Oil and Gas Directories Fall Short JAZD! Research Shows
Jaz’d! recently completed a study of 791 Oil and Gas executives that focus on buying the needed goods and services within their companies. Jaz’d! research clearly shows that the basic requirements for purchasing in the oil and gas vertical are not being met by current on-line and off-line company directories/buyers guides or oil and gas content portals and that buyers are being forced to turn to vendor websites, product specific directories and general search engines to bridge the gap.
Most Valuable Resources for Buyers – rated either valuable or extremely valuable
- Vendor Websites – 78%
- Product Specific Directories – 67%
- General Search Engines – 65%
Least Valuable Resources for Buyers – rated either not valuable or do not use
- Oil and Gas Trade Magazine Websites – 53%
- Oil and Gas specific Search Engines – 53%
- Oil and Gas content Portals – 49%
Buyers are expecting more than the 1,000 page book that sits on the desk ear marked for the listings of companies that they know and frequent. Buyers can’t understand why such a basic on-line capability continues to be unaddressed by current solutions. The lack of development and perceived low user value has driven sellers to alternatives to engage buyers in meaningful dialogue. The Jaz’d! study shows that while Oil and Gas trade publications and on-line content sites still have active and highly qualified readership they continue to fail to understand how to drive real value for users on-line other than presenting them with articles and display advertising that they are not interested in.
Key features that oil and gas buyers require from an on-line buying resource:
- Complete listing of all companies and products – not just those that are paid advertisers!
- Ability to sort options geographically – an alpha based listing of companies is not sufficient
- Side by side product comparisons with meaningful features compared - I can do it on any B2C site
- Downloadable product specifications and brochures – don’t make me pay or register to be a lead
- Get a quote with valid pricing – now I am ready to speak with a vendor
As the on-line world starts to embrace social and community based capabilities buyers are starting to look for the same capabilities within their B2B on-line resources. Similar to the basic directory capabilities listed above traditional on-line resources in Oil and Gas have failed to keep pace. The Jaz’d! study shows that oil and gas is ready to apply the Myspace and Facebook era in purchasing. Al beit the pace of adoption will focus on basic buying related needs for the foreseable future.
Social Features that Oil and Gas executives are looking for and place great value on:
- User generated ratings and reviews by company and product
- Product related discussion forums for buyers
- Ability to connect with other buyers and share ideas about products and vendors
At Jaz’d! we are listening hard to this very clear feedback. We will launch www.Jazdoilandgas.com in May in partnership with a leading Oil and Gas Publishing Group. It will be the first full functionality oil and gas directory in the market. The directory platform will include detailed directory functionality, complete company and product listings by taxonomy and georgraphy, audio and video media all coupled with detailed social community capabilities. The directory platform for oil and gas will finally offer both buyers and sellers in oil and gas a chance to meet all of their needs. Let us know what you think? It is going to be a great New Year in 2009 at Jaz’d!
We wish you all a Happy and Prosperous New Year in 2009.
Jamie Bedard