Jeffrey Beck is one in 15,000. But the vice-president and client services director of Toronto-based Vickers & Benson Direct & Interactive doesn’t feel particularly special.
That’s because Beck will be part of the throng – estimated at around 15,000 delegates, exhibitors, speakers and media representatives – descending on the Metro Toronto Convention Centre later this month for the 82nd annual Direct Marketing Association conference and exhibition. This will be the second DMA conference Beck has attended, and he can’t see the routine ever getting old.
‘I don’t want this to sound like I’m putting down the Canadian event at all, but the DMA’s conference is extremely valuable because of its size and scope, and the sheer range of topics,’ says Beck. ‘No matter what your interest, or part of the industry you are in, you’ll find sessions that are extremely relevant. Management, creative, business-to-business – it’s easy to find a session that’s important to you.’
The conference kicks off on Monday, Oct. 25 with three days of high-profile keynote addresses, studies, panel discussions, receptions, award presentations and educational sessions.
DMA president H. Robert Wientzen and Tom Peters, celebrated author and management guru, headline a roster of eight keynotes in total. Tuesday’s keynote is presented by The Loyalty Effect author Frederick Reichheld, while Web pioneer David Siegel steps up to the dais on Wednesday morning. Jay Walker, founder of Priceline.com, looks at the future of e-commerce later that afternoon. Although each speaker has his own take, they will all be addressing new developments and trends that shape the way direct marketers do business.
‘I can’t wait to hear what they have to say,’ says Beck, who has read and re-read both Peters’ and Reichheld’s books. ‘It’s an opportunity for me to really put a face and personality to the name.’
For delegates who can’t wait until Monday, there is the DMA pre-conference weekend, two days of receptions and concurrent sessions. On Saturday, Oct. 23, speakers include Chuck Martin, chairman of the Net Future Institute, a Washington-based think tank; Richard Teerlink, former chairman of Harley-Davidson; and Bob Allen, president of The Vermont Country Store.
The weekend events will address business-to-business, catalogue, creative, and global direct marketing. Delegates can concentrate on one area, or zip between all four, learning about e-commerce technology, catalogue brand-building, business-to-business lead generation, and expanding into international markets.
For DMA director of conference programming Dan Goldstein, the five-day event is the culmination of months, in some cases years, of work.
The exhibit hall is fully booked with nearly 500 companies showcasing their wares. The exhibit hall includes an ‘Interactive Centre’ where attendees can sample the technologies and applications they have been hearing about. There is also an International Pavilion, where overseas vendors will be standing by to display the products that may help direct marketers break into foreign markets. The exhibit hall opens on Sunday, Oct. 24, at 4 p.m.
Among the highlights of the conference will be the release of the DMA study ‘Customer Relationship Management: A Senior Management Guide to Technology for Creating a Customer-Centric Business.’
The study is billed as a manual for companies seeking to optimize marketing opportunities by maximizing new technology applications such as data management, data mining and analysis, and call centre technology. The study was conducted on behalf of the DMA by PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Not to be missed are the education sessions, which include: brand advertising and integrated marketing; business-to-business; core competencies; creative and production; customer relationship management; database tools and technology; e-commerce; global marketing; insurance and financial services; management challenges; marketing intelligence; and media channels and choices.
Canadian direct marketers will be front and centre at the education sessions. David Jones, vice-president of Media Synergy, John Cooper, marketing vice-president of Federal Express Canada, Rick White, retail marketing vice-president of The Bank of Nova Scotia, and Laura Novikow of Sears Canada are among the presenters.
‘We’ve invited some of our clients to come along,’ says Beck, explaining its usefulness to clients unfamiliar with the intricacies of direct. ‘It’s a great way for us to build our own relationships.’
Also in this report:
– Six years is a long time in direct years: Much has changed since the DMA last held its conference in Toronto p.D22
