Direct Response articles from April 2007

Direct Response archives from April 2007

Editorial: Change for the good.(Editorial)
April 10, 2007... Change is inevitable in marketing. After all, a big part of good marketing is embracing new trends and attitudes. And a critical element of change remains new blood. In recent months, we've seen a major shift in the data side of direct...

News Focus: Restructure - Experian to merge core data groups.
April 10, 2007... Data giant Experian announced it is restructuring its UK marketing solutions division to bring together its core consumer data businesses and may cut 100 jobs. ClarityBlue managing director Duncan Painter will head the new goup, Experian...

News Focus: e-marketing - Firms go green with online.
April 10, 2007... A Grant Thornton survey has revealed that 70 per cent of large UK companies plan to increase spend on e-marketing over the next three years - mainly because of environmental pressures and cost-cutting moves. The management consultant's...

News Focus: Appointment - Vice-chair to promote IDM.(Institute of Direct Marketing)(Brief article)
April 10, 2007... The Institute of Direct Marketing (IDM) has appointed its first vice-chairman, Jonathan Clark - former chairman of Clark McKay and Walpole - as it prepares to raise its profile and expand. The institute created the position in order to tap...

News Focus: Event launch - New awards to 'Connect' DM.
April 10, 2007... Direct Response and sister title Marketing Direct are launching the Connect Awards, a new set of honours that will bring the entire direct marketing practitioner community under one roof for the first time. 'The Connect Awards bring...

News Focus: Contact centres - Sector must adapt or die.
April 10, 2007... Contact centres are set to face one of their toughest years yet in 2007, as an increasing demand for higher-value solutions and a one-stop-shop service forces outsourcers to up the ante, according to a new report from research company...

News Focus: What's new - Launches.
April 10, 2007... Spannerworks Digital marketing agency Spannerworks has launched a tool called Network Sense. The platform maps the online presence of a company's brand in social media networks, such as blogs and communities including MySpace It can also...

News Focus: What's New - Contracts.
April 10, 2007... Amcat The contact centre solutions provider Amcat, has made a deal with QAS to use its QuickAddress Pro technology as part of its contact centre suite The company will use the tool to improve address capture processing for its customers....

News Focus: What's New - Expansion.(Millennium changing its name to Direct Marketing Group)(Financial Services Forum)(Brief article)
April 10, 2007... Millennium Mature marketing specialist Millennium is restructuring and has renamed itself Direct Marketing Group, as it prepares to launch on the AIM stock exchange later this year. The company is also launching a sales department to work...

News Focus: Events Planner.
April 10, 2007... APRIL 17 Ethical Marketing: The Business Opportunity Venue: Kensington Hilton, London Contact: hannah.lang@dma.org.uk 20 DMA North Spring Ball Venue: The Queen's Hotel, Leeds Contact: deborah.wroe@dma.org.uk 25-27 Contact...

News Focus: Data - Companies fail to recognise data as a commercial asset.
April 10, 2007... Forty per cent of UK companies do not view data as a commercial asset despite the fact most place an emphasis on data quality, according to the first Data Quality Benchmark Study. The study was conducted by financial direct marketing forum...

News Focus: Research - Viral appeals to high fliers.
April 10, 2007... Viral marketing is attracting an increasingly upmarket audience, research on entertainment site BoreMe.com has shown. Not only do Oxford and Cambridge students spend more time viewing the site than students from any other university, but...

News Focus: Online - Firms 'should have search in web plans'.(Brief article)
April 10, 2007... Just 14 per cent of companies consider search marketing when building their website, according to a recent survey by a search engine marketing agency. Matt Paines, head of search specialist XSEO, said it was essential that companies...

News Focus: Diary of a doormat - Nick Elsom, Flamethrower.(Diary entry)
April 10, 2007... Nick Elsom is a founding partner of Flamethrower. He lives in Wimbledon with his wife and two children. First up: Book Club Associates. Cellophane-wrapped in violent orange, its mailing features a bold claim of 'NO EDITOR'S CHOICE, NO...

News Focus: Legal Eagle.
April 10, 2007... James Milligan is legal and public affairs adviser at the Direct Marketing Association. This column is not intended to constitute legal advice. For specific legal advice, contact your solicitor. For DMA membership details, contact Sean Moore on...

News Focus: Customer publishing - APA launches consultancy.
April 10, 2007... The Association of Publishing Agencies (APA) has set up a business consultancy service to boost growth in the customer magazine industry, which will be worth an estimated pounds 1 billion by 2011. The service, called APA Ask, will offer...

News Focus: Repositioning - LBM rebrands.(LBM House)(Brief article)
April 10, 2007... Customer contact and data specialist LBM is re-branding to reflect the fact that it has moved from being a boutique business-to-business call centre operator to a bigger, more wide-ranging marketing services firm. The move follows LBM's...

News Focus: Associations - DMA marks ethics priority with event.
April 10, 2007... The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) plans to tackle ethical marketing with a dedicated event in London later this month. The DMA's Ethical Marketing: The Business Opportunity conference is taking place on 17 April at the Kensington...

News Focus: Data leaders - More big players jump ship.(Jon Cano-Lopez joined Ai)(David Coupe left Experian Marketing Services)(Huw Davis left EHS Brann Discovery)
April 10, 2007... The changing of the guard in the data industry that kicked off towards the end of last year continues to unfold as a number of top players in the sector moved or announced upcoming departures last month. David Coupe, managing director of...

