The second key finding from the Harris Interactive Study commissioned by Hanley Wood is that media AND non-media sources are important.
When reader's were asked to rate information sources here are how they stacked up. The percentages indicate a rating of "very" or "somewhat" important.
1. Trade Magazines - 96%
2. Co-Workers or Peers - 95%
3. Vendor Websites - 94%
4. Salespeople/dealers - 93%
5. B2B Web Sites - 86%
6. Trade Shows - 85%
7. Conferences or Seminars - 80%
8. Consumer magazines - 74%
9. Direct Mail - 73%
10. B2B enewsletters - 65%
The takeaway here is not that trade magazines and word of mouth should be pursued at the expense of direct mail and e-newsletter advertising. The research shows that there are many sources that buyers rely on and that there is an opportunity to influence these buyers through a variety of channels.
On average buyers will utilize 5.5 sources when researching a product/service, 4.7 sources when recommending a product/service, 4.4 sources when specifying a brand and 3.4 sources when making a final decision.
As a business media company, we realize that it is certainly more cost effective to reach our market through a website and email newsletters, but if we did that at the expense of our print product we would be weakening a critical touch point.
Each business is unique and requires an independent evaluation of an ideal mix of sources but all most be considered. Ideally they should work as one towards a common goal.
When reader's were asked to rate information sources here are how they stacked up. The percentages indicate a rating of "very" or "somewhat" important.
1. Trade Magazines - 96%
2. Co-Workers or Peers - 95%
3. Vendor Websites - 94%
4. Salespeople/dealers - 93%
5. B2B Web Sites - 86%
6. Trade Shows - 85%
7. Conferences or Seminars - 80%
8. Consumer magazines - 74%
9. Direct Mail - 73%
10. B2B enewsletters - 65%
The takeaway here is not that trade magazines and word of mouth should be pursued at the expense of direct mail and e-newsletter advertising. The research shows that there are many sources that buyers rely on and that there is an opportunity to influence these buyers through a variety of channels.
On average buyers will utilize 5.5 sources when researching a product/service, 4.7 sources when recommending a product/service, 4.4 sources when specifying a brand and 3.4 sources when making a final decision.
As a business media company, we realize that it is certainly more cost effective to reach our market through a website and email newsletters, but if we did that at the expense of our print product we would be weakening a critical touch point.
Each business is unique and requires an independent evaluation of an ideal mix of sources but all most be considered. Ideally they should work as one towards a common goal.
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