Direct marketing materials.
Direct marketing is a type of marketing in which a company directly communicates with the customer through materials that are targeted toward the customer. AllBusiness.com states, "Direct marketing differs from general marketing in that the result of a promotion is measurable in terms of response." While companies should also take into consideration other forms of marketing most suitable to their audience, direct marketing is a strategy companies should consider in their marketing mix.
Benefits
One of the benefits of direct marketing is that it targets customers more personally. Each customer receives a marketing material, compared to watching television commercials where customers don't get any materials. Also, direct marketing involves a call to action in which the customer reacts to the promotion either through calling a number, sending mail or buying the product or service. It allows companies to see the result of their marketing campaign directly since the response is measurable.
Success Factors
For a direct marketing campaign to work, direct marketing materials have to reach the right person and be read by this person in order to convince her to buy the product or service. To do this, it's important to identify your audience and understand its behavior in order to know best reach it. If you are marketing a product or service, ask yourself who are the type of people who will most likely be customers of that product or service. Knowing your target audience will also help you create the right marketing package to include in your direct marketing campaign.
Responses
When companies receive responses from customers, either when customers have sent back a mailer or used the coupon they have received, companies will gain information about the customers and use that information to cultivate relationships. They can then send even more targeted marketing materials based on the individual preferences of their customers. For example, when you use a coupon at the grocery store where you are a member, the store gathers that data to interpret your shopping habits. As a result, you will then receive specific coupons on the back of your grocery store receipts to use for later shopping trips.
Direct marketing tools and examples
Marketers utilize tools to implement their direct marketing campaign. This includes software such as customer relationship management tools to identify and manage potential customers. Marketers also use tracking tools and metrics such as Google Analytics and SPSS to measure the successes of their campaign. Examples of direct marketing include: direct mailing, coupons, door-to-door selling, newspaper inserts, telemarketing, cards and package inserts.
Insights
Technology has made it possible for marketers to use more digital tools to directly influence customers. Email marketing is an example of direct marketing, which can be more powerful since it reaches individuals compared to direct mailing that reaches only households. Social media is also another tool to harness in order to reach customers. Companies can send messages to their established customer base within social media, as well as leverage that base to target prospective customers.
Tags: direct marketing, marketing campaign, product service, direct marketing campaign, marketing materials