Precision Marketing articles from November 2007

Precision Marketing archives from November 2007

Capital One plots lobbying attack.
November 2, 2007... One of the UK's largest users of direct mail Capital One is set to wade into the debate surrounding the Government's Waste Strategy and the threat of direct mail opt-in, with plans to launch a major corporate affairs campaign to fight its...

Environment Agency to build digital roster.(Brief article)
November 2, 2007... The Environment Agency is seeking a roster of three agencies to handle its digital marketing account. The Government-backed body, dedicated to improving the environment in England and Wales, is looking to establish a roster of agencies...

Buscombe: 'We have to be more confident'.(Baroness Peta Buscombe )(Brief article)
November 2, 2007... Advertising Association chief executive Baroness Peta Buscombe has conceded the direct marketing industry has been on the back foot for too long, but is now ready to fight off critics in Parliament with the new cross-industry initiative. ...

IN BRIEF: Sensory mailings from Royal Mail.(Brief article)
November 2, 2007... Royal Mail is bolstering its strategy to reverse the long-term decline of direct mail by signing a partnership with branding specialist Brand Sense to enable client marketers to incorporate the five senses - smell, taste, touch, sight and...

IN BRIEF: Redrow builds customer base.(Brief article)
November 2, 2007... UK property giant Redrow has launched a viral game to promote brand awareness and to build its customer database through a data capture drive. The game, developed by TBWA\Manchester's digital division Digerati\, challenges users to land a hot...

IN BRIEF: 20:20 London tackle safe sex.(Brief article)
November 2, 2007... The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) and the COI have appointed 20:20 London to create a digital campaign aimed at raising teenagers' awareness of safe sex. The online initiative will be an extension of the Want Respect?...

SMS growth continues as mobile market takes off.
November 2, 2007... SMS is still the dominant mobile marketing format for brand-owners, with the majority of mobile service providers (MSPs) reporting substantial year-on-year increases, according to the DMA (UK)'s first quarterly Mobile Marketing Insight study....

Draftfcb hires ten as staff cull continues.
November 2, 2007... Draftfcb London is shaking up its creative team with the appointment of two creative directors, Graham Pugh and Alix Pennycuick, amid an internal restructure. The agency has also boosted its headcount by ten people, including business...

Partnership launches library book inserts.
November 2, 2007... Brand-owners are being offered the chance to place inserts in library books, as part of a marketing partnership which will also plough funds into the library network. Data and direct marketing specialist Howse Jackson Marketing has...

Charities warned: 'Don't let stewardship wither on vine'.
November 2, 2007... The Institute of Fundraising is being urged to develop a code of practice for stewardship, or risk the new method 'withering on the vine'. The call is being led by relationship fundraising expert Gordon Michie, director of development at...

Volkswagen takes aim at golfers.
November 2, 2007... Volkswagen is gearing up to promote its latest Jetta model to golfers by positioning the car as an ideal golfing partner. A direct mail drive, created by Proximity London, aims to promote the compact saloon to golfers and enthusiasts...

RM promotes digital and mail.
November 2, 2007... Royal Mail is launching a business to business campaign to demonstrate the power of combining mailings and digital media, in an effort to breathe life into the direct mail market. The integrated campaign called "Meet Mr Complete"...

IN BRIEF: Borders builds online presence.(Brief article)
November 2, 2007... Borders is creating local websites for its 70 retail stores to give customers a personalised online service. Store managers will be able to upload information about special events, instore offers, and book signings in an attempt to lure online...

IN BRIEF: Bridgewater gets five years.(Sharon Bridgewater)(Brief article)
November 2, 2007... Former Hicklin Slade & Partners finance director Sharon Bridgewater, who defrauded the agency of #2m, has been sentenced to five years in prison. Bridgewater pleaded guilty to 16 charges of theft after being arrested in June 2005. Her...

IN BRIEF: Merger creates new specialist.(The Good Agency)(Brief article)
November 2, 2007... Charity marketing specialist Cascaid has merged with ethical consumer marketing experts Ideas Eurobrand to form a new agency under the name The Good Agency. The aim of the new agency is to tap into the enormous rise of the ethical consumer...

IN BRIEF: Thomas backs data law overhaul.(Richard Thomas)(Brief article)
November 2, 2007... Information Commissioner Richard Thomas has backed Gordon Brown's review of information-sharing practices in the public and private sector. The Prime Minister has revealed the review as part of a range of measures designed to make the...

IN BRIEF: Former Tesco chief joins discounter.(Brief article)
November 2, 2007... Ex-Tesco Direct chief executive Steve Robinson has joined discount online fashion retailer M and M Direct following the completion of its buyout by private equity firm TA Associates. TA Associates now has a majority investment in M and M...

