The practice of delivering promotional messages directly to potential customers on an individual basis through a mass medium is called Direct Marketing. It is a type of marketing with a sub discipline. There are two different types of characteristics.
It attempts to send messages directly to consumers without intervening the media by involving commercial communication like direct mail, e-mail, telemarketing with consumers.
It is also focused on driving purchase that can be attributed to specific “call to action”. This marketing is simply known as response in the industry regardless of medium. This marketing involves an emphasis on track able, measurable positive but not negative responses from consumers.
Direct marketing is designed as specific and quantifiable. Direct response of delivery can be taken in between the viewer and advertiser, customer responds to the marketer directly. Like direct marketing, direct response seeks to elicit action. It is inherently accountable since results can be tracked and measured.
Today’s direct marketing is one of the forms of Infomercial. Infomercial companies such as Script to Screen, Hawthorne Direct, Guthy Renker and International Shopping Network. These Infomercials are also known as direct response TV commercials. A commercial which has a time lengths from seconds 30 to 120 is a short form of direct response commercials. Direct response is achieved by Infomercials through Television presentations. Direct marketing’s response is also through telephone, internet and credit cards.
The home shopping industry is an offshoot of the infomercial. A host encourages the viewers to purchase more products as he showcase the product directly to the viewers. A lower response rate than television such as magazines, newspapers, radio, and e-mail can be used.
Mail order describes a form of direct response in which customers respond by mailing a completed order form to the marketer. It is slow and response rates are low. It has been eclipsed by toll-free telephone numbers and the internet.
Direct response ads like infomercials can be contrasted with normal television commercials because traditional commercials normally do not solicit a direct immediate response from the viewer, but instead try to brand their product in the market place.
The first step of improving response is improving appeal and uniqueness of an offer. An offer must be targeted such that its appeal is relevant to the wants or needs of the audience, so the choice of media or list carries similar importance as the perceived value of the offer.
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