NextMark

Hominy Names Do You Want?

I just had to ask Dave Ferry at a recent DMA conference, what the story was behind his company name. Dave responded without hesitation, "hominy names do you want?"

Hominy Names isn't selling grits or lists of grit lovers, although Dave may recommend a targeted select for that. Hominy Names is actually managing investment newsletter lists, marketing multi-buyers mailing lists, and finding good prospect names for his clients.

Dave recently launched his new data card web site this summer, powered by NextMark.  We're glad to have him as a client in our expanding portfolio of small business owners who want to get noticed online.

Thanks Dave -- we appreciate your business!

NextMark is Back in the Saddle

Deb Johnson is helping the non-profit Back in the Saddle Equine Therapy Center with their website and marketing as a NextMark community service project. Among other things, BITS ETC provides therapy for people with disabilities "aged 4 to 94": 

As you can see here, Deb's work and NextMark's service program is appreciated:

As the Director of Back In The Saddle Equine Therapy Center (aka "bits etc"), I would like to personally thank you for providing the opportunity of paid Community Service time for your employees

Through this program, we have been fortunate to have connected wtih Deborah Johnson last year, and are delighted that the program is again available this year.  After her initial work providing direct client support during astride lessons, Deb continued to volunteer at BITS on her own time.  She has been instrumental in ensuring an improved web presence for our non-profit, going to the personal expense and time commitment of enrolling in a web design class at NHTI to provide us with expert input into this aspect of public relations and advertising.  As the best kept secret in central NH, we are now ready to let out all the stops in telling people what we do.

I would be honored if you would allow us to feature your company on our "Good Citizen of the Month" corner of our website, in hopes others might be inspired by what you do, to offer similiar incentives to their employees.

Pauline Meridien
Director, BITS ETC

Kudos from Consumer Intelligence Group

We always appreciate customer feedback. Tanya Rose at Consumer Intelligence Group, a new user of our media planning tool, had this to say about the service:

"Thanks so much!

First campaign went GREAT!  I've prepared 8 recommendations for my mailers so far and 3 have turned into orders.  Your system has been a tremendous asset to our organization!"

Thank you!

Winning the Uphill Battle for List Rental Income

Is your list management sales performance meeting your clients' expectations? How often do you exceed the list rental income projections you set for them? It's not easy to win new business with conservative forecasts, and there are a lot of empty 'projection promises' out there to contend with. The good thing about a recessionary period is that it brings reality back to forecasting. Nevertheless, the uphill battle for list rental income continues, and change is required for survival. Here are three tips for list managers who are ready for a change:

Tip 1:  Be different

Most list companies are great at this, and they have some of the most creative talent in-house. There are also key points of differentiation that every list marketer can use to their advantage. Determine what really sets you apart, and make sure everyone knows that about your organization. Also re-consider the value proposition for your prospect data. Lists may not be as pretty as snowflakes, but each one is unique. In most cases, you don't need to re-invent yourself -- just re-position yourself. Create a list profile, market the audience, and be different. Leverage the fact that your clients need help sorting through an increasing number of options in a multi-channel world.

Tip 2:  Be found

If you want to be found, then you need to be where people are looking. For example, Google estimates that there are more than 200,000 'list management' keyword searches every month. For 'marketing' search volume it's 68,000,000 per month. Compare that with the BPA statement for your favorite direct marketing trade publication, and you'll see that it makes sense to 'go digital for postal'.

Most list companies have some catching up to do in this area, but they don't realize that they already have the secret weapon for reaching their audience. Data cards are best for grabbing targeted leads by the long tail. What's most important is that you get found when someone is searching for what you do best!

Tip 3:  Be efficient

Learning to be efficient and understanding opportunity costs are not mutually exclusive. Spending time responding to count requests for tire kickers is costly, but the real issue is the opportunity cost of those efforts. The same is true for updating data cards on your web site, re-keying list order information, compiling mailing list usage data, and auditing list information. The list industry was at maturity ten years ago, so there is no room for redundancy if you want to be around in the future. Fortunately, it is much easier to address those issues today than it used to be. It's time to put your infrastructure in the cloud and get focused differentiation and value. Systems infrastructure, disaster recovery, and software applications will only distract you from your mission. Software as a service (Saas) is like the electric company for b2b; they'll keep the lights on so you can see clearly and stay focused.

