Recently I was on a keynote panel at the National Center for Database Marketing (NCDM).  In response to a question from the audience, one of my co-panelists pooh-poohed the value of web analytics.  He referred to it as just a fancy reporting mechanism for web activity with little relevance for marketing.  I was a little surprised by the comment and was itching to make a rebuttal, but the moderator chose to take the conversation in a different direction.  "Web analytics" is one of those terms that tends to be thrown around casually by folks seeking to impress others and can mean different things to different people (and mean nothing to most people).

Recently, we had interesting conversation with the senior executive in charge of customer service at a major client of ours.  This client uses our Precision email product to communicate with their customers on service issues, such as outages, delivery, scheduling of service calls, etc.

At a keynote panel at the National Center of Database Marketing (NCDM), I made a comment that customer marketing was eclipsing brand marketing as the core of marketing's mission in many companies.  That sparked a lively discussion among the panelists.  As is to be expected among panelists at a database marketing conference, there was general agreement that this was the case.  But is it, really?  Does brand marketing still matter?  Of course, it does!

The great health care debate this past summer could be a preview of what the future of marketing looks like.  How, you ask?  For some years now, the "mainstream" journalists who have been trained to fact check and present both sides of a story have been losing their voice to an ever growing multitude of  bloggers with extreme views , strong opinions and, in some cases, a disdain for facts and sober analysis.  This blogosphere, magnified by the echo chamber of 24/7 cable news channels, hungry for controversy and content, set the tone and the agenda for the shouting match that stood in for reasoned debate on the topic of healthcare, a subject of great concern for most Americans.  Professional journalists were caught by surprise and spent most of their time reacting to these controversies rather than reporting on the substance of health care reform.  Marketers have similarly embraced social networks as a way to generate word of mouth advertising, cross over tipping points, build fan bases and encourage consumers to generate their own content.   

One of the most annoying aspects of the customer experience does not have to do with the shopping experience but with the communication experience.    A constant refrain we hear from customers across the board (whether in B2B or B2C situations) is that they get too many calls or emails but often do not hear when there is relevant news that they are truly interested in.  On the other hand, a surprising (and dismaying) number of marketers still measure their productivity by the sheer volume of outbound communications (email, direct mail, calls, touches, etc.) rather than by the quality or even the relevance. 

Last month, I was on a keynote panel at the National Center for Database Marketing (NCDM).  The topic of the panel was "Evolving from Database Marketing to Customer Intelligence" and the discussion largely centered around the evolution of marketing into a bi-directional communication mechanism with customers across multiple channels and the challenges that brings.  An audience member asked the question, "Is technology the gating factor that prevents or slows marketers from embracing these changes?"   The panel differed on their responses.   Some felt, yes, technology was indeed an impediment to doing this well.     I and at least one other panelist disagreed.   

Marketers at most companies choose their campaign management tool in one of two ways. The first approach is to feel a pain around their ability to execute multiple, increasingly complex campaigns. They then figure that the right software can help ease this pain and go pick a software tool, have it implemented train their people and hope for the best. Not the best approach but one it is a road taken by many. This approach usually leads to regrets and recriminations, but that is to be expected.

The second way is a little more thoughtful and deliberate. This approach takes the time to identify business requirements, develop a business case not only for the purchase and installation of the software but also for any other related changes in process, organization and skill upgrades that may be involved in this transformation. See my colleague Joe Kelly's blog on selecting a marketing automation tool http://quaero.csgsystems.com/insight/blog/76-selecting_your_marketing_au... for more on this.

I attended the Forrester Marketing Forum held at the Walt Disney Yacht and Beach Club Resort in Orlando, Florida late last week. Nice venue, good conference. Some thought provoking speakers. I am not going to review the conference or all of the speakers in detail, but will try and provide some highlights from a few of the more interesting speakers, with a focus on observations that were not obvious.

There was, of course, a great deal of emphasis in the conference, on the use of social media and how it is changing the practice of marketing. The audience was encouraged to Twitter during the sessions and the moderators asked questions based on tweets and even gave away some prizes to select twitterers. Nice demonstration of the technology in action, in a very appropriate application.

It is axiomatic in marketing and customer management circles that it is much more difficult and expensive to acquire a new customer than it is to retain an existing customer. Estimates range from five to fifteen times as expensive, depending on the industry and situation. This is a reason why companies ought to pay more attention to nurturing current relationships and ensuring that customers feel valued, whether by providing a great experience or by other means. Incidentally, happy customers can also be a great source of referrals and can help reduce the above mentioned high acquisition cost.

Not much is written about the relative difficulty and expense of regaining lost customers. I suppose that also depends on the circumstances, but in some situations it may be not even be possible, because the customer has outgrown that need – think baby diapers. Understanding your customer may help you realize that and help you avoid spending money on futile efforts.

The Winterberry Group recently published a research study on trends in direct mail. The study found that direct mail spending in the U.S. declined by 3% in 2008 and volumes declined dramatically by about 4.5 overall, 12% in some verticals.

This is unprecedented, after more than 30 years of steadily increasing streams of direct mail. What is more, the study projects that volume will decrease a further 10 - 15% this year. So is this the death knell for direct mail or will growth rates resume once the economy bounces back? The study actually predicts that direct mail will not resume its high growth rates, because the current tough economic conditions have forced direct marketers to innovate by focusing on more targeted approaches, less expensive online channels, etc.