Happy Holidays!

 

Have a wonderful holiday season from everyone at DMI! 

We look forward to a new year filled with prosperity and success. 

--L

Giving Back!

On Tuesday a group from DMI went to Second Harvest Food Bank to volunteer!

It was exciting to see how many other companies and individuals were there to volunteer their time. We were part of the group that was tasked with the job of food sorting. We went through barrels of food that was donated, sorted them, and then boxed them for distribution.

 














 

 
















 

Everyone had a great time and we can't wait to go back next year to help out again!


We are always looking for volunteer opportunities at local Non Profits, so please let us know if we can help.

--L

DMI's Community Weekend - Thanksgiving Edition!

Happy Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. I love spending time with family and eating a huge feast!

If you are looking for an activity to help prepare your appetite for the huge feast there is still time to register for the Silicon Valley Turkey Trot! With registration you get a cool shirt and the proceeds benefit Second Harvest Food Bank, Housing Trust of Santa Clara County, and the Santa Clara County Children's Health Initiative.

Or if you want an activity after your Thanksgiving feast to burn off some calories, check out Christmas in the Park! They are having their opening ceremony this Friday, 11/25/11, at 5:30pm. I absolutely adore Christmas in the Park and everyone should go as many times as possible.

Have a wonderful holiday weekend! Gobble gobble!

--L

Happy Veterans Day!

Thank you to all the men and women who have served or currently serve our country. We are truly grateful.

--L

Imprint Indicia Advertising?

I can't believe how cold it has gotten over the past few days! Hope everyone is staying bundled up.

In the most recent MailPro magazine, there was an interesting article that caught everyone's attention at DMI, titled "Pilot makes perfect: USPS test indicia concept."

This article talked about a new initiative called Picture Perfect Imprint Indicia. This allows businesses to advertise on the imprint of the outer envelope as displayed in the sample picture below:

"Chrysler's test already has been used on an estimated 1 million mailpieces. Now USPS is interested in marketing this new enhancement to other current and potential permit holders as a way to add value to the mail and generate incremental revnue."





The USPS hopes this will appeal to businesses because it will "attract more attention and potentially improve the reading rate of their mailpieces."

I think this type of marketing has a lot of potential and can make direct mail much more personable.

What are your thoughts on this? Would a graphic on the indicia give you more of an incentive to open the mailpiece?

--L

Do we need to give up on QR codes?

I have been interested in QR codes since I started seeing them pop up all over the place. However, many people believe that QR codes are not useful as a marketing tool. I believe that if they are used correctly, they can be a powerful resource in a multichannel marketing campaign.

A recent article in AdAge agrees. The article highlights several successful QR code campaigns and also lists reasons why some QR code campaigns may fail. The main reason being:

•  No instructions. Not everyone knows what a QR code is and how to scan it. So it's necessary to include clear and concise instructions that include the benefits of bothering to make the scan. 

"Barcode usage in North America continues to expand in Q3 with 42.1% growth in the USA...compared to Q2." This means that people are now just starting to get the hang of these codes. When used effectively in direct mail, these barcodes can provide quick and easy access to your donation page, website, etc.

Has your company or organization given up on QR codes? If so, why?

--L

DMI's Pet Corner!

It seems like everyone at DMI has a pet so I thought it would be fun to feature them in today's post.

Meet Louis! He's ready to attack at any moment!

Gio loves his paperwork! What a hard worker!

Jacoby is a squirrel in training! Either that or he's meditating!

K Dog's tongue is larger than life! So is his personality!

Sheba is already preparing for the cold winter!

Stinky is not so stinky after her bath! So cozy!

Owen loves his pet chicken! Looks like we have a future farmer!

I hope everyone enjoyed getting to know us by meeting our adorable pets. Have a wonderful weekend!

--L

DMI's Community Weekend - Habitat Edition!

TGIF!

I have a wonderful weekend event for those who have no plans this Saturday.

