e-clipsblog

Minister tells charities to stop “guilt” direct mail

Editor — 2009-07-13T08:36:57Z

Charities that send direct mail packs to provoke a “guilt response” could face government intervention, according to a government minister.

Baroness Crawley told the House of Lords that the government might introduce measures to force charities to improve their use of direct mail unless questionable practices are stamped out.

This came in response to a question from a Conservative peer who asked whether it would be legal to send coins through the post attached to a begging letter.

Baroness Crawley warned that the government would intervene against poor direct mail practices and start to regulate charities more effectively in 2011, when its funding for the Fundraising Standards Board is due to expire.

Crawley believes that the practice of gaining a guilt response from people is a frustrating way of building up a good name, as well as funds, for a charity.

As featured on Brand Republic.

DMA signals new era of “added value”

Editor — 2009-07-10T08:37:08Z

The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) has revealed it intends to be “a bit more dangerous” as it unveiled details of new strategy for the organisation.

Details of its new strategy, including the launch of more services, products, a broadening of its representation and creation of new policy groups, were unveiled by DMA’s chief of membership and brand, Robert Keitch.

Keitch announced the launch of several new products and “added-value” services, including a new business development service and schemes around mobile marketing and data security.

These changes aim to reflect DMA’s new mindset and to “stop being risk adverse”, as it’s developing six more products to be launched in the next 12 months.

The DMA will also form two new policy groups addressing sustainability and digital marketing, as well as planning to reformat its events and workshops.

As featured on mad.co.uk.

Blogging can be beneficial to direct marketing mix

Editor — 2009-07-09T08:33:33Z

Blogging can be highly beneficial for firms looking to keep customers updated on their activities, according to an expert.

However, businesses should think ahead when implementing blogs into their general direct marketing strategy and should ensure that this is executed properly through efficient planning.

A problem for companies is that blogs need regular updates, but the majority of businesses don’t have enough time to keep theirs up to date.

According to a recent survey, many firms are failing to see the long-term picture when using the services, as they can use it to their advantage in business and as a way to communicate with their customers.

An expert has claimed that blogs can be great for securing high results in Google, but only if businesses understand what makes it tick.

As featured on businessstrata.com.

Starbucks using direct mail

Editor — 2009-07-08T07:55:59Z

Starbucks have recently launched a new direct mail campaign designed to get people going to their stores in the US.

The campaign is comprised of a mini-envelope reminiscent of a wallet, which simply states on the exterior, “Give your wallet the day off.”

Inside the “wallet” there’s a mini Starbucks card pre-loaded with $5 ready for recipients to purchase a free drink.

The direct mail campaign shows effective direct marketing, as it targets Starbucks’ card owners with a deal that’s likely to entice them and will lead customers to continue to go back to the coffee outlet.

The campaign teaches other brands to keep their direct mail marketing simple and to target a market that will lead to more sales, as well as offering an item that’ll be appreciated and valued by the recipient.

The direct mail campaign has been rolled out in the US receiving positive feedback and is set to spread to the UK.

As featured on examiner.com.

Smaller email marketing lists more successful

Editor — 2009-07-07T08:30:55Z

Email marketing delivered to smaller direct marketing lists can have a greater effect than those delivered on a more widespread scale.

This is according to new research that has analysed the open and click-through rates for direct marketing over the second half of 2008.

Mail sent to “small and medium lists” had higher rates of both opening and click-through compared to those lists of over 1,000 subscribers.

Mailing lists that are smaller are targeted better, contain more relevant content and have more recent subscribers were shown to be more successful.

It was also revealed that marketing from travel companies were the most likely to be opened, with a rate of 27.6 per cent.

As featured on businessstrata.com.

TK Maxx campaign meets sustainable mail criteria

Editor — 2009-07-06T12:51:27Z

An environmentally friendly DM campaign has been developed for TK Maxx and is the first to meet Royal Mail’s Sustainable Mail criteria for a delivery discount of 4.7 per cent.

The campaign saw 148,000 mail pieces being designed to look like designer handbags, with the aim of encouraging customers to shop online for discount designer handbags on the retailer’s website.

