Accurately Forecasting Economic Data for the Print Industry
There is a misplaced trust in the forecasting process as some kind of physical science when forecasting is really barely an art.
Latest from Doc
Report from the Direct Marketing Association Show
Many of the discussions at DMA 2011 centered around online marketing and other digital marketing initiatives. But there were still a number of great case studies shared that involved print and direct mail components.
Coming Soon to a Digital Mailbox Near You?
The concept of a digital mailbox or digital mail delivery is certainly not new. In the enterprise, vendors like Esker, Océ, and Pitney Bowes offer digital mail delivery solutions whereby each piece of mail that comes into the company is scanned and delivered electronically to employee recipients.
Engaging Marketing Teams with Production Printing
It's no secret that marketing departments are savvy when it comes to direct mail. It's a channel they've traditionally owned. However, when it comes to bills, statements, policies and other production print output, many marketers find it more difficult to navigate the terrain (if they even consider stepping onto it in the first place.)
Time to Plan for the DMA Show
Regardless of our primary business, we’re almost all involved (or should be involved) in direct marketing – to customers, prospects, or even internally to employees. And indeed, many of the things Doc talks about are in support of direct marketing programs at a variety of large and small companies that use printing as an important component of their marketing efforts.
Six Direct Marketing Trends Likely to Go Mainstream
Doc loves prognostications and prognosticators. So I couldn't pass up the chance to see what Nancy Scott over at The Digital Nirvana blog, thinks will be the next mainstream marketing trends.
Do You Throw Away Obsolete Marketing Materials?
Just as important, obsolete marketing materials can have a major negative impact on marketing effectiveness. Forty-two percent of the respondents to the CMO Council survey said that fresh marketing content is critical to their go-to-market strategy, but 51% of respondents admitted they had used marketing materials that contained outdated content. In today's business environment, every interaction with a potential buyer is important, and sales can easily be lost if prospects are provided outdated information.
Transaction Output Market Is Changing
If you do transactional printing, you've got to know that more and more your work is part of an integrated marketing platform. Transactional marketing is one of the great highlights in marketing right now as companies discover that customer statements (whether print or electronic) are a terrific platform for up selling and cross selling and, well, all kinds of selling.
Digital More Popular than Print in Latest DMA Report
As the trends toward increased accountability and technical innovation continue their rise in popularity and ROI among the business community, the digital channels have consumed the top slots for new marketing spending. The study shows that for the first time in two years marketers and their service providers reported across-the-board increases in revenue, marketing expenditures, and profitability compared with both the fourth quarter of 2009 and the same quarter last year (SQLY). Their optimism about the second quarter also grew.
Another New One: Transactional Response Marketing
Doc really does learn something new every day, even when I have to make it up. But today I learned a new term courtesy of Elizabeth Gooding over at Digital Nirvana. There you’ll find a fine article about Transactional Response Marketing (TRM), the art of using customer statements (bills, invoices, receipts, etc.) as a marketing vehicle.