The Future of Direct & Digital Marketing - April Meeting Wrap-Up
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Winterberry Group’s Jonathan Margulies Explores the Future of Direct & Digital Marketing, And How To Prepare, at the PDMA April Meeting.
“Sure, the economy is bad but there are opportunities for those marketers determined to weather the storm,” said Jonathan Margulies, Director, Winterberry Group, before a room full of eager-to-learn regional marketers gathered at the April 15, 2009 lunch meeting of the Philadelphia Direct Marketing Association.
Margulies, whose global strategic firm that helps advertising and marketing companies build profits and propel shareholder value, shared a great deal of data related to the impact of the bleak economy on marketing and advertising – both above- and below-the-line advertising spending.
He reviewed, in particular, the perfect storm that has caused the current direct mail crisis, citing rising costs, consumer preferences turning towards digital, and the global economic downturn. He also pointed out that although digital ad spending increased by 11.2% in 2008, and social media marketing spending is projected to grow 10% in 2009, no one really knows from where the profit will come.
He reviewed, in particular, the perfect storm that has caused the current direct mail crisis, citing rising costs, consumer preferences turning towards digital, and the global economic downturn. He also pointed out that although digital ad spending increased by 11.2% in 2008, and social media marketing spending is projected to grow 10% in 2009, no one really knows from where the profit will come.
Despite the negative news, Margulies’ overall message for how to succeed was a positive one. “Marketers that want to position their companies to succeed must do three things,” he said. “Go back to basics! This means getting efficient, getting effective, and identify the opportunities for innovation.”
Margulies offered these recommendations for making changes that could have dramatic impact:
-- Examine operations, identify waste and automation opportunities, break down silos, and educate your teams.
-- Find key data and organize it to make it actionable…adopt better targeting practices… and eliminate non-performing channels. Seek to understand the value of different types of data.
-- Focus on developing marketing operations to be a center of excellence within an organization. Restructure around functions (i.e. marketing process design, digital asset management, data compilation, media buying, etc.) rather than media channels.
-- Be willing to experiment. Ford is testing social media by giving 100 new Fiestas to 20-year olds in hopes that they post their experiences in a positive way.
“The key to success in this – or any market condition – is to identify core competencies
and develop growth strategies that are aggressive but attainable,” Margulies advised. “One thing you can count on is that situations will continue to change. Savvy organizations will capitalize on emerging trends, then integrate and innovate.”
Thank you to our meeting sponsors:
Booth Bay Creative and Direct Group.
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