Habitat for Humanity Silicon Valley is having a Habitat Walk Home event to kick off their "Cupertino housing development with a walk to [their] construction site to raise funding and awareness for low-income housing."

The event will start at 12:30pm with a wonderful BBQ lunch and raffle. Then the walk will start at 1:30pm with a marching band send off! All walkers will receive a t-shirt, wrist band, and a raffle ticket. All this only costs $25.00 for adults and $15.00 for students and children. Or you can sign up your whole family (2 adults and 2 children) for $60.00. What a bargain!

To buy tickets just click here:  http://habitatwalkhome.eventbrite.com/

Enjoy the wonderful weather this weekend!

--L

Fundraising Survey Results

The Nonprofit Research Collaborative has conducted a survey of nonprofits to identify trends in fundraising. The results were recently published and offered some good insights such as:

• "44 percent of responding charities reported increases in funds raised."
• "Almost all methods of fundraising saw increased results at about 30 to 36 percent of responding charities."
• "Just over half (54%) of responding charities investing in direct mail or in major gifts reported increased revenue from the method in the first half of 2011."

Even though it has been a rough economic year, it seems that a lot of nonprofits are reporting increases in fundraising. This survey provides an optimistic view of the rest of 2011, especially as we enter the holiday season.

DMI is also conducting a survey regarding charitable giving in conjunction with The Survey and Policy Research Institute at San Jose State University. You can view the reports from 2009 and 2010 in DMI Links (toolbar on the right hand side).

If you are interested in receiving more information about our current or previous surveys, please let me know and we will be happy to discuss them with you.

--L

P.S. Stay dry everyone!

DMI's Community Weekend - Oktoberfest Edition!

Happy Oktoberfest! But before you go out to have beer and sausages, there is another Oktoberfest event that I wanted to share.

The Humane Society Silicon Valley is having a Barktoberfest Dog Adoption Event on Saturday (10/01/11) from 11am-4pm.

"This dog adoption extravaganza features a wide variety of breeds and sizes such as Beagles, Poodles, Golden Retrievers, Terriers, Rottweilers, Chihuahuas, Pit Bulls, and more!" So check out the website and find the right dog for you.

After you adopt a wonderful new puppy, click on the links below for more traditional Oktoberfest events around the Bay Area:

http://www.examiner.com/restaurant-news-in-san-jose/updated-san-jose-oktoberfest-2011-events

http://www.mercurynews.com/dining-scene/ci_18965129?source=rss

--L

Direct Mail to the rescue!

It feels like I've been away from the blog for too long. I was on vacation last week but I'm back and ready to blog!

As many people know, the Post Office is in financial trouble and on the brink of default, per a recent article in Advertising Age Magazine. So what is the Post Office doing? They are developing programs to make direct mailing "friendlier in hopes of luring more revenue by reaching out to new users." Currently only "about 22% of businesses use direct mail." These programs will be part of a large TV campaign that is planned to air next year and is the first time the Post Office has "aggressively marketed" these types of programs.

One of the new programs is called "Every Door Direct Mail" which allows a company or an organization to "send out mailings that don't require specific addresses or names." You can drop off the pieces at your local Post Office and only pay 14.2 cents per piece for postage.

These new programs will allow direct mail to be much more cost effective and efficient. Direct mail is a large part of what we do here at DMI and we are constantly in talks with the Post Office to make sure we are informed and knowledgeable about these up and coming programs.

If you would like to learn more, please contact me!

--L

Direct mail's impact on the brain

I was recently given an article from Deliver Magazine that discusses the impact of direct mail on your brain from a recent study.

"A recent neuroscience study conducted jointly by research firm Millward Brown, Bangor University and the United Kingdom's Royal Mail shows direct mail makes a deeper and longer-lasting impression on people's brains than digital advertising."

