The DMA conference in San Diego is quickly approaching. We are exhibiting in booth 2322. Are you attending?

We have 20 discounted exhibit hall passes to give out. It’s a $250 value for only $30. If you would like one, please send an email to ryan@ballantine.com.

Sorry, but this offer is NOT valid for other direct marketing vendors.

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We wanted to add a quick post with some thoughts about the recent DMA 2008 conference we just exhibited at in Las Vegas.

Exhibit Hall

There was a lot of pre-show discussion about the possible dismal attendance because of the economy…but the exhibit hall traffic was good and we ended up meeting 65 qualified prospects for our direct mail services, which is GREAT.

I’m not sure if other exhibitors would agree, and we tend to be more aggressive than most (not annoying though, I think)…but at the very least, the energy in the exhibit hall was definitely positive.

Learning Sessions

We didn’t get to attend any learning sessions, but I was told by many attendees that they were good…I only heard one negative comment and it was about one session in particular.

Exhibitors

As usual there was a ton of list and printing companies…yes, we fall into the printing category, but we’re not your usual printer. There was a healthy dosage of email marketing and promotional item companies…and we also noticed an increase in lead gen related companies.

Convention Center

The convention center was good in that it was pretty compact…to walk to the sessions, bathroom, food, etc. didn’t require a huge amount of effort. Thankfully, there was a Starbucks on the premise and I would say about 75% of attendees and exhibitors (including us) had cups in their hands in the morning.

The only negative thing about the location was, like Jacob Javits Center in NYC, to get to any decent restaurant for a lunch meeting required standing in a long line for a cab.

Conclusion

Overall, we give the DMA conference two thumbs up. Traffic was good…we met a lot of nice people…and it was in Las Vegas! Next year the conference is in San Diego, CA.

We try to keep promotional blog posts like this to a minimum. But the upcoming DMA 08 conference in Las Vegas is a big show for us and we want you to know we’re exhibiting just in case you’re attending.

Our booth is number 636.

We’re running a special where if you bring your direct mail package to our booth so we can quote it, we’ll include a $25 Starbucks Gift Card with the pricing.

Below is the “official” press release we sent out about the conference…

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The Ballantine Corporation will be exhibiting in booth 636 at the upcoming DMA 08 Conference & Exhibition from October 12-14. The conference is held at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, NV.

DMA 08, run by The Direct Marketing Association, is the premiere annual conference for marketing professionals.

Ballantine is a full-service direct mail company established in 1966 and family-owned (going back 3 generations). At DMA 08 they will be showcasing their direct mail services which includes creative copy & design, print production support, mailing services, variable data printing and personal URLs.

Clients include The Economist, Smithsonian Magazine, Skin Cancer Foundation, Dow Jones, Marvel Comics, Weight Watchers, The Motley Fool and more. All clients benefit from a strong combination of quality work, aggressive pricing and full project support.

For more information about Ballantine, please visit: http://www.ballantine.com

For more information about DMA 08, please visit: http://www.dma08.org