One of my all-time favorite songs is Elvis' rendition of Joe South's Walk a Mile in My Shoes.That's good advice to anyone, but especially association marketers.
This week, Association Trends honored the best of association marketing in its 2011 "All Media Contest."
The 22 categories in the annual competition ranged from advertising kits to Websites.
The judges rejected content that was "dense," instead warming to writing and design that followed a "magazine-style format."
They also fled from jargon-heavy copy, cluttered pages and "content that is simply straightforward" (in other words, dull).
Steven Cline, marketing and communications director for the Property Casualty Insurers of America took home more awards for his work than anyone else.
Cline cautioned association marketers above all to guard against subjectivity.
"Look at whatever you are working on from your audience’s perspective. For a few moments, be a reader, not a communicator. Aspects that are crystal clear to you may be indecipherable to your audience."
Disclosure: I can't miss the opportunity to brag about my own Gold. A sales kit I wrote for Fixation Marketing client Food Marketing Institute took first place in its category in Association Trends' 2011 All Media Contest. You can view the piece on my Website.
