Aberdeen Announces 2011 Marketing Strategy and Sales Effectiveness Research Agenda

BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - December 21, 2010) - Aberdeen, a Harte-Hanks Company (NYSE: HHS), today announced its 2011 Marketing Strategy and Sales Effectiveness Research Agenda, driven by its extensive research findings supporting the emphasis companies are placing on customer management, as well as the needed evolution of the "New Marketer" in the B2B landscape.

"With organic business growth being paramount, no metric connotes greater alignment between sales and marketing than marketing's contribution to the sales forecasted pipeline," explains Chris Houpis, Senior Analyst of Aberdeen's Marketing Strategy research practice. "This metric captures not only the leads that have been produced but also what has been converted and accepted by sales as a valid opportunity forecasted in their pipeline. And no other measure provides a more meaningful metric to address the pressure to demonstrate a Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI)."

As this newly accepted marketing metric dominates the measurement of B2B marketing best practices, so does it influence the scope of Aberdeen's planned research in the new year. Primary topics for Aberdeen's 2011 Sales and Marketing research coverage will include:

• Web Analytics: Leveraging Online Marketing to Generate Sales Revenue
• Social Media: The Role and Relevance In a B2B Environment
• Customer Management 2011: Extending CRM-based Collaboration across the Enterprise
• "Chance Favors the Prepared Mind" -- Understanding the Science of Sales and Marketing Intelligence

"If you're still measuring ROMI as click-throughs and page views, you are basically rendering yourself irrelevant as a marketer in 2011," said Peter Ostrow, Research Director of Aberdeen's Sales Effectiveness research practice.  "Our 2011 research plate -- as well as our soon-to-be-announced Q4 2011 Sales and Marketing Leadership Summit -- will feature the true leaders who are measuring what matters and building real alignment with sales to drive growth for their organizations."

Visit Aberdeen.com for additional access to complimentary Customer Management Research.

About Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company

Aberdeen provides fact-based research and market intelligence that delivers demonstrable results. Having queried more than 30,000 companies in the past two years, Aberdeen is positioned to educate users to action: driving market awareness, creating demand, enabling sales, and delivering meaningful return-on-investment analysis. As the trusted advisor to the global technology markets, corporations turn to Aberdeen for insights that drive decisions.

As a Harte-Hanks Company, Aberdeen plays a key role of putting content in context for the global direct and targeted marketing company. Aberdeen's analytical and independent view of the "customer optimization" process of Harte-Hanks (Information - Opportunity - Insight - Engagement - Interaction) extends the client value and accentuates the strategic role Harte-Hanks brings to the market. For additional information, visit Aberdeen or call (617) 854-5200, or to learn more about Harte-Hanks, call (800) 456-9748.

(C) 2010 Aberdeen Group, Inc., a Harte-Hanks Company
451 D Street, Suite 710
Boston, Massachusetts 02210-1928
Telephone: (617) 854-5200
Fax: (617) 723-7897
www.aberdeen.com