Info Retail, a retail design agency, will host a free podcast service August 2-4 at World Market Center Las Vegas. The audio recording service, titled Info Retail Radio, will be offered to exhibitors and retailers attending the tradeshow.
“Recognizing the importance of marketing through social media, Info Retail is proud to offer thisservice to marketers attending Las Vegas Market,” said Brooks Ballard, director of marketing for Info Retail. “Podcasts offer marketers the opportunity to taketheir voices further, to engage in betterand longer conversations with their customers and consumers.”
The podcast can be on any topic of interest to retail or wholesale customers, and will be made available to companies as a link or download from the Info Retail website. Possible topics include:
- New trends or products seen at the Las Vegas show.
- Lines that will be available in the coming months in your store.
- A story or historical information about your company.
- A talk about sustainable furnishings, style category or customer service information.
According to research by eMarketer.com, B2B marketers spent the largest portion of their 2009 social media budgets on customer communities and podcasts, and such initiatives are poised to explode in the marketplace.
“B2B participation in social media marketing is steadily increasing, and marketers are beginning to see opportunities to generate quality leads and position themselves as thought leaders in their industries,” said eMarketerʼs Evelyn Jung, author of a new report B2B Social Media Marketing Heats Up.
“B2B companies tend to have longer and more complicated messages to convey, and these longerform tactics enable them to position themselves as thought leaders with their customers.”
Audio and video recordings (podcasts) may be posted to social media communitie and a variety of other websites, and downloaded to MP3 players, cellphones, smart phones, and other devices.
Audiences are increasingly connecting with marketers through these channels. A new Bridge Ratings study shows that more than 38 million people listen to at least five minutes of streaming audio over the internet each week, MP3 players are now in the hands of over 280 million consumers, and cellphone/smart phone users now spend an average 4 hours per week listening to audio content via a device whose primary service has heretofore been phone calls.
“Weʼre offering this service to help capture and share the excitement of Las Vegas Market,” Ballard said. “Marketers are welcome to use the content for new channels and audiences in their marketplace and business community.”
The Info Retail Radio podcast team will be conducting five-minute podcast interviews, Monday through Wednesday (August 2-4) in exhibitor showrooms by appointment, and at the Info Retail showroom in WMC BldgA, 9th floor (A-939). The audio recordings, along with market data collected from on-site surveys taken during the tradeshow, will be available for download free of charge starting August 17.
For information or to schedule interviews, email radio@inforetail.com. Info Retail Inc, founded 1995, is a retail strategy and design agency serving the furnishings industry. The company first offered free podcast service at the National Hardware Show in May and plans to continue the service at select markets through 2010.