Bill Rancic, winner of the first season of NBC’s “The Apprentice,” will be the luncheon keynote speaker at Chicago Direct Marketing Days April 7-8 at Navy Pier.
He’ll talk about his direct marketing experience as founder of CigarsAroundTheWorld.com, as well as what it’s like to work with Donald Trump. Rancic’s prize for winning the reality show was a plum job overseeing construction of Trump Tower Chicago.
“From the CADM headquarters, you can see the Sun-Times Building being demolished, so we’re keeping an eye on his project,” joked Carol White, chairperson of 2005 DM Days, secretary/treasurer of the Chicago Association of Direct Marketing and head of the consultancy CL Associates.
Another keynoter will be Monica Luechtefeld, executive vice president, strategy and development for Office Depot, who will talk about customer-driven technologies and e-procurement solutions for corporate and international customers.
Around 1,500 are expected to attend this year’s conference, which has the reality television theme “Direct Marketers From the Real World.”
Two new tracks have been added for 2005, said White. Integrated marketing will highlight new developments, while emerging markets will showcase new opportunities for direct marketers in areas like healthcare and government marketing. Following much interest in CADM’s Hispanic special interest group, the Hispanic track also has been expanded this year.
Several marketers are scheduled to discuss case histories at the 51st Chicago DM Days, including Darren Feldman, director of DM and promotions at Guitar Center Inc.; Carrie Hoye, director of consumer marketing for the Chicago Tribune; Jon Groch, vice president, bank card products and marketing at Fifth Third Bank; and Jim Thomson, regional marketing manager for Allstate.
Other speakers are Timothy J. Baker, senior vice president and manager at J.P. Morgan Chase Bank N.A.; Martin Pazzani, chief marketing officer for Bally Total Fitness; Alisa Clark, membership coordinator for WYCC-TV20; and Roger Marcus, director of database marketing for the American Bar Association.
CADM marks its 50th anniversary this year. As part of the celebration, the association is holding an essay contest called “Toward the 22nd Century.” Members will be asked to share their thoughts on the future of direct marketing. The winner will receive two round-trip tickets on United Airlines to any destination in the continental United States (courtesy of United) and $500 cash (courtesy of MetroGroup). The award will be presented at CADM’s annual meeting in August.
For more information, visit www.cadm.org.
