I can’t resist writing about a recent eMedia Vitals article by Rob O’Regan titled, “Not your father’s custom publishing.” O’Regan—formerly the founding editor-in-chief of CMO, a critically acclaimed magazine that catered to senior marketing execs—writes about how something called content marketing is becoming an integral part of business-to-business marketing. Essentially it’s the ability to explain the value propositions of complex products and services—things that just can’t be described with a sound bite or jingle.

According to industry sources cited in O’Regan’s article, content marketing already commands over a quarter of today’s overall B2B spend and will soon become a $47.2 billion industry. No surprise for us—or our clients. In many settings, an in-depth understanding of products and services can only be created with multiple impressions of long-form media, such as magazines. Rich programs that integrate many forms of content and reinforce key messages over time produce consistently better results. That’s good news for everyone—except for traditional publishers with broken business models who are feverishly trying to reinvent themselves as content marketing experts.

So far, these old-school publishers are finding the transition about as easy as teaching a cat to walk on a leash. O’Regan quotes Charles Lee, SVP of IDG’s new content marketing group, as admitting that the “vendor publisher model takes us out of our comfort zone.” Frankly, it seems as if traditional publishers are both scared and at a loss to understand how to customize content in a way that works. Lee is quoted again as describing how IDG always asks its client the following question: “On a scale of 1-to-5, with 1 being vendor agnostic and 5 being vendor oriented, where you want the content to be?”

Such a formulaic approach is tremendously naïve.

The art of custom media lies in shaping content that reinforces client messaging and serves reader interest. Of course client-sponsored content is biased in favor of the client—but it must still serve reader interest to be effective. If custom content emits even a whiff of marketing-speak, it goes unread at best, or at worst, damages the client’s relationship with the target audience.

That’s why I enjoyed reading O’Regan describe why the effectiveness of content marketing begins with content quality—and how the skills of writers and editors with journalism experience are relevant to these efforts. We agree. TDA spends an extraordinary amount of time finding, vetting, and recruiting this talent. But that’s just the beginning. Once they’re here, we teach these professionals how to adapt their skills to the custom publishing environment through best practices and techniques refined over more than 20 years in the business. We know that complexity doesn’t necessarily mean complicated. And that’s a lesson traditional publishers are struggling to learn.

Last week, a colleague and I attended the Intersolar industry event in San Francisco.

This year’s event was bigger than last year, which signals belief in a growing U.S. market for all manner of solar technologies, products, and services. The expo had three exhibit halls full of vendors from all over the world who are eager to tap into the emerging U.S. market.

So far, however, that market remains largely untapped. Sluggish adoption to date may be partially related to the relatively low level of marketing sophistication in this industry. With few exceptions, a lack of differentiation plagues the solar industry. Vendors are struggling to explain what makes them different, and why that difference matters. Booth after booth displayed solar panel after solar panel. There may have been differences between the products, but they all looked the same to me.

The solar industry can learn a lot from other industries. For example, enterprise IT vendors know that customer success stories are key when explaining business benefits of technical solutions to prospects. Customers speak in a language prospects understand. As a result, success stories will be crucially important for solar vendors looking to accelerate sales.

Once created, these stories need to reach and be read by prospective buyers. Of course, the stories can be posted on Web sites, but they can also be proactively distributed in corporate newsletters and magazines, or even as sponsored content in many third-party publications. Success stories don’t work unless they’re read, but when they’re read, they work.

Beyond marketing, the industry seems overwhelmed by complexity. The ocean of technical details about look-alike products is a real problem, but it’s compounded by a myriad of varying city, county, state, and federal regulations and subsidies. Together, these challenges conspire to prevent accelerated adoption in the United States.

We need to standardize, streamline, and encourage the adoption of solar and other green technologies in consistent and meaningful ways. In Silicon Valley, promising work by Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network is helping to standardize green building codes across jurisdictions, and aggregating solar purchasing terms and specifications across the region.

