Hello all,

My firm recently launched an "Ugly E-Commerce Contest" and we're seeking entries for independent retailers, online store owners, mail order catalogs and the like to submit their Web sites for a chance to win a new custom e-commerce site (valued up to $25,000) and 90 days of free online marketing support.

Any existing Web site that currently accepts online payments qualifies to enter. The entry deadline is December 31, 2006, and the winner will be announced on February 1, 2007. The entry details can be found at http://ideacatchers.com/ugly/.

I've pasted a copy of the formal press release below, but also please contact me directly if you have questions or need more information. You can reach me at larissa@ideacatchers.com.

Thanks!

Larissa Church, President
Idea Catchers Group, LLC
Plano, TX
http://ideacatchers.com

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Have an Online Store You Hate?
Idea Catchers Group has the Solution!

"Trading Spaces." "Pimp my Ride." "The Biggest Loser." There are makeovers for homes, cars, people. But what about Web sites?

Idea Catchers Group, LLC recently announced its "Ugly E-Commerce Contest," for businesses with e-commerce Web sites suffering from a dismal look and even more dismal results.

"We're looking for the ugliest of the ugly and the worst of the worst," said Larissa Church, president and co-founder of Idea Catchers Group, LLC. "That includes sites with not just an ugly design ? but also clunky order forms, confusing navigation, poor conversion rates, and any other issue that's hampering Web sales and performance. When we find that seriously shameful site, we'll give it the primping and prodding it needs to become a stunning sales tool."

Twenty-five thousand dollars worth of primping. That's the approximate value of the new custom e-commerce site the Grand Prize winner will receive, along with 90 days of online marketing support as part of the company's ideaBUILDER program.

Entries close on December 31, 2006, and the winner will be announced on February 1, 2007. To qualify, the site must currently accept online payments for any product or service. Every entry will receive a complimentary, personalized Web site review with practical recommendations on how to attract more Web visitors, increase online sales, handle e-commerce security, and improve customer service.

Church and others at this Texas-based Web development, e-commerce and online marketing company have encountered some bad sites during their seven years in the industry. This time, they're going out looking for them. Worried about offending the good senses of this team of experts? Don't be.

"We can stomach it," Church said.

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Idea Catchers Group, LLC offers custom Web development, e-commerce and marketing solutions to mid-size and small companies across the United States. Its key focus includes independent retailers, wholesale distributors and manufacturers, membership organizations, professional service firms and companies who are new to doing business online. For more information, visit http://www.ideacatchers.com or call 866-IDEA-NET. Entry and rules can be found at http://www.ideacatchers.com/ugly/.