If you don’t have anything nice to say …

Although the leap into uncontrolled messaging through public relations programs can at first be frightening, if approached properly, the results can overwhelmingly succeed that of costly advertising and self-praising brochures. In a perfect world, you could pick and choose the information your organization communicated externally without limits – a messaging buffet, if you will. Unfortunately, neither advertising nor in-house collateral fall under the all-you-can eat category. That could, however, be a blessing in disguise. The power of third-party credibility just doesn’t translate into advertising, particularly in the B-to-B world. Editorial coverage gives readers the signal that someone, aside from your own company, believes your organization deserves merit.

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The numbers are in for 2006 and according to IAB (Interactive Advertising Bureau), online ad revenue in the U.S. is up 35% from the year before. By now it has top $17 billion and continues to climb. While much of that growth is attributed to consumer advertising, the B2B part of the pie continues to increase as well. We’ll share those specific numbers at a later date. In the meantime, I have one question: If you’re a B2B marketer and you’re not involved in online advertising, what are you waiting for?

Enjoy the long weekend!

When desktop publishing and graphics software went mainstream in the 80s (remember MacPaint?), suddenly everyone could be a designer and create their own ads and brochures. Or so they thought. It took a while to realize that just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should do it. Time proved that software could not replace the creative talent and experience required to produce effective marketing pieces. History seems to be repeating itself in the area of PR writing.

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Lawrence Ragan Communications Inc., one of the leading training companies for external and internal communications worldwide, just launched MyRagan.com; and it’s already being described as “the MySpace of the PR industry.” With 3,000 registered users in the first two weeks, it seems this is the ‘it’ thing for ‘our kind.’ The goal of the project is to provide a social network for PR, Graphic Design, Marketing and Web professionals to swap tips, resources and strategies.

Will it work? I’m not sure. But there is no way to find out unless we try. Sign Up and ‘Friend Me’.

The battle for online media supremacy just took a major turn of events today as Microsoft announced the purchase of aQuantive – an Ad serving and network business.

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Call me old-fashioned, but I still think the telephone is the best way to reach out and touch someone. Perhaps that’s why Twitter, one of the Web’s recent micro-blogging sensations, seemed frivolous to me when I first saw it.

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What do you think – Are blogs more credible than news outlets? Industry publications? White papers? Analyst reports? Industry professional associations?

A recent study by KnowledgeStorm and Universal McCann polled 4500 people. More than 50% answered that blogs are equally or more credible than each of those outlets. At first that really astonished me. But, the truth is, a third-party endorsement is so valuable, especially for B2B. And blogs are a great example of this. (View Complete Statistics)

Moral of the story – blogs are here to stay as credible sources for every industry. When you are planning your next PR pitch or news release, don’t forget to add them to your media list. Also, simply commenting on blogs is a great way to break into the sphere.

Get busy. Potential sales leads are reading.

So you think interactive media is all the rage, given its tracking capabilities, eh? Well, you’re right, of course, but the development of new technology has not stopped at the doorstep of the Internet. Other media are getting into the act as well. Talk about accountability. Check out this little item from townhall.com (via AdvertisingLab):

Device Enables Tracking Ads by the View

A Canadian professor has developed technology that allows advertisers to count the number of people who look at their billboards and screens.

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For a couple of years now we’ve seen an increase in tradeshow traffic for our clients. It’s been subtle, but it’s there for all to see. That traffic resulted in an increase in quality leads for those who have stuck to the tradeshow circuit. We have the numbers to prove it. One client alone registered more than 250 quality leads at their industry’s premier show last June.

Today, there is still more evidence that tradeshows are growing in influence. BtoB Magazine reports in the May 7 issue that tradeshow media, for the first time ever, surpassed print media in total revenue in 2006.

According to the report, tradeshows accounted for 36 percent ($11.3 billion) of overall b-to-b media in 2006. Print media came in at 35 percent ($10.9 billion). The source is American Business Media.

Why is this important? It shows that face-to-face contact remains an important part of any communications plan. You can talk via email all day long, use instant messaging, etc., but when it comes down to making the sale or building a relationship, face-to-face contact is still king.

I think Margaret Pederson, president of Penton Exhibitions, is correct. “As people spend more time face-to-face with a computer, real face-to-face becomes more important,” she’s quoted as saying. “It’s the opposite of what people thought would happen.”

Yes, 9/11 has had an impact, but now, the pendulum is swinging back the other way. Book early and think creatively when planning your marketing activity. And add important tradeshows to the mix.