Honorable Mention B-to-B
CostGuard Automated Series Upgrade 2007
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/3.html

Gold Consumer
GMAC Lead Incubation
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/4.html

Silver Consumer
Farecast Alert - Airfare Predictions
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/5.html

Honorable Mention Consumer
Les Roches Autoresponder
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/6.html

#3. Best Email Opt-in Campaign
Are you running (or did you in 2007) an opt-in marketing campaign to get more highly qualified, responsive names on your list? Explain the best practices you’re using to get more high-quality names on your opt-in list.

Gold B-to-B
IBM - Gain Greater ROI
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/31.html

Gold B-to-B
Motorola WiMAX Global Relationship Marketing Campaign
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/32.html

Gold B-to-B
Rainmaker Report - The One Piece of Advice You Can’t Generate Leads Without
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/33.html

Gold B-to-B
The Sun Asian Pacific Re-Engagement Campaign
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/34.html

Silver B-to-B
Germanwings October Revolution
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/29.html

Honorable Mention B-to-B
MomAgenda
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/30.html

Gold Consumer
Circuit City Marketing Email
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/35.html

Gold Consumer
AMF $50,000 Summer Free-For-All
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/36.html

Gold Consumer
BHG.com & Parents.com - 50 Days of Giveaways
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/37.html

Gold Consumer
Learning A-Z - Open House
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/38.html

#4. Best Non-Email Opt-in Messaging
What opt-in communications do you offer your customers and prospects aside from email? Can they be tailored for relevance? Can they be measured for success?

Gold B-to-B
Dell - Email Registration Direct Mail
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/40.html

Silver B-to-B
Royal Caribbean Cruises - VIP CruisePass
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/41.html

Gold Consumer
US Army Recruiting
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/42.html

Silver (tie) Consumer
Motorcycle Insurance - In The Saddle
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/43.html

Silver (tie) Consumer
Vail SnowMate
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/44.html

#5. Best Postcard-Style Campaign
You can submit very short text-only messages, or fairly small HTML images and messages. The point is, this campaign was as compact and swift to read as a postcard would be.

Gold B-to-B
Blue Tent Marketing - A Holiday Gift
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/7.html

Gold Consumer
Renault SIAB
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/8.html

Silver Consumer
Indiana University Foundation - Fiscal Year-end Thank You Email
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/9.html

#6. Best Promotional Blast -- Direct Sale or Lead Gen Offer
Whether your campaign was for an ecommerce offer or an offer requiring registration or download, this is the place for it. B-to-B marketers, this is where you’d include your white paper announcements and webinar invites.

Gold B-to-B
Dell - Top Rated Products
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/18.html

Silver B-to-B
SAP PartnershipEdge Program
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/19.html

Honorable Mention B-to-B
Biolase Ezlase Diode Laser
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/20.html

Gold Consumer
Wacom: Power of Pens
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/21.html

Silver (tie) Consumer
Kodak - “Two-fer”
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/22.html

Silver (tie) Consumer
Windows Live Hotmail Incentivized Migration
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/23.html

Honorable Mention Consumer
Raptors - Oh My Bosh!
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/24.html

#7. Best Promotional Relaunch Blast
Did you create a campaign around a product relaunch? Explain what you did to reintroduce the item.

Gold Consumer
Spencer Gifts - Fart Machine - “That Ain’t Hot Air--Fart-O-Nator”
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/39.html

#8. Best Single Welcome Letter (to New Subscribers)
Does your letter to new opt-in subscribers take it one step further beyond the standard “you have been added to the list”? Do you include a branded message, an offer, a list of best hotlinks, personal-style note?

Gold B-to-B
InterContinental Hotels Group - Priority Club Meeting Rewards - Welcome Emails
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/46.html

Gold Consumer
Maxwell House - Spruce Up Your House
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/47.html

#9. Best Email Newsletter for Marketing Purposes
We’re looking for compelling content and easy-to-skim design. How does your newsletter help build your brand, educate the market, create sales? Explain how your content meets the target audience’s needs and how they respond. Extra points for content that’s not just text-words and images ... do you include new media, interactivity, video, audio, Web 2.0? Let us know.

Gold B-to-B
Sun Microsystems Global Channel Partner Newsletter
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/13.html

Silver B-to-B
Cars.com Dealer Advantage
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/14.html

Gold Consumer
HP Home & Home Office Store Newsletter Redesign
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/15.html

Silver (tie) Consumer
My Coke Rewards Newsletter
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/16.html

Silver (tie) Consumer
Sears - What’s in Store for You? email program
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/17.html

#10. Best Triggered Personalized Email
Do you send emails “from” an ecommerce cart that’s been abandoned? Or perhaps reminders to consumers about wish-lists? Or maybe a reminder to businesses when they need to re-order something?

Gold B-to-B
Wer liefert was? (WLW) Customer Loyalty Program
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/25.html

Silver B-to-B
Dell Small & Medium Business Saved Cart
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/26.html

Gold Consumer
Happy Birthday From Pepsi
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/27.html

Silver Consumer
Tennessee Dept. of Tourist Development - License to Ride with Elvis or Dolly
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/28.html

#11. Best of Show
Quite simply, the best of the best.

Logitech DiNovo Edge and Logitech MX Revolution
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/emaw2008/45.html


Useful links related to this article

Email Marketing Summit 2008 Wrap-up: Marketers Reveal Latest on Office Politics, Messages, Deliverability, Segmentation:
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/article.php?ident=30367

MarketingSherpa's Email Award Winner Gallery 2007: Creative for Your Swipe File:
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/article.php?ident=29889

MarketingSherpa's Email Marketing Award Winner Gallery 2006: Creative Samples Galore:
http://www.marketingsherpa.com/article.php?ident=27416