Initiatives like these are essential for having the sun shine on a solar future. And so is effective marketing. As the need for clean industries becomes essential, I’m positive the players in the solar field will soon realize the need for more effective ways of operating—and promoting the industry.

In a meeting with a very large client last week, we asked a VP there what kinds of collateral his sales team finds most useful. The VP’s response was immediate: “Case studies, no doubt about it.”

This reinforces what TDA has come to know over the years. In survey after survey, salespeople invariably say they want more case studies. Why? Because they know first-hand that customer testimonials radically shorten sales cycles. Prospects find real-world examples product and service benefits relevant, credible, and compelling.

The “one in ten” rule
So given the value they place on case studies, why is it hard to get salespeople to help generate leads? After all, sales folks are closest to customers, maintain relationships, and can best navigate the geopolitical customer landscape. They are in the best position to know exactly whom to contact to about a customer case study, and when.

And that’s critical. TDA experience shows that only one out of every ten case study leads actually makes it through to publication. Some customers decline to participate outright, while others drop out along the way for a variety of reasons. Just like the sales process itself, customer reference programs need a pipeline. The more story leads you generate, the more case studies you’ll create. Without a robust pipeline of potential customers, the efforts of well-intentioned marketing departments can stall before they even get started.

The checklist for getting more case study leads from sales
Thankfully, there are a number of ways to help generate leads for the case study pipeline. Here are six of the most important:

1. Get it in writing. Yes, it possible to establish contractual language that requires participation in customer references. This may seem elementary, but many organizations fail to include boilerplate terms about customer reference participation into standard contracts. This is especially important for case study leads, because it‘s harder to get permission later on. Of course, deal negations sometimes result in this clause being removed, but other times it flies through unscathed. That’s why it should be in the boilerplate contract. Assume that every customer will be a reference until they tell you otherwise.

2. Regularly update sales staff about case study goals, progress made, and what you need from them. From a sales perspective, marketing has one job: Make sales easy. One way of garnering support is setting and sharing goals for how many case studies you plan on publishing over the course of a month, quarter, or year, and how many story leads you need to make it happen. Make sure you let salespeople know the plan—if they don’t know, they can’t help you. Include program updates in whatever field communications are most effective. Some organizations share updates via sales team conference calls, other use internal e-mail newsletters, still others post to the sales intranet. A key question to ask is: What communications channel does the VP of sales or CEO use to get a strategic message to the field? Whatever the answer, that’s the channel you want to use for your program updates.

3. Share the love: Make sure sales incentives align with the customer reference program. Sales professionals, as rule, want to know what’s in it for them. Because their income depends on performance, good salespeople focus their time, attention, and efforts on their quota. You can use a similar incentive to enlist support for your reference program. Establish the number of leads you need and how many stories you’re looking to publish, and then set reasonable expectations. Work with your sales compensation architects to see if it’s possible to reward those whose actions support program results.

4. Provide comprehensive program management support. While salespeople have great insight into potential case study leads, their priority is closing new deals. Your team needs to allay fears of distractions. Make it easy for salespeople to help with case study leads, and make sure your interactions with customers are always courteous, professional, and even fun for the customer.

5. Track and share performance data. Consider putting up a leaderboard that ranks sales people and/or departments with a point system for story leads and completed case studies. These metrics can be posted on sales intranets, or on posters in sales break rooms or other public areas. When they see how their efforts compare with those of their peers, salespeople’s competitive natures will help motivate their support.

Of course, I haven’t posted #6, which is the best way to juice up your organization’s case study program. For that, you’ll have to contact me. But most enterprises have more case study prospects than they realize. With assistance from people in the field who best know customers, reference programs can take off—and marketing can beat goals and expectations.

The research results are in. After a decade of speculation, it turns out that the Web is rewiring our brains, constantly refining our neural networks to respond to more input. But this evolutionary change may not be an upgrade. As Nicholas Carr notes in Wired , behavioral psychologists are discovering that while the Web is a superb medium for grabbing attention, it doesn’t always foster a deep understanding of complex subjects.

