DMA launches committee around future of multichannel marketing

The Direct Marketing Association on Wednesday announced it has launched the iDirect Leadership Committee to provide thought leadership to the industry regarding data-enriched multichannel marketing. That will include driving new educational programs and conducting and publishing research around the fusion of traditional direct marketing with data, analytics and online programs.

“This committee's mission will be to help the entire direct marketing community establish the next era for marketing with new and emerging customer-focused actions and processes, all powered by advanced data systems,” said John Greco, president/CEO of DMA, in his opening remarks at the DM Days conference in New York on Tuesday.

“While we don't know exactly what's ahead with each new economic cycle, we absolutely need to keep up every effort to make multichannel direct marketing a benefit for everyone, creating real value through data-enriched one-to-one marketing, online and offline,” Greco said.

Industry veteran Stan Rapp, chairman of Engauge, and Tim Suther, senior VP of Global Multichannel Marketing Services at Acxiom Corp., will co-chair the committee.

The group is comprised of 23 direct, digital, advertising and marketing executives, including Lisa Fischer, managing VP of Marketing Strategy at Capital One; Pam Evans, senior manager, Web marketing at IBM Corp.; and Eric Webster, VP of marketing at State Farm Insurance Companies.