Dec 31

Response December: Subaru’s ‘Love,’ Programmatic Pragmatism, and TV Media Highlights

Response December Issue On the last day of 2014, I have some free time to pull together one last Response issue recap post. Our December issue went live online the weekend before Christmas and features a cover story on a major automotive marketer using direct, digital and data-driven tactics, as well as our new 2015 Media Timeline. While most of you are rightfully celebrating the holiday season (as I’ve been for most of the past week) and haven’t had the chance — or even the inkling — to check out the issue, here’s some of the back story on what’s inside!

  • Late in the summer I received an outreach from Diane Anton, corporate communications manager for New Jersey-based Subaru of America. The note was about the debut of the new Outback and the marketing campaign surrounding it, including a pair of new TV ads. Anytime a marketer as big as Subaru directs outreach to Response I know two things: 1) our message really is getting out to the right marketers; and 2) I will respond to that note ASAP. After a couple of calls with Diane — who was just a great pleasure to work with throughout the process — we were set for a cover feature with the automaker’s vice president of marketing Alan Bethke. With an interview and cover photo shoot that came together during the fall, the Subaru team was on top of everything we needed and was rather open about how crucial the digital and data-driven aspects have become in their successful “Love” campaign. If you missed the link above, here it is again: The Greatest ‘Love’ of All
  • Programmatic. If you work in marketing and advertising, 2014 was the year that you suddenly could not escape that word. And while it’s become a huge factor in digital media, there is still a lot of speculation on how programmatic media buying will affect the television industry. Heck, there is still a lot of speculation about what the word (and the concept) “programmatic means. We pulled together four experts from various sides of the television media world to give their insight on what to expect in 2015 and beyond. If you didn’t click the link above, here’s another chance: Programmatic Proliferation
  • During a breakfast in New York City in June, Dick Wechsler, leader of DR industry media buying agency Lockard & Wechsler Direct, first planted the seeds of a possible 2015 Media Timeline in the pages of Response. His thoughts — and those of Eddie Wilders, the LWD vice president who eventually worked on the piece with us — about the annual TV events that affect the average media buyer’s day-to-day efforts eventually evolved into the 4-page spread you see in this month’s issue. We’d love feedback on this piece, as we are considering making some version of it an annual occurrence in our pages. If you missed the link (to the opening spread in our digital edition — the best way to display the feature online), click here: 2015 Media Timeline: Following the TV Trends
  • Our monthly direct response TV and radio media billings update focuses on second-quarter 2014 DR radio results. After an outstanding second-quarter one year ago, DR radio’s 2Q 2014 results took a step back, more closely mirroring results in other recent April-June stretches. The network radio outlet faltered heavily during the quarter, leaving it almost wholly responsible for the $2 million total loss during the measured timeframe. To take a deeper look at 2Q 2014 DR radio media billings, click here: 2Q 2014 DR Radio Media Billings Slip $2 Million
  • Using January’s huge CES show (and our annual December feature on the consumer electronics space) as a jumping-off point, my Editor’s Note column talks about the divide between supporters of traditional — and even older forms of digital — media and the true believers in mobile media outreach. As usual, in any black-and-white debate, the truth about what will work best for marketers lies between. To read the column, here’s the link once again: Finding the Grey Areas Where Successful Campaigns Reside

Thanks again for reading and interacting with Response! Happy New Year and all the best in 2015!

Oct 02

Response September: Renker Cover a Big Get for Our Team

Response September 2014Trying to make the most of my dwindling time at home before yet another extended trip east, let’s follow Wednesday morning’s breakdown of Response’s August issue with this quick backgrounder of our jam-packed September issue. The issue hit first about two weeks ago, right around the time of our huge DRMA Marketer of the Year event in Las Vegas on Sept. 17. Let’s take a quick look at the issue, including a very special cover interview with Guthy-Renker co-founder Greg Renker.

