Definition of Direct Marketing

What is Direct Marketing?

Direct marketing is a channel free approach to distribution and/or marketing communications. So a company may have a strategy of dealing with its customers 'directly,' for example banks (such as CityBank) or computer manufacturers (such as Dell). There are no channel intermediaries i.e. distributors, retailers or wholesalers. Therefore - 'direct' in the sense that the deal is done directly between the manufacturer and the customer.

As mentioned above, 'direct' also in the sense that marketing communications are targeted at consumers by the manufacturers. For example, a brand that uses channels of distribution would target marketing communications at wholesalers/distributors, retailers, and consumers, or a blend of all three. On the other hand, a direct marketing company could focus upon communicating directly with its customers. Direct marketing and direct mail are often confused - although direct mail is a direct marketing tool.

There are a number of direct marketing media other than direct mail. These include (and are by no means limited to):

• Inserts in newspapers and magazines.
• Customer care lines.
• Catalogues.
• Coupons.
• Door drops.
• TV and radio adverts with free phone numbers or per-minute-charging.
• ...and finally - and most importantly - The Internet and New Media.

The Internet and New Media (e.g. mobile phones or PDA's) are perfect for direct marketing. Consumers have never had so many sources of supply, and suppliers have never had access to so many markets. There is even room for niche marketers - for example Scottish salmon could ordered online, packed and chilled, and sent to customers in any part of the world by courier.

Many companies use direct marketing, and a current example of its use, as part of a business model, is the way in which it is used by low-cost airlines. There is no intermediary or agent, customers book tickets directly with the airlines over The Internet. Airlines capture data that can be used for marketing research or a loyalty scheme. Information can be processed quickly, and then categorised into complex relational databases.

Then, for example, special offers or new flights destinations can be communicated directly to customers using e-mail campaigns. Data is not only collected on markets and segments, but also on individuals and their individual buyer behaviour. Companies such as Amazon are wholesalers of books (i.e. they do not write or publish them) - so they use Customer Relationship Management and marketing communications targeted directly at individual customers - which is another, slightly different example of direct marketing.

Referensi: http://marketingteacher.com/lesson-store/lesson-direct-marketing.html

Definisi Perilaku Konsumen

James F.Engel et al. (1968:8) berpendapat bahwa:
“consumer behavior is defined as the acts of individuals directly involved in obtaining and using economic good services including the decision process that precede and determine these acts”

Perilaku konsumen didefinisikan sebagai tindakan-tindakan individu yang secara langsung terlibat dalam usaha memperoleh dan menggunakan barang-barang jasa ekonomis termasuk proses pengambilan keputusan yang mendahului dan menentukan tindakan-tindakan tersebut.

David L. Loudon dan Albert J. Della Bitta (1984:6) mengemukakan bahwa:
“consumer behavior may be defined as decision process and phisycal activity individuals engage in when evaluating, acquairing, using or disposing of goods and services”.

Perilaku konsumen dapat didefinisikan sebagai proses pengambilan keputusan dan aktivitas individu secara fisik yang dilibatkan dalam proses mengevaluasi, memperoleh, menggunakan atau dapat mempergunakan barang-barang dan jasa.

Referensi: Dr.A.A. Anwar Prabu Mangkunegara. 2005. Perilaku Konsumen Hal 3.

Perilaku konsumen adalah studi tentang kapan, mengapa, bagaimana, dan dimana orang atau tidak membeli produk . Hal ini memadukan unsur-unsur dari psikologi , sosiologi , sosial, antropologi dan ekonomi . Ia mencoba untuk memahami proses pengambilan keputusan pembeli, baik perorangan maupun dalam kelompok. Ini mempelajari karakteristik konsumen individu seperti demografis dan variabel perilaku dalam upaya untuk memahami keinginan klien.

Referensi: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consumer_behaviour/

Definition of Public Relations

Public relations as part of the marketing communications mix

Public Relations (PR) is a single, broad concept. It is broad since it contains so many elements, many of which will be outlined in this lesson. Public Relations (PR) are any purposeful communications between an organisation and its publics that aim to generate goodwill.

Publics, put simply, are its stakeholders. PR is proactive and future orientated, and has the goal of building and maintaining a positive perception of an organisation in the mind of its publics. This is often referred to as goodwill.

Yes it is difficult to see the difference between marketing communications and PR since there is a lot of crossover. This makes it a tricky concept to learn. Added to this is the fact that PR is often expensive, and not free, as some definitions would have you believe. PR agencies are not cheap. Below are some of the approaches that are often considered under the PR banner.

