tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post2094179293554010181..comments2023-10-18T08:32:17.510-07:00Comments on Kevin Hillstrom: MineThatData: Catalog Choice: You Decide What Gets In ... Except When They Market Catalog Choice Webinars To You?Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post-61680042450193270282008-07-10T08:21:00.000-07:002008-07-10T08:21:00.000-07:00If there's been any recurring theme I've identifie...If there's been any recurring theme I've identified through this process, it is this.<BR/><BR/>One side of the argument sides with the fact that an organization, especially a non-profit, can market free services without obtaining prior permission from the consumer. This side of the argument has a problem with large corporations hawking merchandise without consumer permission.<BR/><BR/>The other side of the argument looks at the marketing tactics used by catalogers, and in this case, Catalog Choice, and believes that the marketing tactic is essentially identical. If the marketing tactic is identical, then how is Catalog Choice any better than the industry they seek to modify?<BR/><BR/>As always, both sides are right in many ways. And that is why I wanted reader feedback.MineThatDatahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14014200122021988374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post-7449867037075323242008-07-10T07:25:00.000-07:002008-07-10T07:25:00.000-07:00I'm a bit late to the discussion, as I've been dea...I'm a bit late to the discussion, as I've been dealing with an unexpected death (one of our beloved parrots) for the past week.<BR/><BR/>As a consumer, my perspective is that I rarely feel harassed until the third catalog arrives. I generally shrug off the first prospecting effort or two. Heck, I'll even admit that if the cover is unusually appealing, I've been known to actually flip though an occasional catalog to check for anything I might want or need. I'm a tough audience, though. I haven't received a single mailing this year that's caught my eye.<BR/><BR/>Catalog Choice is designed for people like me. It's not meant to eliminate the initial contact between a prospecting marketer and a potential customer. The system is set up to facilitate communication from users who've seen at least one catalog and who wish to decline further mailings.<BR/><BR/>It's unfortunate that CC didn't provide an unsubscribe option in that e-mail even though it was a one-time, extremely targeted, nonprofit type of thing. Hopefully they will respond to your critique, Kevin, and modify any mailings of this type that they do in the future. But otherwise, I guess I'm not seeing any real ethical or even ironic issues with the way they handled this particular situation.<BR/><BR/>The one other difference I'm noticing—and please correct me if I'm wrong about this—is that there doesn't seem to be a charge for the webinar. We could start a discussion about whether time is money. But an e-mail saying "Hey, here's a free educational opportunity, if you're interested" doesn't feel the same to me as a catalog that's going after my hard-earned cash. (And despite the fact that I absolutely love my calling, massage therapy does involve significant physical labor. Most of the time, a $50 trinket is not a good trade for an hour of simple pleasure with my feet up and a bird on my shoulder. However, I almost always enjoy learning new things, and when I'm learning online, I can still put my feet up and be near my birds.)<BR/><BR/>Anyhow, hope that makes sense and wasn't too gawdawful lengthy. This is one of the few places where these issues are being intelligently discussed. I appreciate that you're providing a venue for that, Kevin, even if it was by accident.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post-66998412024488436982008-07-01T06:34:00.000-07:002008-07-01T06:34:00.000-07:00Anonymous --- a few additional thoughts. You ment...Anonymous --- a few additional thoughts. <BR/><BR/>You mentioned that "just one e-mail" doesn't make a campaign. That is worthy of a separate post, completely independent of this topic. Just what exactly, in the mind of the customer, is a "campaign"?<BR/><BR/>Finally, I want to make it very clear --- I am addressing my loyal audience about this topic, not the peripheral audience that I gained early last year, then lost right away. Last year, I wrote a few topics, saw that the subscriber counts increased, and thought that was a good thing. Yesterday, I noticed that my visitors were from catalog brands, the exact audience I was speaking to.MineThatDatahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14014200122021988374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post-9129782069408337072008-07-01T06:11:00.000-07:002008-07-01T06:11:00.000-07:00Sure, anonymous, you have a point. I'm not sure p...Sure, anonymous, you have a point. I'm not sure picking is the right word, however ... frustration might be a better word, or exasperation might be a better word.<BR/><BR/>As a sole proprietor, I only have one phone number ... so it is business and personal. You may judge that as you wish, it is entered in the do not call registry.<BR/><BR/>You may also judge "just one e-mail" as not being a campaign. In that case, you would have to allow a customer receiving "just one catalog" as not being a marketing campaign either, right?