My cut on this GREAT bit of information confirms that we are in a galactic shift where growth is in the new media and away from the traditional mass media. We all have to think differently when developing a strategy to help a company grow. No big surprise there, when you consider that we have been told for several years now, that the messaging which marketing services companies and ad agencies are developing for their clients’ needs to be more relevant and targeted. Using databases driving the messaging has become the new craft in our industry. Communicating to fewer, while providing more value is key!

More changes in thinking are required to succeed. Considering the impact of social media (such as blogs and social networks) is growing, corporations need to accept the loss of control of medium used for delivering the message. Not just focusing on selling their wares and making the message one directional. If what they are presenting to me is of no interest, I not only throw it away, but I discard it quicker the next time I see their name on something that is sent to me (whether it is email or print…won’t matter). They don’t know me and don’t care to understand what my interests are. They are more interested in pushing their products on me, as opposed to understanding how they can add value to my life. This creates a situation that forces marketing services companies to build bi-direction communications strategies. Pushing information to their target markets is not good enough anymore, the information must be relevant and an avenue for direct response becomes more important in developing trust and a relationship with the consumer.

Traditional print is not the only way and surely (Don’t call me Shirley!) using mass communication techniques (newspaper, radio, and tv) must not be the only strategy going forward. Using an integrated direct communications cross media strategy (now that is a mouth full) to establish a conversation (more touches equals higher response) will provide better results AND provide for increased customer satisfaction. It only makes sense to think this way, doesn’t it?

This is why marketing jobs are growing, because there are more options and companies are looking for answers. The “new” kids (whether it is veterans looking for new adventures (like me) or new college graduates) entering the marketplace “get it” and those that have this line of thinking are finding opportunities. Those whose only answer to a company’s marketing strategy is “run more ads” are going to be the losers and they will find out of the market quickly. It’s much more that developing “pretty pictures” and getting more eyeballs…SOOOOO MUCH MORE!

January 14^th issue of BtoB Magazine: ?Social Networks starting to click? This article discusses the growth of Web 2.0 usage among marketers and how they are becoming more focused and relevant to a targeted group. With this comes a loss of control over content by the traditional publishers and advertisers. The individual can now comment on a topic/company/product and that thought will be broadcast worldwide in nanoseconds. This scares many, but there is no way to put that ?horse back in the barn?. This will force us all to reflect more on how we present ourselves to the outside world and it will force corporations to rethink how they manage their relationships with their customers. These relationships can be established faster due to the enhanced ability to generate a dialogue between the corporation and the individual.

January 15^th issue of Marketing News Magazine (published by the American Marketing Association): ?2008: The Year Ahead- What to look for in the coming year from social, mobile & experiential marketing? Their focus on social, mobile and experiential is telling. As the communication channels continue to evolve, it will become increasingly important for corporations to consider how they spread their marketing resources around. More channels make for more competition for each channel to prove their value and ability to deliver the message and the revenue opportunities. That will be no small challenge for some of them. The ?mass blast? same message to all is becoming decreasingly a consideration, especially when you layer on top of it the requirement for being able to track results to revenue. Branding is still important, but making more revenue in a down economy is critical to survival. Take my word for it, being a small company we are striving to grow in the difficult environment.

February 15^th issue of Marketing News Magazine: ?On the Map- Location-based marketing targets consumers where they are with what they want?. Another illustration of the requirement for mobile communications and that marketing strategies take into account that consumers will pull their content and that using a pure ?push? marketing strategy may weaken over time. This will also play well into the social networks, with their basis being to have their participants ping into them when they feel motivated to respond, regardless of their location.

March 10^th issue of BtoB magazine: ?New technology, emerging channels hot topics at DMA?. Blogs and podcasts are more than a fad, they are becoming a way of life for marketers and we are all trying to understand how to best monetize them and leverage them for their true power of building relationships with consumers. When you have a member of the IBM team discussing the impact of blogs and podcasts on purchasing decisions, can we say that this way of thinking is entering mainstream marketing disciplines? Inquiring minds want to know.

And lastly, for the purpose of this train of thought, the Boston Globe published an article on March 24^th titled ?Ad networks form to take on big Net firms? that discusses traditional media companies building ad networks that take advantage of the proliferation of blogs and helps their customers purchase ads on them. This move shows that the power of these communication vehicles have been noticed by the more traditional publishers. These new ad networks will identify the specific blogs that are relevant to a topic and then group them for a broader based media buy. Their power to communicate is expanding into the more traditional markets, which this article clearly identifies.

