Attendance down, spirits up at 33rd annual newsletter conference in Washington, D.C.

Although the troubling economic scene seemed to take its toll on attendance at this year's international conference sponsored by the Specialized Information Publishers Association, it didn't appear to have dampened the enthusiasm of the newsletter and specialized information publishers, editors, marketers and vendors attending the 33rd annual event. Most of them were upbeat, if not about the immediate economic outlook, at least about their own abilities and determination to take advantage of the situation.

Tackle the recession head-on

A common theme at the conference was to remain aggressive in marketing and in crafting new products--online and in print--while competitors were cutting back. Companies that in past recessions strived to maintain and even increase their market share succeeded in doing both by the time the recessions were over.

Recessions not only offer you the opportunity to take advantage of your competitors' retrenchment, they also force you to become more creative in the management and marketing of your company and its products.

Publishers reported various methods they're using to "cut the fat." Take advantage of new technology to reduce administrative costs. Printers are hurting, too, so try to renegotiate printing and fulfillment costs.

Craig Huey, of Creative Direct Marketing Group Inc., said to address "marketing evils" in your copy: the recession, fear, the competition, legal changes, rising costs, free stuff online, and the information overload. "Ignoring the recession is a disconnect with your prospects," he said. Work mention of the recession into your testimonials. Make your offer irresistible and timely. Offer discounts--say, a "recessionary price."

Guy Cecala, who describes his Inside Mortgage Finance newsletter as the "ground zero of the recession," said he's been losing not just individual subscribers but entire mortgage companies. But the mortgage crisis has spawned its own new must-have information. He said he's selling a lot of one-shot products--tables, charts, analysis of new regulations--for over a thousand dollars each.

What Cecala is facing in the extreme most of us butt up against every day. As Greenhaven Partners' Wayne Cooper said, "There's been a major shift in user habits." Cecala's model reflects Cooper's analysis: "As you move from providing news and data to analysis to recommendations and advice, people pay more for each step."

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