For me, July 11^th was the most anticipated day of 2008. Ah yes, after over a year of waiting, my coveted 3g iPhone had finally hit the stores. All my ePrize team members had listened to me verbally pine over the iPhone, ad nauseum. Days, weeks, and even months prior, my devotion to anything Apple/Steve Jobs was building to a crescendo. Luckily, I was not the only one looking forward to this (relatively historical) date.

Ironically, myself, and many others, were willing to wait in perceived never ending lines to pay for the privilege to spend even more money. I woke up that Friday as if I won a million dollars (post tax, mind you). It was every man, woman, and child for themselves (metaphorically speaking). Every AT&T and Apple store within Oakland County, Michigan had been logically dissected in order to determine iPhone supply, in proportion to wait time.

Unfortunately, none of my team members (or just me) had predicted the “tight” supply of iPhones that day. Whereas many ePrizers acquired the iPhone of their choice on the first try, I was unable to attain an iPhone. Not once. Not twice. But, three times. Am I the only one on Earth that does not have an iPhone? It sure feels like it.

Besides my Shakespearean Tragedy-Like scavenger hunt, the iPhone has unlimited potential for any technology company. Everyone from our Software Engineers to our Product Innovation Team is excited about the iPhone and its new features. In a company full of “early adopters,” we are elated that mobile computing has become main-stream, and cannot wait to provide our consumers with a more “hands on” experience (pun intended… of course).

Thousands of people play ePrize promotions every day, and many of them might ask, “Wow - I loved playing that Instant Win game, but how did ePrize come up with that awesome idea?!?!” Well, I would like to introduce you to Strategic Services! The Strategy team is a group of 16 individuals who we like to call the industry “trendsetters” here at ePrize.

Strategy is an important component of the ePrize process because it enables our company to deliver the promotion results for which a client is searching. This is done by first digging into the client (its brand, its target audience, its vertical, its promotion objectives, its success metrics, etc.) and then by providing a solution.  This concept is based on marrying the correct ePrize technology solution with a creative execution – the combination of both will make the promotion unique and compelling. To stay on top of the latest trends, the team conducts its own research, reads industry newsletters such as Promo Xtra and iMedia, combs through resources such as ComScore and eMarketer, attends conferences, and analyzes non-ePrize promotions, our competitors, our partners, and the promotional marketplace as a whole.

Since the team is spread throughout the different geographical ePrize offices, it’s a rare opportunity for the members of the team to meet in person. The team does, however, join forces virtually at least twice a week to participate in team meetings and brainstorming sessions. During these meetings, the team shares best practices, cool ePrize promotions, new concepts that have been created, and market research; touches base about particular projects or ePrize products; and spends time brainstorming creative solutions for clients. So, the next time you are playing an ePrize promotion, you know where the idea came from - Strategic Services!

The Internet is evolving from a “giant ball of information,” with scattered facts, figures, people, and places, to a refined social personality. Whether you are contacting old friends on a social network, or commenting on the latest CNN.com headline, your offline personality has become your online personality. Just as we wear specific clothes, drive a new car, or style our hair, our online personalities are expressed through social networks, pictures, videos, blogs, and “tweets.”

Each day at ePrize, I am lucky enough to interact with the knowledge and creativity pouring out of each ePrizer. Yes, we work with 74 of the top 100 brands, and have launched over 4,000 promotions, if you are reading this, you may have an inkling of these facts… But do you really know who we are? We have Grammy Award winners, published authors, accomplished chefs, and world travelers, all working on YOUR promotion. Since a majority of you cannot physically visit us on a whim, I invite you all to “tweet” with me on Twitter, walk the halls of our purple walls on Flickr, and become our friend on Facebook.

My favorite professor, Ralph Williams, from The University of Michigan, says “laughter defines the boundaries of community.” We are looking forward to you being a part of the laughter.

Facebook: Photos, blog updates, videos, and promotions.

Twitter: Follow us @ePrize!

Flickr:  Photos of ePrizer adventures and events.

(Written by: Adam C Valentine)

It was November 2006. It was getting colder outside and winter was approaching. Our CEO Josh Linkner and Nick Gonzalez (Interface Developer) started an email chain with a group of musicians at ePrize. They decided to have a jam session in Central Perk (also known as the ePrize lounge) with Reid Mclellan, Ryan Scott and David Gullo. People heard them playing, and word started to spread about these new ePrize jam sessions. It quickly became a weekly event-every Tuesday anyone who was interested was welcome to “jam” in Central Perk after work. People would bring their own guitars, amps, microphones, and drums and our CEO was so impressed by the amount of musical talent at the company.

