Marketing without a well-thought-out strategy, be it catalog marketing or otherwise, is just like building a house without a blueprint. It doesn't necessarily mean that you will never get there, but there will be a lot of wasted time and resources before you do. Equally as important, is for you to remember that no strategy is fool proof, regardless of how much thought and analysis was put...
We need to talk about the "D" word. Digital? Data-Driven? How about, "all of the above", plus one you may not have expected: Direct mail. If you've been drinking the "Kool-Aid" served up by industry bigwigs, you might think that direct mail is not only a relic of yesteryear, it's actually a casualty of digital. But that's where you'd be wrong. Direct mail is far...
The following announcement was released by the USPS on 5/21/18: The U.S. Postal Service’s first scratch-and-sniff stamps will add the sweet scent of summer to letters of love, friendship, party invitations and other mailings when the Postal Service introduces the Frozen Treats Forever stamps June 20 in Austin, TX. The stamps can be pre-ordered at this link soon for delivery shortly after the June 20 issuance. The...
In this ever more digital age, catalogs would seem like an outdated marketing strategy used by people in decades past. Yet, this could not be further from the truth. Direct marketing is, in fact, a key part of the consumer buying process. If used correctly, catalogs can be a highly effective tool for generating income and reaching out to new customers. Direct marketing print catalogs...
Clean data is critical for data analysis and data mining activities. Organizations of all sizes often struggle with the ability to get and maintain clean data. To better understand how you can make sure your data becomes and stays clean, we will first discuss what ‘clean’ data really means. What is ‘Clean’ Data? If you have clean data, it means that the data currently stored...
Developed some decades ago, the RFM Analysis is a great marketing model used to segment a customer list based on their behavior. This method has proven itself time and time again, by helping direct and online marketers minimize their costs while, at the same time, maximizing their returns. The RFM Analysis is based on the Pareto principle, or the 80/20 rule, which states that 80%...
How would you like to combine the best of digital marketing technology with the tactile and visual charm of direct mail marketing? Welcome to triggered postcard marketing, a new way to take advantage of cutting-edge technology to pump up your direct mail campaign. Martech, an online marketing trade, points to a triggered direct mail platform that connects potential customers’ online behavior to create targeted direct...
As a business owner, it’s natural to reflect on where your company has come from and where it is going at the start of a new year. With more business functions going digital all the time, you might even wonder about the future of B2B direct mail. After all, you want to know that each new campaign will at least produce the return on investment...
During the past few years, e-commerce marketers have been innovating by creating subscription boxes. Birchbox was an early success story (2010) in the beauty products category. Its two founders agreed that shopping for beauty products “was frustrating, inefficient, and confusing.” There were too many options and that did not encourage trial. There was no way to try products online without spending a lot of time...
A popular discussion these days is how to compete with Amazon. Mega retailers with physical stores and/or well-designed ecommerce platforms often hold the best cards when working with their suppliers. Strong merchants in their own right, including leading apparel brands, often need mass merchants like Walmart and Amazon, to boost the volume sales and distribution of their products. In August, Amazon announced that its Marketplace...
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