Subject: What Works in B-to-B

From: American Business Media <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 2004 15:30:11 -0600

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(Business Media Matters is a monthly e-newsletter for the advertising community. To subscribe or unsubscribe, please use the links at the bottom of this newsletter.)

November 30, 2004 |

In This Issue
Insurance Firm Finds a Sure Thing in National Underwriter
Reed Exhibitions Helps Customers Focus on ROI
Primedia Gives Marketers Cross-Industry Opportunities
Why Advertise in Business Media?

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CAMPAIGNS THAT WORK
Insurance Firm Finds a Sure Thing in National Underwriter

Pro Financial Services (PFS) never did a whole lot of advertising. The Schaumburg, Ill.-based firm, which provides disability insurance for high-income professionals like athletes, entertainers and doctors, already had a solid and steady clientele (including most of the teams in Major League Baseball and the National Football League). However, PFS wanted to expand its non-sports market.

"One of our brokers told us we should be advertising in a weekly publication called National Underwriter," said Jamie Burns, a marketing executive at PFS. "Then we found out that all of our brokers read it! So we ran a four-color full-page ad in one issue, just to try it out. We didn't want to commit to a schedule unless we had some kind of proof of performance."

The ad copy included a unique e-mail address, so that PFS could track how many inquiries it prompted. Burns says that the response exceeded all expectations. "We had about 20 inquiries, just from running our ad that one time," said Burns. PFS is now running a full-page ad in the Life & Health edition of National Underwriter every other week for an entire year. It is also exploring other ways to reach National Underwriter's readers outside of the print publication, including e-newsletters and webinars.

"It's exactly the audience that we're going after, so it is an absolute perfect fit," said Burns. "We should have been doing this all along."

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FACE-TO-FACE
Reed Exhibitions Helps Customers Focus on ROI
With a portfolio that includes more than 60 events in North America and the Caribbean -- including the PGA Golf shows, the National Hardware Show, BookExpo America and the JCK series of jewelry trade shows -- Reed Exhibitions has a lot to say about the trade show industry.

"We as an industry have trained exhibitors to judge a show based on attendance," said Chet Burchett, president of Reed Exhibitions North America. "But that really doesn't make sense, because even the most organized and efficient sales team can make only a few hundred meaningful contacts at one trade show. So why should it matter if there are 18,000 attendees instead of the 20,000 they expected?" What they ought to be concentrating on, says Burchett, is getting the right 200-or-so people into their booth.

To educate exhibitors on how to maximize their investment in a trade show, Reed Exhibitions is offering Exhibitor University, a one-day seminar free to all its customers. "Many exhibit managers don't have any formal training in the trade show business, so very often they don't have the tools to help them measure their return on investment," observes Nancy Walsh, senior vice president at Reed Exhibitions. The sessions are intensive workshops, requiring attendees to follow along using a workbook.

Burchett said clients were skeptical at first, suspecting that Exhibitor University would be a Reed sales pitch masquerading as a seminar. "They quickly find out that we don't sell them anything during the sessions. It is a genuine investment in the customer." Reed is tracking Exhibitor University graduates over time, to see what kind of impact the program has on customer retention and participation levels.

It's catching on. Already, there are 300 people -- representing 16 different trade shows -- signed up for two Exhibitor University sessions in New York in December. This is just the beginning, says Burchett. Exhibitor University is but one piece of a broader Reed initiative that includes trade show audits and in-depth research on attendee behavior. "We're arming our customers with intellectual capital, so they can see their trade show participation as a strategic investment," says Burchett. "If our customers are successful, then we will be successful."

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ON INTEGRATED MEDIA
Primedia Gives Marketers Cross-Industry Opportunities

Farmers and financial services? It might seem an unlikely pairing, but it's one that's making sense for Primedia Business Magazines & Media and a handful of financial services providers.

Primedia, publisher of about 70 b-to-b titles covering 20 market sectors, was looking for innovative ways to help clients in the financial industry reach the right audiences. The Primedia team, led by group publisher Rich Santos, knew intuitively that farmers were a wealthy yet underserved market. The team did some research, and their findings proved them right: the average net worth of a farmer is over $1.1 million; 75% of farmers are college educated; 62% own stock; but fewer than 40% have ties with a financial planner or stockbroker.

So Primedia called on writers from within its stable of business publications to create The Personal Guide to Investment Opportunities for the Agricultural Professional, a print supplement with targeted editorial and ads. Advertisers in the guide include insurance firms, mutual fund companies and financial planners. The guide will be distributed in first quarter 2005 to all subscribers of Primedia's agricultural publications and at certain agricultural trade shows. A companion website is slated to go live early next year.

"We're providing our financial advertisers access to a targeted new market," said John French, Primedia's executive vp-sales. The company is exploring other cross-industry opportunities for marketers. Already, it has produced a print supplement called Ward's Auto Electronics, a joint effort from Primedia's transportation and electronics titles.

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THE POWER IN B-TO-B
Why Advertise in Business Media?

Because it works. That's the message conveyed by the six case studies in "The Power in B-to-B Media," a new set of full-color brochures now available from American Business Media. The series demonstrates how advertisers across industries have utilized b-to-b media-whether in print, in person or online-to promote their brands, generate qualified leads, boost revenues and achieve their marketing goals.

The case studies, featuring a variety of major advertisers from Tyson Foods to MetLife to Dodge Trucks, offer a succinct summary of the following: the challenge facing each advertiser, its marketing approach, and the payoff. Also included in "The Power in B-to-B Media" are brief descriptions of 10 types of research studies that can help marketers make media decisions.

American Business Media will send "The Power in B-to-B Media" to the first 50 people who request it. Simply send an e-mail to [email-masked] with your name, company and mailing address, and write "request for case studies" in the subject line. You must be a marketing/advertising professional to avail of this offer.

About Business Media Matters

Brought to you by American Business Media, Business Media Matters is a monthly e-newsletter that brings the b-to-b opportunity to life for marketers, advertisers and media planners and buyers. Each issue contains industry data, research and case studies that document the power and effectiveness of business media as advertising and marketing vehicles.
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