Tag Archives: DR radio

Sep 24

Response September: Telebrands at 30, I.Predictus at 1, and the State of the Industry

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RES0913_CV1The September issue of Response has been available online since Friday. Hopefully, if you’re one of our readers, you’ve taken a look at it, but — if not — here’s some back story on the cover feature on TELEBrands and AJ Khubani, as well as a number of the other key pieces in the issue:

  • September’s cover feature on TELEBrands takes an inside look at the direct response and retail giant that’s celebrating 30 years in business in 2013. In June, I sat down for a breakfast interview in New York with Khubani, who spoke eloquently and at length about the past, present and future of the business. His expertise and experience are unparalleled, as his company has helped drive the “As Seen On TV” category into a retail giant. Here’s the link again, if you missed it above: It Was 30 Years Ago Today …
  • Every September, we bring you our annual State of the Industry Report feature, where we query the esteemed Response Advisory Board regarding what’s happening right now — and what’s to come — across the direct, digital and data-driven marketplace. We’ve been fortunate, in recent years, to take advantage of technology to overcome the space limitations in print media by using our website to publish the full and unabridged answers of our contributors. So, even if you’ve already read the print version, I’d urge you to click on the following link now to get the rest of the story: 18th Annual State of the Industry Report
  • For the first time since our May issue, the DRMA Spotlight is back! This month, the spotlight falls on Direct Response Marketing Alliance member I.Predictus, a technology company looking to revolutionize the media buying business with high-end algorithms that could maximize the measurability of direct response media. I sat with the company’s founder, Monica C. Smith (who also founded Marketsmith, another well-known company in the DR space), in San Diego in August to hear more about I.Predictus’ technology and Smith’s vision. If you missed the link above to the written feature, click here: I.Predictus Takes the Gamble out of Media. If you’d like to watch the video interview with Smith, click here: DRMA Spotlight Video — I.Predictus
  • There was more tough news in our latest analysis of the DR industry’s quarterly media billings results. Taking a look at DR radio’s 1Q 2013 billings results, a $2.1 million loss (15.9 percent) from the same quarter a year prior continued the troubled story started by 1Q DRTV results. The $11.2 million total was the second-lowest result in a first quarter since 2005. For a full look at all the categorical and outlet results, here’s the link: 1Q 2013 DR Radio Media Billings Fade by $2.1M
  • My Editor’s Note makes a link between the voting for the DRMA Marketer of the Year (the winner of which will be revealed on Sept. 25 in Las Vegas) and the voting that also has a major hand in deciding the champion of one of my favorite sports, college football. See for yourself if I drew a clear enough parallel before joining about 900 of your closest friends at Vanity at the Hard Rock in Vegas tomorrow night! Here’s the link: All Polls Are Not Created Equal!

Thanks again for reading and interacting with Response!

Jun 29

Response June: Vivarin Revived, Web Exclusive Content and More

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RES0613_CV1_0The June issue of Response has been available online since early last week. Hopefully, if you’re one of our readers, you’ve taken a look at it, but — if not — here’s some back story on the cover feature on Meda Consumer Healthcare and Blake Hawley, as well as a number of the other key pieces in the issue:

  • June marks the third consecutive issue that our cover feature subject harkens from the pharmaceutical/supplements business — and also the third consecutive issue featuring a speaker from Response Expo 2013, as Blake Hawley and the team at Meda Consumer Healthcare are in the spotlight. Hawley spoke on a panel (with our May cover boy, Vitaquest’s Charles Mooney) at our event in early April, following an introduction from long-time Response Advisory Board member Mike Medico of E+M Advertising in New York. Her efforts in bringing legacy supplement brand Vivarin back into the market spotlight via a DRTV drive-to-Web and drive-to-retail couponing campaign are a great example of the power direct response can have in this vertical category. And Meda’s trusting Hawley to do much the same this summer for a brand that any TV viewer from the 1950s-1980s remembers well: Geritol. Here’s the link again, if you missed it above: Wake Up!
  • June also marks the return of an annual feature: our look at the home shopping space. As technology grows, the leaders in the space, such as QVC and HSN, are seeing their business become much more of a Web-based, data-driven, customer relationship model. At the same time, the success of the medium has drawn a new level of marketer to these networks in recent years, including Disney and Coca-Cola. It’s an intriguing read on a business that’s bursting at the seams. If you missed the link above, here it is: Home Shopping Comes of Age
  • The online edition of the June issue features a pair of Web Exclusive columns that did not appear in the print edition: Peter Koeppel of Koeppel Direct muses on second-screen research and the possibilities presented by the expansion of smartphone and tablet use, while Dial800‘s Scott Richards writes about the challenges — and some solutions — of the ever-expanding field of legal services advertisers in the local short-form DR space.
  • Our latest analysis of the DR industry’s quarterly media billings results circles back to DR radio billings’ 4Q 2012 results. Unlike both long-form and short-form DRTV results, both of which celebrated banner years, DR radio essentially broke even with 2011 when all was said and done. The fourth quarter’s 3.1 percent drop left total billings for the year off by less than 1 percent total. For a full look at all the categorical and outlet results, here’s the link: DR Radio Media Billings Slide 3.1 Percent in 4Q 2012
  • Finally, my Editor’s Note reflects on the growing power of direct, digital and data-driven marketing in the pharmaceutical and supplement space. With June marking our third consecutive month featuring a marketer from this space on the cover, it’s worth considering how the powerful combination of direct response, online and retail is pushing the vertical to new heights. If you missed the link to my the column above, here it is once again: Pharma/Supplement Marketers Provide Incredible Response Solutions

