The Amtower Report

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In this issue:
1) Amtower Off-Center Observations
2) The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly: GCN Makeover
3) Events Worth Attending

AMTOWER OFF-CENTER OBSERVATIONS

Item: I will be interviewed this Friday via webcast by Dave Greene, president of PostNewsweek Tech Media. This session is available free, but requires registration. I will post details for registering at my web site (www.FederalDirect.net) by Tuesday.  I would love to get some feedback on this!

Item: January 26 marks the return of the Government Marketing Forum (GMF). From 2002 through 2004 the GMF provided monthly breakfast seminars on topics germane to marketing to the Federal market. This event is a continental breakfast seminar at the Tower Club, with limited seating, so register today! See Events below for details.

Item: Attention All on the East Side of the Potomac! February 23 is the first time I will host a seminar in Maryland. You do not have to cross the river to attend, unless you are attending FROM Virginia! This will be in Clarksville (Howard County, not Clarksburg, Montgomery County) in Claret Hall in the River Hill Shopping Center (near the intersection of Rt 108 and Rt 32). This is the first presentation of Government Marketing Best Practices, version 6.0, and it will be video taped. The video will ONLY be available in the members section of www.GovernmentMarketingBestPractices.com. This updated session will incorporate the feedback I have received from too many sources to recognize individually.

Item: PSA from Dave Gibson at Penton Publishing: JUST A REMINDER - 31 days from today (1/11/06), all cell phone numbers are being released to telemarketing companies and you will start to receive sale calls. YOU WILL BE CHARGED FOR THESE CALLS. To prevent this, call the following number from your cell phone: 888-382-1222. It is the National DO NOT CALL list. It will only take a minute of your time. It blocks your number for five (5) years. You can also register at www.DoNotCall.gov

Item: This is from Toby Reut at CMA in reference to my budget comment last week. I see the FY06 being a difficult year especially for small and medium sized companies for several reasons:  (1) the budget did not grow significantly in terms of net dollars; (2) the Continuing Resolutions means once again agencies didn't get their money until the end of the 1QFY07; (3) agencies once again have to fund part of the pay increase; and (4) the licensing and maintenance agreements continue to escalate under existing contracts.  The result, there is less money to chase, less time to do it in (agencies do not know what they have to spend until they get the money and the fiscal year still ends September 30th) and no margin for error.  Large companies with big marketing budgets and large sales organizations can afford to wait for Vista, VETS, Alliant, Networx, etc. by working their existing GWACs and contracts. For the rest nothing new, except hope to get bought.

Item: In an email last Thursday from editor Rob O’Regan, CMO magazine announced it will suspend publishing after just 16 months. I mention this because CMO had risen to the top of my Must Read stack for marketing publications in its short life. While it did not focus on B2B (and never on B2G), the lessons and stories were applicable to all of us. It was a well-written magazine that I hope to see return, even if only as an e-publication.

Not that I have an opinion.

THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY: GCN MAKEOVER

A year or so back I commented on the respective makeovers of Federal Computer Week and Government Executive magazine. Both migrated, about the same time, to a more readable format, where significant quotes were boxed and bold-faced, more graphics were used and the overall visual and reading experience was enhanced.

With the January 9, 2006, Government Computer News adopted a similar format while retaining the tabloid size. While the e-announcement highlighted the editorial changes, I will focus on the overall appearance.

What does this mean for advertisers?

First, a more readable format usually means more people are likely to thumb through an entire issue. While they may not read everything, the likelihood of them reading more is real. If a quote catches your attention, you are likely to look a little closer. Most of us do not have the time or inclination to read an entire publication, but we are more likely to thumb through a publication that makes it easy to find what is of interest to us.

The cover is also better utilized, as there are eight articles referenced, including the page you find them on. There were also four photos in the front cover (one large, three small), each associated with one of the referenced articles. While the cover appeared a little busy, it offered lots of information about what was inside.