Carr notes that part of the problem stems from the way online information comes with more information than the primary text. And as Matt Richter of the New York Times recently observed, the overall increase in sudden bursts of information makes it difficult for people to concentrate on specific information.

Most of us attempt to manage all this information by multitasking. Be honest: Who hasn’t checked e-mail and surfed the Web during a conference call? “Computer users at work change windows or check e-mail or other programs nearly 37 times an hour, new research shows,” writes Richter.

But as the Times piece points out, only 3 percent of the population can actually multitask effectively. The rest of the world, as my colleague Paul Carlstrom likes to say, ends up multithrashing.

The ongoing rewiring of the brain presents an enormous problem for anyone attempting to convince C-level decision makers—who battle distractions like anyone else—about the benefits of any complex product or service. The Web is ideal, of course, in helping get you noticed, but when it comes to really selling the big idea behind your offerings, you need prospects to pay attention to the details. If you can’t provide a deep understanding of how big-ticket items will benefit a prospect, your sales cycle will be prolonged at best.

My evolving neural networks now conclude that science has made an elegant case for custom publications, particularly in enterprise high tech where prospects must feel comfortable with new technologies to become customers. Research cited by both Wired and the New York Times articles states that reading about complex subjects in traditional formats typically results in more comprehension than doing so online.

With typography, color, and artwork, publications have evolved over hundreds of years to capture, focus, and hold the attention of readers. An attractive magazine with well-written articles covering interesting topics can pave the way to a deeper understanding of what your company has to offer. Besides, I suspect the people who matter most—the decision makers you need to reach—prefer to read uninterrupted.

Up to this point, print has been the primary medium used to deliver this kind of information to the biggest audiences. It’s cheap and easy to distribute, and everyone knows how to use it.

Now, an emerging class of devices, like Apple’s iPad and Amazon’s Kindle, is creating a new medium that helps readers focus. Wired’s new iPad magazine developed with Adobe is an excellent example of how this new approach can minimize the distractions of other electronic media vying for our attention. (In fact, I first read Carr’s Wired magazine article on an iPad.)

Publishing aside, the new neural reality calls for all of us to think more about how we focus our attention, be more aware of the distractions of the modern world, and become more attuned to how our minds are evolving over time.

The latest cover of B to B magazine proclaims the publication is the “Lead Generation Guide 2010.”  This edition of the publication is packed full of hints and tips for how to generate better leads more effectively. It’s worth a read.

Two articles call for “relevant, high-value content” as the key to creating “meaningful dialog with prospects and customers.” But what these pieces don’t mention is how many organizations struggle to produce this kind of content.

I’m reminded of a colleague who likes to ask, “Yes, you can give yourself a haircut, but why would you want to?” Often times, even in the best of marketing departments, it’s hard to judge how your message is coming across. There’s an insularity that sets in. You wrote it, so it must be great, right? And then there are the multiple review and approval cycles (the PR staffers, the senior executives, and even the corporate lawyers) that can water down even hard-hitting copy to the point where no discerning reader would find the end result either relevant or high value.

That’s why an outside party specializing in enterprise media is critical for creating copy that’s both relevant and valuable. Talented writers and editors can inject fresh marketplace perspective, a healthy dose of journalistic skepticism, and a flair for a good story into every project. And they have the experience working within corporate guidelines and legal requirements to keep the review cycles to a minimum. Like a good hair professional, they can show you off at your best, quickly and cost effectively.

Producing relevant, high-value content isn’t a minor detail when planning an effective marketing strategy. In fact, it’s the key to an effective strategy. You can’t fake it. Either your target audience will find your content valuable or it won’t. Whether you’re posting content to a blog or to a fan page on Facebook or LinkedIn, or publishing it online or in print, you must keep in mind that today’s readers are more discerning, finicky, and demanding than ever before.