Thanks again for reading and interacting with Response!

Mar 18

Response March: An Ameriprise Package, Knight Time at Expo and Cannella in the Spotlight

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Response March 2013The March issue of Response is now available online. From an intriguing look at a direct-to-consumer insurance group working under the umbrella of one of the largest financial service firms in America to the announcement of Bob Knight as Response Expo keynoter and more, let’s take a look at some of the key pieces to the issue!

  • Much like last month, our cover feature on Ameriprise Auto & Home Insurance and its vice president of marketing, Lisa Jossart, saw its genesis from a meeting request at last October’s DMA show in Las Vegas. I spent some time listening to one of Jossart’s key players, Jill Fochs, during an educational session. Fochs’ expertise on the digital side of direct — specifically in social media — was so interesting that we decided to bring her on to present a case study at Response Expo on Thursday, April 4. Jill connected me with Lisa, whose expertise in direct-to-consumer marketing — and an interesting twist on partner marketing — is, suffice it to say, expansive. Here’s the link again, if you missed it above: Doing Direct Differently
  • Once again, there are two items of note in our Field Reports (aka, news) section this month. One is my Q&A with long-time DR industry production leader Rick McIntosh about his company’s history, recent successes and hopes for the future. The other is the announcement of our Response Expo keynote speaker: coaching legend Bob Knight. As a sports fan, Knight’s history of success is as appealing as his personality is polarizing. There’s no question Expo attendees are in for an interesting evening when Knight kicks off the Expo on Tuesday, April 2. The good thing is, there’s still time to register to catch Knight and all of the rest of the special events and opportunities Response Expo has in store. Check out these stories and more DR news here: Field Reports March
  • In DRMA news, Cannella Response Television is in the Spotlight this month. We’ve been working with the Burlington, Wis. and Los Angeles-based company for years here at Response, so catching up with Tony Besasie and Rob Medved about the company’s years of leadership in the long-form media buying space wasn’t unexpected. However, hearing the duo talk so incisively about the direct response marketing space as a whole — from television to digital and more — was refreshing in a world where many get so locked into their little slice of the pie. To watch the video interview I shot in Wisconsin in mid-January, click this link: DRMA Spotlight Video on Cannella Response Television or check out the print story here: Staying Ahead of the Curve
  • Our latest analysis of the DR industry’s quarterly media billings results circles back to DR radio billings’ 3Q results. Mirroring both long-form and short-form television counterparts, DR radio results stayed essentially even with the same quarter of 2011, helping the overall outlook for 2012 remain solid. For a full look at all the categorical and outlet results, here’s the link: 3Q 2012 DR Radio Media Billings Down $233K
  • Finally, my Editor’s Note waxes a bit on stretching our your business travel legs during the past month or so before swinging into why you must make sure that Response Expo is a part of your 2013 travel schedule. You can say I’m biased when I say that the Expo will be your best business travel investment of the year — and you’d be right. But just because I have that natural bias for and belief in my own work and that of the Response team doesn’t mean I’m wrong. 🙂 If you missed the link to my the column above, here it is once again: Next Month’s Response Expo Will Be Your Best Biz Travel Investment of 2013

Thanks again for reading and interacting with Response!