| Events Industry Alliance (EIA) | 13 Feb 2008 |
Live Event Marketing Toplines 2008 Budgets
EIA comment on 2008 B2B Marketing Trends
Findings by US based MarketingProfs and Forrester Research confirm the continuing escalation of focus on ‘new media’ by B2B marketers, with live event marketing hot on its heels. Respondents reported using a wide variety of marketing tactics to accomplish objectives tending, unsurprisingly, to employ email more often than any other tactic (84%), followed by PR (76%) and Trade Events (72%).Over 450 executives and marketing managers from a broad range of industries, sectors, companies and marketplace situations, shared their views, with almost half anticipating increased budgets in 2008, with average growth expected to be 26% up on the previous year. Just 6% expected a budget decrease.
Trade Events represented the biggest share of the marketing budget at 20%, among those who reported using each tactic, followed by TV Advertising (17%). The smallest outlays are dedicated to Online Video (5%) and Blogs (5%).
“These findings demonstrate that marketers are a confident bunch and, riding the ‘credit crunch’, our US colleagues know and understand the rationale in maintaining and growing the marketing function at such times. What is also again confirmed is the symbiotic relationship between digital and live event marketing, two complementary media growing in tandem and delivering real brand experiences to distinct communities. Marketers in this economic climate are not taking many risks and are standing by the media that delivers on their objectives.”
Events Industry Alliance, group chief executive, Trevor Foley.
