For this Monday's edition of DMI's Insights, I wanted to talk about confidence. Specifically, our confidence in the economy. A lot of times, people's perception of the economy tells us a lot more than what is actually going on.
SPRI, the Survey & Policy Research Institute at San Jose State University, conducts various surveys to capture people's perceptions. DMI has worked with SPRI to conduct a couple of surveys as well. Hopefully those results will be released shortly.
Their most recent survey was to test California consumer confidence along with Silicon Valley's consumer confidence. Based on their results, they found that overall confidence had increased. "The upward trend reflects a more positive assessment of both current economic conditions and future expectations."
One of the questions that I thought was interesting was Question #2, which asked: "Now looking ahead - do you think that a year from now you (and your family living there) will be better off financially, or worse off, or just about the same as now?" 77% of those polled in California and 79% in Silicon Valley believed that they would either be better off or at least the same as now. This shows that people are definitely encouraged by our current economic state and are hopeful of what's to come.
This is a perfect opportunity to market. It is important to take full advantage of the positive view we have of our economy. People are willing to support causes and invest in services based on that confidence. Also, people understand that in tough times, there are more of those in need. From our experience, we have seen many of our Non Profit clients continue to receive a lot of donations and even increase their donations in the past two years.
Please take a moment to review the full survey and let us know what your thoughts are. Do you agree with the results? How has your organization done in 2010 compared to 2009? What are your expectations for 2011 and beyond?
SPRI Consumer Confidence Survey Results
--L
Monday, January 31, 2011
Friday, January 28, 2011
DMI's Community Weekend
I thought Friday would never come! But here we are, embarking on another weekend.
For this edition of Community Weekend, I want to feature an organization that is near and dear to my heart...the Humane Society of Silicon Valley. I was just there last weekend to get a vaccine for my dog, and for those who know me, my dog is probably one of the most important people in my life.
In the month of January, the Humane Society of Silicon Valley is doing discounted microchipping. It will only cost you $30 instead of the normal $45. You only have a few more days to take advantage of this offer, so I encourage everyone who has a pet to consider getting them microchipped this weekend. No appointments are necessary so walk on in!
Even if you're not interested in microchipping, there are a variety of other services available such as spay/neuter surgery, vaccinations, grooming, a member's only dog park, and even a doggie daycare! The remodeled facility which is right off Ames Street in Milpitas, is a great resource for all pet owners. Or if you want to become a pet owner, check out the adoption section of the website and take a look at the available pets. I know you won't be able to resist the cute animals!
Click on the link below for more information about microchipping and browse around the site for other fun stuff!
HumaneSocietySiliconValley
Enjoy the weekend everyone!
--L
For this edition of Community Weekend, I want to feature an organization that is near and dear to my heart...the Humane Society of Silicon Valley. I was just there last weekend to get a vaccine for my dog, and for those who know me, my dog is probably one of the most important people in my life.
In the month of January, the Humane Society of Silicon Valley is doing discounted microchipping. It will only cost you $30 instead of the normal $45. You only have a few more days to take advantage of this offer, so I encourage everyone who has a pet to consider getting them microchipped this weekend. No appointments are necessary so walk on in!
Even if you're not interested in microchipping, there are a variety of other services available such as spay/neuter surgery, vaccinations, grooming, a member's only dog park, and even a doggie daycare! The remodeled facility which is right off Ames Street in Milpitas, is a great resource for all pet owners. Or if you want to become a pet owner, check out the adoption section of the website and take a look at the available pets. I know you won't be able to resist the cute animals!
Click on the link below for more information about microchipping and browse around the site for other fun stuff!
HumaneSocietySiliconValley
Enjoy the weekend everyone!
--L
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Wednesday Already?
As you may have noticed, there is a theme for each blog post. Wednesday's topic is to share something about DMI so you can get to know us better.
However, today I wanted to encourage the readers to get more involved in the blog. So, something that everyone here at DMI has expressed interest in, is getting more involved with our community. We all do things individually but I think it's more fun and makes a bigger impact if we can volunteer together as a group.
