BAT and Intuit Named as 2010 American Business Awards(SM) Finalists for Standout Ad Campaign

IRVINE, Calif., May 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Brand Affinity Technologies, Inc. (BAT), the company reinventing endorsement and celebrity marketing, and Intuit Inc., were named as finalists in the 2010 American Business Awards for best financial services ad. BAT and Intuit were selected from more than 2,700 nominees and are one of nine finalists in their category for their work on the 2010 TurboTax TurboTron endorsement campaign. Winners will be announced June 21 in New York City.

Looking to capitalize on Super Bowl excitement and the relevant timing of the official "kick off" of tax season, Intuit and its agencies created an interactive campaign featuring quintessential sports anchor Chris Berman, one of the most recognized personalities in all of sports. Berman acted as host of the "TurboTron," an interactive scoreboard featuring TurboTax products, customer reviews and social channels like Twitter. BAT made the endorsement deal happen in just 96 hours through its proprietary Platform.  Advertisers of all sizes use BAT's Platform to find and secure endorsement talent, and quickly and easily launch ads featuring star athletes and celebrities.

"We wanted to tap into the power of celebrity endorsement in a way that made sense for our brand, for our message, and our goals for the ad campaign," said Seth Greenberg, Director, National Media & Digital Marketing at Intuit. "Working with BAT delivered  one of the most popular and recognized sports announcers of all time promoting TurboTax in just weeks from the concept being developed.  Being named a finalist for the Stevie award is the cherry on top of what has already been a  successful campaign."

The American Business Awards are the nation's premier business awards program.  All organizations operating in the U.S.A. are eligible to submit entries – public and private, for-profit and non-profit, large and small.  Finalists were chosen by business professionals nationwide; specialized judging committees will select the Stevie Award winners.

"This recognition speaks to Intuit's ability to engage people in a fun and meaningful way on the topic of taxes, through strategic endorsement marketing," said Ryan Steelberg, president and CEO of BAT.  "Intuit understands how to convert the recognition and familiarity that a celebrity like Chris Berman brings to the table into campaign performance – and converting interest into action is the hallmark of great advertising."

Details about The American Business Awards and the list of Finalists in all categories are available at www.stevieawards.com/aba.

About Brand Affinity Technologies, Inc.  (BAT)

Founded in 2007, BAT (http://brandaffinity.net) is reinventing the business of endorsement marketing by making it easy and affordable for advertisers of all sizes to launch ad campaigns featuring athletes and celebrities. Advertisers use BAT's Endorsement Platform to identify, license, and activate the most effective talent for their campaigns, based on brand and targeting considerations. Currently, BAT's Platform features more than 3,300, and tracks over 30,000 top athletes and celebrities in markets nationwide.  It is used by leading advertisers to build brand value and boost campaign performance. BAT's celebrity roster includes Olympic athletes and marquee active and retired players in nearly every sport, including Drew Brees (NFL), Jorge Posada (MLB), Rajon Rondo (NBA), Brooks Robinson (MLB – Hall of Fame), Walt Frazier (NBA – Hall of Fame), and Lennox Lewis (Boxing).

About Intuit

Intuit Inc. is a leading provider of business and financial management solutions for small and mid-sized businesses; financial institutions, including banks and credit unions; consumers and accounting professionals. Its flagship products and services, including QuickBooks®, Quicken® and TurboTax®, simplify small business management and payroll processing, personal finance, and tax preparation and filing. ProSeries® and Lacerte® are Intuit's leading tax preparation offerings for professional accountants. The company's financial institutions division, anchored by Digital Insight, provides on-demand banking services to help banks and credit unions serve businesses and consumers with innovative solutions. 

Founded in 1983, Intuit had annual revenue of $3.1 billion in its fiscal year 2009. The company has approximately 7,800 employees with major offices in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, India and other locations. More information can be found at www.intuit.com.

SOURCE Brand Affinity Technologies, Inc.