Direct marketing is a form of one-to-one and two-way communication with your customers that allows you to retain those who already trust you and attract new consumers.
Catalogs used to be used, then phone calls, then mail order sales, and even client meetings. Now it’s social networks, online marketing, banners, discount coupons and more!
Direct marketing is not new in the history of marketing, but today it offers new tools to attract and retain your customers.
The new communication channels provided by technology brought new opportunities to contact and improve the shopping experience from start to finish. Hand in hand with direct marketing, they offer the possibility of maintaining “the human” and making these communications a one-on-one chat.
In this article, we are going to explore what direct marketing is all about, its functions, channels, and features. In addition, we invite you to discover how to improve your strategies and some tools that will help you successfully implement it in your online store.
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Short and to the foot: what is direct marketing?
Philip Kotler, father of modern marketing according to the American Marketing Association, defined in his what direct marketing is all about. According to Kotler, direct marketing is nothing more or less than directly contacting carefully selected customers.
This contact has certain peculiarities. It is interactive, one by one, and allows companies to adapt their offers to the needs of the selected database to communicate.
The response to direct marketing communications is intended to be direct, immediate and measurable. The relationships that are created are two-way, but companies expect specific action from their customers. For example: make a purchase, fill out a form, visit a store, etc.
Kotler uses the Amazon direct marketing example in his manual. Amazon.com contacts its customers directly on its website and application, to help them in their purchase process or suggest new ones. These personalized recommendations are achieved through collaborative filtering technology (it was the first company to use it).
Collaborative filtering studies past buying behaviors and purchases made by other customers with similar profiles. Thus, it offers product recommendations that are adjusted to each user.
You got a message from your favorite company: what is direct marketing for?
The purpose of direct marketing is not the sale itself. Actually, it is more about converting the leads in customers, retain those you already have and increase your database.
So what is direct marketing for? These actions allow you to achieve high conversion rates without large investments of money. In addition, it can help you boost your fan base, consolidate opinions and facilitate the most recurring purchase processes.
We can analyze the functions of direct marketing according to whether they help you get new customers or retain those who already choose you.
A direct marketing example to get new clients can be an e-mail or a publication that collaborates in transforming those leads in clients. Another example but, to build loyalty, it can be a discount or the gift of an extra bonus when doing a certain action.
Direct marketing also has the ability to help you in important areas of business. It can give you support to always have your and store information about the contacts that existed between your company and a client. It can also integrate all your communication efforts in order to achieve a more effective dialogue.
Not to mention its role in the customer lifecycle: direct marketing can be a goldmine for value.
How to carry out direct marketing actions?
To carry out direct marketing actions, you must first review the databases you currently have and analyze them. Can you segment it? What variables must be taken into account? Which of them are best suited to your business and provide you with extra value?
With all those answers, you can start outlining your strategy. For example, once you have reached the appropriate segmentation, you will send a direct marketing communication that is tailored to the needs of each segment. Segmentation will also allow you to subsequently measure the success of your action.
That first step in starting to map out your business is important because it’s basically the half that will guarantee your success. The other half of the foundation of your direct marketing strategy has to be the communication itself.
Communication in terms of direct marketing includes the possibility that the channel provides the opportunity for a two-way dialogue. In addition, it consists of developing a correct and direct message, and doing it at the right time.
Those two parts are what make the engine of direct marketing work. Although, like any engine, not only gasoline is needed for it to start at 100%.
Some keys to implement in the messages you develop are:
- Maintain attractiveness by making communications that work as a hook, to capture attention, at the same time that you make known the .
- Take advantage of this type of marketing to create personalized messages that encourage interaction.
- Develop creativity to the maximum, without forgetting that you have to solve the pain points of your clients (and that they recognize that you do it).
- Create clear and short processes. Do you want them to come to your blog? Make it clear, with a button that takes them straight to that page. Don’t spin around.
- Speed ββup response times, if your client responded to your communication, do not miss the opportunity to reply. I strengthened the bond!
Types of direct marketing channels
Direct marketing actions can be carried out through various channels. Each one has its levels of interaction but they maintain their main characteristic: the bidirectionality between your store and your client.
Whether to attract or retain your customers, there are different channels that allow you to transmit your messages and measure their effectiveness:
1 β Online marketing.
2 β Social networks.
3 β Banners.
4 β Discount coupons.
5 β Telemarketing.
Let’s explore the main direct marketing channels that exist today:
1 β Online Marketing
Kotler, in his book “”, proposes 4 key types to understand this online marketing channel. These types of online marketing are:
- Business to Consumer (BaC): It is the model that you have probably heard the most about, because it is a company selling to an end consumer.
- From business to business (BaB): here businesses use to reach business customers and obtain, for example, greater purchasing efficiency.
- From consumer to business (CaB): it is the customer who proactively seeks information and wants to know about offers.
- Consumer-to-consumer (CaC): An example could be blogs, where customers review products.
I found out more about this topic:
Article
2 β Social networks
In the communication channels offered by social networks, companies have to decide which ones to participate in, in which their target. With this done, they can be a great platform for one-on-one communications with your customers.
In them you can publish content and send your offers more directly to your consumers, with high possibilities of interaction.
π‘ At Tiendanube we put together an article that helps you to plan your social media marketing strategy. find it
3 β Banners
Another of the great allies in terms of direct marketing channels are banners. This is one of the types of marketing that is key to attracting the user’s attention, arousing their curiosity to such a level that they click and interact.
A banner it can be implemented, for example, in a blog. It is ideal to always have an expert designer, although at first they may not be on your startup team.
Don’t worry, today there are tools that are used to make a banner easily. In we show you how to do it with Canva.
4 β Discount coupons
Discount coupons are a good type of direct marketing both to build loyalty and to attract the attention of new consumers. Some companies still use personalized letters to customers by mail or physical delivery.
This type of marketing can also be implemented online. You can do it through banners, e-mails or social networks. Of course: always accompany the coupon with a personalized message to give the feeling that it was something prepared especially for the customer.
5 β Telemarketing
You have to be very careful with this form of direct marketing because it can become a nuisance for the customer. That said, it’s also an effective way to . Telephones can be used both outbound (ie the company proactively contacts customers) and inbound (it is the customer calling).
Advantages of direct marketing
The advantages of direct marketing are for both companies and customers. On the startup side, direct marketing is a tool that allows them to strengthen and build relationships with customers. They can interact with them, learn more about their pain points, and customize products and services.
For companies, this type of marketing presents more efficiency, greater flexibility, lower costs and easy and fast measurement. For their part, customers can ask questions and give their feedback. In addition, it is easy to enjoy and is private.
If we talk about the disadvantages, we can find the need to have a good database and keep it updated. Direct marketing campaigns also need to be recurring, so that the customer is able to recognize you and respond.
3 Characteristics of direct marketing
There are 3 characteristics of direct marketing that are essential, beyond starting from a good database with the possibility of clear and useful segmentation.
1 β Interaction: it is a fundamental element. Two-way communication is at the heart of direct marketing actions. At the same time, each action is born from the identification of one.
2 β Simplicity: it is another key characteristic of direct marketing. It is easy to implement and measure. You need, yes or yes, a good hook in your communications and to have understood well the pain point of your clients.
3 β The specificity: it is another of the factors of direct marketing that is not lacking in any action of this type. It refers to how sharp your target segmentation is, that is, the specificity of the audience you chose.
Difference between direct and indirect marketing
The difference between direct and indirect marketing is mainly the audience they cover…
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