Direct Marketing and Branding:
5 Facts for Savvy Marketing
It's an ongoing argument in the marketing industry: which is a better investment, direct marketing or branding? Many old-school experts are willing to fight for one or the other, but to achieve the best ROI; the two can and should be combined.
Before you get caught in a debate of your own, read on for five salient facts that will help you strike a profitable compromise for your business.
- Great branding is a by-product of successful direct marketing. What is "branding" anyway? One of the most common definitions of this sometimes vague marketing concept is that when a business creates a positive relationship over time with its clients, it has a strong brand. Branding allows customers to establish a solid, even emotional connection with a company and its products. It's a matter of trust and loyalty.
So how do the best and biggest brands measure their strength? By the numbers, of course. And measurable numbers come most often from direct marketing: whether it's huge mass mailings or one-to-one selling, the sales a company makes can usually be attributed to some action taken by a sales or marketing force.
The moral of the story? A positive relationship over time is measured by sales. Or in other words, branding is measured by direct marketing.
- Successful direct marketing is a by-product of great branding. It's true, direct marketing is measurable in a way that branding isn't. But here's the flip side to that coin: there's much more to success than simply making the sale.
In the direct marketing world, we've all seen companies and campaigns that go for the short-term sell instead of laying the groundwork for the long-term customer relationship. With the advent of e-marketing, companies are increasingly tempted to create sites containing links upon links of information, in order to increase their "click-through" rates—and forget about conversion, unsubscribe and return rates that could give them a much truer picture of their site's success.
Here's another smart way to look at how direct marketing and branding go hand in hand: getting a prospect to buy something is a great direct marketing success. Getting them to buy something from you whenever they need it is a branding success.
- Opposites attract. That old adage about falling in love also fits the bill for creating a balanced marketing program.
Marketers who favor either branding or direct marketing can see huge differences between the two methods. The first argument sounds like this: Why invest in branding campaigns, when you can precisely target a whole audience of prospects who are likely to want what you're selling? On the other side of the fence, branding fans are saying: Why would you waste money on a campaign that touches just a few households, when you can send your message to hundreds of thousands—even millions—of people using mass media?
Yes, there are significant differences between branding and direct marketing. But these differences can enhance them both, when the two methods are applied in healthy relation to one another.
- Consistency is the key. All differences aside, there are a few inalienable truths about marketing that should never be forgotten. Whether you're interested in branding or direct marketing, one thing is for certain: sending the same message and delivering the same quality and service across every channel is the foundation of great marketing. Great marketing, strong sales, and profitable business rests in large part on consistency.
But beware: don't confuse consistency with boring old sameness. The smartest and most successful companies in the long run are usually the ones that innovate. Make it a part of your business identity to continually improve on your products and services—as well as your branding campaigns and offers. Use the data you collect from customers to help you discover the "next big thing" for your company, whether it's a new audience, a new offer or a new tagline. The lesson here: consistently stay one step ahead of the game.
- Branding IS an offer. If you're a brand marketer, you probably talk often about something called a "brand promise." If you're a direct marketer, you've probably grappled with a little element called a "unique selling proposition (USP)." Guess what? They're the same thing! Your company's brand promise or USP is implicit in every offer you send to every prospect and customer, in every channel you market in. It's the reason why a customer decides to fork over their hard-earned cash to your business over every other—and if you live up to it, it's the reason they'll keep coming back.
So there you have it. All those branding vs. direct marketing debates have, to some degree, missed the point. Why live in a black-and-white marketing world, when there are so many proven shades of gray out there?
|