<BR/><BR/>I would have liked to have not written about Catalog Choice anymore. I did attract the wrong audience. Since they marketed to me, I wanted to ask my audience, the ones Catalog Choice is trying to modify behavior with, what they thought. Maybe I shouldn't have said anything. Thanks for the thoughts.MineThatDatahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14014200122021988374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post-73107452553735297732008-07-01T03:52:00.000-07:002008-07-01T03:52:00.000-07:00Curious...you wrote last week about attracting wro...Curious...you wrote last week about attracting wrong audience by defending Catalog Choice and that when you went back to main subject of your blog, you lost that audience and audience you had prior. <BR/>Now you post a comment picking at Catalog Choice---trying to draw back fans that may have been turned off by your pro-catalog choice posts before?<BR/>The original email from them was targeted likely due to your positive relationship with Chuck Teller who had posted on your blog from before.(his comment seems to confirm that) <BR/>Does one email really count as a "marketing campaign"?<BR/>You do have a point with the follow-up phone call. That does tarnish their image of Opt in marketing. <BR/>Devil's advocate---if it is a business phone number, does that qualify on the do not call registry? I thought Do Not Call registry is for personal(white pages) numbers.<BR/>Obviously Chuck Teller would have gotten further if instead of email and phone, he had done a more personal email or post on your blog.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post-50069272992296113342008-06-30T21:50:00.000-07:002008-06-30T21:50:00.000-07:00Thanks for responding, Mr. Teller. I included a l...Thanks for responding, Mr. Teller. I included a link to your comment as a new post.<BR/><BR/>The strategy of outreach to consultants, especially in my case where you did not previously have my phone number and did not have prior permission to market to me via the phone number, is not fundamentally different than the strategy you are discouraging catalog marketers from executing.MineThatDatahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14014200122021988374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post-37836180784393231562008-06-30T16:22:00.000-07:002008-06-30T16:22:00.000-07:00I almost died laughing at this post, Kevin. Wow--...I almost died laughing at this post, Kevin. Wow--like anonymous said--the ultimate in irony.<BR/><BR/>It's very similar to the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) sending so many duplicate brochures about their conferences. I guess they haven't heard of database management or a thing called merge/purge...Suzanne Ortizhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02454692691964469323noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post-24655299410568822922008-06-30T15:37:00.000-07:002008-06-30T15:37:00.000-07:00Dear Kevin,Thank you for your thoughtful post on C...Dear Kevin,<BR/><BR/>Thank you for your thoughtful post on Catalog Choice.<BR/><BR/>The focus of Catalog Choice is on unwanted catalogs. We hope to help consumers reduce unwanted catalogs, while still receiving those catalogs they want and from which they plan to order. Like the merchants who have created accounts on our site, we see the importance of honoring the preferences of our users and contacts in being contacted by us.<BR/><BR/>I assure you that the list of Catalog Choice users, or those who have created accounts on the site, receives only emails that follow the guidelines you mention. All of our marketing emails contain opt-out information and are only sent if the user gives us permission. We adhere strictly to our privacy policy, and we use the same standards as industry in gathering and verifying user data. We are committed to honoring all requests to opt out.<BR/><BR/>Outreach for this webinar was targeted to a small list of 20 consultants with whom Catalog Choice had already communicated through other means, and with whom we already had a relationship. This list was created just for this webinar; it is not being established for making regular contact. Contact information for a Catalog Choice staffer and a public relations advisor were provided in the email, and both of these people would be happy to remove someone from the outreach list on request.<BR/><BR/>I'd like to assure you that Catalog Choice does hope to have a strong, collaborative and beneficial relationship with the catalog industry. This is the very reason why we are holding this webinar. We understand the importance of holding ourselves to the same standards, and we are continually striving to find new ways to improve our practices. We appreciate you starting this conversation and welcome you to contact us at any time with concerns.<BR/><BR/>Regards,<BR/><BR/>ChuckAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post-14421246073068923442008-06-30T08:59:00.000-07:002008-06-30T08:59:00.000-07:00I am hopeful that they simply made an honest mista...I am hopeful that they simply made an honest mistake, and did not consider the similarity in the marketing techniques they use vs. the techniques employed by the very industry they are trying to modify.MineThatDatahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14014200122021988374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post-11818713526199194042008-06-30T07:14:00.000-07:002008-06-30T07:14:00.000-07:00Please re-write the definition of irony in the dic...Please re-write the definition of irony in the dictionary. The above story highlights it perfectly.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com