"Mailing" attracted a large number of visitors
Over 400 participants visited the "Dialog
Forum" organized by Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG
(Heidelberg) in the four countries Germany, Austria, Poland and the
United Arab Emirates. Held under the motto "Dynamics of Direct
Mailing", the event gave participants from printshops,
agencies and media service providers the opportunity to learn about
the very latest developments in direct marketing with print media.
"Nowadays direct marketing is an integral part of a
company's communication plans. Around a third of company
advertising budgets was spent on direct marketing last year. This
means that the budget for direct marketing has more than doubled in
the last eight years," said Marco Russ from Michael Conrad
& Leo Burnett GmbH, describing the continuing trend toward
direct marketing, as he spoke at the start of the main event in
Heidelberg.
The Forum at the Print Media Academy Heidelberg focussed on
applications relating to variable data printing, for instance from
Saab Deutschland, on the ability to personalize adverts in
magazines, and on tools enabling digital printing to be managed
more efficiently. The Frankfurt-based agency etronixx presented the
software package dps ONE which allows potential customers to
request customized brochures online and companies to generate
mailings using stored customer profiles.
The Schober Information Group also showcased its principle of
"intelligent addresses" which enables addresses to be
evaluated according to their potential and risk.
Almost all speakers pointed out that up-to-date customer
databases are crucial for successful direct marketing.
Visitors also heard that, aside from personalized mailings,
finishing also plays an important role when it comes to response
rates. "A mailing's success is decided by a combination of
factors - the level of personalization, the graphic design and the
creativity of the finishing," explained Thomas Hagen from
Heidelberg Postpress.
"We are very happy with positive response to the second
- and first ever international - "Heidelberg Dialog
Forum". It has been shown that direct marketing can only
maintain its success if it exploits the opportunities for dialog
between businesses and their customers and uses the knowledge
gained from this exchange to improve customer communication even
further," said Dr. Stefanie Jensen, Head of Marketing Concepts
& Communication at Heidelberg, who is responsible for the
Forum.
The last event in the series takes place from December 3 - 4,
2003 in Moscow.
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More than 400 participants have so far visited the
second Heidelberg "Dialog Forum" in four countries.
For further information:
Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG
Corporate Communications
Matthias Hartung
Tel.: +49 (0)6221 92 50 77
Fax: +49 (0)6221 92 50 46
E-mail:
matthias.hartung@heidelberg.com