DRTV? You Bet
Some say that ERA appears to have abandoned its original DRTV members in favor of online technologies and advancements. I want to say without any qualms that ERA has not abandoned the DRTV segment of the membership at all. Indeed, DRTV is alive and well at ERA and the association’s commitment to it is demonstrated in many of its offerings, from education and research to the self-regulatory program, and to government affairs advocacy.
At the Annual Convention last September, the Opening Session was dedicated to three celebrities who use television to sell their products primarily through infomercials, as well as interviews with the CEOs of HSN and ShopNBC, both live television shopping channels. In the third quarter of the year, ERA commissioned a research study on The Evolving Role of Direct Response Television in Multichannel Marketing Execution. The research demonstrated that DRTV continues to grow as a marketing medium, but concludes that it has evolved into a driver of multichannel marketing. More significant, in order to make DRTV profitable on the front end, while also driving a multichannel marketing strategy, it shows that DRTV marketers are accelerating their adoption and customization of emerging technologies, especially in the interactive sphere. At the eRetailer Summit in Miami, ERA will unveil a new research paper on how consumers navigate the multichannel landscape, and if a company offers different mediums (i.e., TV, radio, online), the research reveals how the customer uses those mediums together. Further, at the eRetailer Summit, ERA will offer various educational sessions that will focus on DRTV and the Web.
I believe that DRTV marketers intuitively hold the keys to marketing on the Web. That’s why we are committed to leading the charge to convergence: through research, educational seminars, meetings, our aggressive lobbying program and through our magazine, Electronic Retailer. We urge all ERA members to take advantage of all of ERA’s efforts, and to join us as we lead the way for direct response marketers.
Edwin Garrubbo, ERA Board Chair and CEO Creative Commerce, LLC
Tags: creative commerce, drtv, ed garrubbo, ERA, Marketer, Retailer
January 7th, 2008 at 11:14 am
Indeed, you either have to keep up or you become obsolete. There’s that great story about Henry Ford asking what consumers would like to see in his brand new car. At the time, not knowing exactly what a car was, many responded that they’d like a bigger buggy whip. ERA must ensure that its members remain on the proverbial crest of the wave, regardless of channel, through research, education, and networking so no one is smacking the back of their Smart Car with a whip!
January 14th, 2008 at 1:08 am
Dear Ed,
Your editorial sounds defensive.
If members are saying the organization feels as if it is abandoning its roots to the point that you felt compelled to write about it means it, it is time to for you and the board to start listening. When push comes to shove the majority of the ERA leadership is made up of vendors to the DRTV industry and not the true “DRTV Retailer” that takes on hundreds of thousands of dollars in risk to launch a campaign.
The present board of directors is trying to have DRTV retailers believe that Yahoo, Google, AOL, EBay, etc… are retailers. The truth of the matter is they are media sellers or vendors to the “DRTV Retailer”. They risk nothing, there goal is sell the true DRTV retailers services at the highest possible price as they should. All of the above companies provide important services to the “DRTV Retailer” and when the services are used effectively it provides a nice ROI to the “DRTV Retailer”. The current list of board of directors on the ERA web-site, indicates that at least 2/3 of the board is vendors to the industry.
The educational program for for the Miami conference is overly represented by vendors. The “DRTV Retailer” has been left off the schedule, it would be nice to be able to hear practical case studies by actual DRTV retailers. I am sure that these sessions will be educational, but ERA does risk that the educational seminars come off as sales presentations by vendors.
I was a member that felt that ERA was abandoning its DRTV members and for that very reason I did not renew my membership this past year.
January 14th, 2008 at 5:14 pm
I disagree - I think Ed is absolutely right. The association must keep up with the changes in the industry or it will become obsolete - just like the retailers and marketers who cling to the past. Change is painful but going out of business is even worse! Keep up the good work ERA.
February 5th, 2008 at 12:10 pm
ERA has smartly recognized that all advertising, including traditional DRTV is undergoing the most dramatic revolution ever. This isn’t a simple “add one new medium” transition time, as in years past, from print to radio or radio to TV; it’s a new world of interactive video advertising across TV, mobile and computer, in a new consumer centric world. Ignoring this seismic shift would relegate ERA and its members to eventual oblivion. I believe ERA continues to provide immense and valuable resources for traditional DRTV marketers while wisely initiating “new media” efforts in seminar and research report education, and bringing new media reps on the board.