Question 1
Direct marketing is whereby a marketer strives to reach a specific prospective consumer. In this case, a company targets a certain individual who will most likely respond to the advert in a positive manner. A company applies an interactive manner to reach certain individuals; expecting to have a purchase of their products from such individuals. Mass marketing is targeted at a certain mass of people without segmentation. As far as the comparison between these two types of marketing is concerned, their evolution takes center stage. The evolution of mass marketing was brought about by advancements in broadcast media. There was growth in TV audiences and the bandwidth. The marketers were able to utilize the TV channels that were available to reach the growing audience. At this point, one marketing message would reach an enormous number of consumers. Mass marketing led to the development of well established national and international brands. This is because there was a platform to market with economies of scale. An illustration of mass marketing success is like measuring the forested acres in a certain region (Wagner, 2012).
However, mass marketing was not measurable in terms of sales obtained from the initiative. The tools used were based on the reach and the frequency of the adverts. In this case, the effectiveness of the adverts was based on the number of viewers of a particular advert and the number of impressions it possessed. However, with a need to improve the effectiveness of mass marketing, the cost per a thousand impressions became the tool. In contrast, direct marketing developed in a different manner. It was based on the person to person selling. With this nature of marketing, the marketing manager would measure the sales that have been derived by a particular sales person in a day. This made it possible and easy to measure the return on investment in direct marketing. Due to the fact that it could be measured with accuracy, the use of control was adopted. This control acted as the benchmark to which any new campaigns were compared. As a result, there has been a lot of consumer data available so as to increase the effectiveness of this marketing. An illustration of direct marketing success is like measuring the number of trees to be harvested from each acre in a forest.
These two types of marketing have a number of similarities. The first is that both of the methods are tested before they are used in marketing. Marketers use small campaigns before launching the marketing campaign in full force. This is done to ensure that the marketing efforts are profitable for the business. The results of the initial testing are applied in determining the potential impact if the marketing campaign was to be done in a large scale. For both ways, marketing is carried on if the initial test results indicate that it will be profitable. An example is the abandoned advertisement by Express Incorporation in 2008. The company opted for advertisement using Ad words instead of using the CNBC channel. This decision saved Express Inc. $ 147 million. The other similarity between the two types of advertising is that careful decisions are made with a lot of care as regards the nature the advertised products are offered. This decision has to be well informed in order to derive profits from the advertisement. Marketers apply a lot of critical thinking and research to determine how the advertised products will reach the consumers. Some of the ways that can be used include consumer outlets and use of supply chain. An example of incorporation that uses a direct retail outlet is Wal-Mart. This incorporation has a direct contact with its customers that frequent its retail outlets (Kelley & Morgan, 2011).
Despite the similarities explained above, mass and direct marketing have several differences. The first of these is that mass marketing uses a large scale deployment in a view to achieve success. This type of marketing uses the same content to reach a large mass of consumers, usually by the same means. An example is advertising through radio and television. On the other hand, direct marketing uses a small scale deployment to reach a certain group of individuals. In direct advertising, the individuals are reached based on their characteristics that bring them together. Examples of these characteristics are gender and age group. The second difference is that mass marketing requires a heavy initial allocation of funds. This is intended to reach the message to a large audience simultaneously. In most cases, it is conducted across several channels.
In contrast, direct advertising requires a small initial allocation of funds. The advert is sent to a certain fraction of the audience. The results of this stage are applied in the areas that follow the initial testing. An illustration of this strategy is how airline companies communicate information on new airlines to customers via e-mail. The third difference is that mass marketing is used to build awareness and brand image. Companies using this type of marketing apply it to build loyalty towards their brands. Purchasing is deferred to a time in the future by this loyalty. However, in direct marketing, advertising is applied in order to generate an immediate order for the products of a particular company. An example of a company that promoted loyalty by its advertising is Apple. In 2010, the company spent almost $ 200 million in advertising through the TV network (Wagner, 2012).
