Chief Marketer Staff

• Agencies

  Direct Brands Names Two Top Executives

  Direct Brands Inc., a direct marketer of books, digital videodiscs and related products, has named David Gitow chief marketing officer and Alan Katz executive vice-president, business development.

• Agencies

  Meet the Broker: Debb Bovett

  Today we meet Debb Bovett, senior data products manager at Acton International in Lincoln, NE. A longtime list and direct marketing industry veteran, she asserts that no matter the technology or country, the basic principles of direct marketing hold.

• Agencies

  Spot Shot Cleaner Hooks into Kid Film Fare

  A new tie-in incentive campaign is giving parents two things they may need badly for a happy home: a DVD version of the animated film made from the modern children’s book classic “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs”

• Agencies

  Hilton Gives Loyalty Members, Staffers a Shot at the Grammy Red Carpet

  Hilton Hotels will celebrate its 22nd year as a partner of the Recording Academy with a pair of campaigns—one for loyalty members, one for staff associates– tied to the 52nd Grammy Awards ceremonies, to be broadcast on January 31

• Agencies

  Borders Names Dan Angus VP of Customer Loyalty

  Borders Group, Inc. has a new vice president of customer loyalty

• Agencies

  Office Depot Opens Loyalty Program in Puerto Rico

  Office Depot, which first opened locations in Puerto Rico in 2007, is now offering residents there the opportunity to join its Worklife Rewards loyalty program

• Agencies

  P&I Postscripts

  VISA: a worldwide Olympic Games’ sponsor for more than two decades, is encouraging cardholders to increase their frequency of use by offering a sweepstakes that will award one winner a trip to the Olympic Winter Games for life

• ATG Acquires InstantService for $17 Million

  ATG (Art Technology Group Inc.), an online marketing systems company, has acquired InstantService, a provider of live chat services for $17 million.

• Skechers Expects to Post Income of 50 Cents per Share

  Skechers USA Inc. expects to report that net earnings per share for the fourth quarter will exceed 50 cents per share, compared with a net loss of 44 cents per share last year.

• Online Retailers Better at Customer Satisfaction: Survey

  Retail stores still trump online stores as the go-to holiday destination, but online retailers are delivering higher customer satisfaction, according to advertising agency Allen & Gerritsen.