itp notes nov09

8/8/2019 ITP Notes Nov09

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/itp-notes-nov09 1/4

• Optimism

• Taming Blogs

• Catalog Benchmark

• Direct Mail Tips

• Investment Shift

• Where and When

• Last Minute Action

• A Precious Few

• Perhaps Next Year

• Paper Mill Babel

and more...

November 2009 Volume 7 Issue 9

I n n o v a t I v e t e c h n o l o g I e s I n P r I n t

An InformationDistribution Company

In This Issue:

USEFUL INFORMATION

• This edition of ITP Notes was produced on ITP’s Indigo Digital Press.

A PERVASIVE DEFICIENCY

ALMA MATER MAIL

Despite general agreement among marketers about the need to become more conver-sant with the needs, challenges, objectives, and perceptions of customers in order to

more intelligently engage in business planning and to more effectively target promotionprograms, research continues to indicate a chasm between the perception of marketersand customers. A recent study by Harris Interactive found that 53% of advertisersbelieve that ads that make people stop and think are effective. Fifty-one percent believethat ads providing new information also are effective. However, customers perceivethings differently: 30% and 29%, respectively.

As a result of this gap of perceptions, the academic community is developing researchand programs around CNK — “customer need knowledge.” It is defined as the extent to

which all employees of a supplier’s organiza-tion can accurately identify a given cus-tomer’s hierarchy of needs in terms of bothcustomer satisfactionand perceived value.

Direct mail is clearly the medium of choice when it comes to colleges’ and universi-ties’ communication with alumni. In the case of information, 57% of graduates prefer

news and correspondence by regular mail while31% prefer e-mail. When solicitations for giftsand donations are involved, the preference forU.S. Mail compared to e-mail is 54% to 23%.The explanation for the results of this survey,conducted by International CommunicationsResearch, may involve the attempted use of anelectronic vehicle that is not intimate to raisefunds for a purpose considered intimateby donors.

Dear Alumni:

30%Effective53%

Effective



I t P n o t e s

OPTIMISM

Magazine publishersappear to be optimisticabout the U.S. economy. In

August 2009, the last

month for which statisticsare available, 75 new mag-azines were launched inthe United States. That number surprised even the most optimistic observers. Only 43 new magazines were launched in August 2008 and 61

were first published during the same month of 2007. Amongthe most recent launches: PHOTOSHOP, RETOUCH, BIBLESTUDY, COMICS, and GREEN CRAFT.

TAMING BLOGSThe Federal Trade Commission, concerned about the

misstatements of both users and manufacturers of productsand services on the Internet, is within weeks of implementingits first revision to advertising guidelines in the past thirty

years. Among other changes, companies using blogs andother social media as promotion tools would be required toidentify themselves and to meet specific standards of truthand transparency.

ANOTHER MARKETER-USERDISCONNECT

So-called loyalty programs are not “hot stuff” with market-ers even though most are, in truth, frequency, not loyalty, pro-grams. Loyalty programs can be found in most industries.However, consumer enthusiasm lags far behind that of mar-keters. Using a one-to-ten variability scale, research by Direct

Antidote found that only 32% of consumers assigned a ratingof eight or above to marketers in terms of offering communi-cation relevant to their personal needs.

CATALOG BENCHMARK

Experts in catalog management use the ratio of all sellingexpenses — print and online — to net sales as an important metric. A rule of thumb is that the ratio should be no morethan twenty percent for a business-to-business catalog and nomore than thirty percent for a consumer catalog.

WHERE AND WHEN

If your organization doesn’t take extraordinary steps toinform those in the supply chain with which it interacts, it maybe missing an opportunity. Americans are taking advantage of technology to learn the status of flights, orders, and virtually

everything in pro-cess. During themonth of Decem-ber 1995, U.P.S.received 100,000tracking requests.In December 2008,it received 27.3million trackingrequests a day.

DIRECT MAIL TIPS

With the responsibility of variable data digital presses,there’s a tendency by many marketers to use personalizationas much as possible. However, direct mail expert Dick Ben-

son cautions marketersthat personalized lettersare more effective whensent to house lists (currentor prior customers and

subscribers) than to listsof prospects. Benson alsosays that, despite addition-al investment, premiumsare more effective incen-

tives than cash discounts and that a credit or “bill me” offer will substantially improve results.

INVESTMENT SHIFT

This newsletter has reported on the impressive growth of

custom publishing and, in particular, magalogs, a sub-set of customer publishing. The nation’s largest advertiser, Proctor& Gamble, has shifted millions of dollars in advertising fromother media into custom publishing, discontinuing its spon-sorship of the “Guiding Light” soap opera and shifting muchof its advertising in women’s magazines into a custom publi-cation called ROUGE. Circulation in the U.S. will be six toseven million and four million in Canada. The publication willcarry a large number of coupons. ROUGE allows Proctor & Gamble to use its extensive consumer database.

A G r e a t D e a l f o r y o u J o h n !



