My grandpa was a charter member of the (now defunct) Big Tupper ski patrol. He was born and raised in New York State's Adirondack Mountains and lived his entire life in the great outdoors. Back in the ‘60s he taught me to ski (at a very young age) and I've been on the slopes (and traipsing around in snowshoes) ever since.

Q: Did you know that the Winter Olympics have been held in New York two times?
A: Yup! 1932 and 1980 - both in Lake Placid.

So, it is a natural that I am on the mailing list for promotional information from Gore Mountain, a New York State-owned ski area that is a couple of hours from my home.

Interestingly, just after I swiped Jim Hisert's idea of posting a TOP 10 LIST of things to do at Semicon West 2008, I received a B2C email from a gal named Em from Gore Mountain. Em totally gets it - and schooled me with her great work.

In my B2B effort, I gave away all Top 10 reasons and called it a day. You (the reader) read it and called it a day, as well. Kind of lame on my part.

Em showed me how it's done by including in her newsletter her TOP 9 LIST (an excerpt of the letter is here):

Em's Top 9 Reasons for Loving Her Gore Mountain Season Pass.  The best reply with reason number 10 wins the hot new Burnt Ridge hat (now on sale when you pick up your pass!):

1) It's the quickest way to grab the fresh pow- or the clean corduroy. I'm direct to the lift every time.

2) No need to worry if I can't put in a full day, I can ski a few runs on my own schedule.

3) Let's face it.  Having a season pass is cool.  Status, you know?  Especially featuring my great mug shot...yeah right. 

4) Old ski passes make the best Christmas ornaments

Em masterfully engages her target audience - seeking an emotional connection.

Gore Mountain and Indium Corporation have a lot in common. We both:

• appeal to a unique, long-tail-type audience
• enjoy passionate, experienced, customer groups
• enjoy enthusiastic, committed, dedicated teammates
• do what we do well, and are well known for this
• originated in New York
• enjoy creating exciting new products and sharing them with our customers

One difference is that Em is a full step ahead of me with her Marcom, but I'm a fast learner.

Good luck to Em on her contest (I sent in a few reasons).

PS: I love skiing at Gore Mountain. The terrain is super, the grooming is fantastic, and the staff is fun. And I have very fond memories of skiing there with my sons.

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Indium Corporation's industry leading semiconductor bloggers are hosting a Meet the Bloggers session on Tuesday, July 15, 2008 at Indium Corporation's Semicon West exhibit, booth #7834, from 2-3pm PST.

The technology experts will lead discussions on topics including:

• Flux deposit measurement using non-contact metrology
• Two upcoming white papers (currently under development):
  • Wafer Flux Spin-Coating Topography
  • Wafer-Level Flux Printing
• Recent hot semiconductor blog topics, including:
  • Semiconductor assembly materials
  • Future trends in first- and second-level assembly
  • Halogen-free semiconductor assembly materials
  • Engineered solders in MEMS assembly
  • Thermal interface issues
  • Solar device assembly

Indium personnel who will be discussing these topics include Jim Hisert, Paul Socha, Fez Sayed, Dr. Andy Mackie, and Rick Short.

All attendees are welcome to participate in, or observe, the session. Snacks will be served, too!

Indium's blogs can be seen at www.indium.com/blogs

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Stealing a great idea from my colleague, Jim Hisert, I am offering MY Top 10 things to do at our upcoming major exhibition, Semicon West, which will be held in San Francisco next week (in reverse Letterman order):

