4 Ways Operating on Auto Pilot is Weakening Your Performance

Often times we get caught up in focusing our attention on the next “big thing”? It’s human nature and completely justified as we continually search for that silver bullet or walk-off home run for our businesses. While searching for this next big thing, we often put other programs or processes on auto pilot, and sometimes Read More 4 Ways Operating on Auto Pilot is Weakening Your Performance

What it takes to REALLY move the needle

As direct marketers, we all spend much time “fine tuning”, working under the premise that success will come from the cumulative effect of applying “best practices” in everything we do. This is especially true for us “data geeks” who are continually tweaking this or that model or contact strategy. This search is even more intense Read More What it takes to REALLY move the needle

Why your buyer file may not be as valuable as it used to be: A lesson in lifetime value

The internet is a wonderful marketing tool for most companies, but the impact it has on your house file is often not accounted for. Let’s take a journey back in time; say 5 years ago, when there was an explosion of online marketing services that helped deliver new customers, online, at an unbelievable return on Read More Why your buyer file may not be as valuable as it used to be: A lesson in lifetime value

Don’t Put All Your Reactivation Eggs in One Basket

One of the biggest assets a mature direct marketing company has is their house file, and within that house file are pockets of lapsed customers, normally thought of as 12+ or 24+ month buyers. Through RFM segmentation, scoring, NaviStone® and/or house file modeling, companies are able to identify which of these customers qualify for postal Read More Don’t Put All Your Reactivation Eggs in One Basket

Be Careful with In Home Dates around World Events

Over 25 years ago, I was having dinner with a wise COO of The Sharper Image when he remarked that we were in for a bad year of sales. When I asked why, he responded, “it’s an election AND an Olympic year”? He had tracked the performance of all the various catalog companies he had Read More Be Careful with In Home Dates around World Events