ITSMA Europe Outlines Events Calendar for 2003

8 January 2003—ITSMA Europe kicks off its 2003 events programme on February 6 with an online briefing exploring European services marketing priorities for the coming year. Last year saw relationship marketing programmes come to the fore as companies attempted to increase the loyalty of existing clients and expand their share of those clients' IT services spending. This trend should continue in 2003, and the February briefing will discuss the extent to which marketers will redirect resources toward these client-centric programmes.

Another clear priority for marketers this year is using business issues to raise demand for services and solutions. ITSMA Europe's second online briefing, on April 29, highlights the importance of thought leadership marketing initiatives, particularly to reach board-level decision makers and influencers.

Other online briefings on the schedule for 2003 will explore buying priorities for IT services and solutions in Europe (September 4) and marketing’s role in business development (December 2).

ITSMA Europe's Annual Forum and Workshop, to be held on June 16-17 in Paris, will focus on adapting to the world of solutions. The programme will include discussions of a roadmap for making the transition from discrete products and services to integrated solutions, as well as best-practice examples from a number of leading European and global companies.

On the training side, ITSMA will offer its successful workshop "Managing Brands and Reputations" on April 7-8 in Dublin and the industry-leading Client-Centric Marketing Course on November 17-19 in the United Kingdom. Both events provide hands-on learning oriented to the most urgent business and market challenges facing services marketers today.

Finally, ITSMA Europe will continue its series of "Inner Circle" dinners for members in London with dinners scheduled in March and September. These intimate gatherings for marketing executives from member companies provide rare opportunities for focused but informal peer discussion on key marketing topics of the day.

All in all, the 2003 events programme should have something for everyone in services marketing! Take a look at the whole calendar and don't hesitate to let me know if you have any questions. I'm looking forward to seeing you soon.

—Bev Burgess, info@itsma.com

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About ITSMA
ITSMA specializes in helping companies market and sell services and solutions more effectively. As a membership organization, we provide research, consulting, and training to the world's leading technology, communications, and professional services providers to generate increased demand, strengthen customer relationships, and improve brand differentiation. ITSMA is based near Boston, and has offices in London and Tokyo. Learn more at www.itsma.com.