Meet the Broker: Joanna Dymond

Today we meet Joanna Dymond, vice president of sales and brokerage at Rich List Co. Dymond works with clients selling financial services, real estate and various kinds of consumer products.

Some of her brokerage clients include AutoGuard Inc., CityRealty in New York City and Duck Shack Winery.

She’s really an accidental list broker. Dymond had other plans for her career, but her knack for research and talking on the phone led her to the list world.

While trying to build her own public relations business in the late 1990s, she took on what she believed was going to be some short-term graphic design work for her now current employer.

“My career was going to be in public relations. I never wanted to work in the list business, but once I started it just went on and on, until the list business overtook me,” says Dymond.

She started reading about direct marketing and spending more time talking with clients on the phone, which led her to do a little list research, then a little more and finally, a lot more.

Dymond didn’t consider herself as list broker until she received a telephone call in 2000 from Leslie Mandel, president of the company.

“She called and told me, ‘You’re going to be a list broker and you’ll need to get started right away.’ And that’s how the list business overtook me.'”

Dymond brokers postal and e-mail lists, although she has more faith in generating response for clients through direct mail than e-mail.

“I find clients can do a better job of selling with postal lists than e-mail lists. I don’t recommend e-mail lists to clients unless they ask. If they want my opinion I’ll tell them they’re better off using a postal list,” she says.

Besides working with direct marketers, Dymond is writing a novel. She holds several degrees, including a master’s in creative writing. “I really love learning. I am a perpetual student,” she says. Her other interests include collecting art, mostly silk screens and etchings.

What’s the biggest obstacle to using text messaging lists for telemarketing?

Many companies are interested in testing text messaging files, particularly publishing companies. But, says Dymond, the price is a deal breaker.

“They ask me for counts, but get cold feet when they find out how much it costs.”

Prices for text messaging lists typically start at $350/M to $450/M and the list owners expect minimum orders for 25,000 records, which based her experience is too much for companies looking to test text offers.

Additional costs for collecting responses also discourages companies from using text message lists, particularly if they want to use an 800 number, she says.

When prices come down marketers will rent text messaging lists for telemarketing in the U.S., just like marketers already do extensively in China and Europe, Dymond says.

What are some unusual list requests you’ve received?

“One time someone called me asking to find a list of people who own AK-47 assault rifles. These are military weapons. I ended up forwarding his information to the FBI. I’m not interested in getting involved in anything illegal,” says Dymond.

Another time someone from Egypt contacted her asking her to find a list of chicken vaccine manufacturers. After she made several calls to data vendors and being met with stumped silence a few times, she finally found a vendor able to supply the requested data.

“The problem was there is a minimum $500 charge and I only had four names, but the guy wanted the list and he wired the money for it,” she says.

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