THE DMA ANNOUNCES SPECIAL EVENTS LINEUP FOR ITS 86TH ANNUAL CONFERENCE & EXHIBITION

NEW YORK, June 12, 2003 – The Direct Marketing Association (The DMA) today announced the lineup of special events to be held during its 86th Annual Conference & Exhibition at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando.

This year The DMA has obtained, for conference attendees, the exclusive use of Sea World theme park. This event will be held on the evening of Tuesday, October 14 and will take the place of the traditional final gala. Food and beverages will be served followed by a special nighttime Shamu Show and customized fireworks finale. Attendees will also have exclusive access to the water thrill ride "Journey to Atlantis" and the super roller coaster the "Kracken."

A new two-day certificate program, Direct Marketing Basics, will provide direct and interactive marketing beginners and seasoned professionals who want to refresh their knowledge, a condensed version of The DMA’s Direct Marketing Basics seminar. This new program will offer attendees an overview of everything they need in order to plan, execute, manage, and evaluate a successful direct marketing campaign.

The Direct Marketing Educational Foundation (DMEF) will host "Golfing for Education," a fundraising golf tournament to benefit DMEF programs. The event will take place on Saturday morning, October 11 prior to the start of the weekend conference and is open to all conference attendees.

In addition, The DMA has reinstated the international reception this year. The event, held Saturday evening, October 11 at the Rosen Centre, will be open to all International and Weekend Conference delegates.

Also, back by popular demand, the following special events will return this year to The DMA’s 86^th Annual Conference & Exhibition:

• DMEF Silent Auction for Education -- DMEF will once again host a silent auction of more than 100 products, gift certificates, conference and seminar registrations, and vacation packages – including a five-day, four-night Sedona Adventure Vacation package. The Auction will run throughout the entire conference. All proceeds will be used towards future DMEF programs.

• DMEF Awards Dinner -- This year’s Ed Mayer Award recipient and third annual Corporate Leadership Award will be held on Saturday, October 11 at the Peabody Hotel.

• DMEF Annual Robert B. Clarke Educators’ Conference -- The Annual DMEF Robert B. Clarke Educators’ Conference will be held on Sunday October 12 at the Peabody Hotel. Academic research will be presented, followed by discussions between the academic and business communities.

• College Day -- Marketing, advertising, business students and their professors from the Orlando area will have the opportunity to attend The DMA’s Annual Conference sessions on Monday, October 13 at the convention center, including a guided tour of the Exhibit Hall.

Now in its 86th year, The DMA Annual Conference & Exhibition is the world’s largest gathering of direct and interactive marketers. At this year's event, The DMA will bring together the most skilled and experienced B-to-C and B-to-B thought leaders to showcase the industry’s best practices and benchmark examples of how to best utilize direct and interactive marketing as part of their integrated marketing, sales, and customer service strategies.

Complete conference details and registration information is available online at The DMA’s Annual Conference Web site at www.dmaannual.org.

The DMA is the leading trade association for businesses interested in interactive and database marketing, with nearly 4,700 member companies from the United States and 53 other nations. Founded in 1917, its members include direct marketers from every business segment as well as the nonprofit and electronic marketing sectors. Included are catalogers, Internet retailers and service providers, financial services providers, book and magazine publishers, book and music clubs, retail stores, industrial manufacturers and a host of other vertical segments, including the service industries that support them. According to a DMA-commissioned study, direct and interactive marketing sales in the United States are projected to have surpassed $2 trillion in 2002, including $126 billion in catalog sales and $34 billion in sales generated by the Internet. The DMA's Web site is www.the-dma.org, and its consumer Web site is www.shopthenet.org.

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