European B2B Information Market On the Move: Steady Growth but Speedier Digitisation

The European business-to-business (B2B) information market increased sales by 4.8% in 2007 and, within this total, B2B directories and databases was the best performing sector increasing sales by just over 5%. Online sales account for between 25% and 30% of all sales (compared to 14% in 2005) but the impact the Internet is making varies between market segments and countries.

These are the findings of the 2007 survey of the European market for B2B information from IRN Research. In a highly fragmented market of many small, national players this report offers an overview of the European market as a whole as well as taking an in-depth look at three main sectors (Databases and Directories, Journals and Magazines, Conferences and Exhibitions) in three leading countries – UK, France, Germany.

Magazines and journals (print and digital versions) are the largest segment of the B2B information market but they have been slowly losing share of the market since 2003: this sector is most strongly impacted by the rise of the Internet, which has opened new opportunities but also cut print advertising revenue. In addition, advertisers are increasingly looking around for new, niche forms of advertising which is making directories and exhibitions/conferences a more attractive media for advertising.

Exhibitions/conferences are the second largest sector of the market and also one of the fastest growing. In the Internet age, businesses are increasingly valuing face-to-face contact and are also looking at exhibitions and conferences as ideal platforms to build and promote brands to highly targeted client groups: niche rather than mass marketing is a growing preference.
Directories and databases are the third largest segment of the market. Like magazines, the rise of the Web has opened new means of reaching clients and provided opportunities to develop new business models: however, it has also resulted in some migration of revenue from higher to lower priced options, which can result in relatively slow revenue growth.

In what is still a highly fragmented sector, the largest groups are able to operate, by strength of brand or breadth of information resources, across industry sectors. Most of their smaller rivals focus either on one form of information delivery – e.g. business magazines, directories or exhibitions and conferences – or one or a few vertical industry sectors.

However, even among the larger players, niche focus is on the rise: like their smaller rivals, the largest players are seeking to build brands that deliver a guarantee of quality and value is a specific market sector. This is particularly important in the Internet world, where a respected brand name for a particular industry or sector is a guarantee of information quality.

The result is a general strategy in the market which can be summarised as DEEPER AND BROADER. In other words

• Deeper information assets in each industry vertical or industry topic

• Broader information offers – e.g. magazines, conferences, directories, online portals – within each vertical or topic.

At the same time, as companies seek to build loyalty within certain verticals by offering a broad range of resources, so the opportunities and need for acquisitions and strategic partnerships increase. Inevitably, the big are tending to get bigger, while the smaller get relatively smaller and more niche focused.

The European B2B Information Market 2007 includes a European overview and specific chapters on all three B2B information segments (journals and magazines; directories and databases; conferences and exhibitions) in UK, France, Germany. These chapters include market sizes and trends, profiles of key players, and an analysis of future trends.

The full report, The European B2B Information Market 2007, is available directly from IRN Research, priced at £600/€808/$1,180 except for clients in Germany who should contact Online Consultants International GmbH at the address below
IRN Research
Established in 1991 in the UK, IRN Research is a full-service market research consultancy and a member of the Market Research Society (MRS). IRN Research has a particular focus on the information industry offering a range of bespoke research services, on an ad-hoc and continuous basis, to suppliers to the European information industry. For further information contact David Mort on 024 7642 1821 or dmort@irn-research.com .

IRN Research, Concorde House, Trinity Park, Solihull, Birmingham, B37 7UQ, United Kingdom
Tel: +44(0)121 635 5210, Fax: +44(0)121 635 5211
URL: www.irn-research.com

Online Consultants International GmbH

Unterreut 6, D-76135 Karlsruhe, Germany
Tel: +49(0)721-92-12-909, Fax: +49(0)721-92 12-913
URL: www.oci-gmbh.com