Ask for help

In all these things, don't go at it alone. There are organizations that can help you get you where you need to be. Change can be profitable and the payback periods are shorter than they used to be. The Internet has enabled organizations of any size to compete effectively by leveraging the economies of scale that Saas companies and cloud computing can provide. For example, Salesforce.com has done a great job enabling companies of any size to compete and collaborate effectively. Building an in-house CRM system rarely makes good business sense anymore, and the same principles apply to other functions as well.

"Put a search engine in that car!"

Prospecting Trends -- Digging For Gold

The theme of this year's VT/NH Marketing Group Annual Conference was 'Making Cents of your Marketing Dollars'. Before you criticize the play on words, consider the fact that the keynote speaker was David Sundman of Littleton Coin Company. Making 'Cents' certainly does make 'Sense' in this context, when you consider that a rare find like the 1804 one cent coin sells for $2,994. The conference included a wealth of information related to offline and online marketing, and ended with a tour of the Littleton Coin Company facility.

On Thursday afternoon, Chris DeMartine and Joe Pych presented the facts about prospecting trends for 2010 and beyond. Attendees were challenged to differentiate between pure gold and fool's gold in a rapidly changing environment of emerging media channels. Session attendees also received an objective survey of what's happening with inbound versus outbound marketing, and an actionable resource guide to the mother lode.

Although most of the current conversations are about online marketing going social and mobile, we were able to put some context around the spending in those areas. The takeaway was that marketers need to continue to invest in what works, and to test emerging media channels with the same level of discipline used for traditional media channels. A quick look a the 2010 aggregate spending and growth will certainly add some perspective. The total marketing spend for digital still has a long way to go to catch up to traditional channels like broadcast, phone, and print.

For the local marketers we surveyed in New England, it was paid search that seemed to be the most widely accepted form of measureable advertising. Joe Pych noted in his presentation, however, that search gets most of the credit when other media channels are driving awareness. If you stop everything else to rely solely on your search marketing, then you could very well be putting your business at risk. Research continues to reveal the impact of print and online display advertising on click-through rates and cost per click (CPC). Also, keep in mind that your CPC is likely to be much lower with branded keyword searches.

Janet Nixon Tornado Relief Project

The task of cleaning up your property after a tornado can feel insurmountable; but, with the help of a volunteer group, you can make huge progress in an afternoon.

On May 18, Janet Nixon participated in a tornado cleanup effort in Seminole, Oklahoma. This 12-hour work project required work gloves, bottles of water, energy and enthusiasm.

According to Janet

"One of the properties we cleaned up was where an elderly couple, 80-90 year olds, lived. During the tornado, he was in the bathroom and she was in the hall trying to get to the bathroom. The roof was completely gone. Her son said the winds had her feet in the air pulling on her. Just as she thought she couldn't hold on any longer, it dropped her. There was a lot of debris there. The son said the insurance co. didn't want anyone removing anything from inside the house, so we worked outside. I gathered bank statements (in envelopes with checks) from all over a pasture behind their house. We couldn't see where the roof was. I could kind of tell the path because of the multitude of shingles, but nothing large was left. The son said someone 5-10 miles away called to say they had found a bank statement in their yard! Roof completely gone and everything trashed, but we could stand outside and see inside a closet where very clean, neatly pressed shirts were hanging. And could see into the kitchen the dishes neatly stacked in a doorless cabinet. Isn't that weird??? I found an antique embroidery hoop of his mom's and an antique tool (I think a come-along) that was his dad's. The son was grateful to get them and receive our help."

This community service was made possible through NextMark's community service program.

Richardson's Golden Service

 

In 2010, more than 4,400 athletes participated in Special Olympics Oklahoma. During the three-day event, athletes competed in Aquatics, Athletics (Track and Field), Bocce, Bowling, Golf, Horseshoes, Motor Activities, Power-lifting, Unified 3-on-3 Basketball, and Unified Softball. Other events include Stars of the Future, Healthy Athletes and Olympic Village.

This event would not be possible without the support of extremely dedicated volunteers like  Charlotte Richardson who served through NextMark's community service program. She provided transportation and support for athletes like Destinee who is shown above accepting the gold medal for winning the Running Long Jump.

