This week, I want to share an anecdote that really hits home with me as I think about the ever-changing world of media relations.

David Meerman Scott, author of The New Rules of Marketing & PR, told attendees at the recent BMA Annual Conference about how the PR team at the Universal Orlando Resort took a new approach for the announcement of the “Wizarding World of Harry Potter” attraction. Instead of distributing the news to hundreds of mainstream media outlets — as we all have a tendency to do with big news — they targeted only seven of the leading Harry Potter bloggers, providing them with the news during a special midnight webcast. And while he said the lead PR manager feared being fired if it didn’t work, the results were spectacular. Through the power of Web 2.0, the story went viral, generating impressions on 350 million Harry Potter fanatics within 24 hours. Impressive… even magical one might say!

The strategic approach they used can generate PR magic for Advanced Manufacturing & Energy communicators as well. We B2B types know full well that trade media remains a great way to reach our audience. We just need to be sure we think beyond the traditional print story. By tailoring our content and approach for their e-newsletters, blogs, online videos or podcast — or “Trade Media 2.0″ as I like to think of it — we too can capitalize on the power of digital media to spread our news to our B2B audiences.

Let’s share some additional examples — anyone have a Trade Media 2.0 success story they can share with our readers?

hs56cwv7ag