So once again, I need the help of the readers in giving us advice on what opportunities are available. We have resources and clients we can turn to, but why not try to expand our horizons.
All ideas and feedback is appreciated so don't be shy and leave us some suggestions.
--L
However, today I wanted to encourage the readers to get more involved in the blog. So, something that everyone here at DMI has expressed interest in, is getting more involved with our community. We all do things individually but I think it's more fun and makes a bigger impact if we can volunteer together as a group.
So once again, I need the help of the readers in giving us advice on what opportunities are available. We have resources and clients we can turn to, but why not try to expand our horizons.
All ideas and feedback is appreciated so don't be shy and leave us some suggestions.
--L
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Monday do over!
I know the thought of re-doing Monday is as bad as well...a Monday, but you will have to humor me, since I was out of the office yesterday at a doctor's appointment.
So since today is Monday (for me), it is time for DMI's Insights. A chance to discuss a relevant article in our industry.
Today's article is from Deliver Magazine's July 2010 issue titled "Alpha Mail." It sparked the interest of DMI, because it had to do with not just direct mail but targeted direct mail. The article focuses on Chris Newman, a "young advertising maverick" who was able to use web based concepts and apply them to dimensional mailings specifically for Sprint/Nextel.
My personal favorite was his peanut butter and jelly mailer. It was a box that contained a jar of peanut butter and a jar of jelly with the tag line "Not since PB&J has integration been so seamless." This was a business to business mailer to attract people to integrate their personal phones with their business lines. The thinking behind this campaign was to find a "concept of two things that are completely separate but really work well together as a whole." It's one thing to have a creative idea, but did it work? In this case, it did superbly! They had "exceeded the goal by more than 300 percent."
The reason I love this direct mail piece is because it is a simple idea that fit the client's theme and intent perfectly. Dimensional mail pieces can be fun (who doesn't like to open presents?), but you still have to be targeted and smart with the concept. Otherwise, you can invest in a campaign that does not produce responses.
DMI, along with Chris, strongly believe in developing a direct mail piece with the target audience in mind. This is at the heart of our direct marketing approach, where we start by modeling in order to gain insights on the customer's attributes and behaviors.
In our experience, we found that honing in on the target audience is the key component to any direct mail campaign. That's why we encourage our clients to mail less in order to increase their response rates and also reduce waste.
You can read the article here:
Alpha Mail - Chris Newman
What do you think about Chris Newman and his dimensional mailings? What kinds of dimensional mailings have you sent out? What were your results?
Feel free to contact us to discuss the dimensional pieces we have done and what our results and findings were.
Send along your answers and thoughts in the comments section below!
--L
So since today is Monday (for me), it is time for DMI's Insights. A chance to discuss a relevant article in our industry.
Today's article is from Deliver Magazine's July 2010 issue titled "Alpha Mail." It sparked the interest of DMI, because it had to do with not just direct mail but targeted direct mail. The article focuses on Chris Newman, a "young advertising maverick" who was able to use web based concepts and apply them to dimensional mailings specifically for Sprint/Nextel.
My personal favorite was his peanut butter and jelly mailer. It was a box that contained a jar of peanut butter and a jar of jelly with the tag line "Not since PB&J has integration been so seamless." This was a business to business mailer to attract people to integrate their personal phones with their business lines. The thinking behind this campaign was to find a "concept of two things that are completely separate but really work well together as a whole." It's one thing to have a creative idea, but did it work? In this case, it did superbly! They had "exceeded the goal by more than 300 percent."
The reason I love this direct mail piece is because it is a simple idea that fit the client's theme and intent perfectly. Dimensional mail pieces can be fun (who doesn't like to open presents?), but you still have to be targeted and smart with the concept. Otherwise, you can invest in a campaign that does not produce responses.
DMI, along with Chris, strongly believe in developing a direct mail piece with the target audience in mind. This is at the heart of our direct marketing approach, where we start by modeling in order to gain insights on the customer's attributes and behaviors.
In our experience, we found that honing in on the target audience is the key component to any direct mail campaign. That's why we encourage our clients to mail less in order to increase their response rates and also reduce waste.
