DMA Insert Media Council to Honor Kranjac, Erickson, and Lenox Collections at Dec. 6 'Roast & Toast'

October 26, 2007 — Just as comedian Patton Oswalt clocked celebrity Flavor Flav on Comedy Central, the Direct Marketing Association’s (DMA) Insert Media Council plans kidding and kudos for its honorees during its annual Roast & Toast Holiday Luncheon.

Individual Award winners Paulette Kranjac, founder of List Process Company, and Dennis Erickson, vice president insert and print media for Paradysz Matera, will join Corporate Award honoree Lenox Collections on the hot seat from 11:45 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. on Thursday, December 6, 2007, in the Grand Ballroom of the Yale Club of New York, which is located at 50 Vanderbilt Ave. Dan Cassidy, Lenox’s director of customer acquisition, will accept the honor on behalf of the company.

“This annual event has become a holiday tradition for insert media professionals,” said Robert Stanton, DMA Insert Media Council’s co-chair and vice president of business development at Stanton Direct Marketing and son of insert media veteran, Al Stanton. “This is a festive gathering of leaders who come together to network and honor our peers who have contributed to insert media and its growth as a marketing channel.”

“Insert media is growing in the ever-changing multichannel, data-driven atmosphere of direct marketing because it allows an advertiser the means to find new customers by partnering with other companies,” Rob Stanton said. “These partnerships leverage distribution resources and customer affinities. The result is a media channel that is very cost-effective and scaleable, with a low barrier for entry.”

“As more and more companies are expanding to multichannel marketing, we have experienced a steady rise within the insert media marketplace,” said Jim Zuckermandel, DMA Insert Media Council’s co-chair and founder and president of Zed Marketing. “I invite insert media professionals to join us at this festive annual event. Not only is it an opportunity to network with friends and collegues and share in the excitement of the season, it’s also an opportunity to recognize and celebrate the contributions of insert media leaders Dennis Erickson, Paulette Kranjac, and Lenox Collections, who have shown years of commitment and dedication to the insert media community.”

Individual Award Honoree: Paulette Kranjac

In 1983, Paulette Kranjac founded the List Process Company. Since then, she has been a bellwether of the profession, continuing to be a strong advocate of using insert media to generate new business. For 25 years, Blair Corp. has been listening to Kranjac and using inserts as a prime source of new business.

Kranjac was active on DMA’s original Alternate Response Media Council. Her articles on the benefits of insert media have appeared in numerous trade publications. She is also recognized today as one of the most significant brokers of all facets of insert media.

Individual Award Honoree: Dennis Erickson

Dennis Erickson is the vice president of insert and print media for Paradysz Matera, where he has been instrumental in the planning and placement of more than four billion inserts for his various clients.

While he guides his clients in the use of the more common forms of insert media, Erickson is well-known for having pioneered and developed some non-traditional insert media programs. Working with such accounts as AOL, AARP, and Vonage, he has been successful in structuring distribution deals with leading major consumer brand packages.

Corporate Award Honoree: Lenox Collections

Lenox Collections is a prime user of insert media. The company uses hundreds of millions of inserts annually in its quest for new business. For Lenox, insert media has not only been a proven source of new customers, but a source of new customers with a solid lifetime value. Lenox uses all facets of insert media — from packages to billing statements to free-standing insert sections in the Sunday newspapers.

Often, customers find more than one Lenox offer in most insert offerings. With its vast product line, Lenox Collections is widely recognized as one of the premier direct marketers in the profession today.

Admission for the DMA Insert Media Council’s 2007 Holiday Roast & Toast on December 6 is $85 for council members, $105 for DMA members, and $120 for non-DMA members. For additional information or to register, please visit http://www.the-dma.org/councilevents/insertdecluncheon.

About DMA Insert Media Council

The goal of DMA’s Insert Media Council is to represent the interests of direct marketing companies engaged in all facets of alternative print and interactive media. The council is intended for those who are concerned with identifying and exploring insert media issues and opportunities. For additional information about this and the other 20 DMA special-interest councils, please visit www.the-dma.org/councils.

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