Meet the Broker: Jo Ann Alberts

Today we meet Jo Ann Alberts, who’s embarking on the next phase of her illustrious career at Trinity Direct, where she was appointed vice president of list brokerage in March. She’s been doing brokerage work since 1981.

Alberts concentrated on the men’s outdoor market and magazine circulation marketing early in her career, and branched out from there. Her experience over the years has grown to include continuity clubs and business-to-business, telemarketing and other areas of direct marketing.

Alberts started off doing list brokerage work for consumer catalogers. After spending a year and a half working in the brokerage division at Media Marketplace, Alberts founded her own list brokerage firm Antigone Associates Ltd. in 1983, which later became a subsidiary of Alan Drey Co.

She left Alan Drey after four years and worked for a short time at Statlistics. She spent the next eight years with American List Counsel Inc. She then moved on to Lake Group Media Inc. where she served as client relationship director in the list brokerage division, prior to joining Trinity Direct.

Alberts says she’s currently looking for new brokerage opportunities in the nonprofit fundraising market and Internet media. She’s done list brokerage for nonprofit groups in the publishing sector, but not extensively in fundraising. About eight months ago she began working with an agency and clients interested in Internet media.

“I wanted to add something else, to learn something new and expand my horizons, but of course I’m still interested in those clients that I’ve worked with over the years,” says Alberts.

Some of the brokerage clients that she’s recently worked with include The Teaching Co., Massachusetts Medical Society, George Lucas Education Foundation, Historic Aviation, Brigade Quartermasters, Valley Natural Foods, Honey Baked Ham, Brandt Publications, Gevalia Kaffee and The Printery House.

Alberts still primarily does postal list brokerage, but she emphasizes that brokers and marketers alike are looking for more on multichannel marketing opportunities, which integrate the use of direct mail and the Web.

“I don’t think anyone has their heads in the sand anymore with respect to the Internet. Everyone is doing something with online media and we as brokers have to be there to advise them,” she adds.

Apart from list brokerage, Alberts does volunteer work for her church, where she’s a deacon. She enjoys family activities and spending time with her grandson, 2, and a granddaughter, nearly 2. Her other interests include bicycling, practicing yoga and swing dancing. She’s also a member of two book clubs.

What’s behind the hype for multichannel marketing?

“People are doing well with online sales. We know online sales spike when people receive catalogs in the mail and when they order online people spend more money,” says Alberts.

The data issue for brokers and marketers involves matching back online orders