Information-Marketing™

This is my first blog on the subject of Information-Marketing™ and it's ironic that it's on the 911 anniversary - never forget.(Original posting date on www.information-marketing.net)

Information-Marketing™, the hyphenated term, that I have been using since 1986, is defined as: "using high-value information in order to accomplish marketing objectives." Instead of using "interruption-based advertising" that consumers resist to deliver your messages, you provide consumers with high-value information that they need or want in order to complete a transaction decision.

In 1986, auto dealers in Southern California used Information-Marketing™ to provide consumers with the invoice prices of vehicles via an independent third-party (Consumer Auto Network), which  would then refer consumers to the dealers that provided the information, with the recommendation that consumers would be treated much better at the dealerships that wanted them to have the invoice cost information compared to the dealers that didn't. The referral rate was over 90%!

Even though the program expanded from Southern California to nationwide and became the de facto model for every Internet automotive site, the use of "high-value" information, regardless of it's success in a very large and important industry, has been lost on most marketing departments.

And today, when you search for "Information Marketing" you get "infomercially-looking" sites that want to teach you how to market information instead of using high-value information to accomplish marketing goals.

Next, the potential risks that social media poses to company innovation.