A study in BtoB magazine recently reported these findings: Pay Per Click (PPC) programs were reported to be the best lead generation tactic by 35.9% of the respondents. On-line display ads came in second at 17.9%. Opt-in e-mail campaigns were third at 11.3%.

Conventional efforts fell to the bottom. Trade shows – 7.7%, direct mail – 6.5% and cold calling in last place at 5.9%.

When asked what the most underused lead gen tactic was, e-mail was first at 20.3%.

This study seems to mirror what’s going on in our business. PPC and other search marketing programs continue to grow – other on-line advertising too. E-mail programs are really growing while at the other end of the spectrum print direct mail is just about dead.

Need help sorting through your lead generation or branding activities? We’re glad to talk. Just drop us a line or visit our website today.

In a recent study industrial buyers were asked the number one place they looked for new product, processes and best practices information. Here is the list of best to worst -

Industry websites, trade magazines, search engines, supplier websites, trade shows, e-newsletters, webinars, social networks and, lastly, blogs.

So while all things interactive are attracting budget increases and print budgets remain under pressure for many . . . the fact is that industrial buyers still look for new stuff in print. Print should remain a component of your communications program.

Marketing budgets this year.

Forrester Research did a survey of 563 marketing executives as to their budget plans for 2011. Here are the results from worst to best-

10% or more decrease – 12%
1% to 9% decrease – 10%
1% to 4% increase -  22%
5% to 9% increase -  25%
10% to 19% increase – 21%
20% or more increase – 10%

So while some firms are making cuts – or cutting recession-induced cuts further – fully 78% of respondents were increasing marketing budgets. And many significantly so.

Need help analyzing your program or budgeting? Drop us an e-mail.

Clay Kreicker, President
Tri-State Advertising

In fairness, one other company is still operating but moved years ago to Chicago.

While it is a little sad to be reminded of competitors that didn’t last, it does give us pride to be the “last man standing”. We just celebrated our 63rd birthday, so we have outlasted many a competitor over the years.

We attribute our longevity to our good clients, our good people and our good suppliers. In fact, over 40% of our clients have been with us for more than 10 years, which is very unusual in our business.

From the nine there is one. And we don’t plan on going anywhere else any time soon.

Clay Kreicker, President
Tri-State Advertising

Maybe not too surprising, the 78.5% of the marketers were going to increase online spending. The next largest increase was only 44.3% for events. Interestingly, this huge increase does not seem to come too much at the expense of print advertising- 57.7% were holding print ad budgets steady for 2011.

But it’s obvious that online spending is attracting the majority of budget increases. Why? Again, maybe no surprise, but that’s where the action is. In the other study, engineers were asked the value of 22 different ways of researching work-related purchases- From trade publications to trade shows to Facebook.

The top three tools were, respectively, General Search Engines (83%), Online Catalogs (76%) and Supplier Web Sites (73%). An industrial online environment was tied for third but they sponsored the study. But the top four resources were online resources. That’s where the action is, in increasing doses. No surprise that the money is flowing in that direction.

Need help aligning your budget to where the action is? Send us an e-mail or visit our website.

While all clients are seeing increases, clients with optimized websites (or those that employ us to do Search Engine Optimization) are seeing the biggest increases. We still have a few clients that do not have us do SEO. But those that do, on average, are seeing search engine visits up over 50% compared to last year. Compelling.

Bottom line: While everybody is getting more site activity, our SEO sites are getting LOTS more.
Want to learn more about SEO?  Send us an email. Or visit our website today.

Our view is that there is no current shame for not having a social media program (that is changing). But the fact is that more of your customers and prospective customers are increasingly checking social media presences as part of their on-line research of vendors and prospective vendors.

So for business marketers, the point may not be to build your base of fans, friends or followers. Rather, it may be more about delivering content that helps get you – and your brand – across in an appropriate way to your customers and prospects.

So while the lack of a social program may not hurt you today, you want to be sure an active program helps better define your brand and drive it through this medium to the marketplace.

Getting social? We can help. Visit our website.

 And it’s also true that print ad revenues are mostly down about everywhere you look. Then why bother with print at all?

 Consider a few stats from a recent survey:

• 84% read magazines
• 72% will choose to read a magazine even if the same content is available on line
• 54% reported magazines influencing them
• 47% reported being driven to search on line as a result of reading magazines

Television didn’t kill the radio or movies. All three mediums are here to stay. And while the economy is challenging print ad revenues, magazines are not going anywhere. Nor, collectively, are the people that read them.

Videos can also be deployed a number of ways in social media programs beyond simple You Tube postings.

What about costs?

First-class videos are expensive to produce and may well be warranted. But you don’t have to do a Hollywood production to get your point across. Check out this Yellow Jacket video. The client shot the footage himself and we did the edit and voice-over. Decidedly not sexy. But for the money it’s really earning its keep on their website. Lots of viewers who quickly understand this new stretch wrapping concept.

Big time Hollywood or down and dirty. Videos can help your web presence and social media programs pay bigger dividends.

Our Six Words-

Total business-to-business marketing communications.

What would your six words be? Need help?

Then, ADVERTISING AGE asked us for our so-called “Elevator Speech”. This is the succinct, 200-words-or-less pitch you’d give a guy to sum up your business while taking a short trip together on an elevator.  

Our Elevator Speech- 

We are expert at the delivery of balanced, tailored and targeting marketing communications programs to small-to-medium-sized business-to-business marketers. You will find here a complete range of services from good-old-fashioned advertising and PR to the latest interactive initiatives and search marketing. If it has to do with communications for the business-to-business marketer, in our 62 years we’ve either done it or do it every day.

And unlike some agencies, we truly value our clients and our long-term relationships above troubles or profit opportunities du jour. The Proof? Over 40% of our clients have been with us 10 years or longer. Three of our clients have been with us for over 30 years.

We attribute these long relationships to our concept of Ideas Plus Understanding. Creative thinking combined with business understanding and an understanding of our clients’ challenges and opportunities. 

Coming up with your own Six Words and your own Elevator Speech is a good exercise and helpful to your own marketing effort.