IN BRIEF: OS hunts agencies for #7m account.(Ordnance Survey Ireland)(Brief article)
November 2, 2007... Ordnance Survey, Great Britain's national mapping agency, is seeking to appoint a raft of agencies to its #7m marketing account in a bid to boost its brand. The mapmaker is seeking agencies to handle its marketing communications, database...

DIGITAL: Greenbee ramps up John Lewis presence.
November 2, 2007... Greenbee.com, the direct services arm of the John Lewis Partnership, is launching a major instore marketing campaign to drive traffic to the leisure and financial services company. It will be the first work carried out by Partners Andrews...

DIGITAL: Poppy campaign in digital first.(The Royal British Legion)(Brief article)
November 2, 2007... The Royal British Legion is embarking on a digital campaign to allow big businesses to pledge their support for the Poppy Appeal by including a 'PoppE' at the bottom of company emails. Described as the first 'digital poppy campaign', the...

DIGITAL: Waking up to the digital revolution.
November 2, 2007... The digital world is the world we live in - it is no longer the alien planet we used to view it as, where we didn't know the language or culture. Our lives are involved with all means of digital communication - radio, television and of...

Government moots Internet police force.
November 2, 2007... The Government is considering setting up a new national police unit to tackle online crime, just two years after the National High Tech Crime Unit (NHTCU) was disbanded. The move has come as part of the Government's response to the House...

UCAS revamps online application service.
November 2, 2007... Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) is developing its electronic application service for the 2008/2009 academic year by employing Capscan's Matchcode Webnet technology. It is aiming to reduce the amount of undelivered mail...

Brands offered local market data on Web.
November 2, 2007... Brand owners will be able to profile their customers, and analyse local markets online, following the launch of Experian's Demographics Online service. The scheme draws on the company's comprehensive data resources, including customer...

Recognition is key to email deliverability.
November 2, 2007... Much has been said recently about email volumes surpassing direct mail and the significance that such statistics hold. But volume is not necessarily a true measurement of success. Leaving aside the "more targeted direct mail approach resulting...

ANALYSIS: The line between commerce and charity.
November 2, 2007... Should charities really be borrowing marketing ideas from the commercial sector? The practice has been going on - with some success - for years, but is it time for a rethink? After years of being told to borrow ideas from the commercial...

ANALYSIS: Fickle supermarket customers like to shop around.
November 2, 2007... With concern increasing over the dominance of big name supermarkets, a new report has found that consumers prefer to shop around rather than commit to just one brand As the Competition Commission publishes its initial report into the...

ANALYSIS: Customer relationship management set to grow.
November 2, 2007... The doom mongers in the customer relationship market were wrong. New research shows a healthy sector which is set to double in value by 2012 Not that long ago, commentators were predicting the demise of CRM, as brand owners baulked at...

OPINION: Marketing response is a two-way street.(Column)
November 2, 2007... I spoke to Blue Sheep managing director Richard Lee last week who was bemoaning the obsession with response rates at the expense of a more rounded return on investment (ROI) driven measure. I wondered whether our pre-disposition for...

LETTER: DMA 'bullets' are crucial to industry development.(Letter to the editor)
November 2, 2007... The DMA (UK) 'bullets' as a way of defending the industry are crucial in demonstrating the value of the direct mail industry and it's vital that we continue our investment in research to continue to illustrate our point ('Buscombe: No all...

LETTER: Group signifies major progress.(Letter to the editor)
November 2, 2007... The cross-industry group led by the Advertising Association (PM 19 October) could represent a significant advancement in the battle against the negative perception of direct marketing. It's about time we took a united stance to promote the...

LETTER: Correct metrics are key to quality.(Letter to the editor)
November 2, 2007... As David Reed says in his conclusion to 'Setting a standard' (PM, October 5), "data quality metrics must be of the right quality" - and I agree with this wholeheartedly. One of direct marketing's greatest strengths is accountability and...

VIEWPOINT: Looking outside of the box for prospects.
November 2, 2007... Companies often use outdated tools for segmentation, therefore limiting their pool of prospects. Many need to widen their horizons to find the 'ideal customer' I would not be going too far to say that companies can often become...

LEADER: The offer they couldn't refuse.
November 2, 2007... Much like the heads of the five families in Mario Puzo's The Godfather, there has always been an uneasy truce between the bosses of the UK's marketing trade bodies, with each protective of their turf. So, getting them to sit round the table...

