Introduction
Direct Marketing: The time has now come for Global Gadget Imports (GGI) to address the issues of direct marketing to customers with the senior management team. The definition of direct marketing will be disused within this presentation so that the senior management team will have of a better understanding of how it directly relates to our ability to market our products to customers.
Communication Techniques: Direct marketers can use many forms of communication to directly market our products to customers. However for this presentation three forms of communication will be discussed so that the senior management team can obtain a better idea of how information is presented to our customers with direct marketing. Also, the benefits and challenges of each communication form being mention will be pointed out from both the marketer’s standpoint, and the customer’s standpoint.
How Marketers Obtain Information: Direct marketers obtain information regarding a consumer, and just how they do this will be discussed with the senior management team.
Issues of Using Customer Data: Some of the issues that direct markets face in effectively and appropriately using customer data will be talked about with the senior management team.
What is Personalization?: Personalization regarding customers, direct markers’, and direct marketing will be mentioned within this presentation, and examples will be given regarding personal marketing so that the senior management team will have an understanding of what it is. Also, the achievements that a marketer hopes to see with utilizing a personalized strategy for their marketing projects will be presented with this presentation.
What are the Key Factors of a Personalized Approach?: There are some key factors in using a personalized approach in marketing that markets must know, so these key factors will be discussed.
How GGI could use Direct Marketing: Once all the above aspects of this presentation has been discussed with the senior management team, we will then look into ways that GGI can use direct marketing for the new product line of house wares, and still protect our customers privacy.
Slide 2
What is Direct Marketing?
What is Direct Marketing?: Direct marketing is when a company omits the marketing middleman and uses their own channel free marketing approach to directly communicate their products or services to customers (Kotler & Keller, 2009). This is sometimes a contentious sale method in which marketer’s approach customers to straightforwardly sales their products or services. The idea of direct marketing for our marketers will involve maintaining a large database in which personal information pertaining to customers is compiled. However, these databases collected on customers are sometimes sold or shared with other companies that directly market their products, so the company must choose a strategy that will work in order to protect the privacy of our customer (Marketing Teacher, 2011).
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Communication Techniques
Communication Techniques: There are many techniques that a direct marketer may use when communicating their product or service. The most common are telephone sales and solicited or unsolicited e-mails (Marketing Teacher, 2011). However, many customers do not like these forms of communication, since I for one hand-up on sales soliciting on the telephone, and typically delete e-mail’s without reading them that are presented in this form of communication, so the ones discussed here will be direct mail, newspaper inserts, and the Internet.
Direct Mail: Direct mail marketing would be a good way for the company to get the word out regarding our new house wares product line. The company can build a mailing list by thinking about the areas in which we do not receive must business from, and target the prospects of that area so that word can be spread on who we are and what we have to offer. However, effectively using a marketing strategy to directly communicate by mail to our customers is of great importance to the company, since if we use an ineffective strategy we may lose potential and existing customer. For instance, if the company puts together a direct mail list in catalog form then our customers will be able to see what products we have, and this may persuade them to come in and browse the store (Swearingen, 2010).
Newspaper Inserts: Newspaper insets would be a great way of communicating our products directly to customers. Many customers, me for one, like to look through the newspaper and browse for product for sale in the inserts. If the company puts inserts into the paper for advertising our products we can eliminate the high rates of mailing, such as with direct mail. The insets into the newspaper showing off our products to customers can be animated, and even processed as a digital file which can then be linked to our website, which could then bring them in to personally browse our products (B&W Press, n.d.).
Internet: The Internet is the most important form of communication that a company can use when trying to market their products to customers. This is because it is perfect for direct marketers to use when trying to sell products, since after all, how many people do not use the internet to search for everyday products they want and need. With the Internet consumers have never had so many sources of buying the supplies they need for themselves. Many big businesses, such as Wal-Mart uses direct marketing via the Internet. This way a customer can browse online for the products they need, purchase them, and have them shipped to their home which is a good thing in the eyes of the customer since they never have to leave their home to obtain the products (Marketing Teacher, 2011).
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Benefits and Challenges of Direct Mail
What are the benefits of direct mail marketing?: Once of the biggest advantages of direct mail is that the company will have the ability to make one-on-one personal contact with our customers. When the company markets our products to customers via direct mail the advertisement message that we send to them does not have to compete with advertisement messages from our competitors, and if we include an order card and return envelope with the direct mail advertisement it makes it easier for the customer to respond to. Also, via mail-merging techniques can personalize the message we want to sent to customers by direct mail, and by using more informal language in telling customers about our products we can target out the specific interest of them (Scripps Treasure Coast Newspaper, 2004).