News Focus: Movers - Appointment at Prospect Swetenhams.
April 10, 2007... Scott Brown has been appointed by Prospect Swetenhams to lead its list management division. He previously worked for Consodata, Acxiom and LBM ***************************************************************** Sandra Lawrence has been...

Opinion: Why email is easier to read than PR.
April 10, 2007... Almost half the users of email marketing fail to track the effectiveness of their campaigns, and don't know what return they're getting on their investment, according to last month's Direct Response (March, page 8). Here's a report that...

How to: Set up a loyalty programme.
April 10, 2007... Online companies must work hard to retain customers in the long term. Geraldine Tosh explains how to use loyalty programmes, either in-house or coalition-based, to boost your customer base. Loyalty is a big issue on the internet, as...

Creative masterclass on: Generating buzz.(people's endorsements should be considered for digital advertisements)
April 10, 2007... Word of mouth is an age-old trusted form of endorsement. Grant Hunter says unleash your creative power with a healthy dose of digital buzz. Social networks, viral marketing, seeding, Second Life, Wikis, BzzAgent, Flickr, Bebo, MySpace,...

Data Clinic: Ask the experts.
April 10, 2007... This month, our panel of data specialists advises on how to optimise a CRM system, gain insight into consumers and how to establish which B2B customers deliver the best value. Sponsored by mortascreen(TM) Q: My company has just...

Data Clinic: Data health check - Big Lottery Fund.(QuickAddress Pro from QAS Ltd.)
April 10, 2007... With the unenviable task of managing 40,000 annual grant applications, the organisation uses QAS address software to cut down on fraud. THE PROBLEM Big Lottery Fund is responsible for distributing approximately pounds 630 million a...

Data Clinic: Case study - The Holiday Place.
April 10, 2007... The tour operator wanted to boost its email marketing activity, so it signed up eCircle to create an e-campaign with a difference. Melanie May reports. Spring may be here but it is still cold and damp. Most of us would probably like a...

Data Clinic: How to buy ... added value.
April 10, 2007... Your list broker has a lot more to offer than you might imagine. Added value costs nothing but goes a long way. If you think that all you can get from your broker is data, then you would be very wrong. Use your broker like a commodity...

Data Clinic: Get connected.(best websites)(Website list)(Brief article)
April 10, 2007... The internet has opened up instant channels of communication between companies and those they wish to target. Donald Hamilton gives his pick of the best sites. The internet has changed the way we organise and run our lives. Most exciting...

Data Clinic: DataTalk.(national database)
April 10, 2007... The Government has plans for a super-database. Dak Liyanearachchi believes the data industry has a responsibility towards the Government and consumers to ensure a future for itself. Fears that the UK is sleepwalking into a surveillance...

Data Clinic: What I do in data - Mike Nalder, head of marketing analytics, EuroDirect.(Interview)(Brief article)
April 10, 2007... How did you arrive in this job? EuroDirect had been a supplier for Thomas Cook, where I used to work, and I liked the people with whom I dealt there. Their customer-service ethic and no-nonsense products impressed me. I was also keen to...

Data Clinic: What is - Variable colour?(direct mail advertising)(Brief article)
April 10, 2007... 'Variable colour' describes the kind of direct mail where text, images and content are changed to suit the recipient's profile, preferences and value. This form of segmentation is economically viable, and is proven to improve relevance and...

Data Clinic: Technique - How best to manage your data in-house.
April 10, 2007... There are many advantages to managing your data in-house, as David Murray explains. Don't get put off by the investment in staff and training you'll have to make - it will pay off in the long term... and hand you control of your data. The...

Data Clinic: A manager's view.
April 10, 2007... It is not only brokers that are feeling a financial squeeze - list managers are having to focus on more unified approaches, writes Hayley Tooke. Representing the key service end of the direct marketing industry, list managers and brokers...

Data Clinic: Which list? New, updated and newly managed consumer and business lists.
April 10, 2007... NEW LISTS CONSUMER - New Movers New Movers has been launched by Response One Media Sales working with Entire UK. It is a file of responsive individuals who have recently moved home. The list contains 1.2 million names from the...

IDMF Show Preview: Broader mix on offer at IDMF 2007.
April 10, 2007... Having seen off the competition, this year's trade fair is a must-visit event, writes Michael Donaghy. The International Direct Marketing Fair (IDMF) is pretty much on its own these days. With the recent announcement that rival shows...

IDMF Exhibitor Preview.
April 10, 2007... From database solutions, software, mailing and print production to fulfilment techniques and promotional ideas, the 29th annual IDMF has it all. Our preview gives you a flavour of the exhibitors. ASSOCIATIONS The Chartered Institute of...

B2B Data: Lock on target.
April 10, 2007... Taking aim at business clients can be tougher than marketing to consumers as contacts move so often. Start with the right data, says Caitlin Fitzsimmons. Reaching the business-to-business market is a notoriously difficult task for...

Web Analytics: Reading between the lines.(to measure the effectiveness of online marketing)
April 10, 2007... Web measurement tools can unlock the secrets of how your offline marketing media is driving traffic online. As Adam Woods explains, integration is the way forward. The assertion that online and offline marketing channels perform better...

Secrets of my success: Barry Leeson-Earle, Data director, Tri-Direct.
April 10, 2007... I hope I don't sound too much like an academy award winner when I say that my 'success' is almost wholly due to the breaks I have had, the people I've worked with, and the team around me. My first marketing role was product manager with a...