PROFILE: Baroness rides into battle.
November 2, 2007... Baroness Peta Buscombe Given the industry's image, fighting direct marketing's corner has never been easy. Will the Advertising Association boss - who has strong links with Parliament - fare better? It's fair to say that direct...

CONSUMER INSIGHT: Brands cash in on ethnically diverse Britain.
November 2, 2007... As ethnic diversity continues to flourish in the UK, any number of brands from supermarkets to banks have recognised a lucrative new market opening up and are keen to capitalise on it Trend 25 of nVision's Trendexpress is 'The Sound of the...

Creative Critique: 02.11.07.(Visit Wales contracted with Partners Andrews Aldridge)(O2 Limited contracted with Archibald Ingall Stretton)(BL PLC. Land Rover contracted with Craik Jones Watson Mitchell Voelkel)
November 2, 2007... Simon Kershaw, executive creative director, TDA What does autumn mean to you? Footie? Freshers' Week? Funghi, the harvesting of? Well, for agencies, it is the start of the new awards season. Certainly that is at the back of my mind as the...

DATA ANALYTICS: Educate to accumulate.
November 2, 2007... Data analytics is on the rise. But is it genuinely understood in the market or are clients confused about where the benefits really lie? David Reed Unless you have been living in a cave, you will have heard a lot about data analytics...

INTERACTIVE MARKETING: Rip it up and start again.
November 2, 2007... Tracking visitors and customers is a growing discipline in digital marketing. Yet the majority of website owners are failing to put the data garnered to good use David Reed Every day I go to Tesco.com, click through to the wine section...

LIST/INSERT FILE: Company offers corporate buyers.
November 2, 2007... The National Pen Corporation is unveiling its file of buyers through Intermedia Global. The company offers a wide range of personalised corporate gifts through mail order across 20 European countries. The buyers on the list work in a...

LIST/INSERT FILE: Interior designers put on market.
November 2, 2007... CMP Information, provider of bespoke magazines and events, is releasing its Interiors Database for rental through Wyvern Direct Response. The 72,000-strong file consists of key attendees to soft furnishing, lighting, interior design and...

LIST/INSERT FILE: Buyers look after health and fitness.
November 2, 2007... DRTV company Best Direct has updated its database, which is available for rental through Listlab. The company provides a file of TV buyers who purchase a wide range of products to improve their health, well-being and general way of life....

LIST/INSERT FILE: Cat lovers respond to charity mailings.
November 2, 2007... Mail order website The Cat Gallery is releasing its file of buyers and enquirers for rental through McCarthy O'Connor List Outsourcing. The company sells a wide range of cat branded products, including kitchen and homewares, gifts,...

LIST/INSERT FILE: Clarks overhauls young mothers file.
November 2, 2007... Clarks First Shoes has updated its database and relaunched with Prospect Swetenhams. The file consists of highly responsive young families, predominantly mid to upmarket females, aged 25-35, purchasing their child's first pair of shoes,...

MOVING PEOPLE: Bisset appointed as new insight director.
November 2, 2007... Field marketing company CPM UK has appointed Stephen Bisset to the newly created board level position of insight director. Bisset has over 20 years' experience across a range of industries including retail, FMCG and financial channels. Most...

MOVING PEOPLE: Mardev takes on new account manager.(Lee Atkinson)(Brief article)
November 2, 2007... Business information provider Mardev has hired Lee Atkinson as key account manager. He joins the company from business intelligence company Cognos, where he held a senior business development role. Commenting on his new appointment, Atkinson...

MOVING PEOPLE: Blackler joins former creative director at Lavish.
November 2, 2007... David Blackler, former co-owner of integrated agency Brewer Blackler, has been appointed chairman of the entertainment brand development specialists Lavish Productions. The move sees him reunited with his former creative director Marc Todd....

MOVING PEOPLE: JDA Group makes three appointments.(appointments of Natasha Zelem, Eoin Kenneally, Emily Rose)(Brief article)
November 2, 2007... Leeds-based marketing agency The JDA Group has expanded its team with the appointment of three new staff. Natasha Zelem joins JDA's interactive division as a senior account manager, having worked previously for ITV, Barclaycard and the BBC. At...

Nice Work: Roger Williams.(Right Media Inc.)(Interview)(Brief article)
November 2, 2007... Roger Williams International marketing director Right Media Responsibilities I'm responsible for building a global brand and challenging the digital market to look at new ways of buying and selling online media. Job Perks: ...

IoF chief lambasts 'lemming' charity marketing bosses.
November 16, 2007... Charities have been accused of being 'lemmings' when it comes to adopting marketing strategies, with too few organisations willing to take risks, according to the head of the Institute of Fundraising (IoF). Chair Joe Saxton has blamed...