You can read the article here:
Alpha Mail - Chris Newman
What do you think about Chris Newman and his dimensional mailings? What kinds of dimensional mailings have you sent out? What were your results?
Feel free to contact us to discuss the dimensional pieces we have done and what our results and findings were.
Send along your answers and thoughts in the comments section below!
--L
Friday, January 21, 2011
DMI's Community Weekend
Happy Friday!
Every Friday I want to feature a local event that is going on in our community so if anyone asks what you're doing over the weekend, you have an answer! Send in any events that you want to have featured on Fridays and I will happily blog about them. You can send them by clicking on the Contact DMI link under About Me and fill out the submission form with all the necessary information.
For our first installment of Community Weekend...Happy Hollow Park and Zoo!
They offer a variety of education classes and camps for children (and adults) of all ages. This Saturday (01/22/11) there is a Zoo Babies class, where you guessed it, you can see baby animals. It's a great way for children to interact with the animals and meet other human children as well. Also, parking and admission to the park is free for all class participants on the day of the class. What a great deal!
For more information on the Zoo Babies class or any other class and/or camp, visit the website:
http://www.hhpz.org/index.cfm/id/120/
Enjoy the lovely January weather we're having and I'll see you at Happy Hollow Park & Zoo this Saturday!
--L
Every Friday I want to feature a local event that is going on in our community so if anyone asks what you're doing over the weekend, you have an answer! Send in any events that you want to have featured on Fridays and I will happily blog about them. You can send them by clicking on the Contact DMI link under About Me and fill out the submission form with all the necessary information.
For our first installment of Community Weekend...Happy Hollow Park and Zoo!
They offer a variety of education classes and camps for children (and adults) of all ages. This Saturday (01/22/11) there is a Zoo Babies class, where you guessed it, you can see baby animals. It's a great way for children to interact with the animals and meet other human children as well. Also, parking and admission to the park is free for all class participants on the day of the class. What a great deal!
For more information on the Zoo Babies class or any other class and/or camp, visit the website:
http://www.hhpz.org/index.cfm/id/120/
Enjoy the lovely January weather we're having and I'll see you at Happy Hollow Park & Zoo this Saturday!
--L
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Is it too late to make new year's resolutions?
The new year brought along a lot of new changes for DMI.
The major change was our move. We relocated our office to a business park on Zanker Road. If you think moving from house to house (or apartment to apartment) is tough, imagine moving an entire office! There were a lot of logistics involved but we are finally settling into our new space.
Timing our move with the new year was perfect. It gave us all a chance to start 2011 fresh with a list of things we wanted to accomplish not only in our new space but as a company.
One thing we wanted to start in the new year was this blog. Many times, we only talk to our clients for the duration of a project, so we wanted to have a platform to convey information. Our blog will cover a variety of things such as relevant direct marketing information, updates on DMI, and a venue for clients to promote or discuss important issues and/or events.
So my first (of many) new year's resolutions is to make this blog useful and fun for the readers with regular updates and engaging topics.
I encourage everyone to leave a comment on what their new year's resolution is so we can all reflect at the end of the year on how we did!
Happy belated new year! Here's to a wonderful 2011!
--L
The major change was our move. We relocated our office to a business park on Zanker Road. If you think moving from house to house (or apartment to apartment) is tough, imagine moving an entire office! There were a lot of logistics involved but we are finally settling into our new space.
Timing our move with the new year was perfect. It gave us all a chance to start 2011 fresh with a list of things we wanted to accomplish not only in our new space but as a company.
One thing we wanted to start in the new year was this blog. Many times, we only talk to our clients for the duration of a project, so we wanted to have a platform to convey information. Our blog will cover a variety of things such as relevant direct marketing information, updates on DMI, and a venue for clients to promote or discuss important issues and/or events.
So my first (of many) new year's resolutions is to make this blog useful and fun for the readers with regular updates and engaging topics.
I encourage everyone to leave a comment on what their new year's resolution is so we can all reflect at the end of the year on how we did!
Happy belated new year! Here's to a wonderful 2011!
--L
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