Web Briefing

What Really Matters to Decision Makers?: Insight into Key Buying Criteria for Services and Solutions

August 12, 2008
8:00 am Pacific – 11:00 am Eastern – 16:00 London (Duration: One hour)
(Free for ITSMA members)

Registration Closed

Overview

Uncertain times call for razor sharp marketing focus. Companies need to focus on activities that will have a measurable impact on the business such as demand generation, lead nurturing, and sales enablement. Marketers need to refocus the sales force on the most attractive market segments and equip them with revamped value propositions. All of this requires a deep and thorough understanding of how customers buy—what really matters most to decision makers.

Please join ITSMA’s Julie Schwartz and Katie Gustin, and TechTarget’s Marilou Barsam as they reveal the latest results from ITSMA’s ever popular annual research program on How Customers Buy Services and Solutions. Julie, Katie, and Marilou will provide insights into key buying criteria such as:

• Changes in spending for technology-enabled business initiatives
• Sources of information for alternative solutions and providers
• Use of new Web 2.0 or social media tools
• Decision criteria for services and solutions
• Marketing vehicle effectiveness
• Customer perspectives on Account-Based Marketing (ABM)
• Thought leadership evaluation criteria

This Briefing is complimentary for ITSMA members and $195 for nonmembers.

Presenters	[TOP OF PAGE]

Julie Schwartz
Senior Vice President, Thought Leadership, ITSMA
jschwartz@itsma.com

Julie oversees ITSMA's thought leadership development and custom research. She has authored numerous reports and articles on technology services trends, marketing, branding, and sales topics, and is a frequent speaker at public events and client meetings.

Marilou Barsam
Senior Vice President, Client Services & Corporate Marketing, TechTarget
mbarsam@techtarget.com

Marilou has more than 25 years of account service experience from some of the most successful advertising agencies in the U.S. At TechTarget, Marilou’s Client Consulting team develops programs that emphasize integration and return on investment, including TargetROI™, a guaranteed lead generation program for IT marketers. Marilou is an ongoing contributor to BtoB 's "Ask the Expert" column and hosts an ongoing series of Webcasts about best practices for effective online marketing programs.

General Information	[TOP OF PAGE]

ITSMA's Online Briefings offer recent research findings or survey results from thought leaders on a variety of services marketing topics. The Online Briefings can be viewed individually, or in groups composed of people within the same company. The briefings are available anywhere in the world that has telephone service and access to the Internet. A typical program runs 45 minutes followed by 15 minutes of questions and answers. The person making the online presentation speaks into a telephone and advances the visual portion of the presentation via their computer connected to the Internet. At the end of the presentation. and at the presenter's discretion, the listeners are invited to ask questions. Each listener with a question identifies him or herself and is listed in a queue and taken one at a time by the presentation monitor. The monitor also manages the question and answer session by giving each questioner access to the phone line to communicate with the presenter.

Technical Requirements	[TOP OF PAGE]

This briefing will be administered by BT Conferencing. All participants are required to test their browsers 24-48 hours prior to ensure compatibility. This test can be done by clicking here: Check your system. You will receive a pass code and dial in number three business days prior to the briefing.

The technical requirements for this ITSMA online briefing are:

• Direct or dial-up Internet connection of 56Kbps or higher.
• A separate telephone line to access the audio teleconference.
• If participating from your company, ask about your company’s Internet Firewall 48 hours prior to the event. This will enable your IT technician to reconfigure your connections if necessary to ensure access to the Internet portion of the briefing.
• No plug-ins or software downloads are required.
• System Requirements: Windows 2000 or higher, Internet Explorer 6.x or greater, Netscape 7.2 or later. The following operating systems will work with limitations: Windows 98 SE, NT Server or Workstation 4.0, Mac OSX 10.3 with Safari 1.2; Solaris 9 with Netscape 7.0 or Mozilla 1.4, Sun JVM 1.4.2.

Fees and Registration	[TOP OF PAGE]

Aside from the telephone call, the fee for the presentation is complimentary for active ITSMA members, and $195 per location for non-members.

Note: Registration is on a first-come/first-served basis. You must register by 5:00 pm ET, August 11, 2008.

About ITSMA
ITSMA specializes in helping companies market and sell services and solutions. As a membership organization, we work with the world's leading technology, communications, and professional services firms to generate new business, strengthen customer loyalty, and increase brand differentiation. Through research, consulting, training, and community we provide the insight companies need to improve marketing impact, sales performance, and business results. ITSMA is based in Lexington, Massachusetts, and has offices in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan. Learn more at www.itsma.com.