Quic

Note


POSTAL ISSUES

THE PARADOX OF SPEED BUMPS

Speed bumps were devised to reduce or prevent sucenvironmental violations as noise and inefficient fuconsumption attributable to speeding. However, therare unintended consequences as a result of the slowing and speed resumption of vehicles. Mexican engneers have created a “smart” speed bump that automatically retracts into the ground when approachinvehicles are moving at the posted speed limit oslower but remains elevated if a vehicle is speeding.

GIVING IT BACK

The American Forest and Paper Association reportthat 57.4% of paper consumed in 2008 was recoverefor recycling. That’s a record.

DISAPPEARING NUMBERS

Many directory publishers are phasing out the whitpages telephone book of residential listingsThe reasons:

— the increasing number of homes in which cephones are displacing land lines.

— the large number of people who have unlistephone numbers.

Some providers, such as AT&T, are discontinuing autmatic delivery of residential white pages and are offeing the directory on an opt-in basis. Phone companiewill continue to publish Yellow Pages and business-tbusiness white pages.

CELL PHONE LISTS

Sources of lists of cell phone numbers are becominavailable. Base prices start in the neighborhood o$120 - $125 per thousand names. When leasing a lisof cell phone numbers, make sure that those on th

list have given their permission to receive communictions from third parties.

MULTI-MEDIA MARKETING

Evidence continues to mount regarding the benefits ocoordinated multi-media marketing. Third-parresearch recently sponsored by the Postal Servicfound that consumers receiving a catalog from a retaer spent 28% more on that retailer’s Web site thathose who did not receive a catalog.

LAST MINUTE ACTION

On the last day it could take action on the matter,the U.S. Senate added a provision to unrelatedlegislation that will defer about four billion dol-lars of pre-payment for U.S. Postal Service retir-

ees’ health care. There was no floor debate onthe issue. The provision mirrors legislationalready passed by the House of Representa-tives. Passage provides some relief to theagency but does not address the fundamen-tal and substantial challenges facing theagency. During the next year, Congress

will probably be forced to confront basicissues facing U.S.P.S., including five-day-a-week delivery, increased rates,multi-billion dollar operating losses, closing

of some post offices, and revision of its contracts with unions.Many senators who voted for the Senate bill referred to it as a “Band-Aid.”

GOOD NEWS

The Postal Service has made a strategic decision that bodes wellfor business. It has decided that there is more to be gained fromnot raising rates on “market-dominant products” in 2010 than ingenerating additional revenue from rate increases. Consequently,

the Postal Service will not raise rates next year on First Class Mail,Standard Mail, single-piece Parcel Post, and periodicals.

A PRECIOUS FEW

The Postal Service viewed consolidation or closure of under-uti-lized facilities as an opportunity to cut its financial losses. In May 2009, it announced that 3,100 branches and stations had beenidentified as candidates for consolidation or closure. That prompt-

ed opposition fromunions concernedabout staff reductionsand from many mem-bers of Congress. As a result, the number of targeted facilitiesdropped to677…..413 soonthereafter….and now

numbers only 317 — too small to make a meaningful dent in theagency’s multi-billion dollar deficit.

QUICK NOTESQUICK NOTES

C L O S E D



2 0 0 S . C h e s t n u t S t r e e t

E l i z a b e t h t o w n , P A 1 7 0 2 2

F I R S T C L A S S M A I L

U . S . P O S T A G E

P A I D

E l i z a b e t h t o w n , P A

P e r m i t N o . 6 1

ITP is an information distributioncompany in Elizabethtown, PA.This newsletter is intended to giveour peers brief details of industryhappenings. If you have anyquestions regarding our services,please visit us at: www.itpofusa.com

ITP of USA

200 South Chestnut Street Elizabethtown, PA 17022

717.367.3670

866-487-8506

FAX: 717-367-1587

Information Distribution

Graphic Design

Printing

Mailing

Fulfillment

Bindery

Warehousing

s e f u l I n f o r m a t i o n a n d m o r e ! S e e i n s i d e …

PAPER MILL BABEL

Print buyers in some parts of the nation have experienced problems with availability of paper stock in recent months. In addition, many mills have increased prices. Domesticmills are facing the elimination of the so-called “black liquor” provision under which they earned hundreds of millions of dollars of federal tax rebates for recycling a by-product of themanufacturing process. These mills are facing continued decreases in demand but areengaged in distinctly different corporate strategies.

International Paper Co. has “slimmed down” inrecent years, selling forest land and divesting itself of its fine paper and coated paper businesses, and closingfour mills. Its C.E.O, John Faraci has declared the com-pany’s intention to “aggressively compete in a com-modity environment.” AbitibiBowater, a major news-print manufacturer, has filed for bankruptcy reorganization in the face of declining circulation andadvertising revenue at daily newspapers. NewPage Cor-poration is continuing to petition the federal govern-ment to take action against paper imports from Indo-nesia and China, alleging unfair price competition. Perhaps the most radical response of a millis Kimberly-Clark’s investment in the business of medical devices.

Useful Information and more! See inside…


itp notes nov09

Documents