The New Communications Forum Conference and Expo will be held March 7- 9, 2007 at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas. I'll be leading a panel on viral marketing and social media tools that will explore how marketers are using these tools in viral communications efforts. Our starting point is that it is the message that matters most, not the media, but we will definitely be talking about how things like YouTube, MySpace and Second Life have added a significant new dimension to viral marketing.

Then later that month, March 22 & 23, I will be at BlogHer Business in New York City. The program and venue are still being finalized, but I'm on the program advisory committee, and I can tell you it is going to be great. Topics on deck include measurement, how to build traffic to your blog, the social media press release, how to do blogger outreach, how to get started in blogging, and more.

Full disclosure: this IS a lead generation vehicle for my client, who sells CRM systems, however, a large chunk of the presentation is based on my lead management philosophy and rating model. My blog posts on these topics have received a number of comments, both public and private, so given the apparent interest, I figured I'd let you all know about it.

Here's the pitch:

One of the most important things you can do to improve your sales is to close the gap between your sales and marketing teams. One salesperson or 1000, one marketer or a whole team, they often have diverging views of the task at hand. This gets in the way of growing your business and increasing your profits. This webinar will help you get these two critical teams working together toward the same goals. Topics include lead management and how to use CRM to close more deals.

The content is about 2/3 lead management, 1/3 CRM. I go through a lead rating model step by step, so if you're interested in how this works, you might want to listen. Bonus for my client if you are also interested in getting a CRM system :-)

Dates and times:

Our current offerings include:

• Getting the Message Out - Be Heard, Understood and Remembered - Whether you are talking to a reporter, lobbying a legislator, or speaking to your employees, you need to be heard, understood and remembered. This one-hour workshop offers three tips that will help you tell your important message effectively and memorably. When you don’t have time for a fullscale media training session, this is a good jumpstart.
  
  
• Blogging 101 - 1/2 day introduction to blogs and other new media. Answers the question: what's a blog and how can I integrate one into my marketing strategy? Also covers viral marketing, blog monitoring, podcasts and blogger outreach. Can be combined with a 1/2 day social media consulting to get you started on your own blogging strategy. Blogging 101 can also be delivered in a one hour “highlights” version that covers the same material but with less depth than the full workshop.
  
  
• Lead Generation Tactics for Small Business - One hour session that focuses on practical lead generation tactics. We cover direct mail, search engines, seminars & events and blogs. Attendees are encouraged to bring their own lead generation challenges to the table for brainstorming/ad hoc consulting.

The above workshops can be customized for your group or company, and we also can build custom training to meet your specific needs. Just ask! And yes, we do pro bono seminars for charities and non- profit civic organizations.

Call me at 978 562 5979 or email for details.