  • There’s no way to sugar coat this: after years of trying to work our way up the ladder inside the current iteration of Guthy-Renker — and Response has solid relationships with a number of the company’s leaders, including Elliott Segal, Dirk van de Bunt and Kendra Elliott — to secure a cover feature on the company, we’d simply hit one wall after another. So when we first spoke with Brian Kurtz of Boardroom Inc., who was organizing last month’s Titans of Direct Response event in Connecticut, I was wary of the idea that we could find a way to speak directly with Renker himself. But, the newsworthiness of Kurtz’s event — a true who’s who of DR leaders and top creatives — made it an easy call to write a news story about it for our August issue. So I asked Kurtz for the “big get” — could we interview Renker about the event for this news story and, if so, would he be interested in doing a more wide-ranging (and exclusive) interview about the past, present and future of both Guthy-Renker and the direct, digital and data-driven marketing world? Kurtz said he’d give it a shot, and later that afternoon, I received a calendar request from Renker’s executive assistant for a call at 10 a.m. the next morning. The call couldn’t have gone better — Renker was a fantastic interview, as you’d expect, and so gracious about both speaking with Response, as well as his induction into the Direct Response Hall of Fame last year. Most importantly, you want to read his insights. Trust me. If you missed the link to the story above, here it is once again: Personable, Proactive, Powerful
  • For the 14th consecutive year, it was my honor and pleasure to put together our annual State of the Industry report, featuring the thoughts and insights of the members of our Response Advisory Board. Over the years, the topics have changed — and, crucially, expanded — as our focus has grown from DRTV to direct response marketing and now, as we all tackle this omnichannel universe, the behemoth we call “direct, digital and data-driven” marketing. While the story that appears in the print magazine is always solid thanks to our experts, the online version — featuring the complete and unabridged answers from each member of our Board that responded — provides one interesting take after another. If you didn’t click the link above, here’s another chance: 19th Annual State of the Industry Report
  • This month’s DRMA Spotlight takes a look at O2 Media and its subsidiary, Incredible Discoveries. For the multi-faceted piece, I was able to speak with the business’ president and CEO, Dr. Thomas C. Deters, as well as George Bayer, vice president of direct response for Incredible Discoveries, and George O’Neill, director of studio operations for O2. The new team behind the business is keen on maximizing its production expertise, product experience and access to programming on various cable networks to create a new kind of direct response opportunity. For more on O2 Media, click here: O2 Media Seeks a New Level of Excellence
  • In our monthly look at direct response TV and radio media billings, we focus on Kantar Media’s 1Q 2014 DR radio results, which were extremely positive. Pushed by a return to form from the local radio market and marketers’ expansion of the number of campaigns aired, DR radio enjoyed its best first quarter in three years, topping the $14 million mark. Led by two products — Guthy-Renker’s Proactiv Solution and the Rosetta Stone language line, each of which posted more than $2M in DR radio spending for the quarter — the DR radio market set a great tone for the year. To take a deeper look at 1Q 2014 DR radio billings, click here: 1Q 2014 DR Radio Billings Jump 28.5 Percent
  • Finally, we return to Renker for my Editor’s Note column this month. Suffice it to say that interviewing Renker felt like a bit of a “full circle” moment for me. Additionally, you get a couple extra pearls of Renker’s wisdom. To read the column, here’s the link once again: Renker’s Message Resonates, Whether It’s 2001 or 2014

Thanks again for reading and interacting with Response!

Jul 11

Response June: Magic Minerals, Home Shoppers and Mobile Solutions

Response JuneThe June issue of Response has been available online for just more than two weeks now — but if you haven’t taken a look yet, suffice it to say, there’s plenty of content you might want to take a glance at. Let’s take a look at the issue, including the cover feature on cosmetics industry legend Jerome Alexander, our annual look at the home shopping market and more.

  • With a 40-year run as a leader in the cosmetics world, Jerome Alexander’s history speaks for itself. Whether it’s his track record of placing products in high-end retailers like Neiman Marcus and Bloomingdales, or his recent two-decade run of success in home shopping both in the United States and abroad, Alexander’s seen just about every side of the product and marketing business. And now, after some time away from the U.S. retail space, Alexander has introduced his successful Magic Minerals line in some of the nation’s biggest retail outlets. But the most intriguing facet that I heard when Lindsey Carnett of Marketing Maven PR pitched the story was the reversal of a traditional DR/retail campaign — that is, Alexander gambled on the product’s success overseas and in home shopping to gain new retail acceptance in the U.S. He then began selling his product at retail prior to connecting with a group of industry vendors to create a new DRTV campaign expected to debut later this year. If you missed the link to the story above, here it is once again: Finding the ‘Magic’
  • A story that’s been on the editorial calendar each year since I joined Response in 2001, our look at the home shopping space has actually gotten a lot more interesting in recent years. Why? Most likely because the sector’s behemoths — QVC and HSN — are using some of the most creative combinations of TV, traditional online and mobile marketing in the entire world. Not only that, but even niche players like Jewelry Television are also making huge strides to become the “where you want, when you want it” type of online retailer that’s making so many waves today. Want to hear more about it? If you didn’t click the link above, here’s another chance: Mobilizing the Home Shopping Space
  • Whether it was a tragic quarter of epic proportions or Kantar Media’s measurement efforts slipped, 2013’s final quarter of direct response TV and radio media billings results proves no better for the DR radio market. Fourth-quarter billings dipped more than 62 percent from the same quarter in 2012 — with almost penny attributable to a shocking loss in the local radio space. Yes, that’s the same sector that had been carrying Kantar Media’s DR radio results for much of the year, causing concern that there might be a blip with Kantar’s local radio reporting for the quarter. Radio’s fourth-quarter troubles were also almost wholly responsible for 2013’s decrease in total billings in the space. For more on 4Q DR radio billings from Kantar and Response, click here: DR Radio Billings Lose Frequency in 4Q 2013
  • Finally, my Editor’s Note begins with a personal story about using mobile technology to help close a sale before pivoting to talk about mobile’s growing importance to marketers, retailers, regulators and — most importantly — consumers. To read my full take, here’s the link once again: Consumers Drag Marketers Into Mobile Future

Thanks again for reading and interacting with Response!