The benefits of niche media planning

Hollis Thomases explains the benefits of niche media planning in ClickZ article How Niche Media Planning Might Be Better for Your Advertiser, such as:

"Despite often having an edge over the bigger publishers when it comes to targeted content and unique audience attraction, niche sites still tend to work harder to get your advertising business...mainly because they are off the radar of a lot of media and measurement tools. From them, the planners and buyers get better service and response times, better rates, more campaign flexibility, and shared research. From their site's niche focus, the advertiser gets lifts in unique visitors, better or more control over content opportunities and cross media platform offers, and hopefully better campaign achievement (or equal at perhaps less cost or in less time)."

Hollis proves the value of niche advertising. How to find those niches?

Rising Importance of Media Planning in Digital Marketing

From pages 149-150 of Always On: Advertising, Marketing, and Media in an Era of Consumer Control by Christopher Vollmer with Geoffrey Precourt:

Many agencies have been too slow to recognize just how much of their actual value to marketers has shifted from "the big creative idea" and "the most efficient media buy" to "the most sophisticated and innovative media planning." In the always-on world, the interdependencies between the media and the message have never been more important. the planner (not the creative of the buyer) has in fact become the driving force in today's marketing. It is the planner who chooses among media distribution platforms, who ensures that creative executions are integrated across the right touchpoints, and who leverages insights into consumer behavior to support advertising with more relevance and impact.

One of the greatest challenges for many agencies is the legacy of Proposition 3.0, when media planning was unbundled from creative. In many cases, even when agencies have recognized this shift, their response times have been sluggish. Many creatively focused shops still lack adequate planning capabilities and the resources to strengthen them. Many media buying and planning agencies, driven by a business model based on volume and profitability, have underinvested in new planning approaches. But respond they must; their clients are clamoring for better counsel about the impact of media on the effectiveness of advertising.

Many marketers - an impressive 76 percent of them, according to a recent BoozAllen/Association of National Advertisers study - feel strongly that creative and media planning need to be rebundled. And there are outspoken advocates for a new planning priority within the agency community itself. As Shelly Lazarus, Ogilvy & Mather's chairperson and CEO says, "It's the planning part that needs to come back to where the initial thinking is being done."

Top 5 Questions About USPS RFI-SMEDM-03302010

The United States Postal Service Request For Information (RFI) SMEDM-03302010 has generated a lot of questions from marketing services providers and systems integrators. Over 100 questions and answers have already been posted as a pdf document on postcom.org.

After meeting with a few folks at the USPS Corporate Headquarters in Washington DC this afternoon, I thought it would be good timing to comment on the RFI that the USPS is using as a research tool to compile information from the direct mail marketplace. However, it's probably best to let the marketers share what they are thinking. Below are five questions and responses addressing RFI-SMEDM-03302010 that only begin to reveal the need for a closer relationship with the professional direct marketing community and the USPS.

Question: Will the offerings include promotional items? Response: Please define 'promotional items'.

Question: Who is providing the SME business objectives? Response: Business objectives will be provided once all market research is completed and all options are explored. The "who" will be a combination of the USPS and selected private parties.

Question: Can we be provided with a copy of this research/assessment, or at a minimum the associated executive summaries? Response: This information is considered proprietary and confidential.

Question: Of the existing DM providers on the USPS site, what has and hasn't worked with this relationship? Response: The Postal Service considers the information requested to be proprietary and confidential.

Question: What database would be available from the USPS to serve as one of the list providers? For example, would "movers/change of address databases be available for users"? Response: The Postal Service will not provide mailing lists. This capability must be provided by 3rd Party vendors. The Postal Service is obligated to protect the confidentiality of customer information. Any vendor would be required to abide by minimum privacy standards as well.

Our primary concern with this initiative is that it will neglect the most important factor for campaign success. With 40 percent of campaign success dependent on lists, shouldn't an open market approach to list and data acquisition be a core requirement? And why aren't there objectives for this project? Should the RFI process be used to create objectives or to evaluate options for meeting objectives? Who's leading who?

The due date for responding to the USPS Request for Information was Friday, April 23, 2010. However, if you would like to share your thoughts and/or recommendations for the USPS, then please feel free to comment below.