If readers find you dull, or your copy begins to reek of trite marketing-speak, readership will vanish, along with opportunity. At that point, your marketing strategy may suddenly need to revolve around damage control.

Looking at the cover of the latest issue of IBM Data Management magazine, you’d never guess that the two individuals pictured live, work, and were photographed on opposite ends of the European continent. The amazing visual is courtesy of the hard work and skill of a talented design team, but what’s even more striking is how the image—and the story behind it—conveys how the magazine helps IBM build relationships with its customers.

Every issue of IBM Data Management magazine delivers hands-on information for data professionals. Some examples from the most recent issue (which is now available) include thought-provoking strategic stories on how to approach data quality projects, and why data governance matters to every organization—and what to do about it. Just as it has every month, the award-winning magazine also dishes up plenty of specific tactical advice for the working data professional, including SQL tuning tips and an in-depth examination of expanded functionality in IBM DB2.

And the cover story? It’s a profile of two IBM Information Champions: data professionals recognized by IBM for their contributions to the information management community through user groups, conferences, forums, and both traditional and online media. These folks are passionate about their work, their field, and the IBM database products that they use every day. Talk about getting the audience to see themselves in what they’re reading!

IBM Data Management magazine—produced entirely by TDA Group for IBM—is true service journalism, and it provides value that readers recognize and respond to. That value engenders trust. Trust enables conversations. And conversations encourage and deepen relationships with both current and potential customers.

Custom publishers also understand that people don’t make important decisions about complex technologies without feeling comfortable about the details. And once the details are explained well, sales can follow. Who says there’s no such thing as a win-win situation?

This issue is also an especially exciting one for TDA Group and IBM as it marks the unveiling of our redesigned digital edition. The redesign includes improved navigation, a persistent table of contents, and improved social networking and content sharing features. Check it out!

Because you’re reading this blog, enterprise media is probably important to you. Enterprise media is an umbrella term that describes all forms of proprietary content designed to accomplish a business objective. Examples include marketing collateral, sales tools, Web sites, custom publications, Flash animations, corporate videos, podcasts—really anything you can think of that’s designed to capture the attention of potential customers and move them through the sales process.

Here at TDA, we help our clients define and execute enterprise media strategies. These programs tend to be big, ambitious, and span multiple forms of content and channels.

When designed well, enterprise media programs can shape perceptions in the marketplace. When customers truly understand and appreciate the client value proposition, they become better customers: they upgrade more often and more easily, shop less often with the competition, become less price-sensitive, negotiate contracts with more trust…the list of benefits goes on and on.

Effective enterprise media also makes the business benefits of your products and services crystal clear to prospects. This is especially important when selling to those who’ve previously bought from the competition. In today’s competitive world, the only way to grow market share is to reach, influence, and sell to these prospects. And let’s face it: they probably have a bias against you. If an organization is accustomed to buying from your competition, that organization’s decision makers are very likely to believe what your competitor is saying about you.

But enterprise media can help these prospects become more open to your offering, see and understand the differentiation you offer, and consider you alongside the competition.

In the complex world of high tech, that takes more than pretty pictures. TDA begins every engagement by understanding the business goals of our clients, and the strategies they’re employing to accomplish those goals. With that in place, our creative teams have the ingredients they need to shape perceptions in the marketplace. It takes a mix of media, consistent messaging, and flawless execution. And every detail must align with the bottom-line needs of the enterprise. When it all comes together, these efforts can change marketplace perceptions to your advantage.

And at TDA, that’s exactly what we do.

Collaboration is instrumental to doing business these days, and IBM’s Lotus software offerings enable people to make critical connections, no matter where they happen to be or what kinds of devices they use.

So why throw an in-person event about it? That’s what IBM does every year, and it makes a ton of sense.

Your modern business environment—the telephone, e-mail, and more recently, a myriad of social and business networking tools—has introduced you to dozens, if not hundreds, of colleagues you would have otherwise never known. In many cases, you’ve used collaboration tools to get an amazing amount of work done with people you’ve never met.

