John F. Hood, President
MCH, Inc.

They’ve started! Who? The institutions in line to receive $ billions of stimulus money. Even though the money is just starting to flow out of Washington, the institutions or departments on the receiving end have started to spend. Those that planned well before February 17th when the stimulus bill became law are ready to spend now.

The Missouri Department of Transportation (MODoT) wanted to be the first in the nation to spend stimulus money. Missouri has many needed highway projects for which there has been no funding. The same is true for many states. But Missouri wanted to be first. MODoT knew they would receive stimulus money, and they had planned what to do with some of it. They signed a contract with a construction company for a project the same day that the stimulus bill was signed into law. The construction company has already started hiring workers.

Some MCH customers have reported up-ticks in orders from school districts. Since no stimulus money has reached school districts yet, they are obviously spending money they already had. I believe that many institutions have been holding back, sitting on available money, because of the squeeze on state budgets and the dire warnings of cutbacks they kept hearing. But now that they know the money is coming, they feel comfortable loosening the purse strings. In coming weeks this trend is likely to accelerate.

So the message is – “It’s happening now!” Institutions in line for stimulus money know who they are, know that they are expected to spend the money, and are spending their own money in anticipation of getting more. It’s time to get in front of them ASAP.

Share your stories with us – post a comment so everyone has a better understanding of what’s happening. Is your pipeline filling up? Are you seeing more, or bigger, orders? What types of institutions are ordering?

The Stimulus Marketing webinar held on February 18th was an overwhelming success. We’re estimating that more than 500 people listened to the presentation.

John F. Hood, MCH President and Kirk Chritton, Director of Marketing provided an analysis of the stimulus marketing bill and the revenue opportunities it represents for B2B marketers. The key takeaways from the event are that:

• The federal government is channeling hundreds of billions of dollars to institutions.
• Large amounts of money will be released immediately.
• Funding is not just for roads and bridges – there are many sales opportunities emerging.
• Most B2B marketers already do substantial business with institutions.
• Marketers need to use a distinct strategy to get the most from institutions.

Kirk and John provided information on specific institutional funding and who would be making the purchasing decisions at various institutions.

Here are just a few of the comments we received:

• “Good overview with significant categories of spend identified specifically.”
• “Very thorough and well worth the time.”
• “Good summary of the stimulus plan with specific numbers and targets. A number of good leads of where to go for more information.”
• “I look forward to receiving the link to forward to others in our company. I appreciate the fact that the sales pitch was minimal.”

You can still benefit from our in-depth research and projections to achieve greater success in business-to-institution (B2i) marketing. Click here to listen to the webinar. Click here to download the PowerPoint of the presentation.

Last night, President Obama spoke at a dinner in honor of the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth. This 15-minute speech deftly sums up his philosophy about why government exists and what he believes government should do. Whether you agree or disagree with his approach, it’s important for B2B marketers to understand Mr. Obama’s mindset about government’s role in solving problems.

Referring to the mindset that prevailed under the Bush administration, the president said:

“what’s dominated is a philosophy that says every problem can be solved if only government would step out of the way; that if government were just dismantled, divvied up into tax breaks, it could somehow benefit us all.

“Such knee-jerk disdain for government — this constant rejection of any common endeavor — cannot rebuild our levees or our roads or our bridges. It can’t refurbish our schools or modernize our health care system; it can’t lead to the next medical discovery or yield the research and technology that will spark a clean energy economy. Only a nation can do these things.”

His remarks indicate that he sees America’s institutions — local government agencies, schools, hospitals, etc. — as essential organizations in improving the quality of life and driving economic growth. This is further evidence that the Obama administration and Congressional Democrats will continue to fund the growth of institutions over the current term.

The first part of the speech is embedded below, and the second part will run after, assuming that we’ve configured things correctly.

Free MCH Webinar – Stimulus Marketing: Thrive in ’09
Is your company ready to lead the economic recovery?
February 18th, 11:00 a.m. Central Time

The federal government is providing hundreds of billions of dollars in stimulus funds for institutions including local governments, schools, and healthcare systems to spend with America’s businesses. Are you and your company in the best position to capitalize on these emerging opportunities?

This webinar will help you follow the money and identify:

• Which agencies will be receiving the money.
• Which decisions makers will spend those funds.
• How the term “use or lose it” can be a golden revenue opportunity.
• How your company can benefit.
• Why NOW is the time for institutions.

Join us on Wednesday, February 18th at 11:00 central for this free webinar. MCH presenters are John Hood, President and Kirk Chritton, Director of Marketing & Product Development.

Why should you attend?
After our previous webinar, 90% of survey respondents said they would change their 2009 marketing strategy based on the information presented.

“I have referenced the webinar to my clients…the information is a literal goldmine for the business I’m in.”

“We were looking for some direction on who to target in 2009…this webinar helped to clear some of the questions.”

Who should attend?
CEOs, CMOs, B2B Sales and Marketing VPs, Directors, Managers, Circulation Directors, List Brokers, and anyone whose company needs to thrive in ’09.

Click here to register for the Free February 18th webinar!

The chart below highlights the key differences between businesses and institutions. Businesses are profit-driven. They exist to make money and their success is reported in terms of profit and loss. Institutions, however, exist to fulfill a purpose. Fire departments exist to fight fires and save lives, not to turn a profit. Their success is not judged by the numbers on a P&L statement.

Another important contrast is that businesses are recession prone, while the financing and accounting systems of institutions are designed to keep them more stable.
Those same conservative financing and accounting principles mean that institutions are extremely creditworthy. They budget far in advance, maintain extensive contingency funds, and don’t encumber money they don’t have.

Also, its very important to understand that institutions are politically influenced. Businesses must follow the lead of sales and profits, while institutions follow the lead of the politicians and public administrators who disburse funding with strings attached to accomplish particular goals. This is critical to understanding why institutions will be central to the economy – and your business strategy – in 2009.