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A fascinating example of asset based marketing landed in my Twitter message box this morning. Asset based marketing, or ABM for short, is the practice of giving equal consideration to content and design in your marketing products. John Bottom from Base One in the UK alerted me to a fabulous piece of content.

The B2B Social Media Landscape combines content with design to produce a fun way to illustrate the broad landscape of social media in the B2B environment. The design team at Base One imagined an architectural style blueprint using the most popular social media tools as buildings. The idea is to give corporate CMOs a bird's eye view of what's needed to build an effective social media presence.

But Base One didn't stop there. Understanding the tools is only part of the equation. The team populated another version of the landscape with the social media and B2B marketing bloggers who share their expertise online. Each blogger on the landscape has a link to their blog. (You can find me coming out of the Flickr gallery, shopping bag in hand!)

What makes it an ABM example?
In one beautiful image, Base One created an infographic for B2B marketers detailing the top social media tools and the people writing about how to use them. For a time-poor executive, the image is invaluable. But what elements of the landscape make it an asset to Base One?

• The novelty of the design piques interest.
• The research contained in the graphic ensures people keep coming back.
• By including an extensive list of bloggers, Base One is ensuring a wider distribution than they could achieve through their own channels.
• Wider distribution quickly adds up to more traffic for the blog post describing the landscape.
• Increased website traffic keeps the search engines happy with a positive influence on SEO.

Obviously, not all the asset value is easily quantifiable. Have a look at the long list of bloggers contained near the end of the post and compare it to the infographic. Which format is more appealing? Which link would you be more likely to share: a textual list or a design-based image of the same information? Which piece of content are you more likely to remember and reference in the future? Which one would you linger over if you're pressed for time?

I encourage you to have a look at John Bottom's blog post and download the landscape. It's a great example of ABM and a handy piece of content if you're working in the B2B marketing space. I know I'm going to bookmark it so I can use for future reference.

Have you seen a good example of asset based marketing? Where?

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