HOUSTON, TX -- (Marketwire) -- 02/08/13 -- The Houston Chapter of the American Marketing Association (AMA Houston) is pleased to announce the 33 organizations selected as Best of Category Winners for the 2012 Marketer of the Year (MOTY) Award. The Best of Category Winners were selected from over 130 nominated companies, organizations and institutions. These category winners will be honored during the March 18, 2013 awards ceremony at the Alley Theatre. One category winner will be announced at the event as the 2012 Marketer of the Year.

The Marketer of the Year Award is AMA Houston's annual program that honors exceptional marketing efforts by Houston-area companies, organizations and institutions. The Chapter established the Marketer of the Year Award in 2005 to recognize overall marketing excellence in the greater Houston area. The category winners are determined by a vote of chapter members combined with scoring by a panel of local marketing experts. The top award winner is determined from the Best of Category winners by a panel of marketing professionals from across the nation. A full list of category winners is below.

Prior winners of the top award include: Discovery Green (2011), University of Houston Athletic Department (2010), Blinds.com (2009), Kelsey-Seybold Clinic (2008), the Houston Zoo (2007), Weatherford International (2006) and the Houston Symphony (2005).

AMA Houston would like to recognize and thank the following 2012 Marketer of the Year Award sponsors for their support. For the seventh year the presenting sponsor is the Houston Business Journal. This year's platinum sponsor is Insperity. Gold sponsors are: Brookwoods Group and Dignity Memorial. The silver sponsor is Atlantic Communications Media. Winner's circle sponsors are Blinds.com and MD Anderson Cancer Center. Event partners are: the Alley Theatre, Bullpen Marketing, ExactTarget, Getty Images, Houston Rockets, Seebridge Media and TeleReach.

For more information about Marketer of the Year and other AMA Houston events and programs, visit amahouston.org. Tickets to the award event can be purchased at http://amahouston.net/event/2012-marketer-of-the-year. Individual tickets are $35 for AMA Houston members and $45 for non-members.

AMA Houston congratulates the Best of Category winners for 2012 Marketer of the Year, listed below by category:

Arts: Institutional
Children's Museum of Houston

Arts: Performing
Houston Ballet

Automotive
Land Rover Houston

Economic Development
Greater Houston Women's Chamber of Commerce

Education: College/University
University of Houston

Education: Elementary/Secondary
Cristo Rey Jesuit College Preparatory School of Houston

Energy: Oil and Gas Exploration and Production
Apache Corporation

Energy: Oil and Gas Products and Services
FlexSteel

Energy: Transportation/Transmission/Utilities/Marketing
Bounce Energy

Engineering/Construction Products/Services
Hoar Construction LLC

Financial/Banking
Smart Financial Credit Union

Financial/Services (non-banking)
Whitley Penn

Food Processing, Packaging and Distribution
Three Brothers Bakery

Healthcare Hospitals/Institutions
Texas Children's Pavilion for Women

Healthcare Products/Services
Dialyspa Dialysis Centers

Hospitality and Hotels
Hotel Granduca

Manufacturing
NCI Building Systems

Media : Broadcast
Houston Public Media

Media: Print
McElvy Media/The Leader News

RealEstate: Commercial
CBRE - CB Richard Ellis

RealEstate: Residential Builders and Developers
Aliana Development Company

RealEstate: Residential Realtors
John Daugherty, Realtors

Restaurants: Multiple Locations
Becks Prime

Restaurants: Single Location
REEF

Services: Business-to-Business
Waste Management

Services: Business-to-Consumer/Retail
Houston Ballet's The Nutcracker Market

Services: Marketing/Communications
Pennebaker

Social Services
Star of Hope Mission

Sports/Entertainment : Amateur
Rice University Athletics

Sports/Entertainment : Professional
Houston Dynamo

Technology Products/Services
Dexa Systems, Inc.

Transportation
Metropolitan Transit Authority

Venues and Arenas
BBVA Compass Stadium

About AMA

AMA Houston is the area's premier professional marketing organization and among the largest AMA Chapters in North America. AMA Houston provides marketers the ability to remain competitive in today's business environment through networking events, special interest groups and real-world educational programs. AMA Houston was named Chapter of the Year six times in the past eight years by AMA's international headquarters.