tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post8217604342581825963..comments2023-10-18T08:32:17.510-07:00Comments on Kevin Hillstrom: MineThatData: What Happened? What Will Happen?Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post-86706616018524161642008-01-09T15:25:00.000-08:002008-01-09T15:25:00.000-08:00They probably didn't have any choice, did they?They probably didn't have any choice, did they?MineThatDatahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14014200122021988374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post-24712456609244742222008-01-09T11:49:00.000-08:002008-01-09T11:49:00.000-08:00Perhaps you're psychic, Kevin! I'm sure that you s...Perhaps you're psychic, Kevin! I'm sure that you saw today's announcement from the DMA that they're re-vamping their Do Not Mail preference service, including taking off the $1 fee AND (probably most important to you and your readers) they're letting consumers opt out by brand and/or by individual catalog.Suzanne Ortizhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02454692691964469323noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post-81136655061860409592008-01-08T22:07:00.000-08:002008-01-08T22:07:00.000-08:00The challenge leaders have is the profit and loss ...The challenge leaders have is the profit and loss statement. For instance, if L.L. Bean gave customers the choice of how many customers they wanted to receive, and 1/4 of the file said four (instead of the current average of, say, 26), how does leadership justify the damage to the profit and loss statement?MineThatDatahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14014200122021988374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post-52700831042057580382008-01-08T20:30:00.000-08:002008-01-08T20:30:00.000-08:00Thanks for a helpful and (I think) accurate view o...Thanks for a helpful and (I think) accurate view of the future.<BR/><BR/>As direct marketers, we have always been the leading customer advocates in our companies.<BR/><BR/>We have fought hard to make it easier for customers to buy from us rather than fold to the organization's comfort zone.<BR/><BR/>All we need to do is interpret customer wants accurately using the data available on our relational databases.<BR/><BR/>We should also become more active customers of our own products to experience first hand what our customers go through.<BR/><BR/>We have a long way to go on the customer service end of the business. And customers are becoming more demanding when it comes to their buying and product ownership experience.<BR/><BR/>Who knows the most about a company's customers than the astute direct marketer? We are students of behavior rather than hearsay. We are in a unique position to lead our companies to long term prosperity.dmcghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02848109396803298279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32202893.post-11773832008107829292008-01-08T13:11:00.000-08:002008-01-08T13:11:00.000-08:00Tremendous post, Kevin. I believe that we are jus...Tremendous post, Kevin. <BR/><BR/>I believe that we are just now starting to feel the impact of the mantra,"The customer is in control". Over the past 10 years or so, consumers have increasingly gained control of their business relationships through a myriad of increased choices. Consumers have been given easier access to more brands, more merchandise, search engines, DVR's, Opting-in to marketing, product customization, peer-to-peer selling and much more. In the course of this change, Direct Marketing has become increasingly more difficult. <BR/><BR/>Old ways of measurement, targeting and prospecting are going to increasingly become ineffective. It is incumbent on us, as a direct marketing community, to change our tactics to accomodate the changing behavior of our consumers. <BR/><BR/>I hope that as an industry, we do not take the same tact that the RIAA has taken with digital music. License issues aside, consumers turned to sharing digital music because they wanted to gain access to music on their computers. Rather than providing that technology to them, the RIAA fought the rising tide through nothing less than contempt for their consumer. Sadly, they are still showing contempt for their consumers through a number of individual lawsuits against people who share files. <BR/> <BR/>Direct Marketing should learn from this experience. Rather than fight this trend, we should get ahead of it. Offer consumers the ability to choose how they recieve marketing from us, improve our segmentation and modeling efforts, give our customers (and prospects) a way to connect via a social networks, find and test new ways to prospect, and finally, be prepared for change in our businesses. <BR/><BR/>Bottom line, there are two ways to handle change; you can adapt to it or fight it. We have a lot of examples of what happens when businesses attempt to fight change. They spend a lot of money and effort in the fight, and generally do not win. Me, I would like for us to choose the path of less resistance. <BR/><BR/>It is a difficult road, but one I believe will be more lucrative in the end.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00184454129435282364noreply@blogger.com