Datran Media debuts StormPost 4.0 with Facebook tools

Dianna Dilworth

February 27, 2008

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• E-mail to grow, integrate more with other channels in '08: Datran

Online marketing services firm Datran Media has released StormPost 4.0, an expanded version of its StormPost platform that includes social media assets.

The updated platform merges Facebook social marketing tools with analytics and ad inventory management enhancements in a move to aid marketers to combine e-mail and database marketing with social media. With StormPost's Facebook tool, marketers can send personalized mass communications to social media content subscribers.

“We've found that there are folks who spend a lot of time on Facebook and do a lot of messaging there,” said Dave Hendricks, VP of marketing and strategy at Datran Media. “So we wanted to build a tool that would give marketers the opportunity to message there. It works great since Facebook is based on e-mail addresses and accepts messages from outside systems.”

While it is still early to say who will adopt this technology, Datran Media client Lionsgate, a film production company, has expressed interest in the product.

Other enhancements to StormPost 4.0 include upgrades to its user interface, trend-based reporting and inventory management features.

• Tags:
• Social Networks
• Internet Marketing

Online Marketers: Email Beats Search, Display Advertising

Eight in 10 marketers cite email as the best-performing medium, ahead of search and display, according to Datran Media’s second annual survey of 2,000 online marketing professionals conducted in December ‘07.

Moreover, 82% of the marketers surveyed indicated that they plan to increase their use of email marketing in 2008, and 55% of the respondents said they expect ROI from email to be higher than any other channel.

Email ROI will hit $45.65 for every dollar spent in 2008, more than twice the ROI of other mediums including search and display, said Datran Media, citing data from the Direct Marketing Association.
Among other findings of the Datran survey of online marketers:
Some 67% of respondents stated that email has helped boost sales through other channels. In these scenarios, email is a tool for sales as well as a media channel.
Search is the favored channel for complementing the email channel.

More than 80% of marketers send targeted email campaigns.
Additional findings, with charts, are available via Datran’s website.

E-mail use to increase in 2008: Datran Media

Marketers plan to increase e-mail use in 2008, according to a new study by online marketing services firm Datran Media.

Overall, 72% of the marketers surveyed indicated that they plan to use e-mail marketing more in 2008.

The survey, which included 1,500 marketing professionals, focused on marketers' plans to use e-mail marketing in 2008. Firms included KPMG International, InfoUSA, QInteractive and Art.com.

It found that 70.5% reported plans to increase spending on e-mail acquisition and 63% to increase spending on retention campaigns.

In addition, 83% of respondents expect e-mail ROI to increase during the New Year. E-mail optimization techniques, including landing pages, subject line testing and triggered messaging, were unanimously ranked as "very important."

The survey also found that more than half of the respondents outsourced e-mail marketing.

Microsoft selects Datran Media for e-mail marketing services

By Dianna Dilworth

September 17th, 2007

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Technology giant Microsoft has selected Datran Media to deliver its e-mail marketing communications worldwide.

Microsoft will be employing Datran’s StormPost platform, which lets the technology firm customize its communications. Microsoft can use the platform across its communications but is starting with opt-in Hotmail-featured offers and newsletters.

“This really adds a lot of new opportunities to their sending potential, since Storm Post helps with targeting, deliverability and compliance,” said Josh Baer, chief technology officer at Datran Media, New York.

In collaboration with Microsoft, Datran Media also developed an e-mail inventory management system that lets Microsoft’s advertising sales staff keep track of sold and available e-mail media inventory, similar to banner inventory management. When inventory goes unsold, it can then be released into the entire market place exchange.

“It is specifically designed so that their sales force can sell segments within that message, which optimizes what they sell and how unsold inventory is released,” said Matt Keiser, co-founder and president of Datran Media.

Microsoft can also segment its list and sell e-mail inventory based on different segmented audiences.

This platform will now be available for all Datran clients.

Earlier this year, Microsoft’s technology team accepted the StormPost .NET-based platform, a collaboration of the two companies, as a component of Microsoft Digital Advertising Solutions.

Display Meet Email Ads: Datran Acquires Chintano

Written on

August 8th 2007

Acquiring contextual and behavioral targeting ad network Chintano, Datran Media will be incorporating the site with their existing email based ad network, EO.com.

EO.com was launched this year and was to serve as an email ad network for publishers of newsletters and email lists. These clients can incorporate ads from marketers, but what the firm realized was that there is a demand for site-based display ads. Hence, the acquisition of Chintano.

Chief revenue officer for Datran Media, Sean O’Neal said, “We had been working with Chintano for quite some time to help us explore the display advertising opportunity and the ad network opportunity [and] we had a string synergy with them.”

The company believes that what will ultimately set it apart from its competitors will be the offering of email and display advertising simultaneously. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Tags: ad serving, chintano, datran media, email, eo.com and Web Sites