Back in the dark ages of direct marketing, when I started out as a copywriter for a direct mail agency, I had to learn the terms we used every day in the course of business.
(As an aside, I still believe that “industry jargon” is the greatest handicap to overall success. What’s worse is when new and novice employees simply nod and accept the jargon, no matter that they don’t understand it! Please – if someone uses a term you don’t understand, ask for some clarity.)
The other day, I was chatting with a colleague / client / friend and I asked if she had calculated the “half life” of the campaign. Silence. More silence… then, “I have not heard that term in 20 years!”
Back in the day, as they say, she used to calculate the half-life of all her direct mail campaigns. But, over the years, the practice seemed to disappear into the fog of modern technology.
She said, “You know, it would be great if, in your next blog, you talk about some of those old time direct marketing terms.” It seems that the people she works with now – her clients – don’t understand that the terms, and the methodologies behind them, are incredibly valuable.
So, with the indulgence of everyone with more than 10 years experience in direct response marketing, I offer a very short lesson in “Old Time Direct Marketing.”
See how many of these terms/practices you remember, use or even knew existed.
Half Life:
The point in a campaign when ½ of the total orders arrive. Used in Direct Mail, especially when renting hotline lists, to enable mailer to return to successful lists, and avoid unsuccessful ones.
RFM:
Recency / Frequency / Monetary (value)
Three measures considered jointly to determine the value of a customer or a group of customers in terms of the number of purchases made and the length of time between purchases as well as the length of time since the last purchase. The higher the degree of recency and frequency, the more valuable the customer.
Sample Dump:
A small sample of a rented list. The “dump” should show all fields included in the list plus samples (at least 10) of the actual data in the file.
Usage Report:
A list of previous and current renters of a direct response or compiled file. Mailers should ask for this report to see who (including competitors) actually rent the list.
Till Forbid:
An automatic billing system that requires the customer to request a stop on billing. Used with credit card payments, and a favorite of the publishing industry, the customer’s credit card is billed automatically every month (or billing cycle) until the customer “forbids” the payment (hence “Till Forbid.”)
So, how did you do? Do you remember them all, and how many do you use today?
There is still a ton of good found in OTDM. Don’t be afraid to ask someone with more than 15 years experience to help you find your way through the fog.
Peter T. Britton
Idea Generator. Wordsmith. Resultant.
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