The campaign is one of the first Royal Mail Sustainable Mail products in the UK. This ensures that the materials used come from sustainable sources and that the production processes demonstrate effective waste management.

Sustainable Mail is designed to help businesses improve the environmental performance of their direct mail campaigns. The process helps firms reduce waste streams and improves their sustainability, as well as reducing costs by up to 4.7 per cent.

As featured on thedrum.co.uk.

Direct marketing strategies for creating a website

Editor — 2009-07-03T07:51:20Z

Businesses can use direct marketing strategies to improve their overall online presence, according to marketing experts.

It has been claimed that companies need to consider direct marketing concepts such as, audience, offer and creative when starting their own website.

In creating a website, audience issues need to be taken strongly into account. This includes the behaviour of their target audience and traits relating to the demographic.

Also topics including the types of products being offered and their pricing should also be considered, alongside the style and quality of the content.

Experts note that a company’s website should always include the following five marketing factors: benefits rather than product features, a call to action, media and format, multiple response channels and brand incorporation.

As featured on businessstrata.com.

NS&I named as first government organisation to be set up with Sustainable Mail

Editor — 2009-07-02T08:53:55Z

The government-backed savings provider, National Savings and Investments (NS&I), have been named as the first customer within the government to meet Sustainable Mail environmental standards.

Sustainable Mail has been designed by Royal Mail to help businesses increase the use of environmentally-friendly materials in mailings, while reducing the amount of mail in the waste stream.

NS&I have almost 27 million customers and use direct mail on a regular basis to communicate with them. The new service will help minimise the environmental impact of the company’s direct mail campaigns.

Matthew Neilson, Head of Environmental Solutions at Royal Mail, states there has been tremendous interest in the Sustainable Mail service since its launch and encourages other firms to sign up.

Sustainable Mail is the first service available that’s consistent with the BSI standard for Environmental Performance for Direct Marketing. The standard, PAS 2020, was announced this January with the backing of Royal Mail and the Direct Marketing Association (DMA).

As featured on 24-7pressreleases.com.

Michael Jackson - The King of Pop and Marketing Genius

Editor — 2009-07-01T08:31:39Z

Unless you don’t have any form of communication with the outside world, you would’ve heard the news of Michael Jackson’s untimely death.

To many MJ will always be known as the ‘King of Pop’ and as man who revolutionised the video music industry, as he was at the forefront of the MTV era. However, people should also remember him as a man who marketed himself as a global music icon.

At the peak of his powers Michael Jackson was seen as a multidimensional entertainer, who broadcasted himself extremely well through the new medium of music videos. This helped MJ and MTV rise in tandem and made him a global icon for the visual images he created, as well as the singing.

Michael Jackson also developed a series of trademarks during his music career, which demonstrated his understanding of marketing a brand image to his fans. He did this through various things such as the glove, the moonwalk, his clothes on stage, and, most importantly, by christening himself the ‘King of Pop’.

Michael Jackson continued this brilliant marketing with elaborate shows that wowed the audience and got everyone talking. This is despite suffering a few setbacks with the child abuse charges and eccentric behaviour.

However, his astuteness at marketing himself before fans and a mass audience never truly faded, and this was shown in the publicity he created for his comeback tour, which would’ve started this month. He generated a huge amount of publicity with his brief appearance at the O2, creating unrivalled excitement for what was perceived to be his final tour.

Over his music career, Michael Jackson had many ups and downs, but throughout it all he showed himself to be extremely knowledgeable when it came down to marketing and creating publicity around himself, his tours and, more importantly, his music.

Data management and direct marketing hold key to business success

Editor — 2009-06-30T08:25:55Z

A data strategy employing traditional methods of marketing may be the key to survival for businesses struggling in the recession, according to a new survey.

In recent times direct mail has been overtaken by less costly marketing methods such as email marketing. However, research has found that direct marketing is eight times more effective than other strategies.

A huge strength of direct mail is that it has the ability to be more personalised than any other marketing method, making customers feel valued.

Many experts believe that personalisation and presentation are key to ensuring the success of direct marketing campaigns.

Start-up and growing businesses are more suited to mailing options when it comes down to deciding a marketing technique, particularly if they use data quality software.

As featured on qas.co.uk.