Marketing Publicity Proves More Effective and Less Costly when Compared to Trade Shows and Advertising

Marketing publicity provides clients more “bang for the buck” than traditional marketing techniques

When considering the direction of a marketing campaign, companies must take into account both effectiveness and cost to determine the best marketing approach. A close examination of the facts, however, demonstrates that companies often drain their marketing budgets on costly ad placements and trade shows despite the fact that these techniques offer very little return in qualified leads -- particularly when compared to the latest marketing publicity techniques.

For many, the sheer expense of attending a trade show, coupled with the number of qualified leads generated, makes it a losing proposition. Exhibitor Magazine, a trade show industry publication, reports that the average cost of a new exhibit runs $107,149. This can be a large sum to swallow, particularly for small to mid-size businesses that need to attend several trade shows a year to compete with larger competitors.

Many companies will pay over $40,000 for a single trade show without even blinking, because ‘that’s the way things are done,’

According to a recent survey in the September issue of Electronic Design Magazine, however, only 2% of respondents said they learned about new products and technology from trade shows.

“Many companies will pay over $40,000 for a single trade show without even blinking, because ‘that’s the way things are done,’” says John W. Elliott, CEO of Power PR, a marketing public relations firm. “But when you talk to them, they admit these methods don’t work very well.”

“In fact, a recent client admitted that he just goes to trade shows to keep an eye on the competition and to see what new products are being offered in the market,” says Elliott. “He didn’t expect, or get, any new business.”

Advertising also leaves much to be desired when cost and effectiveness are considered together. The cost of a single placement in a core industry business-to-business publication easily ranges from approximately $5,000 - $15,000 for one full page color ad. At the same time, studies show that ads are viewed with a great deal of skepticism by consumers because they are based on claims and lack reliable third party endorsement.

Marketing publicity, on the other hand, involves promoting a product or service through the mass media. By writing feature articles, customer testimonials, and new product releases and getting it placed as editorial in consumer or trade publications (online and print), marketing public relations firms can generate a large quantity of published articles over time to build brand awareness and generate a large quantity of leads.

The power behind marketing publicity is in its objective, third party endorsement. First, these articles are often laden with positive customer testimonials. Second, the fact that the publication has published the article as editorial is also a form of third party endorsement. These factors add up to a level of credibility that is difficult to achieve with other B2B marketing techniques.

As far as costs, a company such as Power PR that operates off set monthly fees and guarantees clients a minimum 5 published articles per month ends up being modestly priced. Compared to advertising, for example, marketing publicity articles are approximately 1/5th the cost, but are also more effective. Research shows, in fact, that editorial articles are read six times more than ads and more likely to be believed.

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