Direct Marketing – Avoid all middlemen.
There is even a direct marketing agency which sole purpose is to improve or produce all forms of direct marketing. This Direct Marketing Association is a U.S. based trade organization. Ways for Direct Marketing
There are several ways that could be considered direct marketing.
1.Mail
2.Catalogs
3.Telemarketing
4.Email
The first two direct marketing approaches are more conventional. These have been used by companies for decades.
Conventional mail is a way of direct mail marketing since it is targeted for a specific person in a specific address. Most companies have specialized mailing list which pinpoint what a certain customer wants. This could be in form of flyers, magazines, brochures etc. These are presented directly to the consumer and the consumer shall order the product or service directly from the seller. The downside to conventional mail is the amount of time the marketing materials reach the customer.
Catalogs
Some big companies prefer sending catalogs to their clients list. From these catalogs, the clients pick products or services and order directly from the store via an order form or a phone call. This has the same downside to conventional mail. Although sometimes, customers do visit an online catalog and do their business there.
The next two direct marketing approaches are deviations from the traditional ones but still have the same idea.
Telemarketing
Telemarketing is the process of making sales directly to the customer or to develop customer relationships over the telephone. Outbound telemarketing is the sales and promotions of the company to customers while inbound is the customer buying or confirming services over the telephone.
Nowadays, telemarketing can be conducted via Internet still using a telephone.
Email as a direct marketing tool is sheer genius. In a day’s time, almost every one who has an email account shall check their inboxes. This guarantees direct marketing since the promotion or advertisement shall be directly in the view of the perceived customer. It is also a very effective type of direct marketing because it can be done almost immediately. Sending an email takes just seconds to reach the customers. This helps save time for the company. Direct email marketing also helps save the company money since it doesn’t need a lot of manpower to send out emails. It also helps the environment because we lessen the use of envelopes, stamps and paper.
There are more types of direct marketing (setting up a stall in the market etc.) but the ones listed above are the most efficient.