Proliferation of Options Requires B-to-B Media Channel Planning

WHITE PAPER
Proliferation of Options Requires
B-to-B Media Channel Planning
As with so many other areas of Introducing . W ho is your audience? Who are marketing, media planning has been Media Channel Planning the people who make the critical revolutionized by the influx of new decisions? And who are the people It's not just the number of new media spawned by the Internet. who influence that choice, as part choices that raise the bar for the of the buying team? What are their Where we once looked at print planning of B-to-B marketing media. motivations? And do they differ?magazine advertising and some It is the subtleties of use and direct mail - we now have a full approach that transform tactical . H ow do we reach them? What media do they use for information spectrum of choices available to media buying into strategic Media at various parts of their buying B-to-B marketers. These choices are Channel Planning. process? For example, print richer and fuller, presenting many What are those subtleties? The magazines for general knowledge, new communications capabilities: list goes well beyond our ability to search to locate a specific . Online options, like search and define here. But some media, like technology, the Internet for Internet advertising, that allow paid search, are used when people in-depth vendor selection, you to make awareness-building are actively searching for a product webinars for more information activities more measurable. or technology. Other media, like on intriguing new technologies.e-mail and RSS feeds, can help you . W ebinars that allow you to . What do they want and need? cultivate prospects. present an online tutorial on How does your product or service your technology. correspond to their technical and In short, different media excel business challenges? What do . P odcasts that allow short messages at different parts of the buying they want from a vendor? Simply to be distributed for mobile use. cycle. So the choice of B-to-B the lowest price? Or do they . S ocial media like blogs, wikis, marketing media, then, no longer need some type of applications and discussion boards that thrive revolves around rates and reach, assistance?on two-way interaction and dialog. but is a more integral part of marketing strategy. Media Channel Planning: And more are on the way constantly. A Critical Part of Your Media Channel Planning is the Strategic ProgramWe call this phenomenon media process of selecting the proper fragmentation - the proliferation media channels to achieve the Media Channel Planning is of new media options that could desired marketing outcomes and Godfrey's approach to addressing potentially cause fragmentation answer the major questions: this need for a fuller, richer approach of marketing programs, identities to B-to-B marketing in a 2.0 world. and even brand positioning. . What are you trying to do? Some important aspects of this Not just whether you're hoping new approach:Everything we knew in the past to get leads, site visits, phone calls, about selecting media for B-to-B or action in your distribution 1. It's media agnostic. The new marketing has gone out the window. channel, but whether you're realities require that planners scan What's called for is a media lobotomy. looking to increase brand across the media landscape and awareness, position yourself as a fashion a program specifically leader, or penetrate a new market. targeted to the needs of youraudience and the nature of your approach even more crucial. For 5. It's accountable. The new media technology, product or service. instance, search keywords (those enable a level of measurement From one project to another, used by your audience, not just by unprecedented in B-to-B marketing and even from one program to you) need to be used in print ads, media. That means not only better another, the recommendations PR releases, and web pages. Online information but faster feedback, will vary markedly. ads must lead to good web content so the message and the media can which must have solid calls to go through a cycle of continuous 2. It's customer-focused. Media action. E-mail offers must be paid improvement that allows them to channel planning requires a focus off on the web, and results need be more targeted and more effective on the specific needs of the buyer to be measured. than they were ju... [download for more]