"Three main areas of difference were uncovered between how study participants’ brains processed direct mail and digital messaging: The first area of difference was the degree to which the emotional centers of the brain were activated, with direct mail generating more or deeper emotional processing than the digital messaging. Second, the brain saw the physical material as more real than the digital messaging. Third, there was more activity in the areas of the brain that are connected to introspection when people viewed the direct mail."

So what does this mean?

• Direct mail is still essential in a marketing strategy. 
• "Companies that want to communicate and differentiate their brand over a long period of time... might want to consider using direct mail to deliver the message."
• Direct mail pieces should be engaging and be of substance in order to convey the message effectively. 

With the rise of digital media people are quick to dismiss direct mail, however, there is value in having a multichannel approach in marketing. As this study showed, people process and react differently to various types of outreach.

Contact me if you want to learn more about DMI's multichannel approach!

--L

Dreamforce!

Yesterday, our Research Associate and I attended the Dreamforce Expo in San Francisco. It is an annual conference by salesforce.com. There were a lot of people and everyone seemed very excited to apply social media concepts to sales, marketing, and production. Here are a few pictures from our adventure:

Social media at its best!

The room was filled for the keynote speech. Must have been over 40k people!

Entering the exhibit hall.

The cloud was the main theme of the Expo.

The cloud allows you to expand your services without having to install any actual software.

There were a lot of cool booths with great giveaways like these Dippin Dots!

Dreamforce gave me a lot of insight in applying social media in order to market to potential prospects, and learn more about your current customers/clients. I also learned a lot about cloud computing and what is possible with the existing platforms that are out there. As I learn more, I can't wait to share the information with everyone.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Labor Day weekend!

--L

Social Media Growth

I am a super fan of social media. I love being connected with people and getting up to date information quickly. Even if you are not an avid user of social media like me, you can't ignore the rapid growth.

Search Engine Journal recently produced a serious of infographics to show that social media is not "over-hyped" but is a rapidly growing industry. A couple of the infographics that resonated with me were (click on the graphs to enlarge them):

There is growth shown in every age group and every age group is using social media.

More and more companies are using social media for marketing.

There has already been significant growth in this industry and this trend will continue to grow. As more and more people use social media, companies need to recognize this channel and include it as part of their multichannel approach.

How do you personally use social media? How does your company use social media? 

--L

DMI's Community Weekend - Italian Festa Edition!

Happy Friday! One of the things I look forward to over the weekend is hanging out with family and friends and eating a great meal.

There is a perfect event that will fulfill both those requirements this weekend! It is the 31st Annual Italian Family Festa!

The event runs from 12pm-9pm on Saturday (08/27/11) and 12pm-6pm on Sunday (08/28/11) at the Guadalupe River Park in San Jose and admission is free! There will be live entertainment, wonderful Italian food, cooking demos, bocce ball, arts and crafts and much much more!

You can also feel good about enjoying this wonderful event because proceeds from this event will benefit the Italian American Heritage Foundation Scholarship Program and the various events held at the Italian American Heritage Foundation Cultural Center.

Enjoy the weekend. I hear the weather will be fantastic!

--L

Better Know a DMI Employee!

Who's ready for our 4th installment of Better Know a DMI Employee?

Today's interview is with our Operations Officer, W. Let's get to know W better!

L: How long have you been with DMI?

W: A little over 8 years.

L: What do you do when you're not at DMI?

W: I hang out with my family. 

L: Is there anything in particular that your family likes to do?

W: We play a lot of soccer. Even my 3 year old is going to start playing.

L: 3 year olds can play soccer too?

W: He's tired of sitting on the sidelines.

L: Wow! Is there anything else you do besides soccer?

W: I go to school which takes up a lot of time.

L: What are you studying in school?

W: I'm pursuing an MBA emphasizing in Finance and Entrepreneurship.

L: That sounds very interesting. Is it hard to balance work, family, and school?

W: Yes but I find a way to prioritize everything. Like most things you have to set your priorities.

L: Great advice! Thanks for your time. I know you're a very busy person.

