Happy 2009! It's a Bear market all around the world, but I don't think it will completely collapse the tech PR and marketing industry . . . at least not for small and mid-sized firms. Here are my predictions for 2009:
1- Tech PR firms will have a resurgence this year. Specifically, the small and mid-sized firms will really do well. My rationale...companies are starting to get smarter about marketing during a recession. And, while some may hire a PR manager internally, I think the likelihood is that the head or marketing will hire an external resource as there is resistence within the organization.
2- There will be a huge number of Tech PR practitioners starting their own individual consulting business or their own firm (either by themselves or with a partner). And, many will NOT be virtual.
3- There will be massive turnover in the tech marketing space in Q3 and 4. If we hold to the "economy will start to come back by mid-year" theory, you'll have a lot of in-house marketers seeking new horizons. 4- With Obama coming in, increased regulations across all markets - financial, health, etc.- this is the year of the CFO and CIO. Companies will be pushing the CFO and CIO to superstar status and begin marketing them outside the company to assure/re-assure the public, Wall Street, and shareholders that the company has excellent people in place to ensure compliance. 5- Lastly, IT managers and CIOs have gotten smarter over the last couple of years about their public image. They realized that a healthy public profile, whether in IT magazines or on social networks, will boost their image value internally and externally. We'll see a lot more CIOs and their direct reports on social media and microblogging sites. 6- Tech magazines have been getting thinner and thinner. This year, many of the IT trades will be pulled off shelves and turn subscription-only for the print publication. 7- Trade shows are already fading, but this year, we'll see conference show management companies begin to explore virtual trade shows and events, which will have similar sponsorships, booths, etc. but will be entirely online. 8- Ironically, social media marketing hasn't been a big hit with tech marketers. I believe this struggle to understand social media will continue in '09. 9- There has been an explosion in blogging, but I believe that by the end of 2009 the majority of corporate tech blogs will be abandoned due to lack of time and mismanagement. The interest will still be there, but I've watched marketers struggle with how to work a blog. 10- Large PR will lose business to boutique tech PR firms due to client budget cuts. Or, maybe that's wishful thinking on my part. Let's see how many of these predictions for Tech PR and Marketing is correct come this December.
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