Virtual Fantom
Lynn Fantom, K2 Design Inc.’s CEO, wouldn’t be surprised if e-commerce profits doubled next Christmas. “The penetration of the market is still low enough that we will still be seeing huge magnitudes,” she says.
If so, Fantom may be in the catbird seat. K2 is an interactive agency that’s made a major impact in its less than six years of existence. The agency created a Web site for IBM to carry digital simulcasts of the first Deep Blue-Garry Kasparov chess match in 1996, and was the first interactive agency to become a member of the AAAA (American Association of Advertising Agencies). Its clients include Standard & Poor’s, Lexis-Nexis and Varsity Books.
“Web shops had been focusing on the development of Web sites. However, in recent years, they’ve taken a marketing-driven approach. Clients are served on an ongoing basis. They start with questions, insights and brands, execute programs, and ask about return on investment. It’s definitely a new business direction,” she explains.
K2 hired her to solidify the agency at that next level. Among the sectors Fantom hopes to explore are financial services, pharmaceuticals, travel and automotive. She also hopes to expand K2’s database management capabilities in general and e-mail capabilities in particular.
What is proving fun for Fantom is applying traditional DM practices to a “new” arena.
“We just completed a fourth quarter lead-generation campaign for Standard & Poor’s. We used direct response banners based on narrative communications and Enliven technology. It allows prospects to sign up within the banner but without leaving the site,” she says.
In proper DM fashion, the interactive banner was tested against the traditional banner. “The response with enliven was over 200% of the response with a traditional banner,” Fantom reports.
“When I thought about it, direct marketing and interactive marketing are one and the same, in terms of the underlying disciplines of targeting and measurability. But then I realized there were two powerful differences. In interactive marketing, the buyer initiates the contact and Web sites build communities,” she notes.
For 15 years, Fantom worked for DraftWorldwide, a DM agency owned by The Interpublic Group. In 1996, Interpublic installed her as CEO of its Lowe Direct subsidiary. She left the following year. Last November, K2 named Fantom CEO and elected her to its board.
