Any seasoned direct marketer the importance of understanding the numbers side of the business. You have to know both the left-brain (analytic) and right-brain (creative) rules for maximum success. My philosophy is “know the rules before you break them.” People often ask me for the most important direct marketing metrics. As we have evolved to a wider use of selling channels (Websites, e-mail campaigns, search engines, in-store selling), do the tried-and-true tenets of catalog marketing still hold up? see more at: https://www.jschmid.com/blog/5-crucial-omnichannel-metrics/

Are you a faceless brand? Are you talking to your customer in an authentic, meaningful way? Studies in neuroscience have proven that 95% of all buying decisions are driven by emotion, not logic. We’re all drawn to products or brands for much deeper, primal reasons. Hear from J.Schmid President and CCO, Brent Niemuth, on what those primal reasons are and what you and your brand can do to appeal to deeper emotional instincts.

If it feels like Black Friday started in October this year, you're not imagining things. Retailers have gone all-in on hyper early promotions, stretching the traditional shopping window into what's now being called Black November. Amazon, Walmart, Target, and others launched deals well before Thanksgiving to lock in consumer dollars early. Why the shift? 💵 Economic pressure & tariffs: Surveys show consumers are highly price-sensitive due to inflation and tariffs. 💵 Price sensitivity: Consumers are cautious but still spending, holiday total retail sales (online + offline) are projected to surpass $1 trillion for the first time, though growth will slow to ~3-4% vs 4.2% last year. 💵 Mobile dominance: Over 70% of Cyber Week traffic will come from mobile and AI-driven personalization is shaping the experience. The projected numbers: 📊 Black Friday online sales: $11.7B (up 8.3% YoY from $10.8B in 2024) 📊 Cyber Monday online sales: $14.2B (up 6.8% YoY from $13.3B in 2024) (Source: Adobe Analytics Holiday Forecast, NRF Holiday Outlook)