Junk Mail Galaxy

Well, we almost… almost… thought about not drinking during this episode. Yeah. Being as though there were already beers in our hands, that thought disappeared rather quickly. Yes, we’re back after Mike’s hard drive crashed- we were unable to post anything sooner, largely because of that. Our leadoff story is from Whitney Hutchinson of Email Insider, as published on mediapost.com. We discuss her article “Email Marketing For The Small Business,” which you can read by clicking here. Nathan’s “piece of the day” features a a butchered ink jet self-mailer that suggests he get his house cleaned. The secret is out! Print quality is pinnacle for effective direct mail. Nate follows up with news about the E! Entertainment Television show “Going Postal: 15 Shocking Acts of Violence.” According to the American Postal Workers Union, that title is just plain offensive. Enjoy the ghost who paid us a visit during this episode, as well as the uncredited beer we’re drinking, Budweiser Select, and music from DON AIR, “Joy Dub Remix.” The song is courtesy of the artists at freshlysqueezedmusic.com and the Podsafe Music Network.

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On the day of a “minor procedure” for Nate (RoboNate), we begin this episode with answering some mail from our MySpace friend Bernie/Masterplan. He wanted to know about the technical side of Junk Mail Galaxy - how we produce this mega-successful, highly rated video podcast. Nathan shares a story he read on printprofessionalmag.com, “Don’t Call Me Margaret,” written by Maggie DeWitt, the managing editor of Print Professional. Read Maggie’s article by clicking here. Maggie longs for name preferences being factored in to direct marketing, and why not? Targeted marketing, wherever possible, should absolutely be the focus in today’s struggling economy. Mike tries to explain why his command over the English language falters at times, then discusses an email blast he recently received from Pizza Hut. Yes, Pizza Hut. What every Mother wants for Mother’s Day. The beer of choice for this installment of JMG was the deliciously spicy “Midnight Wit” from the Legacy Brewing Company of Harrisburg, PA. “The World The People Together” from The Dandy Warhols was our featured song, courtesy of the Podsafe Music Network and the band at myspace.com/thedandywarhols.

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Yes, we are intentionally misspelling “unseen.” It’s a play on words, perfect for what this episode is all about - all the scenes that never made it to more recent Junk Mail Galaxy episodes. Outtakes, bloopers… there are clips from an episode that we totally scrapped (due to our flagrant abuse of facts, alcohol, and the English language), as well as clips of microphone and camera tests and before and after show shenanigans. This should convince you all that we absolutely do not take ourselves seriously. Thanks for your patience while we find the time for brand new episodes. Nathan’s been sick and very busy with his full-time job, while Mike has been traveling more often and working out personal stuff. Music in this episode is from Britain’s Dizzee Rascal, “Sirens.” It’s used courtesy of the artist and the Podsafe Music Network at music.podshow.com. Thanks to you all for the continued support!

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Episode 14 was indeed recorded “under the darkened skies of New Jersey.” Complete with wildlife noise, police sirens, and jet engines, it’s kind of obvious that we took the show to the great outdoors in honor of “Earth Week” - the great outdoors of Nathan’s back deck, that is. Pay specific attention to our little plug about our friend Eliot’s site, Vee Dee Pee, veedeepee.com. We’re very thankful for him and his site, which is an often-updated blog about variable data publishing. Nathan kicks off more discussion about greener direct mail and shows off the latest issue of the USPS’s Deliver magazine. Check out the site by clicking here, and you’ll see that initiatives for environmentally responsible mailing are not a foreign concept to the USPS, as some organizations would have you believe. Nate comments on Green Dimes and 41 Pounds again, citing the statistic that “direct mail is destroying 2.6 million trees a year.” How much of that direct mail was of recycled paper? Mike shares findings from our friends at Mintel Comperemedia, that “in 2007, direct mail offers sent to current customers increased 17% from 2006.” Direct mail really isn’t dead- nor is it being completely replaced by email marketing. Nathan shares commentary from Noel Ward over at What They Think: consumers “don’t mind –and may even like– relevant, targeted direct mail.” Also relevant and targeted -Nathan’s beverage of choice for this episode, Molson XXX. Mike enjoys a bottle of Orange Blossom Cream Ale from Buffalo Bill’s Brewery. Music is this episode is again from the CD “Punk Goes Crunk,” this time from the band The Escape Frame. It’s “Nothin’ But A G Thang” bay-bay, of Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre fame. That’s courtesy of the band, the CD site and the Podsafe Music Network.

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Thanks for hanging with us as Mike took another vacation time out. How dare he! What better way to commemorate Mike’s being a slacker than to recap his career in direct mail. From his early days in Group 1 software to his trials in GMC’s PrintNet, Mike gives us the scoop. Yes, it’s another “A Very Special Junk Mail Galaxy” episode, all about Mike, just for you. Nate enjoys a bottle of Anchor Steam as Mike downs a nice Barcardi Silver Mojito. Hmm… delicious and informative. Music in this episode is from the Podsafe Music Network and the CD “Punk Goes Crunk,” featuring the song “Tennessee” from New Found Glory. Yes, that “Tennessee,” as in… Arrested Development. Awesome stuff. Don’t forget to write us at junkmailgalaxy@gmail.com with your comments and questions.

