Question: Why is it called “direct marketing”? What’s the difference between that and standard marketing? Do all agencies do direct marketing? — Need Marketing Knowledge
Dear Need Knowledge:
The purpose of advertising is to get as many people as possible to be aware of and remember your product or service. For direct marketing, the purpose is to get a targeted number of people to actually buy your product or service. Brand, or general advertising, speaks to the general public … direct marketing speaks to the individual.
So, brand advertising gets the “big bucks” — it’s everywhere. It’s sexy. It’s what Mad Men was all about — and it’s what most people think of when they hear the word ‘advertising.’ “Direct response marketing has a very specific purpose: for you, the consumer, to buy something from seeing the ad,” says Cheryl Biondi, VP Creative Director and direct marketing connoisseur at DMW.
Direct response ads are actually everywhere, too — search engines, marketing emails, TV, social media, newspaper, mail — but unless you are the one being targeted, you may not even realize it. In a direct response ad, you may see a callout to the target market (“Attention Golfers”), an offer, and a phone number or URL to get more information about the offer. It motivates a targeted consumer to take a specific action.
Do all agencies do direct marketing? No, but the smart ones do. In fact, most of the biggest advertising agencies — think Madison Avenue — added direct response divisions decades ago. Agencies that specialize in direct marketing — like DMW — have the chops to both promote a client’s brand AND help them reach sales goals. We think that’s pretty sexy.
Get a deeper understanding of what direct marketing is and how to effectively use it to drive sales.