Jason’s idea was that “clients” (customers who pay good money and want good returns) don’t really care about turf battles between different media and channels. Especially when the media are only guarding their own turf and revenue.

If “integrated marketing” sells the most product (and it does), then savvy media companies offer the optimal Combo Plate – Printed Paid Ads + Trade Show Promotion + Online Marketing … with some Direct Marketing (Online or Offline) on the side. (See Jason’s post titled Service Provider Attendance at Trade Shows, August 2007, below.)

Service Provider Attendance at Trade Shows
Jason in Trade Shows, Sales and Marketing, The Presidents Lounge, What’s on your mind?
August 3rd, 2007

Back in the day, magazine publications and other service providers were perceived as the enemy of the trade show producer, and the publisher felt the same about trade shows. The belief was that clients — advertisers for magazines and exhibitors for trade shows — would choose either an ad or a booth. It was a zero sum game.

However, research conducted over the past few years has proven otherwise. The client wants an integrated marketing program that will sell the most product. The savvy media company provides the optimum combination of print ads, trade show exposure, direct mail, Internet ads and whatever else the client wants.

I can’t stress enough how important it is for service providers, such as magazine and website publishers, to man up and attend these trade shows. Do you hear that, service providers? When it comes to promoting a trade show-publication joint effort, you’ll find that your goals aren’t that different from those of your clients — attracting the attention of your combined client/prospect base.

In reality service providers (magazines, other pubs) and trade shows are ideal partners:

1. The magazine has credibility in the market and is in front of the audience (advertisers and readers) year-round. The editorial pages validate the show and, in some cases, can even create it.

2. The magazine can provide to the trade show all key elements for success: the attendees (subscribers), the exhibitors (advertisers), and the conference (editorial). The show is like a 3-D version of the magazine: The editorial is the conference; advertisers are the exhibitors, and readers are the attendees.

3. The magazine provides no-cost/low-cost attendance promotion via print ads and access to its subscriber database.

4. The trade show provides the magazine with a brand extension in the form of a live event.

5. The trade show gives the magazine a concrete location to gather its two customers readers and advertisers).

6. The pre-show, show and post-show issues of the magazine can be the largest of the year (in number of advertising pages) if the event is effectively integrated into the magazine’s editorial calendar.

7. A trade show can provide profit margins that are 50-to-100% higher than a magazine, when done correctly.

Additionally, it’s a smart move to attend the trade shows because it shows a real commitment to your customers. In fact, customers should be wary of service providers that don’t attend trade shows. (We won’t give any names, but you know who you are.) We’d like to see you at the next one, and so would your customers.

I’d like to personally thank all of the publishers that do attend the trade shows. Kudos to publishers like Top Ten Wholesale, Closeout News, Sumner Communications, Wholesale Source and Forum Publishing. See you in a couple of weeks.

That was 18 months ago.

Jason was invited to address an organization called SIPA – Specialized Information Publishers Association – last November. SIPA members are exactly the special-interest magazines and publications noted above: Born offline many years ago and standing off-road on the “information superhighway,” guarding their old ad revenue sources.

But that was all before. The reason SIPA put Jason – and other online search marketers like him – on their conference agenda in November 2008 was they want to catch up, fast. Keyword all unique specialized content. Make their content searchable and visible to search engines. Make it useful to information needs and to advertisers … like trade shows. So, a lot has changed the past 18 months.

And some good things remain the same. Scan Jason’s last point, above, listing “publishers that do attend trade shows.” Now, scan this list of Media Partners of upcoming mega-merchandise trade show ASD/AMD Las Vegas (March 15-18, 2009). Find the duplicates. Tally up the new players. Yes, there is progress.

ASD/AMD Show Media Partners 2009