Our next chapter event covers the internationalization of B2B publishing, with four panelists sharing success strategies. Under discussion will be the risks and rewards of publishing internationally, the market potential, and the practical challenges of writing and editing for an international audience, among other topics.
The event will start with some time for networking at 5:00. The panel discussion starts at 5:30. It takes place at at the offices of Reed Business Information in Waltham.
Get details or RSVP.
IDG's Pat Kenealy on International B2B Media
Internationalization is the topic of Part II of minonline's interview with IDG CEO Pat Kenealy, reproduced here on IDG's web site. (I blogged about Part I of the interview here.) Among Kenealy's observations is that IDG's decentralized structure is a definite asset in launching international products, allowing the company as a whole to see the results of a wide range of approaches.
Kenealy also notes that different technology capabilites exist abroad, where people started using broadband Internet and 3G mobile phone systems
long before North America did. IDG's business units may roll out services in Southeast Asia or parts of Europe differently than they do here, but what they do in those areas of the world will very likely be preview of what's coming in the U.S. For instance, at some point, publishers launching new information products might immediately design them for delivery on wireless devices, instead of in print or on the web.
Kenealy does see differences among various audiences, though. In the article he notes that the audience for IDG's CIO brand tends to use web advertising when comparing products, whereas the PC World and Macworld audiences are more likely to use both print and online sources.
Oct. 24: Think Globally, Edit Locally
ASBPE Members Get 10% Folio:Show Discount
This year's Folio:Show is Nov. 1-3 at the Hilton New York. ASBPE members get 10% off the regular rate for the conference. The three-day event includes a full-day, preconference boot camp, more than 110 sessions, an exhibit hall with interactive events, and the Eddie and Ozzie Awards Banquet.
To join ASBPE or find out how to get your discount, visit the national ASBPE web site.
To join ASBPE or find out how to get your discount, visit the national ASBPE web site.
Analog Devices Looking for Technical Editor
Norwood, Mass.-based tech company Analog Devices Inc. is looking for someone to edit technical documentation. For job description and contact info, visit the ASBPE Job Bank.
Print Advertising Is Moving to the Web —
and That's a Good Thing!
At least, International Data Group's CEO Pat Kenealy thinks it's a good thing. He says B2B publishers have no choice but to look at ways to increase the value of their web advertising, because that's where advertising is going — and they should take their cue from TV, whose advertising model is similar to the web.
According to Kenealy, IDG itself is transfering about 5 percentage points of revenue from print to online every year — and he predicts that by 2008 half the company's revenue will come from the online sector. In the long run, he sees IDG getting the majority of its revenue from the web.
These observations come from a minonline report that's reproduced on IDG's web site.
With online ad rates so low compared to print, of course publishers must look for ways to increase the value of web advertising. One way is to qualify their online audiences just as they do for print. IDG is researching that subject intensively, measuring falloff rates for different levels of registration difficulty on a half-dozen of its sites. It's worth keeping an eye on what the company is doing in this area.
In the minonline article, Kenealy goes on to say that Google and Yahoo are the first place people look before buying — and that includes business people who are buying big-ticket items. So B2B sites are competing with retailers, consultants, and so forth on providing information for purchase decisions, and even the basic business information that B2B publishers traditionally provide. "In America, Google is our biggest competition," the article quotes Kenealy as saying, "more so than either Ziff Davis or CMP Media, in dollars and in importance." Consequently, Kenealy sees the future bringing "a huge struggle to differentiate branded content from non-branded content." If a company can successfully distinguish its brand as superior, it will be the go-to resource and may even be able to charge for at least some of its content.
Refreshingly, Kenealy sees the pressure to distinguish one's content as a "super-cool opportunity." Why? Because, he says in the minonline report "[t]he Internet lets B2B people do what they do better, faster and cheaper and in a more focused way."
According to Kenealy, IDG itself is transfering about 5 percentage points of revenue from print to online every year — and he predicts that by 2008 half the company's revenue will come from the online sector. In the long run, he sees IDG getting the majority of its revenue from the web.
These observations come from a minonline report that's reproduced on IDG's web site.
With online ad rates so low compared to print, of course publishers must look for ways to increase the value of web advertising. One way is to qualify their online audiences just as they do for print. IDG is researching that subject intensively, measuring falloff rates for different levels of registration difficulty on a half-dozen of its sites. It's worth keeping an eye on what the company is doing in this area.
In the minonline article, Kenealy goes on to say that Google and Yahoo are the first place people look before buying — and that includes business people who are buying big-ticket items. So B2B sites are competing with retailers, consultants, and so forth on providing information for purchase decisions, and even the basic business information that B2B publishers traditionally provide. "In America, Google is our biggest competition," the article quotes Kenealy as saying, "more so than either Ziff Davis or CMP Media, in dollars and in importance." Consequently, Kenealy sees the future bringing "a huge struggle to differentiate branded content from non-branded content." If a company can successfully distinguish its brand as superior, it will be the go-to resource and may even be able to charge for at least some of its content.
Refreshingly, Kenealy sees the pressure to distinguish one's content as a "super-cool opportunity." Why? Because, he says in the minonline report "[t]he Internet lets B2B people do what they do better, faster and cheaper and in a more focused way."
