“All the armies of the world are not as powerful as an idea whose time has come.“ This liberal translation of the famous Victor Hugo quote applies to direct marketing as it exists today. Only 20 years ago, direct marketing was considered a speciality employed by book publishers, record clubs or magazine publishers seeking subscriptions. Meanwhile direct marketing has become a marketing tool utilised by more than half the U.S. Fortune 500 companies. Realising the growing importance of direct marketing in addition to traditional advertising, major advertising agencies such as Young & Rubican (Y&R) and Doyle Dane Bernbach (DDB) purchased the most famous specialised agencies in this field and worked with them to bring both general and direct marketing clients the combined expertise of both disciplines.
Due to direct marketing’s success it is now the basis for various subdisciplines. Database marketing, relationship marketing, one-to-one marketing, integrated marketing, and others all offer interesting extensions and variations of direct marketing’s basic techniques. More and more companies, in Europe and the United States, are using direct marketing as one part of their overall marketing mix. But even with enormous advances in analytical and computer capabilities, many direct marketing attempts fail to achieve their potential or, worse, fail to work at all due to a misunderstanding of their advantages and disadvantages. Therefore the aim of this thesis will be to examine the characteristics of direct mail, outbound telemarketing and online direct marketing, and to explore their specific advantages & disadvantages in order to enable their effective utilisation in todays' business world.
At the beginning of this thesis direct marketing’s evolution and development over time will be analysed. The thesis continues with a description of these three direct marketing media and an evaluation of their respective advantages and disadvantages under the headings of communication, privacy, design and media. These four categories have been chosen, because they are the most important elements for the future of successful direct marketing. After analysing the current situation the future prospects of the three direct marketing media will be demonstrated by examining how their various characteristics fit into the future. Finally a case study was conducted to determine to which degree the analysed arguments were applicable.
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- INTRODUCTION
- THE FUNDAMENTALS OF DIRECT MARKETING
- The meaning of Marketing today
- Shift from traditional Marketing towards Direct Marketing
- Fundamentals and core values of Direct Marketing
- Database Marketing
- Similarities & Differences between traditional Marketing and Direct Marketing
- Trends supporting the shift towards direct marketing in particular
- Individualisation
- Product & Media fragmentation
- Time spending
- Information technology
- The meaning of Marketing today
- COMPARISON OF THE MAIN DIRECT MARKETING MEDIA
- Main direct marketing media in context
- Dimensions of direct marketing and its media
- Direct mail
- Telemarketing
- Online direct Marketing
- Advantages & disadvantages regarding communication
- Direct mail
- Telemarketing
- Online direct marketing
- Advantages & disadvantages regarding privacy
- Direct mail
- Telemarketing
- Online direct marketing
- Advantages & disadvantages regarding design
- Direct mail
- Telemarketing
- Online direct marketing
- Media specific advantages & disadvantages
- Direct mail
- Telemarketing
- Online direct marketing
- Summary
- Main direct marketing media in context
- FUTURE PROSPECTS OF DIRECT MARKETING
- Direct mail's future
- Telemarketing's future
- Online marketing's future
- The integrated future
- CASE STUDY: ROBA
- The implementation of online direct marketing
- The implementation of direct marketing media in the process of creating a new distribution channel
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This thesis aims to examine the characteristics of direct mail, outbound telemarketing and online direct marketing, and to explore their specific advantages and disadvantages in order to enable their effective utilization in today's business world. The text analyzes the evolution and development of direct marketing, evaluates its advantages and disadvantages in terms of communication, privacy, design, and media, and explores the future prospects of each direct marketing medium.
- The shift from traditional marketing to direct marketing
- A comparative analysis of the main direct marketing media (direct mail, telemarketing, and online direct marketing)
- The advantages and disadvantages of each direct marketing medium across communication, privacy, design, and media-specific factors
- The future prospects of direct marketing media in the context of changing market dynamics and technological advancements
- A case study illustrating the implementation of direct marketing strategies in a real-world business context
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
The first chapter introduces the concept of direct marketing, tracing its evolution and development over time. The chapter defines marketing and direct marketing, highlighting the historical shift from traditional marketing to direct marketing. It discusses the key factors that influenced this shift, including the changing consumer landscape, advancements in technology, and the increasing need for targeted marketing strategies.
The second chapter provides a comprehensive comparison of the main direct marketing media: direct mail, telemarketing, and online direct marketing. The chapter evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of each medium across four key dimensions: communication, privacy, design, and media-specific factors. This analysis provides a detailed understanding of the unique characteristics and potential applications of each direct marketing medium.
The third chapter examines the future prospects of each direct marketing medium, considering the evolving market landscape and emerging technologies. The chapter explores the potential impact of these trends on the effectiveness and relevance of each direct marketing approach, highlighting opportunities and challenges for businesses in the years to come.
The fourth chapter presents a case study of Roba Baumann GmbH, a wholesaler producing children's accessories. This case study demonstrates the practical application of direct marketing strategies in a real-world business setting, providing insights into the implementation and effectiveness of these strategies in achieving specific business objectives.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
The key terms and concepts explored in this text include direct marketing, traditional marketing, database marketing, relationship marketing, one-to-one marketing, integrated marketing, direct mail, telemarketing, online direct marketing, communication, privacy, design, media, and the future of direct marketing. The text also examines relevant frameworks such as the four Ps of marketing, the PESTE analysis, and Porter's Value Chain.
- Citar trabajo
- Roman Keilhacker (Autor), 2000, Future Prospects of Direct Marketing Media, Múnich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/185435
