Should The Direct Marketing Association (The DMA) Be Saved?

Over the past two years, I have asked myself and others this question: “Should the Direct Marketing Association (The DMA) be saved?”

My affiliation with The DMA has lasted more than 25 years. During the early part of my direct marketing career, I appreciated how The DMA connected me with industry leaders who helped me hone my skills, expand my network, and maximize my career prospects. I remember well attending my first DMA Annual Conference in San Francisco and thinking “it doesn’t get any better than this!”

In 2006, The DMA was top of the heap. Incoming DMA chair Markus Wilhelm addressed the DMA06 general session, proudly proclaiming that DMA members had grown direct marketing into an economic force. I was in the room when Wilhelm announced that the direct marketing industry had grown to represent ten percent of the U.S.’s gross domestic product. Attendees answered with thunderous applause.

But fast-forward three and-a-half years to Spring 2010 and The DMA finds its fortunes reversed.

The DMA has disappeared from our radars, the amount of (industry) news it generates has slowed to a trickle. Its 2010 membership directory is much narrower than the previous year’s edition. And the DMA has cancelled scores of conferences.

Worse, I have heard from many executives not renewing their DMA memberships in 2010; with their budgets slashed, they can no longer justify spending thousands to send staff to DMA conferences, let alone cover their airfare and room accommodations for San Francisco (where DMA10 will be held this fall).

Without a doubt, the economy has hit all us direct and interactive marketers hard. Actually, the downturn’s impact has been, to paraphrase a comic entertainer friend of mine, “Krakatoan.”

As is the case with hundreds or perhaps thousands of direct and interactive marketers, I too can no longer justify renewing my DMA membership, nor can I see clear to attending this year’s show in SFO. I just don’t have the financial resources that I used to have.

However, something else has been happening at The DMA. At a time when we all needed The DMA the most, this once-mighty voice whispered. Long gone was the leadership direct marketers had come to expect from The DMA. Instead, some executives say they feel that The DMA is now interested mainly in “maximizing its returns from [their] membership.” In other words, The DMA’s mission is to get The DMA’s members to spend more.

Call me a cynic, but I believe The DMA has put its own needs well ahead of its members. And now the chickens have come home to roost.

The current DMA regime should drive up to Stew Leonard’s Dairy in Norwalk, Conn. and study the words carved into the granite boulder at that famous store’s entrance:

RULE #1: The customer is always right.
RULE #2: If the customer is ever wrong, re-read RULE #1!

But what are the chances of that road trip from Manhattan ever happening?

The DMA has announced that it has engaged an executive recruitment firm to find its next CEO. That’s certainly a step in the right direction. But one has to ask: can The DMA currently afford to hire a new CEO? I don’t know the answer to that question. But given how The DMA’s membership department has, over the past 6-8 months, called repeatedly to talk me into renewing my lapsed membership, I have to wonder if The DMA can afford a CEO earning a hefty six-figure salary and the upside compensation and benefits that go with it.

This direct and interactive marketer and once proud member has grown weary and now believes that The DMA has become a Potemkin Village.

Still, nothing would please me more than to see The DMA return to its fighting form. Whether or not hitting the re-set button is successful, The DMA should make the effort to recapture its former glory (and relevance).

That’s my take. What do you think?

Greco is Gonzo; The DMA Searching for New Leadership

In a move that should surprise no one in the direct and interactive marketing spaces, John A. Greco, Jr. has resigned his post as President and CEO of The DMA.

From The DMA News Release:

New York, NY, January 19, 2010 — The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) the leading global trade association of businesses and nonprofit multichannel direct marketers, today announced they will begin a search for a new President & CEO to replace John A. Greco, Jr. Mr. Greco has resigned his role effective today and DMA has organized a search committee to identify possible candidates.

…

“As we enter into the new decade and are anticipating an economic resurgence, it’s more important than ever to ensure that both traditional and digital multichannel direct marketing is at the forefront of that recovery,” said Eugene Raitt, Chairman of the DMA Board of Directors. “Bringing in new leadership to the management team focusing on the areas we intend to grow will be part of that process. The committee will conduct an aggressive search and I’m confident that we will find an exceptionally qualified individual to fulfill the DMA’s vision and goals.”

