Direct marketing reminds me of Chuck Norris trying to sell me the TOTAL GYM at 2:00am on a Wednesday morning. It never struck me as an efficient way to communicate with customer and sell them a product or service. Not until I did some research on the subject did I really understand what it fully entailed, and that is when I realized just how effective this form of marketing is.
For those of you who do not know what Direct-Response Marketing is, here is a definition: A type of marketing designed to generate an immediate response from customers, where each customer response and purchase can be measured and attributed to individual advertisements. In this form of marketing, there is no room for middlemen or retailers. That would inhibit the company from determining which marketing technique was successful in attracting business. The main forms of Direct-Response Marketing (or DRM) are the following:
DRTV (direct response television)
Radio
mail
Print Advertising
telemarketing
Catalogues
Internet
Direct response television how Chuck Norris attempted to sell me his TOTAL GYM. The difference between a regular commercial and a direct-response commercial is the company's intention. Let me give you an example. Nike released a new running shoe and they wanted to run an ad on ESPN to promote the shoe and increase sales. The commercial may tell you about the shoe, maybe demonstrate the unique characteristics, and then tell the viewer where the shoe can be found and purchased. Now think of a 30 second ad for the PERFECT PUSH UP. This ad does everything that the Nike ad did, but then they added something extra. They displayed a phone number and/or a email address in which the workout equipment can be purchased. By including the phone number and/or email, it gives the customer a direct line of purchase to the manufacturer. This tactic enables businesses to track where customers purchases and analyze there marketing tactics effectively.
I can understand how Direct-Response Marketing can help marketers assess the effectiveness of their ads, but is this form effective in and of itself? As a consumer, I feel pressured by the presence of a phone number on a commercial and the strict time limits that one has to get the "great deal" these commercials always guarentee. Personally, I have never called one of these numbers to order a product off of TV. I wonder how many people actually do...?
ReplyDeleteI think there are a good amount of people that do call because they see the deal that is being offered and realized if they dont call now they will never remember the phone number.It provides a way to grab impulse buyers and provided people with the direct way to purchase a product. I have never personally called an ordered anything, but all of the premiums offered deffinitly attract more buyers
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