BtoB Media Business - April 2012 - (Page 16)

SALES & MARKETING Sales & Marketing Made to order 1105 Media, IDG and Thomas Industrial Network add marketing services units AD VANTAGES A ‘Match.com’ for livestock Farm Journal Media’s Beef Today in January rolled out a new website to connect buyers and sellers of cattle. Cattle-Exchange.com allows sellers to place free listings of livestock for sale. Bill Newham, VPlivestock group publisher of Farm Journal Media, talked about the BIO program. BILL Media BusiNEWHAM ness: What led VP-livestock you to launch group publisher, CattleFarm Journal Exchange.com? Media Bill Newham: There’s a need in the marketplace for it. There are a number of sites out there but none that we felt was as detailed as they needed to be. To me, it’s Match.com for cows; it’s not a buy-sell platform, it’s a matchmaking service. MB: What’s the sales and marketing strategy? Newham: Primarily, site advertising and sponsorships. There’s threequarters of a million people in the U.S. who own cattle, and we have a number of (advertisers that) want to reach them. To a lesser degree, there will be premium fees for listings that are more prominent on the site. MB: What’s the biggest challenge in introducing this type of platform? Newham: We’re approaching 100 data points on listings, (so) the challenge was getting the programming, formatting and the structure of it as such, that it was (as) userfriendly as possible for people who want to list cattle. Because, in a broad sense, we’re dealing with an audience that may not be on the technology cutting edge as in other —M.S. industries. A arena, continues to extend its line of cuss a result of the decline in print adver- tomized products and services. tising and concurrent rise of new meLast month, IDG introduced a new online dia channels, b-to-b media companies lead-generation program (IDG Target Account are aggressively moving to develop marketing 360) that helps b-to-b technology marketers services departments to draw their brands generate leads from the world’s 2,000 largest closer to customers. companies as compiled by Forbes. The latest to take the plunge: 1105 Media’s IDG is also ramping up its social marketing Enterprise Computing Group (ECG). In late efforts. In November, it launched a community January, the group introduced Smart Markets. and content website for Dell. The New Fulcrum ECG’s portfolio includes five magazines, 18 Point site features original content, curated connewsletters, 20 websites and several events, in- tent from the Web, news from such IDG brands cluding Visual Studio Live, Techmentor and as CIO, Computerworld and Network World, the recently launched Live 360 Events. Com- and contributions from analysts and bloggers. bined, these assets serve more than 1 million IT “The whole market landscape has required pros, developers and channel advertisers and media compapartners each month. nies alike to be extremely fluSmart Markets will tap into id,” said Charles Lee, senior ECG’s portfolio to provide its VP-strategic marketing serclients with such marketing vices and custom solutions at services as content curation, IDG. “Agility is key [and] time strategy, website creation, to market is key because everylead-generation programs, adthing moves and changes so vertising creative, brand buildfast—which is entirely driven ing and product launches. by the whole nature of the “It’s kind of a one-stop digital, social and mobile platshop,” said Henry Allain, pres- Henry Allain, president of 1105 forms.” Media’s ECG ident of 1105 Media’s ECG. Thomas Industrial Net“Not only can we take your money to give you work, which works with industrial marketers, space in a magazine, or on a website or an ex- is also shifting to offering its customers more hibit at an event, we can help you with the en- marketing-related services. tire program—from content, to branding to In March, the company debuted an email creative—and then we’ll overlay that on our marketing service to help its clients reach their media brands.” target audiences. The service, part of a new digHe said the marketing services unit should ital media solutions group inroduced last year, be a boon to 1105 Media’s ability to better runs the email gamut: strategy, design, content serve its customers and prospects. creation, tracking, reporting and analytics. “I see it helping our products because now Thomas developed the program after its we’ve got a more compelling reason for adver- “Industrial Purchasing Barometer” survey intisers to use us,” Allain said. “It’s always really dicated that 52% of industrial product buyers important for an advertiser to fully understand visit suppliers’ websites in response to email not only the customers and the audiences that promotions, said Phil Paranicas, director of a b-to-b publisher has but also the best way to digital media at Thomas Industrial Network. talk to them.” “Many industrial companies, particularly He added that he sees no danger of canni- in the SMB space, have the challenge of keepbalization from the marketing services unit. ing their name, their brand, in front of their “We’ll do our best to hold our [ad] rates. All of clients on a regular basis,” Paranicas said. these services are add-on services,” Allain said. “They need to be sure that they’re top-of-mind IDG, which was one of the first business when their contacts are getting ready to make a publishers to enter the marketing services purchase.” BY MATTHEW SCHWARTZ “We can help you with the entire program …and then we’ll overlay that on our media brands.” 16 | Media Business | April 2012 | mediabusinessonline.com http://www.Match.com http://www.Cattle-Exchange.com http://www.CattleExchange.com http://www.CattleExchange.com http://www.Match.com http://www.mediabusinessonline.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of BtoB Media Business - April 2012

BtoB Media Business - April 2012
Contents
RBI puts iconic Variety brand on the block
Lead-generation services help drive profits
Publishers begin to embrace analytics, HTML5
Sales & Marketing
M&A
Audience Development
Events
People
Benchmarks
The dubious financial future of online advertising

BtoB Media Business - April 2012