Parsippany, NJ (October 1, 2002) Interactive Media Associates, Inc. (IMA), a leading Internet eCommerce planning, development and marketing services firm, today announced that three Web sites it developed had earned 2002 WebAwards by the Web Marketing Association (WMA). The three sites were for The Mason Gross School of the Arts ( www.masongross.rutgers.edu ); Summit Area YMCA ( www.summitareaymca.org ), which both earned Standard of Excellence Awards; and its own Interactive Media Associates Web site ( www.imediainc.com ), which won an Outstanding Award.
The Web Marketing Association (WMA), founded in 1997, sets a high standard for Internet marketing and corporate web development on the World Wide Web. This Boston-based organization is made up of Internet marketing, advertising, PR and design professionals from around the country who share an interest for improving the quality of advertising, marketing and promotion used to attract visitors to corporate Web sites. The WebAwards they sponsor is an annual award competition that is designed to judge corporate Web sites against and Internet standard and against peer sites within their industry. Entries are judged on their design, innovation, content, technology, interactivity, navigation, and ease of use.
IMA President Len Muscarella said, "We were thrilled to be recognized for a second consecutive year, especially for such a wide variety of projects. Each one had very different needs, which were satisfied by a high level of planning, organization, design, and implementation. It is a testament to the outstanding quality of IMA's team that we have won awards in every single category in which we contended."
Standard of Excellence Award – Mason Gross School of the Arts
In awarding the Mason Gross School of the Arts with a Standard of Excellence Award, the 2002 WebAward judges called the site "clean, sharp, and consistent in tone and voice," while applauding its "well thought-out and balanced" content areas and navigation. They particularly noted the use of photography, which "vividly captures each artistic discipline and reinforces the school's degree of professionalism."
As the arts conservatory of Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, Mason Gross School of the Arts is a professional school offering undergraduate and graduate degrees in music, theater arts, and visual arts, in addition to undergraduate degrees in dance. The school's mission is to identify and nurture outstanding creative talent, while instilling the insights and skills needed by future generations of arts professionals, enabling them to contribute to the creative and scholarly activity so essential to the vitality of our culture and society. The Web site, launched in September of this year, includes performance calendars, comprehensive admissions and course information, faculty directories, virtual "tours" of the campus, and art gallery and performance slide shows.
Scott Cagenello, Associate Dean at Mason Gross, said: "Receiving the Standard of Excellence WebAward for the new Mason Gross School of the Arts Web site is a terrific honor, and reflects the commitment of the School and the University to extend the reach of Mason Gross to more diverse and global realms. Our new site has already made great strides to improve services for current and prospective students, as well as for faculty, staff, and alumni. The School would like to thank Interactive Media Associates for its unflagging support and dedication to this project, as well as the Web Marketing Association, for its recognition of our site."
Standard of Excellence Award – Summit Area YMCA
The Summit Area YMCA has grown from modest beginnings on August 1, 1886, into three branches serving seven area towns. Today, the three branches are a source of fitness and wellness for 15,000 members. When the YMCA came to Interactive Media Associates, they wanted a redesign of their current site that would serve all three of their branches, as well as the Area organization. Each of the member branches needed an interface that would allow them to quickly and easily update their constantly-changing content. And they wanted a site that would appeal to their broad-based members.
From the comments of the WebAward judges, it would appear that these needs were precisely answered. One stated that these sites were "fast to load, informative and ... easy to update. And the fact that it is simply coded makes it appropriate to its target market's expected Internet connection bandwidth capabilities and needs." Another noted that the site is "easy to read, easy to navigate, and has a touch of fun added. The imagery is a nice touch to help the user familiarize themselves with the different aspects of the YMCA." A third appreciated that "that the three area sites (Summit, Berkeley Heights and Springfield) all have similar look-and-feel. Good navigation, amount of copy, updating too, too... Nice job!"
Elizabeth Baxley, Marketing Director of the Summit Area YMCA, said, "We were delighted with the results of our Web site, as it gives our members a fun, intuitive experience as they visit us online for updated information about our facilities, classes and events. Receiving the WebAward from the Web Marketing Association confirms that we've achieved the superior level of service to our members that we were striving for when we first came to IMA."
Outstanding Award – Interactive Media Associates, Inc.
When Interactive Media Associates wanted to redesign their own Web site, they envisioned a site which would showcase their capabilities in design and creativity, database integration, and smart engineering. They also wanted a site that, in keeping with their culture and eclectic client base, would be fun to view and interact with. To accomplish these goals, they created a site almost entirely in Macromedia Flash, which contains in-depth information about the company's history, mission, services, and product line, as well as current news and a series of articles authored by the company's executive management. In addition, a password-protected Client Extranet was introduced, allowing clients to access work in progress, schedules, storyboards, specification documents, and links to administrative tools to maintain their live sites, all from one convenient location. The site takes full advantage of IMA's ReliaUpdate tool, allowing for quick and easy updating of materials, and facilitating the use of those materials as print collateral as well as web presentation.
Judges of the site noted that: "Everything about this site was appealing: color, layout, graphics, and use of Flash was well done but not over-done. The pages loaded very quickly. Polished and provided a very pleasing user experience."
IMA Creative Director Michelle Cameron said: "It is a pleasure to have our hard work on this site recognized by the Web Marketing Association. The team who worked on this Web site did so as a labor of love – allowing themselves to think 'outside of the box' to produce something that has already proven itself to be an outstanding marketing and client tool for IMA."
More About Interactive Media Associates, Inc.
Interactive Media Associates, Inc. specializes in the planning, development and marketing of Internet services. The company provides expertise in areas including strategic consulting, business planning, service specifications, web site design, applications development, database and eCommerce integration, and account management. And through its ReliaServe subsidiary, IMA also offers site hosting. IMA has client concentrations in the publishing, direct marketing, and entertainment fields, including companies such as Highlights for Children, Newsday, Editor & Publisher, New York City Ballet, New Jersey Shakespeare Festival, The Juilliard School, Paper Mill Playhouse, Mason Gross School of the Arts, The Carnegie Council for Ethics and International Affairs, Xyting Corporation, The VectorSpace Group and Chatham Systems Group. For additional information, call (973) 539-5255.
