DMA's E-Mail Marketing Council Announces Expanded Mandate and Spring Activity Schedule

March 1, 2007 — The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) has announced an expanded mandate for and an extensive spring activity schedule for its E-Mail Marketing Council (EMC). Formerly the Council for Responsible E-Mail (CRE), DMA’s recently renamed E-Mail Marketing Council will help marketers of all shapes and sizes optimize the full potential of this vital marketing channel with an impressive lineup of research, white papers, best practices guides, and events dedicated to tackling emerging issues.

“We are extremely proud of the Council for Responsible E-Mail’s accomplishments over the last several years,” said Michael Della Penna, EMC chair and chief marketing officer of Epsilon. “The CRE led many groundbreaking initiatives, including authoring the first-ever ‘E-Mail Delivery Best Practices,’ and advancing member adoption of authentication solutions.”

Stephanie Miller, vice president, strategic services, ReturnPath, serves as vice chair of the Council.

“Promoting responsible e-mail marketing practices will always be a cornerstone of our mission,” continued Della Penna. “But as the channel continues to grow rapidly, DMA’s E-Mail Marketing Council is excited to tackle a broader range of strategic and tactical issues such as database marketing excellence, creative design and rendering, analytics, and multichannel integration.”

According to the 2006 edition of DMA’s Power of Direct Marketing report, marketers are increasing their investments in commercial e-mail relative to all other online and offline direct marketing channels. Between 2006 and 2011, the study forecasts that marketers’ investment in e-mail marketing will compound 20.2 percent annually. In addition, the study finds that e-mail is driving unparalleled ROI, returning an average $51.45 for each $1 spent in 2006.

DMA’s EMC is now poised to play a critical role in the ongoing success and growth of the e-mail marketing channel, announcing its involvement in a host of high-impact, educational activities in the first half of 2007. These events include the following:

March 1, 1:00 – 2:00 PM (EST)

Virtual Seminar

Microsoft’s New Windows Live Hotmail

Featured Speaker: Craig Spiezle, Director, Online Safety Technologies, Microsoft

Microsoft's Craig Spiezle – one of the e-mail industry's most respected and influential thought leaders – will provide a comprehensive demonstration of his company’s next-generation, free Webmail service, Windows Live Hotmail. Spiezle also will offer insights into how marketers can optimize the communications they send to Windows Live Hotmail users.

March 6, 2007, 1:00 – 2:00 PM (EST)

Virtual Seminar

E-Mail Image Suppression Demystified

Featured Speakers: Michael Della Penna, CMO, Epsilon, and Jordan Cohen, Director of Industry and Government Relations, Epsilon

According to the latest research, 65 percent of American e-mail users have encountered image suppression in at least one of their inboxes, and how often they activate images varies by sender, message type, and relevance. This session will highlight key findings from groundbreaking new image-suppression research. It also will offer practical advice to help marketers optimize their e-mail campaigns as default image suppression becomes the industry norm.

April 12, 2007, 1:00 – 2:00 PM (EST)

Virtual Seminar

Legislative Update for E-Mail Marketers

Featured Speakers: Jerry Cerasale, JD, Senior Vice President, Government Affairs, DMA, and Charles Prescott, JD, Vice President, Global Knowledge Network Services, DMA

The global legislative and regulatory landscape is rapidly evolving, forcing e-mail marketers to re-assess their policies and practices to ensure compliance and maximize ROI. In this virtual seminar, DMA’s Government Affairs team joins forces with the EMC to offer a comprehensive update on the latest international and domestic policy developments affecting e-mail marketers.

April 18 – 19, 2007

Authentication and Online Trust Summit 2007

Boston, MA

As an original co-founder of the Authentication Summit series, DMA is proud once again to lead the charge as an organizer and Steering Committee member of the Authentication and Online Trust Summit 2007. Summit 2007 builds upon the success of the past two Summits with several enhancements, including expanding the event to two full days and to three tracks that focus on best practices in e-mail, Web, and domain authentication.

Michael Della Penna and DMA Interactive Marketing Advisory Board (IMAB) Chairman Matt Blumberg, CEO of ReturnPath, will lead a break-out session highlighting DMA’s efforts to promote e-mail authentication and best practices to it members and the global marketing community. For additional information, please visit http://www.aotalliance.org/summit2007/index.html.

About DMA’s E-Mail Marketing Council

The mission of DMA’s E-Mail Marketing Council (EMC) – formerly known as the Council for Responsible Email – is to promote the most effective and ethical use of e-mail as a marketing and customer service tool by articulating ethical guidelines, by promoting best practices, and by serving as a forum for leaders to confer and collaborate as the industry evolves.

For more information on the EMC and to register for these and other events, please visit http://www.the-dma.org/councils/emailmarketingcouncil.

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