Overall, this should translate into more eyeballs for the ads. There is a stronger chance that the recipient will look at more pages – and more ads. In addition, the pass-along value also rises, because if someone sees an article a colleague might like, they are inclined to pass it along. The more you thumb through an issue, the higher the pass-along rate.

PostNewsweek Tech Media now has four titles: GCN, Washington Technology, Government Leader and Defense Systems. We can assume the two new titles will exhibit this format, and that Washington Technology will soon follow suit.

Beware of the schlock vendors, producing minimal value events, events that eat your money with no significant return! The events listed below are among those I think are worth your time, money and effort. Just because an event is not listed below does not imply it is not worth attending. If you want my opinion on a specific event or producer, call me. This topic is addressed more thoroughly in the members section at www.GovernmentMarketingBestPractices.com.

January 19, ITAA's Base Realignment & Closure: Moving Forward with Information Technology, Ritz-Carlton Pentagon City http://www.itaa.org/es/events/bracinvite.htm

January 25, 2006 National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), Chantilly, Virginia In-Agency Event, www.fbcinc.com

January 26, 7:30-9:30 AM, Tower Club, Government Marketing Forum: The Ground Rules of In-Agency Federal Sales – Where are the rules found for each agency?  Expectations for conduct.  (Dan Sturdivant – DHS) www.fbcinc.com/tacticsthatwork

January 26, 2006 National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), Chantilly, Virginia In-Agency Event, www.fbcinc.com

January 26,  7:30-9:30 AM AFCEA Bethesda Chapter will hold its Breakfast Meeting  7:30 a.m. at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel and Conference Center.  Information Technology Modernization is the subject a panel of experts, moderated by HUD CIO Lisa Schlosser.  To register or for more information,

February 2, 3rd Annual Strategies for Winning Government Contracts Matchmaker & Conferencehttp://www.bethesda-afcea.org/20060126.htm, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Sheraton Conference Center Burlington, VT http://www.vtsbdc.org/getcontracts.cfm

February 15, 2006 NSA/OPS 1 Building (Day 1), Fort Meade, Maryland In-Agency Event, www.fbcinc.com

February 22, 2006 NSA R&E Building (Day 1), Fort Meade, Maryland In-Agency Event, www.fbcinc.com

February 23,  GOVERNMENT MARKETING BEST PRACTICES – First Maryland Session EVER – Claret Hall, River Hill Shopping Center, – Clarksville, Maryland, 8:00AM – Noon. (session starts at 9:00) www.FederalDirect.net/gmbpfeb23.html

February 23, 2006 NSA R&E Building (Day 2), Fort Meade, Maryland In-Agency Event, www.fbcinc.com

February 28 - March 1, 2006 FAA IT/ISS Conference, Denver, Colorado www.fbcinc.com

March 7-9, 2006: FOSE www.FOSE.com 
This will be the thirtieth anniversary of FOSE.

April 18, FEDERAL CHANNELS, Denver www.fbcinc.com

APRIL 19, 2006, Tower Club, Vienna, VA. Amtower & Company presents the one and only Amy Africa and THE ULTIMATE B2B WEB SITE MAKEOVER. For those of you who do not know Ms Africa, she is perhaps the most sought after web consultant in the world, and we have sixty seats available for her first ONE DAY session focusing exclusively on maximizing the impact of B2B and B2G web sites.  www.FederalDirect.net/ultimatewebsitemakeover.html

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As always, your comments, questions and suggestions are welcome.

Thanks
Mark Amtower

The Amtower Report is published by Amtower & Company, and is written for companies targeting the government marketplace. The opinions expressed are those of Mark Amtower unless otherwise noted. Contact us at Amtower & Company, PO Box 314, Highland, MD 20777-0314 (301-924-0058). This material is copyrighted and may not be duplicated, reprinted or otherwise replicated without written permission of the publisher. Email subscriptions are free by request: sign up at www.FederalDirect.net