I hope everyone enjoyed getting to know another DMI employee.

To read the previous interviews click on the links below:

http://datamarketinginc.blogspot.com/2011/03/better-know-dmi-employee.html

http://datamarketinginc.blogspot.com/2011/05/better-know-dmi-employee.html

http://datamarketinginc.blogspot.com/2011/06/better-know-dmi-employee.html

--L

DMI's Community Weekend - End of summer!

The summer is officially winding down. Kids are back in school and fall clothes are on the shelves of all the department stores.

We must celebrate the end of summer! Happy Hollow Park and Zoo is having an End of Summer BBQ with live music! The event is this Sunday (08/21/11) from 2-6pm.

Best of all, music and games are included with admission price (tickets to the park and zoo are only $12!). They will have BBQ, beer, and wine available for an additional charge.

So bring your family out and enjoy some good food and the nice weather while you still can!

Have a great weekend!

--L

Current Trends in Individual Giving

I came across a blog called The Non Profit Times while going through DMI's twitter feed (follow us @datamarketinc). The blog post offered 5 recent trends in giving that came from Margaret Holman at the 2011 Fundraising Day in New York.

The 2 trends that stuck out for me were:

• "Major donors continue to give, but they are narrowing their focus to fewer charities for bigger impact."

•  "Some trends are still true. For example: The most generous donors are likely to give by mail... and Giving still happens because donors are involved with organizations; 42% of donors volunteer with their organizations."

These 2 trends are important because it shows the importance of cultivating and growing your donor base. You want to make sure people know they are having a direct impact with their donation by communicating effectively and direct mail still is the effective method of communication. The organizations that show major donors what their donation will actually achieve, have a better chance in securing their donations. People are not able to give to as many charities as before.

Also donors want to be involved and engaged in the organizations that they support and that same principle works the other way around. Those who are already involved and engaged in organizations have a higher chance of becoming donors. 

For those involved in non profit organizations, do you feel that these trends are accurate in what you are seeing internally?  For those who are donors, do you feel that these trends are accurate in your personal giving patterns?

--L

Fun and creative QR Codes

QR codes are everywhere these days. I know I've mentioned them plenty of times on the blog.

I came across a post that showed off some very creative QR codes. I never realized you could alter the image to be more appropriate to your brand.

"'Designer QR codes are not only a way to make your 2D barcode stand out, but they also add a more human element to the otherwise cold and techie appearance.' says Patrick Donnelly, QR code designer and expert. 'This could be the difference between someone scanning your code or not.'"

My favorite one was:

This is a really interesting way to stand out in the crowd and also incorporate your logo or brand into the barcode.

Which ones did you guys like? Are designer QR codes something your company/organization would be interested in?

--L

Who is your audience?

Knowing your audience is to any marketing campaign. But what do we do when the audience is constantly changing?

A recent article titled Mosaic Marketing Takes a Fresh Look At Changing Society in the New York Times highlighted an agency that specializes in cross-cultural marketing. "As results from the 2010 census continue to be released, the changing demographic makeup of the American consumer market is increasingly a topic for discussion -- and action -- among advertisers and agencies. One trend to emerge is known as cross-cultural marketing, aimed at a general market that may be more of a mosaic than a melting pot."

This is a new approach to marketing because usually "traditional multicultural marketing is directed at specific demographics groups like Hispanics, African-Americans, Asian-Americans, women or gay and lesbian consumers."

Many large companies such as British Airways and Ikea are starting to use this new approach in their advertising campaigns and it seems that many other companies are signing on. Instead of singling out specific demographic groups, they are looking for agencies to find common ground between people so that the advertising appeals to all groups and is more cohesive. They are looking for "cross-cultural nuances that could work cross-culturally."

I think this type of approach can be useful in every aspect of marketing including direct mail. The data, creative, and copy should "appeal to consumer similarities rather than differences."

What do you think about this new approach?

--L