Compare these experiences to the way things worked just a few short years ago. Back in the old days, the primary reason for going to an industry event was to meet new people. While that still happens at events like Lotusphere, today’s in-person events have a new dimension of value: the opportunity to meet people you already “know” but have never met. Such virtual relationships only exist because of modern collaboration and communication technologies. When you have a relationship with someone you’ve never met, the in-person meeting doesn’t start from scratch, but rather builds upon a working relationship that’s already been established. In-person meetings take on more importance and efficiencies, and further accelerate the collaboration.

As a result, these in-person events are more valuable now than ever before.

Lotusphere is also a “can’t miss” event because of its well-deserved reputation for a noteworthy series of news conferences. Is there any other comparable event where so many significant announcements are made about how the way we work will change? This year’s event, held in Orlando, Florida, on January 17–21, was no exception. The number of announcements of improvements to an already robust software family was impressive. For example, Lotus Notes applications will soon be available for iPhone and Android devices, and the Lotus Connections group announced a sweet set of additional features for BlackBerry devices.

TDA's Paul Gustafson with IBM's Lisa Wright

And then there was Project Vulcan, which will bring together cloud and on-premises systems with collaborative apps and social networks—and allow people to use these things on desktops, netbooks, and mobile devices. No wonder William Shatner of Star Trek fame was the featured guest speaker.

Proprietary and focused events like Lotusphere are a far cry from the chaos and minimal returns of now (mercifully) defunct events like COMDEX. Lotusphere turns out to be a great venue for partners to build deeper relationships.

I know, because I attended the event this year, and was glad that I did. We’ve been working with IBM since 1987, and since that time we’ve produced all manner of marketing materials for Lotus. I met many people our team works with, and connected with many IBMers whose work with Lotus is relevant for TDA as well.

My one disappointment? I didn’t get to meet the man who played Captain Kirk. Maybe I’ll send him a “friend request” anyway.

You can find more information about Lotusphere and IBM’s collaboration software portfolio by visiting www.ibm.com/software/lotus.

What are the extreme limits of database size and speed? The latest issue of IBM Data Management magazine takes a close look to find out.

In this edition of the award-winning TDA-produced publication, readers will discover the biggest and fastest databases, along with performance tips and scaling strategies from IBM experts. For example, readers will find technical introductions to IBM pureScale and IBM solidDB—two IBM technologies designed to help organizations manage extremely large and fast databases.

That’s just for starters. The latest issue also features real-world experiences from Qwest, NetworkIP, and others. Plus, there’s a focus on the telecom industry, where readers will get in-depth detail about the infrastructure that telecom providers must create to connect calls and data messages in milliseconds.

Reader interest in topics like these is also creating opportunities for IBM partners who serve the data management community. For information on how to reach the 75,000 readers of IBM Data Management magazine through advertising or sponsored editorial, download the media kit or e-mail advertise@tdagroup.com.

Latest IBM award shows enterprise media taking its place alongside traditional media

The holiday season is going to be even brighter here at TDA.

FOLIO: Magazine just announced that IBM ForwardView, which TDA helps IBM produce, has earned a prestigious Eddie award, which recognizes excellence in magazine editorial and design. In fact, ForwardView earned a bronze award in the 2009 Business to Business, Technology/Computing/Telecom Website category.

What’s really interesting about this is that ForwardView is an IBM-sponsored custom publication—and the gold and silver winners are newsstand-ready and highly respected magazines: Computerworld and Network World respectively. The award for ForwardView suggests business readers are becoming less biased against sponsored publications, and are hungry for high-quality editorial content that suits their particular needs, regardless of its source.

In the case of ForwardView, the target audience is midsize business owners and managers. These people are busy, savvy, and only have time for media that’s interesting, informative, and helpful. With ForwardView, we help IBM serve up just the right mix of ingredients for this key audience. The readers have appreciated this work for years. And now, the industry does too.

Take a look at the most recent edition of ForwardView here.