July 2007
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DIRECT Newsline
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| Compassion & Choices Ups Mail Volume |
Right-to-die advocacy group Compassion & Choices is boosting direct mailings from four to six times a year despite the difficulty it's had getting conservative...
By Larry Riggs |
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| East Side, West Side, Online |
Earlier this year, NY Skyride was looking for a way to convey its high-tech pizzazz to Web visitors. It had to be snazzy and engaging: Competition for...
By Brian Quinton |
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| Good Call |
Sure, all that newfangled new media is grand. But today we're here to pay tribute to the good old telephone — the most versatile, flexible and...
By Ruth P. Stevens |
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| In the Zone, Online or Off |
AutoZone Inc.'s new product look-up system for driving in-store sales will soon be tried on its Web site. The $6 billion company, which sells auto parts...
Beth Negus Viveiros |
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| Postcards From the Cutting Edge |
While catalog mailers are adjusting to hefty new postage increases, postcard mailings are thriving. Even the largest 11-½-inch cards qualify as...
By Fred Morath |
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Op-Ed Columns
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| Sweetening the Pot |
It's been said by everyone from Don Peppers to Fred Reichheld: Customer satisfaction starts with a company's employees. But how do you make sure that...
RAY SCHULTZ |
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| The Bombardment Begins |
My friend and list guru Bob Dunhill sent me a fundraising mailing, to which he appended the statement Abraham Lincoln made when asked how long his legs...
HERSCHELL GORDON LEWIS |
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General
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| American Blogstand |
A pilot program in which news was turned into song became the second most popular video feature on Boston.com last month. For two weeks in May, Boston-area...
Beth Negus Viveiros |
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| Blog Commandments |
In this excerpt from “The New Influencers: A Marketer's Guide to the New Social Media” (Quill Driver Books;
By Paul Gillin |
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| Brand and Direct Use the Buddy System |
Once upon a time, brand lived here and direct lived there — waaayyyy over there. Today, they're roommates. Many brand advertisers have begun incorporating...
Beth Negus Viveiros |
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| Can You Find Me Now? |
Google, Yahoo! and Microsoft have all optimized their search to help mobile users find what they want on the Web. Now Ask.com...
Brian Quinton |
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| Central Station |
Go figure. On the one hand, consumers want control over the media messages they receive. On the other, advertisers demand accountability...
By Grant A. Johnson |
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| Direct Mail's Warm Glow |
My jaded heart recently skipped a beat when a truly cheesy self-mailer showed up in my mailbox. If there's no column next month, folks, it's because...
RICHARD H. LEVEY |
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| E-mail's Image Problem |
Developments surrounding blocked e-mail images and links have been causing a great deal of consternation among marketers lately. However, experts say...
By Ken Magill |
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| Feeding the Kitty |
Every creature has its phobias. To many cats, water is anathema. Some dogs abhor the sound of the vacuum cleaner. And then there are consumers who fear...
Beth Negus Viveiros |
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| Great Product, Great Site. Who Knew? |
So what's going on in this Dansko ad? Not much. Apparently just advertising for the sake of advertising. You undoubtedly know Dansko for their famously...
THOMAS L. COLLINS |
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| It All Adds Up |
It's a small but real change. Yes, most database marketers still rely on revenue and income to determine return on investment. But a growing number are...
By Richard H. Levey |
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| Letters to the Editor |
A HIT AND A MISS? Thanks for Ray Schultz's thoughtful column (Direct Hit, May). Copywriting is my background. I learned from a seasoned pro who retired...
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| NEW LISTS |
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Companies Some 133,626 energy industry firms are listed. Separate segments are available for postal, e-mail and telemarketing...
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| Price-Conscious Promotion |
For those with champagne tastes and a beer budget, constructing a marketing plan can be frustrating. In “Successful, Low Cost Direct Marketing...
Beth Negus Viveiros |
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| Risky Business |
To get the best insurance coverage, you have to be well informed. Insurers need information too — about their customers' demographics, businesses...
By Beth Negus Viveiros |
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| Short and Sweet |
Listen up, industry award show organizers. We'd like to give a quick cheer to the Webby Awards, which held its 11th annual presentation last month with...
Beth Negus Viveiros |
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| Start at the End |
It's not easy being a marketer these days. For one thing, you have to measure the impact of your campaigns. And that's a challenge when you're using...
By Tom Simons and Ken Dec |
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| The Latest Scoop |
Talk about your dual personalities. Ben & Jerry's is a super-premium-quality product — with an offbeat, fun, irreverent brand. The two concepts...
Beth Negus Viveiros |
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| Thinking Out of the Big Box |
At the recent ERI eXchange conference in Boston, Best Buy International CEO Bob Willett spoke about the Minneapolis retailer's “customer-centric...
BETH NEGUS VIVEIROS |
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| Three Ways to Rate E-mailers |
Internet service providers use three main metrics to gauge a sender's reputation and determine how to process incoming e-mail. The formulas are different...
By Ken Magill |
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| Too Much Togetherness? |
If you lived through the dot-com bubble, you could be excused for thinking you'd slipped through a wormhole in time and landed back in 1999. In rapid-fire...
By Brian Quinton |
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| Tuff Luck |
Tommy Frenzy is back. Those in direct marketing know Frenzy by another name, Tom McCulloh, senior account manager with healthcare database firm SK&A...
Beth Negus Viveiros |
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