Question 2
As an element in direct marketing, the target market plays an instrumental role in this form of marketing. The main role that this element plays is that it gives the marketer an insight into the type and content of messages that will be used in direct marketing. The particular subgroups, in this case, are the age groups and gender. An example of a grouping of the target market is males aged between 18 and 34. The target market also allows for a complete understanding of the profile of consumers. This may go in line with trends such as shopping and purchasing behavior. With this information, a marketer can determine the attitudes of customers towards a certain medium of advertising or brand. The other role that the target market plays is that it allows a company to determine its marketing prospects. At this point, the company obtains information regarding the areas with the desired customers. To add onto this, the company gets information on the key characteristics of its target market and preferences in marketing communication. With this information, a company is able to estimate the market size by determining the households in the area. An example of the target market prospects is – there are 5674 consumers in 2905 households, in Schaumburg Illinois. 48% of the population is female (Hambelton, 2010).
The other important element in direct marketing is the list. The list used by marketing companies comprises of details such as income, home value, zip code and presence of children. The role played by this list in direct marketing is that it increases the reach of marketing content to other consumers. The beginning point in utilizing this list is the current customers. A company should utilize the current customers by making them recommend the products to their friends. In addition, this list plays a crucial role in helping a company locate individuals who are undergoing a change in life or in their lifestyles. An illustration of this change is when people are buying a new car hence looking for a new insurer. This provides a chance for direct marketing since such a group of individuals will possess similar characteristics. An example of the use of the list is the marketing of Globe and Mail in Toronto. In this case, cluster codes were used to reach all profitable subscribers. The percentage of individuals in different clusters of lifestyle was then reached.
These two elements impact on the other elements of promotion. The first impact is on the medium used. With the target market, a marketer understands the best medium to market the products. Data obtained on the prospective customers is analyzed and applied in the organization and coordination of URLs, HTML copies and servers for hosting graphic elements. For direct marketing, the medium used include email and Ads o specific websites. This has reduced the traffic on traditional media such as billboards. Given the current industrial activity, there would be a lot of billboards and ads on traditional media. However, with technological advancements, these media are being wiped out slowly and replaced by the direct marketing channels. The other effect is in terms of creativity and offers. With the use of lists, businesses are able to narrow down on specific individuals. The content used is highly creative so as to address the needs of such groups. For teenagers, the content is usually characterized by colorful ads that indicate a lot of energy by use of color and attractive voices (Kelley & Morgan, 2011).
Question 3
In order to market the phone effectively, there are several questions that I would need to ask. The first of these questions is the opinion of the customers on the battery life of the phone. Since this battery has a longer life than that of previous versions, the take of consumers on the same is very vital. The point of view of the customer would be very crucial. One of the dimensions that I expect is that this long battery life makes it worth to upgrade. The other dimension is that the battery life is an improvement, but it does not make upgrading to the new phone worth. My expectations are that customers would appreciate the extended battery life. With this information, I would emphasize the selling point that the new phone has an excellent customer experience in terms of length of battery life. I would stress this selling point since it would increase sales by a sizeable margin. This selling point would be very effective since it highlights one of the benefits of upgrading to the new phone.
The second question that I would ask is the views of customers on the fingerprint sensor. I would inquire whether customers have experienced additional convenience with the new phone. At this point, I would wish to determine whether customers find this an easy method of unlocking the phone. This feature is meant to replace the use of passwords to unlock the previous versions of the phone. I would be interested on whether customers find it convenient or tedious. This is because I am aware that the phone cannot be accessed by another individual when the owner is absent. The importance of stressing this selling point is that it is a crucial dimension of the product. The opinion of customers would determine whether sales would increase in line with the expectations of management. If the signs are that sales would increase with this feature, then I would adopt this selling point. This is because it would increase revenues and profits (Hambelton, 2010).
The final question that I would ask is the benefits that the new camera offers. This is because the camera in the new phone has slow motion features that integrate into videos seamlessly. The sensor is 15% larger than that of previous versions. With this feature, the camera allows light at an impressive rate than previously. For photo enthusiasts, this feature comes in handy. However, it would be my wish to know if customers valued it. I would emphasize on this selling point since the camera would be convenient when travelling. This is because individuals would not have to carry their cameras. I would maximize on this selling point to increase sales if the response is positive. I would stress on the selling points mentioned previously if the response is negative. In this case, I would aim at increasing sales by stressing on the battery life and fingerprint sensor.
References
Hambelton, K. (2010). Effective Marketing in the 21st Century. Marketing and Business Growth, 38-39.
Kelley, D., & Morgan, M. (2011). How to Succeed in Marketing. The Wall Street Journal, 26-28.
Wagner, B. (2012). Direct Marketing versus Mass Marketing. Target Marketing, 13-15.