As a result, Josh decided that ePrize needed a band and a few months later ToyBox was born. Why the name ToyBox? Because that is the name of our software technology that our promotions are built on. The first live performance was at our August 2007 Staff Call/Inferno Summer party. The band was a huge hit performing the “Power of e”, a re-interpretation of Huey Lewis’ “Power of Love”. You can see a live performance of the band performing “Break on Through” by clicking this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S65iYNg-PcY.

Also be sure to visit ToyBox on facebook and become a fan!  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Toybox/12943669924

ToyBox band members include: Gullo (drums), Colby Lostutter (vocals), David Case (bass), Nick Gonzalez (guitar), Shane Kaszyca (vocals), Gina Kuprianiak (vocals), Mikki Frank (vocals), Dean Stevenson (keyboard), Brian Yee (guitar)

We proudly introduce “The ePrize Green People” team!  This is a group of ePrizer’s that are passionate about helping ePrize become a more environmentally friendly company.  Their focus is to reduce the amount of waste produced at ePrize by recycling more, as well as recommend small changes that can help make a huge difference. The main initiative right now is to reduce the amount of plastic water bottles used at ePrize by encouraging people to drink from the tap and just refill a glass instead of grabbing another bottled water.  To encourage this action, we have purchased new water filters for all 3 refrigerator’s in the building. 

Every month we send out Green People newsletters that include small steps each employee can take (at home and at work) to help reduce the “footprint” they leave on the Earth based on how much waste they create. We all need to do our part to take care of the Earth, and ePrize is proud to be taking these steps to help out!

You probably never thought a financial company would create a website that is entertaining, engaging and informative. Well think again as Quicken Loans has partnered with ePrize and taken a step forward with the launch of a virtual world Qtopia!

Qtopia is an animated, second life-style type site combining financial planning tools, information resources and community features  and is exclusive to Quicken’s 300,000 customers.

With the Marketing Team at Quicken Loans the Creative Team at ePrize developed the idea.   The first concept was much simpler, with a very small town and only a few buildings.

As the project started to develop, several different concepts were explored. At first, there was a very “cartoony” approach, but it was determined that style didn’t fit the Quicken Loans brand  appropriately. The team went back to the drawing board.

Designers took their cameras to places like downtown Northville and Plymouth, Michigan to capture their inspiration. They took pictures of places like the corner store, the local ice cream shop, and a unique historic home with a big front porch.  A big part of the project was the ability to use references from childhood memories to inspire the new and final look of Qtopia.

To explore Qtopia and for more information about Quicken Loans, please visit www.quickenloans.com

www.whatsthediff.com (Quicken Loans Blog)

http://blog.quizzle.com/ (Quizzle Blog) http://www.quickenloans-difference.com/ (Quicken Loans Difference Blog)

The air is getting warmer, the snow is starting to melt, people are smiling more, and energy is up.  You may call this Spring Fever but around here we call it Summit Fever!

Our momentum is strong and there are only 6 days left until the hottest event in interactive marketing takes place: The Interactive Promotion Summit held in Las Vegas.

Here is a sneak peak at some of the speakers for the event: large brands such as Wendy’s, Playboy, and Coca Cola will be talking about what’s “hot and now” and the latest marketing trends in the interactive world. This is your chance to mingle and network with the top brands in the industry-we would love to see you in Las Vegas on April 30th!

Make your mark, catch some Summit Fever and change the way you think about marketing and request your invitation today!

To register for this event please visit http://www.promotionsummit.com/registration.aspx

We make and break records all the time here at ePrize both for ourselves and for our clients. We know that because we measure everything. For example, last year our team drank 182,688 Coca-Cola products, used 202.8 terabytes of bandwidth, saved 110 trees by recycling and 2 of our team members got hitched. Of course, we also measure our business success, which we happily announce each year.

In 2007, we made records with:

· $49 million in total sales, a 38% YoY increase

· 184.2 million unique visitors to our promotions (in case you were wondering, if ePrize promotions players were to form a nation, it would be the 6th largest country in the world)

· 17 awards

· 67% increase in number of unique visitors to ePrize promotions

· 174 new clients

Gotta love the raw data. (Strategy team, please wipe your drool.)

(Warning: shameless plug coming) Personally, I’m trying to break our attendee record for the Interactive Promotions Summit—www.promotionsummit.com. Which, if you haven’t guessed yet, will be held at the Wynn in Las Vegas.

What records are you breaking or trying to break this year