Dec 21

Response December: Another Year Done … from A to zulily

The December issue of Response hit the web and mailboxes beginning late last week. And in a random bout of timeliness — plus the fact that I’m out of the office this evening through Jan. 2 — I’m here to recap it for you. This issue’s features include a cover story on zulily, a piece on the expanding consumer electronics market, our fourth Response Advisory Board roundtable of the year, and a web exclusive on the DR radio space. For more on how we built 2016’s last issue, read on:

  • zulily (and, yes, the folks there are all about that lower-case “z,” y’all) has made a name for itself in the e-retail segment in recent years. Reaching a coveted demographic — mothers between 25-44 — helps. Quality marketers running the business don’t hurt, either. The company first came to my attention when a long-time industry colleague and friend, Chris Johns, took a gig in the company’s strategic partnerships division in 2015. After a couple of meetings (ahem, cocktails) and a couple of calls to the right people, Chris put me in touch with Lindsay Powers in the company’s PR department. Lindsay did a splendid job wrangling this story with me, from helping select the right executive — Kevin Saliba, the company’s vice president of strategic partnerships and business development —to providing contact with zulily partner Crayola to help flesh out the story. With more than 15,000 brands selling products on zulily, it’s an intriguing case study on today’s expanding e-retail environment. If you missed the link to the story above, here it is once again: Giving Moms What They Want
  • Consumer electronics technology is not only a burgeoning vertical for marketers — it’s also crucial to the delivery of every marketer’s message. Freelancer Pat Cauley did a nice job of walking this line in his update on the CE space. From AR to VR and AI to IoT (Confused? Read the story to find out what those abbreviations mean) marketers of products that use those technologies are finding fertile ground, while marketers in other verticals want to maximize those technologies as outlets for their messages. In case you skipped the link above: A Space Odyssey
  • In preparation for our final quarterly Advisors Forum feature, I spent a couple of days digging through researchers’ many (and varied) predictions for marketing — digital, TV, and beyond — for 2017. After culling those down to some of the more interesting projections, I provided the members of our Advisory Board a series of questions on the topics raised. This useful year-end exercise provided a some surprising — and conflicting — responses. As always, the online version of the Advisors Forum presents our board members’ complete and unabridged answers. Here’s that story link again: Parsing the Projections
  • Our Doug McPherson spoke with media leaders in the DR radio space for a web exclusive feature. After a downturn earlier this decade, media billings research has shown DR radio expanding healthily in recent years. What’s driving this growth in a medium that’s often scoffed at? If you missed the link above, click here: DR Radio Rocks the Reach
  • Speaking of DR radio media billings, our monthly direct response TV and radio media billings return to the space for second-quarter 2016 results. Growth remains the buzzword, as an 11.7-percent increase over 2Q 2015 results led to radio’s best second quarter since 2007. For a full look at 2Q 2016 DR radio media billings, click here: DR Radio Billings Drive Forward in 2Q 2016
  • Other key items in this month’s issue include:
  • My Editor’s Note column leads with the big news: Response moved its offices — two whole miles — in late November (if you still need that new address: 2600 Michelson Drive, Suite, 1700, Irvine, CA 92612). From there, I riff a little about fresh starts, Response Expo, and reader feedback. It’s all very exciting! If you missed the link above, here it is: We’re Movin’ on Up!

Thanks again for reading and interacting with Response throughout 2016! I wish you a happy holiday season and all the best in 2017.