Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Giving Thanks

As I walked around the office wishing everyone at RMI a Happy Thanksgiving, I am overwhelmed with how much I have to be thankful for.

Labels: holiday

posted by Tally at 12:58 PM   0 comments

Monday, November 23, 2009

Are we on the cusp of an upswing??

Wondering if the credit card mailers of the world know something that we don’t. I saw in a recent issue of Direct Newsline that in the month of October credit card issuers sent out 180 million credit card offers to consumers. That is a 34% increase over the previous month. We haven’t seen that kind of volume since last December.

Could it be that finally companies will begin to extend credit to the American consumers once again? What will follow, the banks???? Couldn’t Be! Well here is one consumer that is hoping that these types of behavior will lead the economy and the direct marketing industry out of the doldrums of 2009.

Labels: economy

posted by Michael Kertelits at 10:16 AM   0 comments

Thursday, November 19, 2009

2010 Fundraising Results - Creeping optimism

The blog, The Agitator, sent out a survey to non-profits a few weeks ago to gauge what fundraisers plans are for 2010. Today, they shared their results:

The broad question was asked: "Looking ahead, do you expect to raise more money in 2010 than in 2009?51% expect to raise more money in 2010; 40% about the same; 9% less

• 20% of the respondents feel bullish about 2010 and plan to ramp up their fundraising appeals; 56% think the yield will be modest.
  
• Those who thought they would raise more money were then asked how they expect their fundraising efforts to improve...62% expect to have better prospecting results while 63% thoguth their major gifts program would improve.
  
• 235 fundraisers participate in the survey and if half feel they are going to raise more money than in 2009; then I'm all for creeping optimism.

Labels: nonprofit

posted by Siobhan Caragine at 11:46 AM   0 comments

Friday, November 13, 2009

Ingenuity!

This year has not held positive news for the publishing industry, there have been numerous press releases about publications closing or consolidating. So when I heard about the “augmented reality” feature that Esquire is building into its magazine, I wanted to learn more.

The basic definition is a layer of data (audio, video, graphics and animation) over live video. With webcams on most computers, this technology has been used in other applications - but Esquire put it into their publication for the subscriber.

I went to Esquire's website and watched the brief video on how the marker on the cover turns the magazine into a live video. Not only does Robert Downey Jr. come alive, but there are jokes and fashion pages which change based on the weather.

I am absolutely intrigued and I will be making a stop to pick up my copy of Esquire. It may turn me into a subscriber.

Labels: publishing, video

posted by Tally at 9:50 AM   0 comments

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Honoring our veterans

Established in 1926, Veteran's Day is a holiday for us to honor our heroes; an opportunity to publicly commemorate the contributions of our living veterans, and to remember those who have fallen.

"Freedom is never free."

~Author Unknown

To find out what programs and services the VFW does to support our troops all year long, please check out their website, http://www.blogger.com/www.vfw.org. If you'd like to contribute to the VFW's cause, please go here.

Labels: veterans day, VFW

posted by katie geraci at 11:23 AM   0 comments

Friday, November 6, 2009

RMI gets pink!

Labels: client, fundraising, nonprofit

posted by katie geraci at 4:27 PM   0 comments

Don’t bury direct mail yet!

According to a study on channel preference performed by ExactTarget and published on printweek.com Direct Mail is still #1 in regards to influencing purchasing decisions.

It was found that of the 1,500 internet users polled, some 76% of them said they purchased something after receiving a direct mail piece.

This compares to only 67% from TV advertising, 58% for email & 17% for telemarketing.

The study goes on to say that direct mail also influenced 75% of the “younger” population (ages 25-34) to make purchases. This is the demographic that some marketers believe would only make purchases based on influences from electronic media.

The bottom line is that direct mail still provides the best ROI for organizations. Thank goodness I don’t have to utilize that plan B career option yet.

Labels: direct mail, ROI

posted by Michael Kertelits at 12:03 PM   0 comments