What are the challenges of direct mail marketing?: The condition of marketing our products by direct mail in this day and economy can become a challenge. One major challenge that the company may face in direct mail marketing our products has to do with the economy. This challenge is that the entire U.S. Postal Service is reporting decreases in the volume of mail coming through and out to customers, so with that postage rates are increasing just to keep this service afloat. More electronic marketing sources are growing with each passing year, causing customers to draw away from the direct mail marketing mind and channel share of it which can become a challenge for the company in direct mail marketing of our products. Also, another challenge for our marketers who use direct mail as a marketing technique might be actually getting the customer to open the mail and read the advertisement from us (Cagle, 2011).
Slide 6
Benefits and Challenges of Newspaper Inserts
What are the benefits of newspaper inserts?: One of the main reasons that the company should use newspaper inserts is because it will capitalize on the appeal of our products to customers by using animation to demonstrate them. Another benefit is when the newspaper arrives and customers are considering the purchase of a product they are accustom to check these inserts to see if what they are looking for is in there. The target of our products can be easily identified through newspaper inserts by selecting the zip code or income range of household we are trying to successfully get the word out too. In addition, the convenience of using newspaper inserts is a key benefit to marketing our products this way. What is meant by this is newspapers are convenient to customers in that they browse the ads to identify things that they may need or things that they did not know we carried, and this in itself will bring customers to the store to browse our products (Direct Marketing Newspaper Inserts, n.d.).
What are the challenges of newspaper inserts?: According to the Newspaper Association of America newspaper inserts do account for over half of a direct marketers approach to advertise their products. However, it is predicted that over the next few years’ marketers will face challenges with this due to the inclination of digital communication techniques that can now be used to market products. For instance, the quick growing use of companies using digital coupons and specials to communicate and persuade consumers to buy a product could be a challenge for us in trying the market products by market inserts. Another challenge in marketing products by newspaper inserts could be related to whether doing this would be profitable for the company since many large advertisers, like J C Penny, report that dispersion by this means has been unprofitable for them, particularly among younger audiences. Also, every company wants to be able to measure the return that they put into investments of advertising, and newspaper inserts are slower for companies in obtaining the effectiveness how much revenue was actually brought in by advertising this way (Rochester Institute of Technology, 2010).
Slide 7
Benefits and Challenges of the Internet
What are the benefits of the Internet?: There are quite a few benefits of marketing our products by means of Internet, and doing this will enable us to grow our company at a faster rate. By developing a website for our company we can aid in attracting potential customers who are already looking for the products we have for sale and that enables us to reel in more customers who are ready to make a commitment to browsing and buying our products. Having a company website will also allow existing customers to browse and shop online for the products they need that they know we have. Pay per click advertisements on the Internet will allow us to draw in potential customers that live in the area and need our products. Also, marketing our products through the Internet will help us draw in a great amount of visitors to the site, which in return will profit the company because more purchases will be made. In addition, more leads will be generated and sales made by marketing our products through the Internet since customers will come to our website because they are interested in your products (Nicholas Creative Media, 2008).
What are the challenges of the Internet?: There are many challenges of marketing our products through the Internet. One big challenge is the security of site information and payment systems within our website. Security online should be most important to the company and precautions should be put into place to protect our customers personal information. The trustworthiness of the Internet when it comes to customers brings about another challenge. The ability of others to gain personal information regarding our customers makes them feel less confident when paying for their purchases securely online. Particularly since when customers purchase products online they pay for these purchase with credit or debit card and that may or may not open the door for fraudulent activity within their checking accounts, or even identity theft. Another challenge for the company when marketing our products by means of Internet may be customers judging our products by the impressions they receive when seeing the products through our website. For instance, if a customer were to purchase a product that they were impressed with and they have high expectation with, and then its delivered to them and their expectations were lowered from viewing it in person then they would be judging us on that product and assume that we were a company that did not deliver up to the expectations of customers (“The Challenges Faced,” 2010).
Slide 8
How is Consumer Information Obtained?
How do direct marketers obtain consumer information?: Direct marketers can obtain information by the consumer doing business with another company. What is meant by this is when a consumer purchases a product or applies for a service then their personal information, such as name, address, etc is put into a computer database for other direct marketers to use to solicit their products. Another way for direct marketers to obtain consumer information is when shopping at a store the check-out clerk may ask for an e-mail, when this is given the consumer is basically giving permission to be opting into their e-mail send out list. Also, if a consumer has a listed telephone number that number and address is listed in the telephone book for the direct marketer to solicit their products (Direct Mail Connection, n.d.).
Slide 9
Issues of Effectively Using Data
What are some of the issues faced in effectively and appropriately using consumer information?: Effectively and appropriately using consumer information when directly marketing our products must be of great concern to the company. Appropriately using consumer information by protecting their privacy should be most important. Protecting the privacy of our consumers when it comes to giving out their private information should only be done if they consent to it. Another issue for the company when it comes to effectively using personal information must be to remain trustworthy by them. For instance, make sure that when they are purchasing products from us by mean of Internet that their personal information, such as name, credit card, etc is secure within our database. Also, in order to appropriately use consumer information we have to ensure that they understand our policies and procedures when it comes to sharing their information with others (Privacy Issues, n.d.).
