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I was talking to a friend yesterday about her small business and found out she knew absolutely nothing about search-engine marketing. She’d never heard of Google AdWords or Microsoft adCenter.

As I thought about it, I realized that SEM can be overlooked by some of the bigger players, too.

So here’s a reminder. Put it on your to-do list. Whenever you run a direct marketing...

If the new theme of 2009 is "doing more with less," as Carolyn said yesterday, a great place to look is your own database.

Customer acquisition is even more expensive in a downturn, so taking good care of the customers you have should be a very high priority. VERY high. You know your competitors will...

Traditional direct marketers look at costs with an exacting eye.  All costs are included.  This is the only honest way to approach measurement, budgeting and goal-setting.  And most importantly, it’s the only way you can effectively optimize your spend across channels to maximize your return.

Economic uncertainty can bring opportunities for brave souls.  Many business advisors are telling marketers that -- while cost-cutting is important -- cutting marketing budgets too much can be deadly. Considering the marketing mix becomes crucial when there’s little room for error.

Here’s data from an

Why are online media plans based on gross impressions?

It continually frustrates me that impressions is considered a key metric by many marketers.

For one thing, you have no idea if you've made any kind of impression.  Back in the day before VCRs and DVRs and TiVo, when you ran a TV commercial, you could pretty much count on having some impact on the subconscious.  Unless,...

Email may not be as sexy as advertising on Facebook or launching a mobile marketing campaign but, for most of us, it's the bread and butter of online marketing.

Email is also more complicated than it looks.  Sure, my Mom can send an email to me and my sister -- but that doesn't make what e-marketers do any less complex.  When I was seven years old, I could write a thank-you note...

Marketing Charts says "integrated marketing communications" is the number one priority of senior marketers. They surveyed 157 members of the Association of National Advertisers.

That's nice. But it looks like it may be putting the cart before the horse....

You must remember Charlie Brown's saying, "I love mankind. It's people I can't stand."

I love statistics, it's analysis I can't stand.

It drives me nuts that people derive their own conclusions that basically just prove their own point when looking at data. And when the "data" isn't that great to begin with, the conclusions just get wackier.

What got me...

We've seen it in the past. Direct marketing spending holds up, even when the economy tanks. When you have the numbers to back you up, it's easier to justify spending on direct -- even when you can see the cost-per-sale go up.

Six or eight months ago, before the word "recession" had been spoken aloud, the outlook for online marketing was hot. Now it's gotten even hotter.

Just so...

This is from last Monday's (February 11) Wall Street Journal:

A new media research company, TRA — for "True ROI Accountability for Media" — is taking another crack at the problem. It merges data from people's cable set-top boxes with consumer-purchase...

In the "post-game analysis" of the ads,...

Third on the list was conversion rate and measuring ROI was fourth in importance on the list. Revenue was sixth out of eight options....

Direct marketers have been talking about behavioral targeting probably before most of us were born. What we meant was buying behavior. If someone had responded to a direct marketing offer — in just about any way, shape...

Direct response TV may not be right for your product. However, if you’re marketing a consumer product at a decent price point, you can’t dismiss TV out of hand. Is there a niche audience that particular programs or channels target that’s...