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Episode 012, bringing you news and commentary about direct marketing, and “general nonsense about general nonsense,” according to Mike. We introduce the Magic Hat Brewing Company’s Magic Hat #9, the “Not Quite Pale Ale,” which enhanced our discussions for this show. Nate gives a hearty endorsement for twitter.com’s highly interactive “microblogging,” then salutes the genius of one of twitter’s bright shining stars, Gary Vaynerchuk of Wine Library TV. Gary is really pushing Web 2.0 to the limit with his venture. Definitely check him out, especially if you love wine! We briefly discuss a wonderfully entertaining article from the Christian Science Monitor and Thomas Fox, a writer and development director in New Jersey. It’s called “How Junk Mail Stole My Heart,” and if you’ve often marveled at the copywriting excellence junk mail letters display, this article is a must read! Click here to check it out. We finally scratch the surface on the debate of greener direct mail practices. This is a real hot button issue in the press right now. We’d like those who lament about direct mail’s impact on the environment to step up with some actual figures and comparisons. Sure, we may all get 41 pounds of junk mail every year, but give us more! What hurts the environment more- direct mail or a paper receipt at Target or Wal-Mart? Direct Mail or newspapers? So why single out direct mail? Sites like greendimes.com and 41pounds.org are claiming they can help the average citizen virtually eliminate junk mail. What can those services do that the DMA’s Mail Preference Service can’t? Email us with your comments… junkmailgalaxy@gmail.com. The music featured in this episode is “Saint of Containment” by The Bloodsugars. The guys are from New York City and are desribed as an “amalgamation of indie rock and 80’s synth pop with excellent songwriting rooted in the classics of 60/70’s pop.” The song is courtesy of the band at http://www.thebloodsugars.com and the Podsafe Music Network at music.podshow.com! Don’t miss the quick video of Mike’s friend Jimmy getting tortured by Mike and friend Pete Jr. as the credits roll. Lastly, here’s a big hello to our friend Eliot over at veedeepee.com. Eliot discussed our show in one of his recent blogs and we are truly grateful for the kind words! We’ll be featuring his great website in a future episode.

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As we state at the beginning of this episode, we’ve been having email issues. Until we get all of that resolved (someday), please email the show at junkmailgalaxy@gmail.com. Going a bit more mainstream this time around, we partook of the delightfully “Chelada-style” beer from Miller, Miller Chill. This, just as some bad news for the direct mail industry is delivered by Mike: credit card mailings are so far on the decline in 2008, according to the Mintel Comperemedia Organization. Contrary to what you may see in this episode, it should be noted that Lisa Hronek, the senior analyst at Mintel quoted in Mike’s news piece, was not actually in our studio. Nathan delivers some happy news about the USPS’s mandatory Intelligent Mail Barcode rollout: the deadline for compliance is now May, 2009. That is good news for smaller direct mail operations and campaigns we suppose. You know, the IMB can be rather menacing at first glance. We feature music from the San Diego band Moxie in this episode, specifically their song “Take A Chance.” That’s courtesy of the band and the Podsafe Music Network.

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Join the Episode 10 revolution! Nate was so excited he wore a Colonial Williamsburg souvenir hat to commemorate the occasion. Seeing is believing. The delay for this episode was due to a nice little Easter vacation for the guys. Mike went out to Hollywood for a few days while Nate… uh… worked. In junk mail. Back to the celebration. Mike is once again taking swigs of Liebfraumilch from Schmitt Söhne as Nate sips on a nice big (not quite big enough actually) bottle of Maximus India Pale Ale from the Lagunitas Brewing Company. Mike discusses a piece of direct mail he received from the USPS that dealt with avoiding identity theft. There are several great tips that were offered through that piece of direct mail. See? It’s not all that bad. Nathan briefly touches on some recent mailbox crimes in Delaware, followed by some highlights of Valpak’s tremendously new futuristic facility in St. Petersburg, Florida. You can watch the same video Mike and Nathan featured from Tampa Bay News 9 and YouTube by clicking here. Robots are taking over! Don’t miss Mike’s acting expo at the end of the show. We feature music from Goodnight Sunrise (of Montana) in this episode. Their song “It’s the Stare” is available courtesy of the band and the Podsafe Music Network.

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Happy St. Patrick’s Day from us, your friends Mike and Nate, still hopelessly adrift in the Junk Mail Galaxy! Here’s a question you probably hear all the time. Have you ever wanted to know all about the Intelligent Mail Barcode? Well, have you? Hello? If you answered, “absolutely, please enlighten me about this one code solution before 2009,” you are in luck. In this episode, Nathan recites his dissertation on that very subject, while all the while, Mike opens a freshly delivered Valpak, that oh so treasured piece of direct mail that is, well, often packed full of values. That is, if smile makeovers, fancy haircuts, gutter cleanings or fine dining are in your immediate future. Just when you think Mike wasn’t really paying much attention to anything except the Valpak coupons and one of his favorites wines, Liebfraumilch from the German company Schmitt Söhn, he sparks some interesting commentary. Comparisons are ultimately drawn between the Intelligent Mail Barcode and High Definition TV conversion timetables. Coincidence? Did Nostradamus predict it all? Do you need your digital TV over-the-air broadcast $40 coupon (uh, click here)? Oh, and just because you don’t see Nate drinking much during this episode, it can safely be assumed that a tall glass of Guinness was within arm’s length. If you haven’t determined it by now, always stay tuned for the closing credits. You’ll hear more of “Jedi Drinking Song,” courtesy of Dust Rhinos, the spectacular Celtic rock band from Canada and the Podsafe Music Network. You’ll see a pic of Mike with Mike M., Jeff D. and the other Jeff D. from St. Patrick’s Day 2007 (yes, that’s two Mikes and two Jeffs). You’ll also briefly see Nathan’s wife Jill give a quick shout out! And she thought that video was destroyed. Heh heh heh.

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