Broker Roundtable: Holiday 2011 Outlook
Welcome to Broker Roundtable, where each week we ask list brokers to give their opinions on issues that matter to the marketing community. This week’s question: What is the outlook for holiday mailings this year?
Our panel includes Leland Kroll of Kroll Direct Marketing Inc.; Stefanie Pont, of Pont Media Direct; Jay Schwedelson of Worldata and Herb Torgersen of DirectInnovations Inc. Would you like to be considered to be a member of our roundtable? Contact Larry Riggs ([email protected]).
Leland Kroll, president, Kroll Direct Marketing Inc.:
The outlook for holiday mailings this season will probably be marginal for mailers not able to “think outside the stamp.” It all depends upon how aggressive direct marketers are in testing new marketing concepts and channels leading up to the holiday season.
From a postal perspective, there have been a very limited number of new lists introduced to the marketplace. Consolidations continue and list universes are shrinking. Therefore, it is imperative for direct marketers to test a wide array of online secured files in order to evaluate their performance in advance of the holiday season. The online secured list universes continue to grow at a rapid pace, with daily and real-time data feeds being available. Additionally, unique self-reported information is often available that can’t be found or selected anywhere else!
Yes, with online data there will be duplication. Yes, there is much data floating around that’s being “recycled” and “repackaged” and yes, there are tremendous opportunities for astute direct marketers to capitalize on. Extensive amounts of research and testing of data needs to be conducted. The same business rules that we’ve been adhering to for decades still need to be implemented. Mobile marketing will continue to evolve and capture consumer’s attention and their wallets in a much bigger way. This is the time for multichannel marketing to advance and become integrated successfully on a daily basis.
Stefanie Pont, managing partner, Pont Media Direct:
Depends on what week you’re asking. In the spring, there was encouraging economic news and discussions about putting significant resources into holiday mailings. With the market down every day this week, suddenly those meetings are on hold to see where the economy is headed. There was a great piece on the news this morning that talked about the health and growth of U.S. corporations, in stark contrast with the stagnation of the U.S. workforce. Since we’re all trying to sell things to these workers, most of my clients are in a cautious mood. What I don’t see is an impact to the cost of the products being marketed. Launches of upgraded technical products are still viable in many marketers’ plans.
Jay Schwedelson, CEO, Worldata:
Holiday mailings seem to be heading in the right direction. The difficult part for these mailings has been that marketers have scaled back the number of new tests they have been willing to put in place in the periods leading up to the fourth quarter. This is leaving many marketers in a difficult position that they have budget but do not have solid results to base the mailings they may be planning to execute on. Email will play a major role in this holiday season as many marketers are planning multi-channel programs to leverage the major push towards online purchasing.
Herb Torgersen, president, DirectInnovations Inc.:
I think one would have to look to overall economic market conditions to try to formulate an outlook for the upcoming holiday season. Retail sales were strong in Q-1 without the aid of the automotive industry. April retail sales disappointed and May’s number have yet to be released. Unemployment rates are stagnant so the focus has to be on finding those consumers and companies who have the disposable income to spend on gifts for the holiday season.
May and June’s retail numbers will provide the marketplace with a keener insight into consumer psychology and the amount of disposable income available. Having said that and trying to predict the level of holiday mailings we also have to take into consideration how much online purchase are effecting traditional catalogers. Based on the economic climate I don’t think that there will be a spike in holiday mailings and I believe that if current levels are maintained a significant goal has been achieved.
Related articles:
