Good news for B2B magazines -- they work

More than half the executives who read business to business magazines (B2B) have acted on an ad they saw, according to a new study by Harris Interactive conducted on behalf of American Business Media (ABM).

"Fifty-seven percent [of respondents] said it had caused them to make a purchase or recommend a purchase" for their company, recalled Regina Corso, research director for Harris Interactive. "When someone sees an advertisement in a B2B magazine, it really does spur them to do something."

According to an article in Media Daily News, Harris surveyed 588 execs from 21 different industries. "They all said they go to B2B magazines," Corso said. In fact, of 12 different sources of information, B2B publications were second only to live salespeople in their ability to engage executives.

The Harris study also showed:

• trade shows and expos were very effective, with 70 percent of respondents saying interactions with company reps at industry functions caused them to make or recommend a purchase to their company.
• B2B Web sites in influencing buying decisions. Here, 49 percent of respondents said a web site caused them to make or recommend a purchase for their companies, and 88 percent urged an "integrated" B2B initiative involving print, online, and trade shows.

"Advertisers shouldn't just be focusing on just one B2B platform," Corso said. "They specifically said when they saw an ad in multiple media, it really did make that product top of mind."