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IZEA Licenses Exclusive Report That Identifies Cash-Sponsored Social Media as the Fastest-Growing Social Media Sponsorship Division, With Spending Up 37 Percent in 2009

ORLANDO, Fla., July 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Through an exclusive agreement with Stamford, CT based PQ Media (http://www.pqmedia.com), IZEA, Inc. has licensed the recent Social Media Sponsorships Forecast 2010-2014, making complimentary copies available through its Website, www.izea.com.

"We are very excited about this recent forecast and look forward to sharing the results," said Ted Murphy, Founder and CEO of IZEA. "It not only validates that social media sponsorships are becoming an increasing important tool for marketers, but the projected rate of growth indicates that brand marketers will continue to become part of the conversation and build relationships with consumers through their social networks, whether that be on their computer or mobile device."

It is apparent that this growth can be attributed to how social media has made everyone a publisher, whether it's through long-form text or status updates, often with accompanying visuals captured on their mobile devices. Consumers are creating compelling content and sharing stories of brand engagement throughout their day. Today, brands of all sizes are increasingly realizing the value in these conversations and how it has an immediate and measurable ROI.

In defining social media sponsorships, PQ Media sought the input of key industry opinion leaders, executives, consultants, agencies and trade associations regarding various data and information that should or should not be included in the segments or sub-segments of this sector. Additionally, PQ Media researched, surveyed and/or consulted with more than 100 social media sponsorship and word-of-mouth marketing companies for input regarding size, scope, trends and growth of social media sponsorships, while examining hundreds of public and private documents from more than 100 sources.

To obtain a copy of the PQ Media Social Media Sponsorships Forecast 2010-2014, please visit http://izea.com/advertisers/social-media-sponsorship/about-sms/ or email Peter Scott at peter@izea.com.

About IZEA

IZEA is a world leader in social media sponsorship, operating multiple marketplaces such as WeReward, SponsoredTweets, and SocialSpark. Our mission is to empower everyone to value and exchange content, creativity and influence. Through its network of over 400,000 social media publishers, the company has successfully launched over 1,000,000 social media sponsorships for over 35,000 advertisers, from small local businesses to Fortune 50 organizations. IZEA is venture funded by Inflexion Partners, Village Ventures, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, and DFJ Gotham Ventures.

SOURCE IZEA