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NEWSLETTER
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Volume 11, November 15, 2000
MICROPRO TAGS InfoWorx FOR INFOMERCIAL
By Edward Easton
Micro Pro Incorporated, one of the fastest growing Computer system manufacturers in the USA with over $100 million in sales for 1999, has locked in InfoWorx, one of the fastest growing DRTV production companies, to produce their latest long form marketing venture into the DRTV field. It's a marriage made in heaven for two hard chargers in their respective fields. Partnered with Micro Pro in a new approach for configuring home and business computers are Microsoft and AMD, the producers of the now famous Athlon line of CPUs rapidly overtaking Intel's Pentium as the preferred computer chip for Windows-based systems.
Also coming on board with Micro Pro is 3-Com, makers of a new home computing network system that will allow the new Micro pro system to be networked with older home computers and on the worldwide web simultaneously over one phone line.
Ron Perlstein, executive producer at InfoWorx, says "We are delighted to be associated with such industry heavyweights in the new venture. This is going to be a totally new concept for home and small business computer configuration that will save the consumer hundreds of dollars in set-up and run-time costs, while at the same time increasing the efficiency of home, and small business productivity."
MEDIA BILLINGS SET 2ND QUARTER RECORD
By Edward Easton
235 million dollars worth, to be exact. An increase of almost 32 and a half million over the same period of 1999, and surpassing the 1997 record by 12.3 percent.
Consumers are spending more than ever on products they were first introduced to via long form infomercials. At the same time, however, media costs have been rising steadily. This also flies in the face of a decline in actual media time slots purchased. Profits and sales are increasing but its costing more to generate them. This translates into a wise maxim: If you have a product to sell, it would be wise to do it sooner rather than later.
The short form direct response commercial is in part driving the rise in prices by monopolizing station air time across the nation for election campaign spots, Olympic ads, and a raft of dot com companies. A lot of capital has poured into this market, putting stiff pressure on long form infomercial pricing to compete for air time.
Traditional infomercial products have remained strong, but four categories in particular are enjoying new highs. Electronics more than doubled in sales over it's previous 1997 record, reaching $8,690,000 in 2nd quarter 2000. Election spots and Olympic pleas for funding helped push the Fundraising category up by 57.8 percent. Home and Garden posted a fifth-straight second quarter increase with 58.4 percent, with Health & Fitness trailing with a 28.8 percentage point rise.
The upshot is... Get your product out there now, on the air, and save money before the media markets get another kick in the pants from some other currently unidentified quarter!
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