He continued, “DMA has committed to further developing the power of multichannel direct marketing for advertisers and consumers in the digital age. By continuing to develop strategies, content and thought-leadership, digital marketing principles will be fused throughout DMA; enabling us to grow membership, expand partnerships, enhance the Organization’s role within digital marketing and produce advanced thinking and educational programs worldwide.”

“We are grateful for John’s able service and dedication to the Direct Marketing Association over the past five years. We wish him much success with his future endeavors,” concluded Raitt.

To paraphrase the late President Gerald R. Ford, “The long national nightmare is over.”

Greco’s tenure was certainly controversial; while staging several rounds of severe staff layoffs, he raked in a total compensation package rumored to be worth nearly $1 million per year.

In October, at the onset of the DMA09 conference and exhibit held in San Diego, California, the Executive Board agreed to expand to include voting and non-voting seats for “reform bloc” candidates. Further, it agreed to form a By-Laws Committee to review the association’s governing laws and procedures. And, perhaps most important, it created a Compensation Committee to review and set management executive compensation parameters, that as Reform Bloc leader and current Board Member Gerry Pike indicated at the time, “would bring salary expectations in line with reality.”

And with that, Greco’s days running The DMA were numbered.

We wish Board Chair Gene Raitt and his executive committee well as they transition to new leadership. This industry will need all The DMA can muster.

DMA09 Opens; New Board “Steps Up”, Adopts Several Reform Bloc Positions

DMA09, The Direct Marketing Association’s annual convention and exhibit held this year in San Diego, has begun. And in its first piece of official business, The DMA’s membership elected a new Board of Directors.

Gerry Pike, the DMA Board Member who staged a well-publicized proxy-battle, arrived at the board meeting with what one observer described as “hundreds and hundreds of proxies in hand” for the Reform Bloc.

The DMA Board stepped up to the plate, and by accepting many of the Reform Bloc’s suggestions staved off what likely would have been a nasty battle for control of the board.

The newly elected board is headed by former DMA Vice-Chair Gene Raitt and includes 6 positions for Reform Bloc members: 3 of whom were elected and 3 that will be added as adjunct members. Pike was elected to the new board and will serve on the Executive Committee.

The new board has agreed to form a By-Laws Committee to review the association’s governing laws and procedures and create a Compensation Committee that will immediately review and set management executive compensation parameters, as Pike has indicated, “would bring salary expectations in line with reality.”

This is a watershed moment: at last, there appears to be a board which fully recognizes that The DMA has not only lost its relevance but also hundreds of members. Now, with new voices at the helm, there will be a great opportunity to get both back. We hope for the best.

To all of you that made the trip to San Diego I say have a great time. The future is (finally) yours!

And to Gerry Pike I say: thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!

Onward and upward!

UPDATE: DIRECT Magazine has more on the story.

In 4 Minutes…

Cross-posted to Sturdy Roots Blog:

…this viral-video does more to envision our future as marketers than The DMA has in the past four years.

Just another reason to submit your DMA member voting proxy TODAY, BEFORE 12:00 Pacific Time, to Gerry Pike for a better DMA.

The DMA’s “Green 15″ Environmental Program Wins Award

The Direct Marketing Association (The DMA) announced that its “Green 15 Standards & Environmental Action Program” has won the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) 2009 Associations Advance America (AAA) Award in a national competition sponsored by ASAE & The Center for Association Leadership in Washington, DC.

From the news release:

The prestigious AAA Awards program recognizes associations that propel America forward with innovative projects in education; skills training; standards-setting; business and social innovation; knowledge creation; citizenship; and community service. In receiving this esteemed award, The DMA is one of only 21 other organizations to receive an Award of Excellence, and is now automatically included in the running to receive a Summit Award, ASAE & The Center’s top recognition for association programs.

The DMA is the leading global trade association of businesses and nonprofit organizations using and supporting multichannel direct marketing tools and techniques.