How changes in word frequencies reveal changes in the focus of the JDDDMP

Abstract

Accounts of changes over time in the focus of direct marketing need not necessarily be subjective. Analysis of the frequency with which words appear in the Journal of Direct, Data and Digital Marketing Practice makes it possible to identify marketing concepts that have gained or lost traction during the past 12 years. Many indicative keywords can be consolidated into keyword groups, sets of associated terms, and thereby used to identify changes over time in the thematic focus of contributions to the Journal. Numerical changes in the frequency of use of words within these keyword groups make it possible to quantify changes over time in the 'footprint' of different thematic areas of interest to marketers. From such analysis, there is strong evidence not just of the growth of coverage of topics relating to social media but also the decline in the coverage of CRM and, perhaps more surprisingly, of the business and organizational context within which the practice of direct marketing has historically been undertaken.