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Ted Murphy, CEO and Founder of IZEA, was presented with a Bronze Stevie® Award in the Maverick of the Year category at The 10th Annual American Business Awards last night.

The American Business Awards are the nation’s premier business awards program. All organizations operating in the U.S.A. are eligible to submit nominations – public and private, for-profit and non-profit, large and small.

Nicknamed “the Stevies” for the Greek word for “crowned,” the trophies were presented to honorees during a gala banquet on Monday, June 18 at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York. More than 500 nominees and their guests attended. The presentations were broadcast live by the Business TalkRadio Network.

“Early on, Ted recognized that every person could be an influencer in the world of social media, and we’re thrilled that he’s been recognized for the realization of his vision,” said Ryan Schram, Chief Marketing Officer, IZEA. “He is a dynamic leader who continues to push the industry forward, creating marketplaces for brands and social media publishers to connect.”

Ted founded IZEA in 2006 to much controversy and criticism for his desire to monetize the blogsphere. He is considered the leading pioneer in social media sponsorship and was the first to pay bloggers to create content on behalf of brands, the first to pay celebrities for tweets, and the first to pay people for social media check-ins. Most recently, he led the creation of a marketplace for the monetization of photos and videos. IZEA became a public company in May 2011 and today boasts a network of 700,000 registered influencers across 147 countries and 50,000 brand partners.

“With more than 3,000 nominations from organizations of all sizes and in virtually every industry, the entire IZEA family is proud to have Ted recognized,” continued Ryan.

Stevie Award winners were selected by more than 270 executives nationwide who participated in the judging process this year. Details about The American Business Awards and the lists of Stevie Award winners who were announced on June 18 are available at www.stevieawards.com/aba.