Slide 10
Personalization
What is personalization?: Personalization occurs when a company delivers different and exclusive content regarding a product to every individual customer based on that customers interest. This is sometimes called one-to-one marketing since it tailors to the individual customer’s interests of a product. The personalization of a customer’s interest is typically based on previously collected data from that customer (Kotler, & Keller, 2009).
Examples of Personalization Marketing: Personalization may occur between the company and our customers by them purchasing a product from our competitors, and then we personalize an advertisement to them by recommending product that may be of interest to them, or it can come from our existing customers in that we personalize an advertisement based on what their previous purchases have been (Kotler & Keller, 2009). Also, discounts or coupons could be offered personally to the customer on products that may be of interest to them.
What does a marketer hip to achieve with a personalized strategy?: Marketers who use a personalized strategy hope to provide customers with the ability to find what they want and enjoy in advertisements so that they will be more inclined to be interested in the products the company presents for sale. Personally presenting our customers interest to them will allow the company to achieve more of a one-to-one relationship with the customer, as well as more sales, and loyalty from that customer (Johnson, 2006).
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Personalized Approach Key Factors
What are the key factors of a personalized approach?: The company needs to implement a personalized strategy for marketing our products that focuses on five key factors, which are communicating, acquirement, merchandising, one-on-one marketing, and discovery (Johnson, 2006).
Community: Communicating our products to customers of the community, and letting them spread the word to other customers of the community is an effective marketing strategy. Using a personalized approach to connect these community consumers that have similar interests can lead us to discover new consumers who will want to purchase our products just because other customers of the community purchase them (Johnson, 2006).
Acquirement: The primary means of growth for the company is when we acquire new customers. From the first interaction with a new customer we must deliver meaningful and relevant personalized content to them, which in return will permit us to acquire them and uplift the sales and revenue within the company (Johnson, 2006).
Merchandising: By presenting consumers personalized merchandise we will automatically be giving them what they want and need. By merchandising personally to our customers we will be giving them a personal shopping experience, and they will know that we understand their interests and preferences when it comes to shopping in our store (Johnson, 2006).
One-on-One Marketing: If the company implements a broad personalized strategy to every consumer we will be making more of an effort to market our products one-on-one with them. This can effectively be done by reaching out to consumers personally by means of e-mail, promotion, advertising, etc, and better revenue results will be given to the company (Johnson, 2006).
Discovery: By using discovery in understanding what consumers like and dislike, we can directly map out the tastes of them so that they do not have to spend more time looking for what they truly want. The company marketers can lead the consumer on a journey of discovery and the less time they spend on looking for what they want the more chances are they will purchase from us (Johnson, 2010).
Slide 12
GGI Direct Marketing and Customer Privacy
How can GGI use direct marketing in this project and at the same time protect the customer’s privacy?: GGI can use direct marketing to advertise our products to customers by means of direct mail, newspaper inserts, and Internet. The new product line of house wares can be promoted by direct mail to consumers who are in a computer data base, but we must give them the option to opt-out of the mailing list if they would prefer too. The new product line can be promoted within newspaper inserts just by having a small section within the newspaper that shows off the house wares, and there would be no privacy issues with this line of advertisement especially if the newspaper comes addressed solely saying “Resident”. However, when promoting the new product line through the Internet there will be privacy issues, particularly if customers purchase our products online. We must give our customers the option to opt-out of having their personal information shared with others or used for promotional purposes. Also, we must ensure that their information is secure with us when purchasing products from us online. Using a secure system when accepting payments from consumers will allow them to remain confident, trustworthy, and loyal to us (Federal Trade Commission, n.d.).
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References
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Federal Trade Commission. (n.d.). Sharing your personal information: It’s your choice. Retrieved from http://www.ftc.gov/privacy/protect.shtm#Direct
Johnson, S. (2006). Five components of personalization. Retrieved from http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/8952.asp
Kotler, P., & Keller, K. (2009). Management Marketing, (13th ed.). Pearson-Prentice Hall: Upper Saddle River, NJ.
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Rochester Institute of Technology. (2010). Newspaper inserts face increased challenges in coming years: NAA. Retrieved from http://www.rit.edu/cias/newsmedia/newspaper-inserts-face-increased-challenges-in-coming-years-naa
Scripps Treasure Coast Newspaper. (2004). Direct mail is one of the most powerful and profitable methods of marketing today. Retrieved from http://www.scrippsdirect.com/benefits.html
Swearingen, C. (2010). The direct mail marketing strategy. Retrieved from http://www.small-biz-marketing-tips.com/direct-mail-marketing-strategy.html
The challenges faced by businesses using Internet Marketing (P4). Retrieved from http://shahina.typepad.com/blog/2010/04/the-challenges-faced-by-businesses-using-internet-marketing.html