DMA OFFERS MEDIATION AND ARBITRATION SERVICES TO MEMBERS
Washington, DC, February 25, 2009 — The Direct Marketing Association (DMA), in conjunction with the Council of Better Business Bureaus (CBBB), today announced that, beginning March 1, 2009, it will offer members access to an independent mediation and arbitration service for the purpose of resolving commercial disputes involving DMA members. The service, which is tailored to address the unique aspects of direct marketing, is being provided in response to member requests for a simple, low-cost, efficient means to resolve commercial disputes that arise between organizations.
Mediation and arbitration will be conducted over the telephone by qualified mediators and arbitrators provided by the CBBB. Through DMA, the CBBB will have access to industry experts and other professionals who will assist with individual cases. Specifically, industry experts will be drawn from DMA’s Ethics Committee members who specialize in specific areas of direct marketing. Whenever the CBBB requires access to a specialist, DMA will select the appropriate person(s) to assist. The specialist will not be informed who the disputing parties are, but will be provided input on case-specific matters. Specialists from the broader DMA membership may be drawn upon as well, depending on demand and requirements.
The first three-hour mediation or arbitration hearing will cost members $2000, with an hourly rate being applied thereafter, and the parties involved in the dispute will collectively decide in advance whether or not the decision will be binding. If the parties reach a mutually acceptable resolution, the mediator will put the agreement into written form and send the agreement to both parties.
“Although DMA’s Guidelines for Ethical Business Practice empowers the Association to resolve consumer complaints regarding member organizations, they did not address the issue of commercial disputes relating to member organizations,” said Senny Boone, DMA’s senior vice president of Corporate & Social Responsibility. “This service, which combines CBBB’s dispute resolution experience with DMA’s industry knowledge, was designed to help our members resolve commercial disputes in a quick, cost effective, confidential manner without the need to rely on the court system.”
For more information on DMA’s mediation and arbitration services, please contact
If you are a CBBB-accredited business, you may also have dispute resolution options available through your local BBB, in addition to the mediation and arbitration provided by this program. Please contact your local BBB for more information about the benefits of accreditation. If you have questions, you may also contact Rod Davis at Rdavis@council.bbb.org.
About Direct Marketing Association (DMA)
The Direct Marketing Association (www.the-dma.org) is the leading global trade association of businesses and nonprofit organizations using and supporting multichannel direct marketing tools and techniques. DMA advocates standards for responsible marketing, promotes relevance as the key to reaching consumers with desirable offers, and provides cutting-edge research, education, and networking opportunities to improve results throughout the end-to-end direct marketing process. Founded in 1917, DMA today represents more than 3,400 companies from dozens of vertical industries in the
In 2008, marketers — commercial and nonprofit — will spend $176.9 billion on direct marketing, which accounts for 52.1 percent of all ad expenditures in the
The Power of Direct: Relevance. Responsibility. Results.
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