A new study by research company BIA/Kelsey shows that less than one-third of small- and medium-sized business are planning to use social media during the next year. But my guess is that this slow adoption has an obvious cause: many small/medium businesses don’t have structured marketing processes and frequently lack formal marketing leadership. When you’re faced with tight marketing budgets, as many small/medium businesses are, social media campaigns supported by traditional PR is a marketing best buy. All the more reason to get working with an agency. MORE >>

A new study reported on MediaPost's blog shows that small businesses are significantly increasing spends for online video MORE >>

The world of search continues to evolve and its importance in business-to-business is undeniable, as its the second most used computer operation only after email. If you were to do a search for the term “business marketing&# ( bing results here , google results here ) you would get almost identical search results. Google is still the king of search –  particularity when it comes to business-to-business, and looks to remain that way for some time to come. As I spend a few days using Bing, I find myself pondering the question of what is Bing the answer to? MORE >>

One of the best descriptions I’ve come across was on Wall Street Journal’s Digits blog: “Wave, which Google previewed in May, is a new way for businesses and consumers to collaborate. There continues to be a lot of chatter on the social media front about Google Wave , which was opened up to a meager 100,000 thousand users last week via private invitations. But the verdict is still out. Some users already call it a game changer , while others openly question its practicality and usefulness compared to existing online communication (email, instant messaging, etc.) Confused? MORE >>

The business community would benefit greatly by being to tap into B2B companies’ subject matter expertise. Most B2B companies post some news releases on their web site. Others go a step further, posting resources like corporate backgrounders and bios that are useful for trade journalists.  That’s That’s great, but do they realize how much more opportunity there is to gain a competitive advantage? . I’m guessing this is because the other companies don’t recognize the value their newsroom can have for customers, prospects and other industry influencers. . MORE >>