The recession in 2009 took a toll on many sectors of the economy, and B2B was no exception. B2B publishers were buffeted particularly hard by a drop in advertising spending and several, including Penton Media and Questex, filed for bankruptcy (although Penton recently emerged after a quick reorganization).

Even though ad spending is heading toward a solid recovery in 2010, the recession may have lingering effects. According to a study released this week by Outsell, B2B mobile ad spending will actually contract 38% this year (and that’s after growing by 5% in 2009 in a down economy).

“This is the first year that it’s negative,” report author and Outsell VP Chuck Richard told ClickZ. He attributed the decline to a “first year post-recession effect” but also noted that long sales cycles and the relative unimportance of geographic proximity in purchasing decisions reduce the impact of wireless campaigns.

On the other hand, Outsell’s Chuck Richard did suggest that the decline in B2B mobile ad spending was more of a temporary blip than a permanent condition. And other research firms have predicted a positive trajectory for B2B and mobile. Forrester recently issued a forecast showing four-fold spending growth over the next five years.

It is the case that no business is going to buy a $1 million ERP implementation, for instance, on the basis of a mobile banner ad. Of course, the same can be said about consumers and luxury cars, for example.

Mobile isn’t always the platform where the transaction ultimately takes place,  but in the case of highly considered purchases, mobile can be highly effective at driving awareness, consideration and intent, even in a B2B context. Microsoft, for one, got good results from a B2B mobile campaign for its SharePoint server, and the likelihood is high that more businesses will begin to use mobile for similar ends.