Poets and novelists speak fancifully of the hour of the wolf and the day of the jackal. But it was a decidedly less romantic soul that designated May as Internet/E-Commerce Service Supplier Month.
Alas, that's exactly what the Direct Marketing Association has done. Can't say I hear Hallmark Cards beating down the doors on this one.
Ignore the fact that the DMA has rudely elbowed aside Older Americans Month and National Military Appreciation Month, both of which had previously laid claims to May. My question is whether suppliers really need a commemorative month.
The heroes of e-commerce aren't the suppliers, but rather individuals and companies that have made the technology work for them. It's not as easy as it looks: Take eToys, which overspent on infrastructure and systems, a factor that contributed to its going wheels up.
Granted, there was a method to the DMA's seeming madness: It titled the month in conjunction with its net.marketing Conference and Exhibition, which will be held in New York City during May 6-8. And, fair's fair, there are marketer-focused as well as supplier-led sessions listed in its program.
But I reckon the supplier-led sessions are going to be filled with "coulds," while the marketer-led ones are going to be filled with "dids," some of which, I'll bet, were painful. And I'd also wager the latter are going to be a lot more intriguing.
Melinda Nykamp, doyenne of Nykamp Consulting, has a saying: "It's not the tool, it’s the fool." It's perfectly reasonable for suppliers to want to make money when marketers are waving their technology budgets around. But the heroes are the individuals that have made those investments pay off.
A month commemorating e-commerce service users would be a month worth celebrating.
Finally, a reminder. May 12 is Mother's Day. E-mail her a card and make an Internet/e-commerce service supplier's month.
To respond to the opinions in this column, please contact rlevey@primediabusiness.com.