BSkyB accused of CRM ignorance.
November 16, 2007... The company facing a #709m compensation bill for allegedly bungling the installation of BSkyB's #48m CRM system has accused the media giant of not knowing what it wanted the scheme to do. The case, being heard in the High Court this week,...

Norwich Union hands brief to Craik Jones.
November 16, 2007... Aviva-owned insurance brand Norwich Union is understood to have appointed Craik Jones Watson Mitchell Voelkel as its lead agency for its direct marketing account across its entire insurance portfolio, worth in excess of #15m. The UK's...

IN BRIEF: Brands sign up for green card.(Brief article)
November 16, 2007... CarbonCred is launching the UK's first 'green' loyalty card to encourage consumers to cut their own personal CO2 emissions. Boots, Marks & Spencer, Argos, John Lewis and Tesco are among the big brand names that are supporting the online...

IN BRIEF: Britannia seeks direct agency.(Brief article)
November 16, 2007... Britannia Building Society is seeking an agency to handle its direct marketing account, through the AAR. The UK's second largest building society - based in Leek - previously worked with Carlson Marketing, but recently took its direct...

IN BRIEF: Budget Insurance hires HBOS chief.(appointment of Peter Thompson at Budget Insurance Services)(Brief article)
November 16, 2007... BGL Group affinity insurance arm Junction has lured former HBOS managing director of partnerships Peter Thompson to succeed md Phil Zeidler. He will start in January. Matthew Donaldson, group director at BGL Group, formerly Budget Insurance,...

Cold prospecting slumps as consumers warm to email.
November 16, 2007... The majority of consumers do not want to receive direct marketing from brands with which they have no relationship, according to exclusive research carried out for Precision Marketing, which is a major blow for cold prospecting. The...

TMW 'records 696% operating profit rise'.(Tullo Marshall Warren)(Brief article)(Company rankings)
November 16, 2007... Tullo Marshall Warren has topped a survey of the best performing agencies, having achieved a growth in operating profit of 696 per cent, according to the 'Financial Performance of Marketing Services Companies' survey, conducted by Willott...

One NorthEast hunts shop for #7.5m brief.(Brief article)
November 16, 2007... One NorthEast, the Regional Development Agency (RDA) covering North East England, is seeking an agency to handle a #7.5m integrated account for its tourism marketing activity. The appointed agency will be tasked with boosting North East...

Christian Aid shake-up to hit #100m fundraising goal.
November 16, 2007... Jenny Hoffbrand Christian Aid is embarking on a major overhaul of its marketing strategy in an attempt to boost its annual income. The development charity has appointed specialist agency Cascaid to create the strategy with recruitment...

Blitz exposes Zimbabwean crisis.(EHS Brann Cirencester)(Practical Action )(Brief article)
November 16, 2007... Gemma Hummerston International charity Practical Action is launching a hard-hitting direct marketing campaign to expose the plight of children and families in Zimbabwe. The mailpack, created by EHS Brann Cirencester, will be sent to...

Pru in hunt for top marketer.(Prudential Financial Services Corp.)(Brief article)
November 16, 2007... Financial services group Prudential is seeking a head of customer management and mature life and pensions as part of plans to ramp up its direct marketing activity. The role has been created to boost Prudential's ability to retain and...

IN BRIEF: Martin takes top Acxiom role.(appointment of Nick Martin )(Brief article)
November 16, 2007... Mardev managing director Nick Martin is quitting after 14 years to take up the role of UK Information products country leader at Acxiom. Mardev sales director Zina Manda and senior vice president Karie Burt will share Martin's...

IN BRIEF: LV= appoints distribution head.(Brief article)
November 16, 2007... LV=, the former Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society, has appointed Heidi Welch to head up direct marketing for its life and pensions business. Welch will take responsibility for all life direct marketing, direct response activity, strategy and...

IN BRIEF: SMEs in Alliance & Leicester plans.(Brief article)
November 16, 2007... Alliance & Leicester Commercial Bank is launching an aggressive campaign to poach SME customers from the big four banks. The campaign, created by TDA, will be targeted at businesses with a turnover of less than #1m through a range of media...

Centaur unveils Data Summit 2008 event.
November 16, 2007... Centaur Media plc is launching a major event to bring together key budget-holding decision-makers in the data industry to engage with leading speakers and suppliers. The Data Summit 2008 is being backed by Precision Marketing and sister...

Spire appoints integrated agency.
November 16, 2007... Spire Healthcare, former Bupa Hospitals, has appointed Bowden Smyth and Partners to handle its #2m integrated account following a major rebrand of the business last month. The integrated agency has been tasked to develop advertising and...