So, what does this all mean, Mr. Wizard? I believe that we are seeing more than a fad in thinking but this shift in resources from mass advertising and stand alone marketing channels will accelerate in the future. Print will still play a part, but it will increasingly become a component in an overall marketing strategy that will use the web for order fulfillment and social networks to enhance brand awareness and customer relationships. Those companies that remain in the Dark Ages in their marketing thoughts will become road kill on the highway of progress. Too many forces are coming into play for us to ignore them and these forces are on a cultural level and not related to only one industry or group of industries. It is becoming a life style decision for consumers, as well as a business decision for the organizations that want to service them. Where are you going to play in the future? Inquiring minds want to know!

When thinking about want do I do for my first blog, I wandered into reviewing my career (or is it my life?) experiences and how I got to this place and time. I think that I am going to share some of it with you, so that you can have a better understanding of how my thoughts have been influenced and developed over these many years. Let me start with high school and that you through my initial years of getting my education and starting my first job in the industry. Then I will get to my point…Which I am sure that you will be ready for!

When I graduated high school in the summer of ‘70, I “knew” that I wanted to be an engineer like my grandfather. Seemed like it was the family thing to do and it would be fun designing and building “stuff”. And I decided going away to college would be an even better thing. So, I decided to go to engineering school at Southern Methodist University. I was way over my head very quickly and decided it was better to spend my time playing pool and cards while learning the finer points of night life in Dallas. Fun times, but my grades suffered. In the summer of 1971, after my first year at college, I got my draft number…#1! The only thing that I won, had to be the first slot in the military draft during a time of war (Vietnam). I didn’t like anything about that so I joined the Air Force to take back control of my life. Little did I know that I would never get control of my life, at least this far into it. The USAF guaranteed me that I would get into electronics and that would reduce the changes of me to going the war zone.

I ended up working on air-to-ground nukes…30 feet long, range of 600 miles and only used for in case of “the s&#t hitting the fan”. It was during this time that I got the “tech bug” while I was working on the nukes, troubleshooting them and maintaining them. Fun stuff as long as I didn’t think about their purpose. And the military gave me a focus and discipline that I needed at that time. Being told what to do is a good thing some times! I was in the Air Force 3 years, 2 months, and 24 days…Not that I was counting or anything.

Now I had to decide what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. What a load of crap, asking an 24 year old that question. I still don’t know to this day, but I do know one thing…I’m having fun at what I am doing now!

Anyway, I wanted to be an architecture. I wanted to design and build cool buildings. So, I decided that I wanted to go to the University of Kentucky (Yes, I do bleed blue!), because they had a good architecture program there. There was one problem and that was they only accepted new students to the program in the fall semester and I got out of the Air Force in October, which was too late. Then plan B would have to be go to Eastern Kentucky University (20 miles south in Richmond, KY) to take their Industrial Technology program and all the credits would transfer when the time comes.

That is where I was introduce to graphic arts…made my own business cards, shot and developed my own pictures, silk screen t-shirts and other fun printing stuff. I was hooked, but still focused on becoming an architect. Took the entry exam with over 200 others for entry in the upcoming Fall session. I scored in the top 15…BUT, they only accepted 9! I now had to wait another year before trying again. I’m getting too old to wait (a ripe old age of 24!). I have to decide Plan C. What else would I like to do? I remember sitting in my living room and looking around me. Printed “stuff” everywhere. Newspaper, magazines, wall paper, napkins, t-shirts, and the list went on and on. There’s so much opportunity, I just have to make the decision to enter the “graphic arts” trade and see where it took me.

NOW WE GET TO THE POINT…Times have changed again. My journey is changing again. Print is still an important part of the “communications food chain”, but there are many more options to use then ever before. Each new media offers a different experience that is uniquely for the individual. No longer are we limited by mere physical restraints. Our reach can go worldwide in nanoseconds. It’s a remarkable thought that you can linger on for awhile. The roll of print has changed and the communication streams can now “time shift” and “space shift”. No longer is time and location a limitation (for the most part). Those that recognize that there will never again be “just one way to communicate” will come out ahead. Print IS part of Cross Media food chain and we need to learn to change our communications style based on how the recipient wants to receive the information. Print is Cross Media and Cross Media is Print…I like that thought.

Bottom Line…Print services have changed. It now includes other media creation and manufacturing processes. Video, Audio, Web Pages, Flash animations, and email…The options are widening and the requirements to support multiple design and production flows is increasingly important for a companies success. Therefore…Are you going to be a printer in the future OR a communications company? Your decision could make the difference between growth or…Need I say more?