MAILCENTER: Logistics: Front & Center at DMA

Some 12,000 people gathered in Chicago last month at the Direct Marketing Assn. (DMA) annual conference and exhibition. More than 30 printers exhibited, including RR Donnelley, Quebecor World, Transcontinental, Cenveo, Vertis and VistaPrint. Quad/Graphics parked a semi-trailer in the hall to demonstrate its muscle for moving print. Among other printers showing services and specialties to the mailing and marketing industry were Bowne, IWCO Direct and Solar Communications. Digital printer suppliers Kodak, InfoPrint (IBM/Ricoh) and Xerox also were among 500-plus exhibits.

The U.S. Postal Service was there, along with Stamps.com, which featured a PhotoStamp customized for Saks Fifth Avenue. The USPS-approved diecut stamp (a first), the actual shoe and related posters all were created by the same designers as part of an integrated campaign promoting this summer's opening of a designer shoe salon. USPS cooperated as Saks' Manhattan shoe department adopted a pretend ZIP Code: “10022-SHOE.”

Exhibitor DHL offered DMA attendees a tour of its Global Mail terminal in suburban Des Plaines, IL, near O'Hare International Airport—one of 17 highly secure hubs it operates throughout the nation, and one of three from which it processes international mailings. Once processed, DHL inserts domestic mail deep into the USPS mailstream.

The 350-employee Chicago facility provides commingling services for domestic and foreign mail—flats, bound printed matter, catalogs, media mail and parcels—including best-sellers and printed checkbooks. Commingling mail earns USPS high-volume discounts for DHL customers, and speeds delivery.

DHL accesses the comprehensive USPS database to verify each address, correcting the ZIP Code if needed. Then a USPS-compliant indicia is placed on the piece, enabling carrier-route sortation. DHL and USPS representatives meet daily to review operations and performance.

Direct mail is a hot print advertising category as U.S. direct marketing expenditures now account for 50% of total ad expenditures ($173.2 billion), according to DMA's 2007 “Power of Direct Marketing” report. The association says that the industry experienced its 17th consecutive quarter of positive economic growth in this latest 32-page Q3 business review.

Also, the DMA 2007 Response Rate Trends Report answers the question: “What's the typical response rate for a direct marketing campaign in my profession and product category, and what channels will yield the best response?”

The report says the direct order and fund-raising categories achieved the highest response rates—catalog (2.24%) and direct mail (2.15%)—and direct mail (5.35%) is the premier medium used for traffic building. The report includes data for more than 1,600 campaigns received since 2004.

View print-related winners of DMA's 2007 International ECHO Awards at graphicartsonline.com.