The tide is rising. Loosen the anchor or get swamped

I've had several meetings with people in the media industry the past few weeks.  One was just last night..  Something is happening.  I can't really say what right now because I've promised I won't.  But the media world is about to do something I really never expected it would do.  It's going to change the way it does business.  It's going back to the roots of the democratic process of information gathering and it is going to stop relying on the traditional forms of financial support that have caused our current situation.
The problem is that most of the technology industry still thinks that going to trade shows and putting out press releases on the web is the be all and end all of communication strategy; that five to 10 customers is all they have to be concerned about.  When the media makes the transformation, a lot of companies are going to drown, and not just little startups.  This is going to swamp some Fortune 1000 companies.

Stay awake.  Watch this space.

Comments

  1. Sean MurphyMay 28, 2008 at 1:10 PM

    Face to face is still the highest bandwidth possible: I would be surprised to see trade shows go away. They may complement a number of on-line experiences but I think they will continue for a while. The press release's future is more problematic, but will probably persist at least for another decade or two just on inertia as an alternative to RSS.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Lou CoveyMay 28, 2008 at 1:23 PM

    Sean, trade shows are a mechanism for communication, not the communication itself. If you can't properly communicate your value proposition it's waste of money. Right now, the trade show is the last mechanism still supporting bad communication, but many are struggling to provide a measurable value. There is already a reckoning rising as companies have to make a case for attending large, expensive shows. I know several companies that have already overcome the onus of stopping attendance (if we don't go people will wonder if there is something wrong) and realized that the conferences they have attended in knee jerk fashion have been a waste of money and time. New stuff is coming and we need to be ready for it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Paul MillerMay 29, 2008 at 2:02 PM

    Lou,

    As you know, we're doing a great deal of work here. The trade show is still vibrant and vital but, as you say, the trade show is the medium. Lot's of great news coming this summer as all of the media companies respond to the massive changes that we're all dealing with. Seems like a long year since we announced some big changes at the old CMP but, one thing is for sure, we're at the beginning not the end!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Lou CoveyMay 30, 2008 at 1:39 AM

    Maybe I should clarify something here. I don't think trade shows are going away. But there is a change coming in how they are being done and how to make them successful. Anyone who stays with the old paradigm is not going to be happy.

    ReplyDelete

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