IBM's campaign was elegantly executed and its content is what I would consider viral. Of course, if you're not interested in what your competition is doing then read no further!
There are two aspects of this post that may be of interest. The first is the closed-loop marketing process that IBM uses to drive traffic to their website and further qualify prospective leads. The second is the study itself which serves two purposes: it is very well written and its research data is easy to comprehend, and the results of which are tied into a Flash-driven web tool that helps prospect companies understand where they stand in relation to the other global firms with respect to business innovation.
This is a recent publication from IBM which details and illustrates their findings from 765 in-depth interviews with CEOs about their business innovation models, external collaboration, and the challenges and issues surrounding business innovation. The study itself is an interesting read.
I got to this research report by responding to a banner ad on Forbes.com. This prompted me to fill out my contact information before I could download the report. A web form is a typical way for companies to generate warm leads. The site also led me to an assessment tool for CEOs to gauge how their company’s innovation ranks against those surveyed. This tool is really cool and generates a custom report based on how you answered the survey questions. It can be printed at the end of the flash demo. There are multiple call to actions on the end page, one of allows you to subscribe to IdeaWatch, an e-newsletter from IBM’s Institute for Business Value.
Granted IBM has millions to spend on ad and marketing campaigns. But, they really do get it.
Resources:
IdeaWatch
Institute for Business Value
Expanding the Innovation Horizon Global CEO Study 2006
