Marketing dexterity will save the day

Richard Quigley
CEO, DataGenic Ltd.

For anyone involved in the European energy industry, two weeks in February every year can easily become a blur. Endless meetings, parties, conferences are all part of the endurance for energy professionals at the two biggest events of the year: E-world (Essen, Germany) and IP Week (London, UK). I can still feel the effect of this 'marathon' even at the time of writing (some 2 weeks after)!

Although there is a degree of cross-over at the events, E-world remains very energy focused (power, gas, emissions) whilst IP Week concentrates for the most part on the biggest traded commodity on the planet: Oil. With the world in a deep recession for the foreseeable future, I was keen to immerse myself in both the buy and sell side of the business to understand the impact to our industry. 

Understandably, you get the feeling of resilience and stubbornness that we can beat this unnecessary evil into submission and come out a stronger force. That was certainly evident at E-world which, impossibly, has gotten bigger than ever before (450+ exhibitors and 15000 delegates), and the exhibition stands seem to reach new heights, both physically and in marketing dexterity. Energy companies and vendors alike seem to be spending more on company promotion in this downturn, maybe trying to assure the market of their financial strength, credibility and future longevity. A friend of mine who works with one of the large European utilities said "my colleagues seem to be a lot more focused and friendly to our customers this year....before that they weren't so caring"! The statement was a bit 'tongue in cheek' but it certainly is a case that dominance and arrogance in the marketplace last year has been replaced with customer focus (client protection) and flexibility this year.

I certainly get the feeling from my discussions, that 2009 will be a tough year all round. On the buy side, all projects must provide beyond any reasonable doubt, a very tangible and indeed short-term ROI or have an operationally compelling argument to do so. The medium and long term projects seem to be on-hold (moth-balled) until conditions improve. 

On the plus side from my point of view (sell-side), I consider these market conditions to be an opportunity to shine. Saving clients money, improving operational practices, increasing business responsiveness is what we do best - it's just a matter of using the same 'marketing dexterity' that was used by the exhibitors at the E-world show to highlight our uniqueness in the marketplace to our global audience.