1. Prepare WELL in advance: In fact, Indium's B2B Marcom team has literally been preparing for this show more than one year in advance. We always make a list of the things that went well (to retain) and things that could be better-done next time (to fix). We use these lists for each and every show - and we refer to them frequently. They are the basis for our ongoing improvements. We review each show floor looking for next year's locations, vendors we can partner with, really effective exhibit designs, and anything else we can find that will help us get our message out in a better way.
2. Set goals: I'll give you one specific example - Indium Corporation wants to leverage the great experience, knowledge, and networks created by our blogging teams. Rather than sitting in our exhibit and waiting for customers and industry partners to show up, we are staging a MEET THE BLOGGERS event in our exhibit. We will issue invitations to this informal info swap and try to make something special happen.  We've held brainstorming sessions, written down quantitative goals, and worked to make these goals come true. Special bonus note: It isn't a goal if it isn't in writing.
3. Meet with industry movers & shakers: It's important to meet and greet visitors to your exhibit, but there is a treasure trove of expertise in a small group of VIPs. Make a list, ideally set up meetings before the show starts, and get face to face.
4. Hold critical media meetings: the media is a critical part of any B2B Marcom team. Set an agenda, a time, and a place a month before the show opens. I have.
5. Plan to do something you've never done before:  We don't get paid to be average. If we, as B2B Marcom professionals, think we're simply going to "do what we did last year" we're on the wrong plan. Yes, we've got to understand and respect what we did, but we've also got to build on it.  I recommend mixing and matching ideas and concepts until you create a winner.  I just may have a winner in the above-mentioned MEET THE BLOGGERS idea. We'll know next week.
6. Walk all over San Francisco: this city is perfect for walking. The sites are captivating (for an East Coaster) and the hills make for some good exercise. Try to NOT take a taxi to lunches, dinners, shows, etc.
7. Have dinner at Il Fornaio: I love the perfect (for me) combination of formality and warmth.  The food is tremendous and the ambiance is perfect for relaxing. The service makes for either a great friendly business dinner or a purely personal night out.
8. Mel's Diner for A Chocolate Shake: I gotta' agree with Jim on this one. Dropping by Mel's during Semicon West is TRADITION (and tasty). As you can see in the image at the top of this posting, I downed TWO chocolate shakes back in 2005 (not happening this year). It's one of the coolest places on Mission Street.
9. Visit someplace special: There are things that can only be done in San Francisco: sightseeing, music, architecture, and so much more. Make the effort to do at least one special thing while at the show.
10. Travel safely: It's getting wild out there. Reduced flights, delayed flights, cancelled flights, reduced airplanes, reduced airline staff, extra charges for baggage, cramped seats, no meals (and we haven't even arrived yet). Taxis, hotels, security, lack of security, the show floor, etc. add to the potential trouble a traveler may experience. There is a lot to watch out for while on the road. Plan ahead, think, be smart (don't open your hotel room door for any unexpected person - ever).

Enjoy the show, enjoy ALL shows. Make your own Top 10 list that suits your particular needs and goals - then go for it.

Thanks, Jim!

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"You do not merely want to be considered just the best of the best. You want to be considered the only one who does what you do. " - Jerry Garcia

 

“And instead of being in a rock and roll band -- who the hell wants to do that? I don't -- I want to be in a rock and roll brand.” - Gene Simmons

You may not agree with their music, lifestyle, or antics, but you gotta' admit that their business instincts seem spot on.


Image: nerve.com

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Sometimes Marketing Communications comes at the B2B Marcom practitioner - and sometimes it is bad.

Case in point, an article that is, in my opinion, pure trash, appeared in The Riley Report, a regular feature on the www.apmag.com site. The author seems to have followed an ultra-simplistic outline:

• cite and copy findings from a widely respected information source
• go wildly off the tracks, making unfounded speculations, accusations, and allegations

The factual findings discuss how the electronics industry spent US$38 billion dollars during the recent conversion from SnPb to Pb-free soldering. The cited work, performed by Technology Forecasters Incorporated, is very likely to be very well founded. Riley does well when he quotes and paraphrases their report.

But, then Riley alleges that "materials suppliers, such as solder manufacturers" are saying and doing anything "continue to preach lead-free benefits and minimize the faults" of Pb-free soldering in order to perpetuate the switch to Pb-free electronics assembly because it is delivering much of the $38 billion to our coffers.

What does a responsible B2B Marcom practitioner do when the target market is exposed to this? In my case, I drafted a rebuttal and shared it with my colleagues. In places they calmed me down. In other places they encouraged me to take things a bit farther. After the rebuttal was complete, I submitted it to the website on which the initial article appeared. They printed it.

Bottom line, everyone is entitled to an opinion. So, when a professional B2B Marcom practitioner feels that someone has made potentially-damaging, inflammatory, and unsubstantiated claims against their industry, I think it is proper to make a measured and speedy response directly to the target market. Hopefully setting things straight - but at least going on record with the other side of the story.

Please read,  The $38 Billion Blunder: A Rebuttle Rebuttal, and tell me (after reading both pieces) if you think I did the right thing. If I didn't, please tell me what you would have done.

And for all you future B2B Marcommers out there ... please don't ever publish unsubstantiated claims and accusations. It hurts everyone and it's the wrong way to make a point.

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I recently wrote an article for the Frost & Sullivan quarterly Sales & Marketing eBulletin titled, "Social Media Isn't Always Online".

First of all, I sure picked a dumb title. MOST social media occurs between two or more people, face-to-face, chatting, like we've done for thousands of years, not online.  But, the point I was aiming for was that there is such a hype about "online this" and "online that" that people are forgetting that we can make a very effective buzz between real people.

My article went on to discuss how Indium Corporation stirred things up at a trade show, right on the floor, getting the industry buzzing. You can also read about this cool B2B Marcom event on my blog.

PS: Hey Frost & Sullivan! You distorted my picture and added a few pounds to my face! Like I need that!]]>

I love good B2B Marcom, and I work hard creating (hopefully) good B2B Marcom at Indium Corporation. A recent concept that we brought to market several months ago is titled, Indium8.9: This is BIG!  So I was excited to learn of the Microsoft System Center: Designed for Big promotional campaign.

