Sponsored Content WEBINAR: ELECTION 2008: E-mail Tips from a Political Insider   WEBINAR: Becoming the Illusionist: The Magic of Using "Brand" to Drive Response without Results Disappearing in the Process   WEBINAR: Score and Win Through Cooperation   TOOLS OF THE TRADE: Holiday's are prime-time for email marketing - maximize your ROI by getting to the inbox   ON DEMAND WEBINAR--MASTER CLASS: High Performance Online and Off-line Strategies for Large Scale Customer Acquisition   FREE WHITE PAPER - Direct Mail and the Internet Find any supplier you need - agencies, CRM, fulfillment, lists, e-commerce, paper, printers, telemarketing, and more. Featured Categories Lists and Data Telemarketing Database Marketing E-commerce Web Marketing Agency & Creative Services Print, Production & Paper Lists and Data Processing :: view all categories Get free access to more than 50,000 list data cards - one of the most comprehensive databases in the industry. >> Search Now DIRECT Buzz Blog Webinars Buyer's Guide Calculators JobZone ListFinder Promo Calendar Research Store E-Newsletters Print Magazine This Month in Direct Magazine Deal With It Direct had a full house for this year's list roundtable. Considering all the additional responsibilities on brokers' plates, that's impressive... See Full July Issue

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—generated by catalogs and other direct mail—to the lists being used, which is still not a widespread practice.

"Everyone is getting more sophisticated. So I don't want to say matching data back is still in it's infancy, but it may still be in the toddler stage," she says.

What opportunities do you see for brokers in Internet media?

One of the growth areas involves appending e-mail addresses to customer lists, as companies seek to do more direct e-mail prospecting using house files, Alberts says.

Online marketers are also focusing more attention on strategies to encourage consumers to continue visiting Web sites and opt-in to receive offers. Often this involves contests, marketing partnerships and affiliate marketing, she explains.

Know someone you'd like to suggest for Meet the Broker? E-mail Jim.Emerson@Penton.com