The ice is thawing. And I'm not the only one that thinks so.

According to a recent survey consulting firm AMR International, the prediction is that business-to-business online marketing will grow somewhere in the order of 8 percent in 2010 - up from roughly $3 billion in 2009. The survey attributes this growth to a "cyclical rebound and a continued shift from print" - which just continues to hedge the argument that the Web is supplanting the newspaper and magazines as the primary marketing vehicle in everyone's arsenal.

However, the study also says publishers aren’t always offering online products that meet marketer’s needs. In fact, the survey also revealed that two-thirds of marketers feel that "online must complement traditional activities" - which bolsters my advocation of integrated marketing as the key to successful programs.

The study also suggests that there will be double-digit growth in B2B spending within the social media and lead generation areas of online programs. It looks like everyone is keen to social's expanding role within the B2B marketer's toolkit.

But the most interesting piece of information I found in this study had to do with analysis. According to the research, only 50 percent of B2B  marketers formally analyze metrics to judge ROI - but that that do tend to find online marketing more effective.

The writing has been on the wall for some time, but the numbers are finally starting to spike.

Online is doing more than creating a new channel for marketers. It's shifting the very perception of how marketing functions. As we continue to see the trend towards online as the primary tool - with its deep and robust analytics and metrics - we need to remember the behavior of the buyer. As the web becomes more cluttered, alternative marketing programs like print and direct may become unique and even "edgy" alternatives for reaching our audiences. I think what we're seeing is a role-reversal from traditional to digital, where the web is the rule - and mediums like print are the exception. In the end, it forces us as marketers to be more proficient with how we integrate the mix of media - and how we analyze and leverage the results.

It should be interesting to see how media outlets continue to adapt to this transition. The smart publications have already shifted their focus to the Web - some great examples are the New York Times and Conde Nast, who are pinning further hopes for a subscription model through devices like the new iPad. They've already moved online, but will these new wave of eReaders and tablets take over the print side of their business? And even if it does, will a print program to their base of subscribers draw interest from a different touch point? I think integrated programs will continue to be the key - no matter how digitized the core assets become.

Survey says... online is on the way up. But let's not forget where we came from - and how quickly the classics can come back into style.