BtoB Magazine’s survey of “2009 Marketing Priorities and Plans” was just released. Their survey of B2B marketing executives indicated 66.5% will increase online spending in the coming year.

MediaPost’s Online Media Daily also reported on several recent analyst forecasts, one from GroupM and the other ZenithOptimedia.

“GroupM projects online’s share of total ad spending will rise to 13%, while ZenithOptimedia forecasts it will climb to 12.1% from 10.3% in 2008.”

Not surprisingly, 2009 marketing spend is being allocated to marketing tactics that are able to be measured against results.

“Internet advertising continues to grow rapidly as advertisers turn to it for its innovation and accountability, which is particularly important in a recession when every line of a budget must be justified,” ZenithOptimedia wrote in its report.

The BtoB survey asked marketers which online tactics they plan to spend more on in 2009.

• Topping the list is e-mail marketing, cited by 68.3% of respondents, followed closely by Web site development (66.3%).
• Other online platforms that will see significant budget increases next year are search (50.0%), online video (46.6%) and social media (46.6%).
• B-to-b marketers also plan to increase spending on webcasts (42.9%), banners (30.6%) and sponsorships (25.7%).
• Some traditional media platforms will also see increased spending next year, including direct mail (36.9%), events (31.0%), telemarketing (21.8%) and print (20.6%).

Highlights of the survey include:

1. Customer acquisition top priority for B2B marketers in 2009.

BtoB’s survey found that customer acquisition is the top marketing goal in 2009, cited by 62.2% of respondents. Customer retention was cited as the top marketing goal by 20.6% of marketers, brand awareness by 12.4% and other marketing goals by 4.8%.

2. Two-thirds of B2B marketers will increase online spending in 2009.

Of the various media platforms b-to-b marketers will use next year, online is a clear winner, with 66.5% of marketers planning to increase their online spending.

3. B2B Marketers are moving traditional media into online.

Many traditional b-to-b marketers are shifting more of their marketing dollars online, which costs less than traditional media and delivers trackable results.

Below are five brief considerations, all essential, for B2B marketers planning a media-driven lead generation promotion with social media and Web 2.0 in mind.

1. Market planning – develop strategies that leverage existing marketing assets. Identify, at the onset of the planning process corporate and channel assets to deliver your message.

2. Sales personalization – Personalizing messages when possible will drive performance. Make sure that critical content is being delivered by subject matter experts, whether they are in-house or credible third parties. Always follow up with any communication and support your efforts with strong 360 customer contact.

3. Branded media – Branded media is the anchor for any media-driven lead-generation campaign. Branded media should be considered the primary audience acquisition strategy to cast a wide net around prospects. Large media companies offer extensive reach through a range of publications with databases of subscribers of magazines and online newsletters across specific niches. Even relatively small marketers can improve their audience acquisition efforts in a big way by partnering with publishers in a more strategic manner.

4. Supplemental lists and opportunistic buys – make sure to tap into buying networks and partners to get the word out. This is where ad word purchases, banner placements and other non-branded sponsorships fits to drive an audience. Here, too, make sure to link to any social media programs that are in place.

5. Database development and analysis – make sure to catalog as much data as it is possible to collect. Associate the data with the individual prospect, keeping in mind prevailing privacy best practices. This data helps create smarter campaigns by tracking how well the elements work and those elements include media placement.

Marketers who develop programs that engage the customer will find themselves best able to take advantage of these opportunities.

Be Greeted is thrilled to be able to tap into the insights of industry leaders Joe Pulizzi and Brian Massey for our upcoming Webinar, “Right Content. Right Response”, we’ll hope you’ll tune in too!

As Brian wrote in his blog, “We’re unscripted and we’re going to dig into the nitty-gritty with examples and case studies; you know, stuff you can use. Get out your hard questions and join the conversation.”