Re: UKNM: The Big Retailers - was Toys R Us

[Steve Johnston/IMRG]

Ouch Felix. And there was me being so pleased to see you name on the list 

again, as you usually have such interesting things to say. 


Firstly let me correct your outrageous spam accusation.


We used Head New Media's general email address

mdhead-newmedia [dot] com

, not 

your personal one although I can see now that it may end up in the same 

place - as per the Revolution creative portfolio published at the end of 

last year, you know, the email address you advertise, for people to get in 

touch with you - as one of only 16 emails sent to a selection of companies 

from this portfolio, of which no doubt there are others on UKNM. You also 

got a highly personalised apology from our General Manager once you had 

expressed your desire not to be mailed in that way. Needless to say you 

have been removed from our list.


>From my understanding 'spamming' is the action of blanket mailing adverts 

without regard for topical relevance. Our mailing to you was an advert to 

encourage you to join the membership of the IMRG on the back of a members 

meeting we have next week in which Mark Danby of Freeserve is presenting. 

We even sent you a list of confirmed attendees. Given what I know of your 

company's activity, this struck me as a highly relevant mailing. I presume 

the 'rudeness' you refer to amounts simply to the form of the opening 

sentence which began 'Shouldn't you be there?' and the simple fact that it 

arrived unannounced. 


I'll concede that the 'to' email address we used does not exist, but that 

is merely a tactic to get it through our modest Notes mail server without 

rejection and to have some semblance of meaning to recipients. If this is 

considered a Netiquette sin, we will refrain from doing it. 


Secondly let me address your complete lack of humour and your remarkable 

superiority complex.


My response to Sajid was intended as a joke. In context you will have seen 

that he had been a little tedious in his comment on a previous post of mine 

and in response I had a little dig at him ( Sajid, I hope you got the joke 

). So to then listed to your self important tirade about the qualifications 

for comment defies belief. Particularly when the comment you so took 

exception to was neither genuine nor serious. So for the record, Felix, I 

do not believe business-to-business e-commerce is duller than dishwater - 

and I am quite happy with the dishwater analogy, given that it is a long 

time since anyone looked in a real ditch to check the water. And quite what 

generating revenue has to do with something being inherently not dull, I do 

not know


Thirdly, and most importantly on to your damaging comments about the IMRG.


Felix wrote:

>If the IMRG were to want to become anything but a laughing stock to 

>those of us at the coal face, it would be encouraging ANY kind of 

>real-world application as opposed to denigrating the work we're doing 

>that you then capitalise on.


Can I begin by thanking you for your concern about industry attitudes to 

our organisation. However, I am completely baffled by your comments about 

denigration and capitalisation. I am happy that I have answered your 

denigration charge, above, on the understanding that it was a humorous 

reference. Quite what you can be referring to with regards to us 

capitalising on the work you do eludes me. I don't really want to invite 

further conversation on this issue, but perhaps you could be clearer off 

list. 


The IMRG whilst taking a position on retail best practice online - and 

being a consumer qualifies me for that judgement - we are careful not to go 

around slagging off naive or underfunded offerings, and instead try to work 

with those who are close to being excellent to get the extra mile sorted so 

that they can be used as examples and motivators (we are currently 

discussing such matters with Swatch in Switzerland). We stop short of 

encouraging ANY kind of real-world application because we believe a great 

deal of what is put before the online consumer currently is inadequate. If 

on the other hand you are happy with the general state of e-commerce 

offerings for the consumer and believe that developers such as Head New 

Media with their research-design-strategic-planning-past-or-current success 

are the only organisations fit to judge this then we clearly have little in 

common and a membership of the IMRG will be a waste of your money.


Incidentally Felix, I was at the new media coal face from August 1994 to 

January 1998 and spent the previous seven years building a bricks and 

mortar retail business. 


Phew.


Steve Johnston

Director of Development

The IMRG

www.imrg.org

07000 46 46 74


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Subject:        Re: UKNM: The Big Retailers - was Toys R Us


Steve Johnston, Director of Development at IMRG wrote:

>>Seriously, the one topic that has yet to appear in this thread is the

>>aspect of e-commerce that isn't retail, but business-to-business

>>procurement.

>

> Yeah, that's right Sajid, because its duller than dishwater.


IMRG is the same organisation that spammed me yesterday in the rudest 

manner using a forged forwarded message. Past or current success (of 

any kind: research, design, strategic planning or whatever) or at 

least an understanding of netiquette are IMO the prerequisites to be 

able to comment on such an issue - the comment you posted above was 

so crass as to be unbelievable.


We, that is those of us who are actually succeeding in the new media 

strategy, design and production business, are setting the precedents 

consumer e-commerce companies (e-tailers) are only now (pace amazon) 

beginning to follow. We are actually generating results: 59 enquiries 

converting to 31 qualified leads with average GBP5million business 

per lead (for C&L pre-merger, have a look at 

http://www.head-case.com/coopers), for example.


In our 'duller than dishwater' (surely you mean ditchwater) business 

- at least some of us are actually generating revenue.


If the IMRG were to want to become anything but a laughing stock to 

those of us at the coal face, it would be encouraging ANY kind of 

real-world application as opposed to denigrating the work we're doing 

that you then capitalise on.


Felix Velarde

director      Head New Media

success is about interaction

voice  + 44 (0) 171 737 7579

http://www.head-newmedia.com 

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