How Will Customized Search Affect Online Advertising?
Clinton Kicks Off 'Serious' Ad Campaign
DRTV Media Buyer
DRTV
DRTV and the Search Engines
Want to Reach More Buyers? A Multi-Media Advertising Approach is the Key
Time to use Verified by Visa and MasterCard SecureCode?
Electronic Representment of NSF Transactions
A Serious Look at Electronic Checks as a Payment Option
How long do you want to live?
Selecting a Payment Processor
The Chargeback Process
Continuity Programs – The Ultimate Upsell?
Could DVR be a friend to DRTV marketers?
Making Waste In Our Haste: You Don’t Need to Break the Sound Barrier to Get Retailers to Notice Your Product

Why Cutting-Edge Boomers May Hold the Secret to Marketing Success

dpotter | 30 November, 2005 15:25

The cutting-edge Boomers, those 50+, are recognized as the people who led the way to sweeping social alterations nearly four decades ago. Many of these changes still impact our lives today. They have created personal wealth and are not afraid to spend money on the things they want. The 50+ Boomers represent the front line of an army of consumers, some 76 million strong, consisting of those born between 1946 and 1955 (that means the first of them will be turning 60 in 2006). Yet, according to the Radio Advertising Bureau, less the 5 percent of advertising expenditures are allocated to this important demographic. With few exceptions, businesses who give these consumers the attention they expect and deserve can reap significant sales dividends simply by understanding and appealing to this under-marketed-to consumer group, because historically people over 50 dropped of the radar screen for most marketers and ad agencies.

To maximize results with the maturing Boomers, the media and the messages used to effectively reach and influence this audience often differs distinctly from the approaches that work for the under 50 crowd as well as those directed to folks on the other side of 60. So advertising – both general and direct response – that takes the “me generation” for granted, or ignores them all together, will produce little or nothing in terms of initiating trial or building brand loyalty which causes a product to be invited into the consumer’s home, time and time again. Rather, advertising that connects with the 50+ Boomer by recognizing their unique needs, wants and desires is the way to attract new consumers from this demographic group and retain them as steady customers.

There are a number of books and articles written about how to effectively market to this rich and growing consumer segment. My book, “The 50+ Boomer: Your Key to 76 Million Consumers,” is one of them. Whatever sources are utilized, the savvy marketer will sort out the similarities and the differences of the cutting-edge Boomer segment compared to other audiences, and determine the best means for tapping into this group of old friends who now represent a new frontier in marketing.

Preventing Credit Card Fraud

jjensen | 21 November, 2005 22:17

Preventing fraud with credit cards takes place long before a DRTV marketer realizes that someone has just stolen their merchandise. Many times, the key to success comes years earlier when the marketer selects their merchant provider and sets up their credit card processing guidelines.

A sophisticated merchant provider, or payment processor, has the ability to give tools and wisdom to their customer to help them prevent fraud.

One example of how to prevent fraud is the ability to accept or deny customer orders when the shipping address does not agree with the credit card customers billing address. If the person on the phone is the real customer, why would they not know their own billing address? Yet the inability to pass this test is one of the top practices that results in fraud.

Another powerful example of how to prevent fraud is the ability to collect and process payments only if the customer supplies the CVV code. The CVV code is the 3- or 4-digit number found on the back of a credit card and is an additional security method used for transactions taken over the phone or internet, which are also called “card-not-present” transactions. These card-not-present transactions are especially prone to fraud because the customer is not standing in front of you with their credit card and ID in hand. This simple step helps offer protection against customers who attempt to process a transaction paid for by a stolen credit card.

Multiple Forms of Payment Processing

jjensen | 21 November, 2005 22:14

Payment processing has evolved from a one payment only form of service industry into an industry that is scrambling to find and implement new ways to accept payments from customers.

Years ago the only form of payment many retailers took was a paper check. Slowly the wide use of credit cards started to create an environment where the cost of accepting credit cards far outweighed the lost sales if you did not accept them.

Fast forward to today. Now you will find an environment where many Americans have limited access to credit cards because of credit over extension or bad credit while other customers demand to be able to use their credit cards because they want to earn the affinity points.

So how does a DRTV marketer collect payment from a “credit challenged” customer? They migrate to debit products which have turned up in 2 forms, Visa debit cards and electronic check products. All these products are available over the phone or internet with no paper documentation because they all clear thru a gateway using a secure SSL internet socket.

And still DRTV marketers continue to look for new ways to capture payments from every possible customer in every possible form imaginable.

Advertising Mistakes to Avoid

pkoeppel | 18 November, 2005 14:02

One common advertising mistake is utilizing the wrong media to reach your target prospects. Seniors, for example, still don't use the Internet as much as younger people do. So if you have a senior product, focusing your marketing efforts on the Internet might not be a good idea. Similarly, if you're trying to reach a smaller, niche audience, TV or radio might not be the best fit, since they reach a broader, mass audience. Consider a specialty print publication like a trade journal or a local interest publication to more effectively reach potential customers.

Peter Koeppel is Founder and President of Koeppel Direct

Reach Your Target Audience

pkoeppel | 18 November, 2005 13:28

Spending your advertising dollars to reach your target audience most efficiently in a fragmented media landscape is more important than ever. Consumers can be harder to reach these days because of the enormous number of entertainment options available to them. In the 1950s, and for decades after, only three television networks existed. Now, hundreds of television channels compete for consumers' attention along with the Internet, iPods, music downloads and video games.

Peter Koeppel is Founder and President of Koeppel Direct

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