By Paul J. Heney
ASBPE Past President
TABPI President

Last year, TABPI sponsored our first Design Challenge. The goal of this program was to show how much creativity and talent there is in the b2b design world. We asked b2b designers and art directors to design a cover for the fictional magazine “Concrete Times,” around some demands from the editor and publisher. We had a great response, and the variety of designs was fantastic. We awarded a $250 prize to the winner, and also published other honorable mention submissions at http://www.tabpi.org/designchallenge.htm. In fact, we had so much fun with the Challenge, that we repeated it earlier this year, with even better results and increased participation. In fact, the day we announced results in both 2008 and 2009, we recorded some of the largest number of unique visitors to our website ever!

In the spirit of bringing editors into the mix, we’ve just announced our first TABPI Editorial Challenge, at http://www.tabpi.org/editorialchallenge.htm. The $250 first place prize still applies, but now b2b editors are encouraged to write a headline, deck and lede for a story that only has so-so information. We provide you with a partial interview, a poorly written press release, and a bunch of dull quotes. Use your creative spark to turn this story—which has the potential to be a stinker—into something fresh. The deadline is May 4th, and we’d love to have your participation!