The Vanguard Best of the Web Awards competition shines a spotlight on Web sites that are beyond ordinary when it comes to pleasing designs, user-friendly navigation, useful and relevant product information, and surprises like podcasts and laugh-out-loud videos.

In the 2008 competition, our judges singled out 21 stand-out Web sites, including five they pronounced the best of the best. Their favorites are sites that pack information onto pages without cluttering the design; that use the simplest icons and wording to direct users to the areas most relevant to them; and that utilize cutting-edge communications technology to creatively deliver information.

Building Products asked manufacturers to submit Web sites of particular interest to building pros. Our judges clicked through each site looking for sections devoted to and designed for pros and evaluating the usefulness of the site's information, the appeal of the delivery, and the ease with which users can find what they need.

When they were finished, our judges--each with a different level of Internet experience and expertise--chose the few sites they deemed most relevant and useful to building pros as this year's Vanguard Best of the Web Award winners.

The Vanguard Best of the Web Award winners were selected from among the manufacturers that entered the competition, not from all manufacturer Web sites.

Best Overall

Our Vanguard judges singled out five manufacturers' Web sites that stand out among all of the Vanguard entrants and deserve special recognition for "best in class."

Fypon
Appealing to both homeowners and building professionals, Fypon's easy-to-navigate site aims to educate users about new products and about which products might be right for each job. One judge particularly liked the site's extensive listing of dealers.

GAF Materials Corp.
Easy to navigate with intuitive labels and logical choices on drop-down menus, GAF's Web site is packed with details and dressed up with helpful installation videos. The site contains "excellent, detailed information, readily available, with no hassles to hurdle over to apply it to your project," commented one judge.

Integrity Windows and Doors
Judges singled out Integrity Windows and Doors' site for a clean, simple design that's packed with information. One judge called it a "super-strong Web site that leaves nothing to the imagination."

Masco Builder Cabinet Group
"One can easily find out anything they need to know about kitchen and bath cabinets within minutes" on Masco Builder Cabinet Group's "problem-solving Web site," said one judge. An interactive feature allows users to create a dream kitchen by cutting and pasting colors and styles onto a template--a tool one judge suggested pros could use with their customers.

White River Hardwoods
One judge said White River Hardwoods' site is "all a professional needs to show, sell, and supply hardwood molding to a homeowner." The site features online catalogs, 2-D line drawings, and easy ordering information for marketing tools from brochures to display boards to design software.