IN BRIEF: Call centres 'face staff cull'.(Brief article)
November 16, 2007... The UK call centre industry is facing a major staff cull due to advances in new technology and higher customer expectations, according to a former BT boss. Ex-BT chief technologist Peter Cochrane delivered the stark warning at the annual...

IN BRIEF: Tesco launches fashion CRM strategy.(Brief article)
November 16, 2007... Retail giant Tesco is launching its biggest venture into online customer relationship management (CRM) by allowing shoppers to create their own Web fashion space. The interactive fashion programme, fashionfile, has been created by Clothing at...

IN BRIEF: OMG scoops RBS Insurance brief.(OMG Network)(Brief article)
November 16, 2007... RBS Insurance has hired OMG Network as its sole agency to run an affiliate marketing programme across its range of insurance brands. OMG Network was selected following a three-month pitch process. The agency will start the programme in...

Range Rover creates online spectacular.
November 16, 2007... Land Rover is aiming to drive more of customers online to promote its Range Rover marque, allowing consumers to experience the brand in action. The SUV luxury brand is launching a global online campaign that will target affluent...

LG turns to digital for Christmas.
November 16, 2007... LG Electronics is launching an online Christmas blitz offering consumers the chance to win a new LG phone as part of a data capture push. The digital campaign, created by Syzygy and brokered by Unique Digital, will be running on the...

Affiliate marketing takes off for Xmas.
November 16, 2007... Christmas is an increasingly important time for the online industry, and therefore for the affiliate channel. We are two weekends into November - a good point to predict how significant affiliate marketing will be for this year's...

News International in major data rethink.
November 16, 2007... News International is overhauling its use of data to bring its circulation, subscriptions and reader offers together through one combined system. The publishing giant has appointed Occam to provide a new prospect pool solution to share...

Oracle launches 'new generation' of CRM.
November 16, 2007... Oracle, the world's largest enterprise software company, is launching a raft of OnDemand applications in what it claims will create a 'new generation' of customer relationship management (CRM) systems. The applications were unveiled by...

CDS Global appointed to Emap account.
November 16, 2007... Emap Consumer Media has appointed CDS Global to consolidate its marketing database and build a single view of all its customers. CDS Global will also provide tools to support analysis, segmentation and modelling. Emap's marketing...

Take a long, hard look at your data.
November 16, 2007... The word 'audit' doesn't have the best connotations. The mere mention or suggestion of an audit will see many people running for the hills. However, the examination of records, financial accounts or business practices to check their accuracy...

ANALYSIS: Is the online middle-man keeping you up at night?
November 16, 2007... As comparison sites continue to grow, the major financial institutions are being forced to rethink their strategies. Traditional direct marketing techniques can help but branding may hold the key As the citizens of Bedford Falls start a...

ANALYSIS: Retailers still lost when it comes to natural search.(Report)
November 16, 2007... Despite an acceptance in the industry that the key to a successful search strategy is to strike the right balance between paid and natural search, a large number of retail brands are still getting it very wrong There is a consensus among...

ANALYSIS: Contact centre industry faces up to green challenge.(Survey)
November 16, 2007... The contact centre industry is under pressure to improve its green credentials but few in the sector are willing to accept a policy of 'going green for green's sake' The UK contact centre industry is bowing to pressure to improve its green...

OPINION: The next generation of online marketing?(Column)
November 16, 2007... Take a tour around MySpace and you could easily lose an afternoon becoming the online voyeur than none of us really wanted to be. It's hard to resist that temptation to browse this immense space looking for old friends or even potential...

LETTER: Analysis is only as good as the questions asked of it.(Letter to the editor)
November 16, 2007... It is clear that often 'marketing objectives should be defined by what data has to tell you' ('Educate to accumulate', PM November 2), yet marketers routinely set strategies and then look for data and analytics that will enable it to be...

LETTER: Full integration is key to high ROI.(Letter to the editor)
November 16, 2007... Reading 'Getting the basics right' (PM October 19) there's no question that today new skillsets are required when it comes to understanding and making best use of data. It therefore requires a new type of data expert that was not covered in...

LETTER: DMA judges praise data use.(Letter to the editor)
November 16, 2007... David Reed's report on data analytics raised some valid points and highlighted the importance of data in defining a marketing strategy. However, it was alarming to read his take on the DMA (UK) Awards. The DMA Awards have a rigorous...

VIEWPOINT: Time to rewrite the marketing rulebook.
November 16, 2007... As consumer behaviour changes, so the role of the direct marketer must evolve. It is not enough to pay lip service to digital channels. A more unified approach is necessary to ensure success I have become so bored of so-called media...