ON TODAY'S DIRECT NEWSLINE:
Online Spending Hits $3 Billion in December's Second Week
Primus Knowledge Acquires Amacis
Geico to Open Operations Center in Buffalo
Lycos Europe, Overture Sign Cooperation Agreement: Reports
Churchill Downs Hires CRM Executive
Merkle Names Charchaflian VP of Client Management Services
Luster Off Dutch Diamond DM Program: Reports
Letters to the Editor
Note to Our Readers
List and Database News
Classified
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Top Stories
Online Spending Hits $3 Billion in December's Second Week
Online shoppers spent $2.95 billion during the second week of December, a 48% increase from last year's level. The week's spending brought total online expenditures, excluding travel, to $13 billion for the period starting Nov.1 and ending Dec. 12, according to the eSpending report.
In fact, consumers reported spending 21% of their holiday budgets online, compared with 16 in 2002. Catalog spending held steady, clocking in at just under 7% during both years.
During the six-week period ending Dec. 12, consumers spent $2.5 billion on apparel, up 35% from last year. They also purchased $1.6 billion in toys and video games, up 27%; $1.4 billion in consumer electronics, up 12%; $1.2 billion in videos and DVDs, 89% higher than last year; and just over $1 billion in books, 33% more than in 2002.
The eSpending report was compiled by Goldman Sachs, Harris Interactive and Nielsen/Net Ratings.
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Primus Knowledge Acquires Amacis
Primus Knowledge Solutions, Inc., has purchased all the stock of Amacis Group Ltd., an electronic commerce management firm based in Belfast, Ireland. Primus did not release the terms.
The acquisition adds wireless and e-mail technology to Seattle-based Primus's customer service and support software.
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Geico to Open Operations Center in Buffalo
Geico has announced plans to open a 250,000-square-foot in Buffalo, NY. The new center, which should open during the second quarter of 2004, will house as many as 650 sales, service, claims and support staff within three years.
Ultimately, the new facility will have room for 2,500 employees.
Geico, an auto insurance firm, relies heavily on direct response advertising, especially television and radio, to generate leads for its policies.
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Lycos Europe, Overture Sign Cooperation Agreement: Reports
Lycos Europe NV and Overture Services, a subsidiary of Yahoo! have inked a long-term agreement under which Lycos will feature Overture's sponsored links across its network starting Jan. 1, according to published sources.
The two firms will also collaborate on a variety of existing e-commerce and community products, reports said.
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Churchill Downs Hires CRM Executive
Churchill Downs Inc. has hired Atique Shah to be its vice president of CRM and technology solutions. Shah's responsibilities will include implementing a customer relationship management initiative throughout the company.
Shah comes from GSI Commerce, an e-commerce systems provider. Before joining GSI, Shah created a league-wide CRM system for the National Basketball Association and the Women's National Basketball Association.
Churchill Downs, Louisville, KY, manages horseracing venues throughout the United States.
"Racing has never faced the level of competition for its patrons that it faces today," said Andy Skehan, the company's senior vice president of sales and marketing. "It is absolutely essential that we become adept at identifying and targeting our customers and delivering a high level of service and an enjoyable customer experience."
Shah will report directly to Skehan.
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Merkle Names Charchaflian VP of Client Management Services
Merkle Direct Marketing Inc., Lanham, MD, has tapped Pierre Charchaflian to be its vice president of client management services, a newly created position. Charchaflian will be responsible for overseeing database marketing strategy and promotion execution for Merkle's catalog and retail accounts. Merkle provides database marketing services.
Before signing on with Merkle, Charchaflian was senior vice president of strategic marketing services for BeNow Inc. Prior to that, he co-founded DiaLogos, a CRM firm.
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Luster Off Dutch Diamond DM Program: Reports
A jeweler's very expensive direct mail program has caused heartache for sender and recipient alike, after envelopes containing real diamonds were tossed as "junk mail."
Johan de Boer, a Dutch jeweler based in Apeldoorn (www.goldsilverdesign.nl), sent Christmas greetings to 4,000 of his customers. Each mailing contained what appeared to be a diamond -- and in 200 cases actually was, according to wire reports. The rest were zircons.
The letter de Boer sent in the package suggested that recipients bring the stone to his store for appraisal. Those customers that received real diamonds would be allowed to keep them, according to printed accounts. De Boer became nervous when only 35 patrons showed up to have their stones evaluated.
When de Boer made a round of follow-up phone calls, he found that many of his targets had simply tossed the package without opening it, reports said.
According to reports, de Boer estimated that his campaign cost $60,000, meaning that each respondent cost him more than $1,700.
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Letters to the Editor
[Re: "Loose Cannon: Postal Workers Are as Mad As Hell And Are Not Going to Take It Anymore," Direct Newsline, Dec. 15, 2003]
Q: How many print reporters does it take to slam decent hard-working postal employees?
A: Two. One to write the tripe you spew, and another to be summoned from another cubicle to review it and smirk.
But seriously, Richie, your claim that you are a former postal worker because you "briefly worked behind the counter at the university mail center" is about as absurd as George W. claiming that he's a "Vietnam era veteran".
How's that for strident?
Richard Phillips
President
Tampa Area Local
American Postal Workers Union
Tampa, FL
* * * * *
So you're a former postal worker! Well, count me as impressed with your pedigree. As for me, I've been a clerk, supervisor, and carrier, and I guarantee that the miles I walked today through ice and snow are a bit more tiring than any waitress might experience.
And this skit shows up on, surprise, FOX, when Bush's Postal Reform Commission is about to gut all collective bargaining and threaten to reduce the pay and benefits for hundreds of thousands of postal workers.
I have worked my butt off for this company, and at 57 years old, with a few to retirement, I have become accustomed to the thought that the USPS is just going down.
Hmm. "Primedia Business" Gee, I bet you guys never even thought than skits like this could influence opinion, did you? Well, a revelation at last! Think how much you've learned today!!
I truly believe we have a government that has become so integrated with the media that no show, no skit that is provocative in nature can be accepted at face value. Imagine, for an instant, that before Reagan declared war on Patco, that there would have been a skit on Saturday Night Live about air traffic controllers. If the producers of that show had been political allies of Reagan wouldn't someone have connected a dot or two?
So here we are, one of the largest semi-private organizations in the US being attacked in a bizarre and unusual way right before Congress is to decide whether to approve Bush's draconian measures, and the network airing the skit is...well, you know who Roger Ailes is. [President of FOX News, and a media consultant for both presidents Nixon and Reagan.] C'mon. Let's not be stupid.
I just work a long, hard day, just like a lot of carriers I know. And I just think that deserves more respect than this.
Don Green
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Note to Our Readers
Direct Newsline will not be published on Thursday, Dec. 25 or Friday, Dec. 26. The next edition of Direct Newsline will appear on Monday, Dec. 29. The staff of Direct Newsline wishes its readership a happy, healthy and safe holiday season.
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