January, 2009 Happy New Year
Only 25% of Marketers Plan Budget Cuts
Despite the recession, nearly one-third of b-to-b marketers plan to increase their marketing budgets next year, according to BtoB's "2009 Marketing Priorities and Plans" survey. The online survey of 211 b-to-b marketing professionals was conducted in November. It found that 31.1% of marketers plan to boost their marketing budgets next year, while 43.5% plan to keep budgets flat. About one-quarter plan to decrease their marketing budgets next year.
Significantly, of those planning increases, one-quarter intend to raise them by more than 20%, and nearly 9% plan increases between 15% and 19%. Of those planning decreases, almost 30% plan to cut them by more than 20%, and 16.7% plan decreases between 15% and 19%.
The survey also found that 59.2% of marketers have not cut their marketing budgets this year in response to the economic crisis. BtoB's survey found that customer acquisition is the top marketing goal in 2009, cited by 62.2% of respondents. Customer retention was cited as the top marketing goal by 20.6% of marketers, brand awareness by 12.4% and other marketing goals by 4.8%.
Of the various media platforms b-to-b marketers will use next year, online is a clear winner, with 66.5% of marketers planning to increase their online spending. Some traditional media platforms will also see increased spending next
year, including direct mail (36.9%), events (31.0%), telemarketing
(21.8%) and print (20.6%).
Many traditional b-to-b marketers are shifting more of their marketing dollars online, which costs less than traditional media and delivers trackable results. The survey also asked marketers which online tactics they plan to spend more on in 2009. Topping the list is e-mail marketing, cited by 68.3% of respondents, followed closely by Web site development (66.3%). For more survey results go to btobonline.com, December 8, 2008.
|
|
About Intelligent Mail
The Intelligent Mail Barcode, formerly referred to as the 4-State Customer barcode, is a new Postal Service barcode used to sort and track letters and flats. It expands the ability to track individual mail pieces and provides customers with more options and information about their mail.
How do mailers benefit from Intelligent Mail barcode?
The barcode is the result of the Postal Service's efforts to enable encoding more information while minimizing the space used on the mailpiece. The Intelligent barcode:
- Has a greater overall data capacity than existing barcodes.
- Provides mailers with more digits for their use, allowing for unique identification of up to a billion mailpieces per mailing.
- Provides greater visibility and more accurate, detailed information about mailings which can enable better decision making.
- Increases mailpiece "real estate" by eliminating the need for multiple barcodes.
- Allows for participation in multiple USPS service programs with a single barcode.
Intelligent Mail: The Facts
- The USPS goal in introducing the Intelligent Mail barcode is to increase efficiencies in automation and enable more services now and in the future.
- The IM barcode combines and replaces the services provided today by OneCode ACS, POSTNET, and PLANET Code.
- Mailers can receive discounts using the IM barcode today, with deeper discounts being offered in May 2009 and an end to POSTNET discounts in May 2010.
- The IM barcode offers more information than what is currently available in the POSTNET code, including a document identifier that must be unique across all company mailings for 45 days.
- The IM system also includes new barcodes for tracking trays and containers.
- The USPS has two options for mailers.The "BASIC" option will allow mailers to use the IMB on letters and flats in lieu of the POSTNET barcode. The "Full Service" option provides greater automation discounts but also has more requirements.
|
|
Use cutting-edge technology to produce high-quality, targeted solutions
In order to see savings without losing any quality in future direct mail campaigns, marketers should look for print and production solutions that focus on efficiency and effectiveness. Concentrate on the physical attributes of a piece as well as finding the right recipients.
Look for vendors that use cutting-edge digital equipment and flexible technology. Advanced digital equipment features plenty of benefits, including dry inks that produce clean, vibrant colors equivalent to or better than traditional four-color printing processes. Such methods produce wonderful results with a faster turnaround time.
On-demand printing allows marketers to print the exact quantities they need precisely when they need them, and makes it easy for marketers to personalize each direct mail piece with the recipient's name and additional unique data. This tactic can be achieved at a relatively low cost and has been proven to capture the attention of direct mail recipients. Also, with newer technologies, it is no longer efficient, cost-effective or necessary to distribute blanketed areas with direct mail. There are many solutions on the market that feature extremely targeted demographic selections to narrow down recipients to target your perfect prospect. This sophisticated approach will save marketers money and increase ROI of their direct mail campaigns. |
