Explain Direct Marketing, its advantages and disadvantages.

Direct Marketing involves communicating directly with buyers about their products via different channels. The individual buyer is the target in direct marketing and not the masses. Examples: direct mail, e-mail, apps, telephone calls (telemarketing), catalogues, fliers, promotional letters, etc.The goal is to generate sales or leads for sales representatives to pursue. If the customer is interested, he/ she can directly contact the concerned department or person on the telephone number of address given with the message. Direct marketing allows a business to engage in one-way communication with its customers. It helps organisations inform the prospective buyers about product announcements, special promotions, etc.

People in today’s times prefer at-home shopping rather than travelling to different outlets. Marketers take this opportunity to reach out to the customer directly with all the information about the product, special promotions, etc. in order to generate sales. The marketer’s ensure that customers have easy access to them via toll-free numbers, chat tools, email, etc. at any time of day or night throughout the week to justify their credibility and commitment towards customers.

It is also considered as an interactive mode. The messages to the buyers can be altered as per the requirements and response from the customers.

New age Direct Marketing – Organisations used to reach the buyers through catalogue, direct mailers, and telemarketing. The telephone numbers were kept in the data base and tele callers called potential buyers. Recently, the marketing media has evolved immensely through the increased use of internet, data base technologies, electronic media (fax, mobile phones, and email), etc. This has given opportunity for the marketers to tap on these tools for reaching the customers. If we say that the marketers don’t have a choice and need to reach the buyers through these new age direct marketing tools to survive and stay ahead of competition in the target market. Direct marketing is considered by some experts as combination of the Distribution function (Direct distribution to buyers) as well as the communication function (reaching the customers directly).

Advantages of Direct Marketing –
Sellers Perspective –
(i) Powerful tool for customer relationship building.

(ii) Accurate selection of buyers and messages, and targeting them individually. Marketers target customers who are likely to buy the product.

(iii) Customers can be reached at a certain time. For example, special promotions on the company website, home, office, or store on certain days.

(iv) Tailor made message for the target customer. There is greater accuracy in meeting the requirements of the customer.

(v) Competitors are kept unaware about the message sent to potential buyers.

(vi) Lot of tools or medium given to customers for any queries or placing orders – email, telephone, mobile, personal computer, etc.

(vii) Easy to measure the effectiveness.

Buyers Perspective –
(i) Convenient to shop from the comfort of home. Customers can ask for queries, place orders or request a demo at home.

(ii) Easy comparison as most of the details are made available to the customer. The customer can easily compare the features and benefits with competitor products on the internet or with retailers, etc.

(iii) Easy to go through all the company products and substitutes with the information provided through catalogues, email, etc.

(iv) Lot of tools or medium given at customer’s disposal for any queries or placing orders – email, telephone, mobile, personal computer, etc.

Apart from the advantages, Direct Marketing also has its share of disadvantages.
(i) Reaching a thousand customers through this channel is relatively expensive than other promotion tools as each potential customer is to be reached individually.

(ii) The customers also are disinterested many times because of the junk mail, number of telemarketing calls from different sellers, junk emails, etc.

(iii) Customers do not appreciate their privacy intrusion. Most of the time customers call the organisations to remove their address and phone number from their mailing list or calling list. There are government laws in place in US, etc. protecting the privacy of the people, and the sellers are bound to remove the contact details on a person’s request.

(iv) The organisation needs to constantly invest in new technology to reach customers through the most effective and latest tools. They also need to update their database regularly to ensure they have details of right customers.

(v) Selection of right direct marketing tool is imperative to marketers. A customer may throw away a direct mail as junk but may explore the email with the same message.