As we’ve discussed in previous posts, the marketing industry has undergone significant changes in recent years. An industry once defined almost exclusively by the artistic and creative, now also relies heavily on the technological and data-driven.
Few in the marketing industry have been witnesses to this transformation than Sean Callahan. Many are familiar with Callahan’s work as the Executive Editor of BtoB Magazine. This past August, Callahan transitioned into the corporate world and is now Editor-Marketing Director of a new and exciting online publication, Digital Marketing Remix, which is produced by Bizo, a business audience marketing company. Leveraging Callahan’s years of industry knowledge and experience, Digital Marketing Remix serves as an innovative and informed resource on digital marketing trends and best practices for b2b marketing executives.
We recently had the opportunity to sit down with Callahan and discuss his recent transition. In the following Q&A, he also offers his insight into the industry trends to watch in 2013 and shares with us what he considers to be the most under-utilized resource by b2b marketers.
You’ve spent a majority of your career as a journalist at the leading trade magazine that covers the business-to-business marketing industry. How has your transition to the corporate world been?
It’s been an interesting transition so far. I became a reporter in 1993, and prior to that I worked for various ad agencies, so I’m familiar with how marketing works in practice. I’ve also worked for many clients in the B2B space. Working with Digital Marketing Remix is different and the same. I’m doing the same kind of work I did at BtoB by creating a journalistic site. At the same time, I’m learning a ton doing more on the marketing side—helping create webinars, marketing content, etc. One big aspect of the job is the writing, the other is learning on the job about the marketing industry that I’ve already been writing about for years. Overall, the adjustment has been very smooth thanks to my previous experience.
What is the difference in the editorial approach of Digital Marketing Remix versus BtoB Magazine?
While both publications focused on the B2B industry space and both are daily publications, there are several differences in the editorial approach of each. At BtoB Magazine, the goal was to be completely objective. At Digital Marketing Remix, we have a point of view—data driven marketing is the wave of the future. As the title says, Digital Marketing Remix is all about digital and our core areas of content include display, e-mail, search, mobile, and data/analytics.
What are some of the big trends for the B2B marketing industry you see for 2013?
I really see programmatic ad buying growing and moving forward this year. In programmatic buying, also referred to as “machine-to-machine” ad buying, decisions are made in milliseconds. Another major difference in this industry trend is the shift from brand site ad buying to audience buying.
In your opinion, what’s one area where B2B marketers should focus more attention?
B2B marketers are very aware of social media and content marketing, but one area where they’re lacking is in using social sites like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter for paid advertising. Whether marketers are unaware of or ignoring this tactic, it doesn’t change the fact that it’s incredibly effective at producing results.
