Lately, I have been reminded of a former client who said two decades ago, “I know everything there is to know about B2B marketing communication”. Well Jay, I think you were wrong. (By the way shortly after making this statement he decided to persue another career path.)

If you are present in this business today there is absolutely no way that you could make this statement. The evolution of how B2B audiences are choosing to get their information and thus how B2B marketers must deliver it is moving at a faster and faster pace. For some the adaptation that we are making is painful. If Jay was still in the business I am sure he would be stressed.

I personally believe much of the stress is self-induced. Induced by a case of media myopia. If your perspective is that you tell your story to suspects, prospects and customers only through belly-to-belly connections made by your sales force and attending tradeshows, or your thinking is we got a web site, that keeps us connected, you are destined to be stressed and unsuccessful.

We live in a multimedia world and the number of media vehicles has increased multifold in the last decade. For each classic means of reaching an audience, we now have a new variation. In her “Invent your own” post, Stacy Whisel our chief media strategist mentions just some of the media alternatives you should be considering.

Call it Total Media, Integrated Media, or 360 Degree Media it is about connecting with your audiences where they go to seek information. Stacy and I are part of an internal team that is investigating the “new” connection vehicles and how B2B marketers can put them to use. In my “New Toys in the Toybox” post  I asked what new toys your are using to connect with your audiences. I ask again, what are you doing, how are you deciding what to try, what’s working and what’s not.

Connecting with audiences is getting more and more exciting stay tuned for ride.