The recent BtoB Magazine survey has projected a sharp increase for online marketing spend in 2008. And also there will be 27.7% increase of spending on print media although it is said to be less than the previous year.

Forget about the trends or momentum both seems moving towards online, marketing spend on print remains significant in the B2B mix. Common B2B marketing spend favors cross-media integration. This is the usual practice.

Inside the B2B media portfolio, you will also notice that there is a tie between trade shows and trade magazines. Both businesses are always funded and affiliated under the same corporate umbrella. A lot of trade show organizers have their roots as trade magazine publishers and then progress themselves into the information service sector.

Eight years ago when I was starting the first online trade show portal in China, it was initially a project funded by a trade show organizer to convert multiple titles of print magazines’ content to online version. The first issue to deal with was all about cannibalization. My colleagues from the print side were so afraid of being taken over. It took nearly two years for both sides to settle into a mutual co-operation.

The first print-web convergence was a model which published an excerpt on the web and left the full content for the print. The next model enhanced the continuity without compromising each characteristic, which enabled the print and the web to reach the same type of audiences with different types of contents. So what would be the future model?

Image by Geek&Poke

I believe the future print-web collaboration will bring user generated content to interact with the print content. Many print media are now practicing dual publishing which enables editors to maintain two or multi sets of contents, publish an editorial on the print, improvise it through a blog, moderate readers’ feedbacks at a social network, etc.

Handy technology also available to facilitate participatory content publishing. The New York Times has over 9,000 fans on Facebook. Even myself, now I am able to use Twitter to do my own mini-feeds over mobile short message and to communicate with my blog’s readers.

Talking about the advertising model, the IAB’s milestone Cross Media Optimization Study, a.k.a. XMOS, has the finding in 2004, already indicated magazines and in-market web sites offered similar results including selectivity and efficient delivery of in-market prospects. In some cases, print media offered a more cost-efficient reach to top-level executives, online proved effective at increasing brand awareness and improving brand image.

Combining both content media can produce better return on advertising spend compared with just a single media in a mix. Google Print Ads also has some reference cases for cross-media advertising.

What is the implication for B2B marketers? Considering every advertising campaign is a lead management plan, B2B marketers can manage the print ad for lead sourcing and use web for lead nurturing. The benefit of continuity is the actual value when print and web get along for an effective cross-media integration.

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