Mark DiMassimo

Mark DiMassimo is a Columnist at Grit Daily. He is a direct economy expert and Chief of NYC-based advertising and business building agency, DiMassimo Goldstein.

Delta and Diet-Coke Cause Creep-Out at 30,000 Feet. Apologize.

Delta and Diet-Coke Cause Creep-Out at 30,000 Feet. Apologize.

By | Feb 9, 2019 | , ,

The Washington Post reported that Delta Airlines and Coca-Cola have apologized for nudging passengers “to slip their number to their ‘plane crush’ on napkins.” Since then, the questions have been pouring in here. “Was this cool? Or creepy?” “How can people be creeped out by this?!?” “What were they thinking?!” I’ve got some in-plane advertising experience, so I’m in a good position to answer these questions. For example, back in the early 2000s, my agency, DiMassimo Goldstein, created a series...

The Real Problem with Gillette’s New Toxic Masculinity Commercial

The Real Problem with Gillette’s New Toxic Masculinity Commercial

By | Jan 21, 2019 | , ,

The internet is aflame with criticisms of Gillette’s new commercial. Here’s one you won’t read elsewhere: It’s old-fashioned. It’s retrograde, in fact. The commercial itself is dressed up as something new. It overtly shifts the high-end blade-crazed brand’s attention from the quality of the product to the quality — or lack thereof — of the audience. It takes on “toxic masculinity” through more than a minute of fast cuts that at times are hard to follow, culminating in a glimmer of hope that...

Lester Wunderman, “Godfather” of Direct Marketing, Dies

Lester Wunderman, “Godfather” of Direct Marketing, Dies

By | Jan 13, 2019 |

Lester Wunderman, widely acknowledged as “the father of direct marketing” has died. He was 98 years old. Direct marketing.  That’s a broad category that includes subscription entertainment services such as Netflix, e-commerce loyalty programs such as Amazon Prime, and direct-to-consumer health and beauty memberships such as Dollar Shave Club and Harry’s. It includes e-commerce websites such as Amazon, direct grocery delivery services such as FreshDirect, and meal kit services including Hello...