I’d argue Comdex failed because the conference organizers did not have an ongoing conversation with their attendees.
In contrast to Comdex, Jupiter Media’s Search engine Strategies conference is successful. Why? Well the Search Engine Strategies conference is linked with one of the leading web sites about search engines: SearchEngineWatch.com.
SearchEngineWatch.com’s has a large subscriber base attracted by the sites in-depth content on all things related to search engines. This customer base of subscribers provides a platform to promote the Search Engine Strategies conference. And the Search Engine Strategies conference gives Jupiter Media the ability to cross promote SearchEngineWatch.com’s subscription service.
Comdex had no portal packed with useful content, and no ongoing conversations with their attendees. Search Engine Strategies is successful because Jupiter uses SearchEngineWatch.com to start and continue conversations with customers.
The art of conversation marketing is a two way street. A company has to allow their customers to interact and exchange dialogue with them to build a really successful relationship.
Until recently even SearchEngineWatch.com had some gaps in the website’s ability to initiate ongoing conversations with their customers. The reason?SearchEngineWatch.com did not have a forum – there was, just to belabor the point, no conversation. Competing search engine marketing websites ran successful forums that let visitors ask questions and receive posted answers.
Now that SearchEngineWatch.com has started a forum, the conversation between Jupiter and its customers will become stronger. If Comdex had built an ongoing conversation with their customers, it might have still run this year.