Microsoft's Designed for Big campaign is a great one-two punch as it leverages both left- and right-brained tools. For the analytic/accountant/tecchie in each of us their website offers the traditional white paper. For our inner artist/visualist/wild-child they also serve up a colorful, informative, fast-paced video. The awesome part is that they do this for 6 different companies (case studies). This offers the target audience a really rich experience - and serves to impress with the depth of their work. The customers are quite an impressive group, as well.

I was first exposed to the program via a video ad on the zdnet website. The ad depicts a woman entering an elevator with what looks to be (literally) two thousand buttons, representing your (customer's) complexity. The ad goes on to say they can help manage this complexity. Of course, playing behind the video is a 2001: A Space Odyssey-type soundtrack, making thngs feel really ... well ... big.  Good job, Microsoft.

I can't find the ad online anywhere (other than the zdnet site). If you have a link, please let me know. FOLLOW-UP: Mac provided the link. See the Microsoft System Center elevator ad video.Thanks, Mac!

Image: screen grab from zdnet website.]]>

I was doing a little online research just now and clicked on a link to an article on Inc.com. I was first served up a full-page ad that I could not get rid of. I was so intent on getting to the info I was seeking that I never even noticed what the ad was for.  When the ad mercifully released its grip and I finally got to the page, the information I was seeking was buried beneath two other pop-up ads.

Full disclosure: This all happened with my pop-up blocker turned off.

I expect this sort of shenanigans from lesser websites, but from Inc. Magazine?  This stuff makes them and their advertisers look sleazy, cheap, and desperate.  In the high-stakes B2B Marcom environment it makes absolutely no sense to appear so desperate as to have to HIJACK your audience in order to get them to pay attention to you. Don't be so desperate as to force your target audience to need a pop-up blocker to thwart you.

Image: screen grab from Inc.com]]>

I want to thank everyone associated with Indium's efforts at Nepcon Penang, Malaysia. Indium has, once again, earned BEST EXHIBIT DESIGN honors (a repeat from the last Penang event in 2006).

This sort of thing isn't a one-shot deal. Our exhibits (and most of our Marcom work) are a product of a long-term image program. We make carefully measured moves - and evolve our "look" carefully. We solicit feedback from our staff after EVERY exhibition and use that info to improve.  As a result, I estimate that about 100 people have a hand in this award.

I love the Indium team!]]>

From the BtoB website:

BtoB recently interviewed key bloggers and social media experts at these companies to take the pulse of corporate blogging. The conversations reveal the following trends: the emergence of “chief blogger” as a corporate job title; the globalization and segmentation of corporate blogs; the emergence of accepted metrics for measuring the success of blogging efforts (see sidebar, page 48); and mixed feelings about CEO blogs.

I found this article interesting - and I carefully considered the points in the above-quoted paragraph:

CHIEF BLOGGER: I am the original blogger at Indium, and still the "chief blogger". That said, there are a few very savvy people on our blogging team that are really doing a great job. It may be time to share this title.

GLOBALIZATION: One of Indium's original goals was (and is) to blog on electronics assembly in Chinese. We have been doing that for months now. Some issues are: our CHIEF BLOGGER doesn't speak/write Chinese, so comprehension, support, guidance, review are not possible, and we want to blog in other languages and are still developing this program.

SEGMENTATION: Indium is blogging to market segments including: Pb-free, halogen-free, semiconductor, printed circuit board assembly, solar photovoltaic, thermal interface materials, and more.  This ties into another topic discussed in the article: EVANGELIST BLOGGERS. Indium enjoys a handful of technology evangelists who are helping to lead the industries' conversations in these areas. Evangelist bloggers really enable segmentation blogging. I am thrilled to have such evangelists on my team.

METRICS: our goal is to drive visits to our site and to establish ourselves as strong, contributing participants in each marketplace. So, we measure visits to our blogs - and not much else. We'd love to learn of a more meaningful and effective metric.

CEO BLOG: we really don't see a strong need for or benefit of a "CEO BLOG". We will continue monitoring the concept.


The article's final paragraph reads as follows:

“All of our bloggers have day jobs as engineers or executives, and that imposes limits to how much time they can devote to blogging,” Rodkins said. “Fortunately we are starting to see a gradual shift in the organization whereby blogging and other conversational marketing activities are called out as part of an employee's job description, and participation in these activities is recognized as a contribution in the employee's performance evaluation. The importance of this step cannot be underestimated if an organization is truly committed to blogging.”

"Rodkins" is Annie Rodkins, Intel's program manager for Web marketing. Her comment is spot on. I would like to develop this statement one step further and include the underlying goal. Indium (and, I am sure Intel) are not blogging for blogging's sake. We are blogging(ultimately) to enhanceour revenue, profit, and/or brand.

Image: BtoB logo.]]>