The great thing about lists and creating lists is not so much the result of what’s published, but the debate after (I’ve had my share of greatest soccer and hockey players over the course of time). While I’m not about to debate who should or should not be on the 2009 PR Week Power List, I am taking a position on the lack of respect for B2B communications and communicators.
There already has been some questions raised on Twitter in regards to social media and how many of the leaders on this list may not use it. I’m not going there. To keep this in context with the topic of our blog I want to keep this in context with B2B.
Yes, you could argue that firms such as Weber Shandwick and Edelman help B2B clients with important counsel (you can also make the distinction that every agency is a B2B company). And, yes, firms like Microsoft and JPMorgan do have B2B client bases to service. What surprises me is that only two companies primarily in the B2B space are listed (Jon Iwata, VP, marketing and communications, IBM; Gary Sheffer, executive director, comms and public affairs, GE). But in my reading of the list guess how often B2B was referenced? (I’ll give you a hint, it rhymes with hero.)
Why should this matter? Research group eMarketer recently looked at the timeframe of 2008 to 2012 and thinks that B2B spending in the U.S. on social networks alone will increase 500% to $210 million (Via @mashable). And this year, in the midst of a recession, B2B online marketing spending is expected to increase among large and small firms. B2B magazine also surveyed the industry in December and you may have been surprised at the results — 31.1% of B2B marketers said they planed to increase marketing budgets this year (43.5% said budgets would be flat).
Is it just that B2B communications is misunderstood? Is it a lack of respect? Or perhaps a lack of appeal? The money and budgets certainly are there to prove the point that B2B marketing and public relations is serious business. Or maybe I’m just splitting hairs? What do you think?