Interviews and photo-calls.

It is important that company executives are available to generate goodwill for their organisation. Many undertake training in how to deal with the media, and how to behave in front of a camera. There are many key industrial figures that proactively deal with the media in a positive way for example Bill Gates (Microsoft) or Richard Branson (Virgin). Interviews with the business or mass media often allow a company to put its own perspective on matters that could be misleading if simply left to dwell untended the public domain.

Speeches, presentations and speech writing.

Key figures from within an organisation will write speeches to be delivered at corporate events, public awards and industry gatherings. PR company officials in liaison with company managers often write speeches and design corporate presentations. They are part of the planned and coherent strategy to build goodwill with publics. Presentations can be designed and pre-prepared by PR companies, ultimately to be delivered by company executives.

Corporate literature e.g. financial reports.

Corporate literature includes financial reports, in-house magazines, brochures, catalogues, price lists and any other piece of corporate derived literature. They communicate with a variety of publics. For example, financial reports will be of great interest to investors and the stock market, since they give all sorts of indicators of the health of a business. A company Chief Executive Officer CEO will often write the forward to an annual financial report where he or she has the opportunity to put a business case to the reader. This is all part of Public Relations.

Organising events.

This has a direct business payoff. A more informal event could include a day at the races or a short-break abroad, where clients are wined and dined at the cost of a company, in order to generate goodwill. This has an indirect business payoff.

Corporate events are used to woo publics in both a formal and an informal manner. A formal corporate event could include a manufacturer inviting employees from all of its many distributors to visit its manufacturing plant for a training day.

Facility visits.

Visits to a factory, such as a chocolate factory, or a facility, such as a nuclear power plant also generate a positive perception of an organisation. In the case of a factory visit, loyal customers or other interested parties can experience for themselves what is behind a well-known product. In the case of a nuclear power plant, concerned or misinformed publics have the chance to see for themselves what really occurs behind locked doors. Here the organisation has the chance to deal with a delicate topic in a planned proactive manner. Public buildings such as parliament buildings or churches would be included under facility visits.

Publicity events and 'stunts.'

Publicity events fall under the banner of guerrilla marketing. Here an organisation will take the opportunity to seize upon a particular moment to hijack public attention. Publicity events and stunts are practiced by both companies and private bodies (including pressure and political groups). A famous example of a publicity stunt was one conducted by Fathers For Justice (a British pressure group for divorced fathers), whereby individuals, dressed as Superheroes, invaded Buckingham Palace in London.

Sponsorship and charitable donations.

Sponsorship is where an organisation pays for their product or service to be associated with an activity or event. Organisations commonly sponsor sporting events and such as The Olympics, sporting stars and other celebrities, or medium, for example television programmes. The sponsors gain exposure, and also align their product or service with the attributes of the sport, celebrity or medium.

Many companies (often those in profit!) make donations to charities and good causes. When donations are publicised, again the benefits generate goodwill for the organisation. It should be noted here that Microsoft's Bill Gates donates substantial amounts to good causes that are often not reported. This is true corporate philanthropy.

Product placement in media.

This is an interesting and original use of PR. There are very many examples in movies and TV programmes that 'place' products.

For example, a car manufacturer places a car in a movie and the hero drives it, or wears a watch that is looked at by the villain displaying the time, underscored by the manufacturer's logo. Today, computer games include banners and posters during game-play as the action unfolds. Examples of product placement in games would include field sports with adverts placed alongside a pitch, or car racing games where you pass billboards displayed in a city.

Lobbying government bodies.

Lobbying is named after the 'lobby' area of the British Houses of Parliament where traditionally 'lobbying' would have occurred. Lobby in the past would have meant catching the eye of a Member of Parliament, in order to persuade him or her to take up a particular cause or argument. Today, lobbying firms are hired by organisations or individuals with a specific cause to promote. For example, a charity could lobby for a change in laws regarding pharmaceuticals or armaments. The charity would hire a lobbying firm to promote their cause with elected politicians.

Press or media releases, conferences, contact and entertainment.

Press or media releases, conferences, contact and entertainment are pivotal Public Relations strategies. In the past, the press were the original target (e.g. newspapers and magazines) but today the whole media industry forms the target (i.e. radio, websites, TV, New Media and so on). Media releases are drafted by a PR company, for example, to report financial information prior to the release of company reports.

Media conferences are called often at short notice to inform the media directly on a current event that has just happened, or that is about to happen. Media contact includes interviews with key personnel, and could include speeches, presentations and speech writing by the PR company. Finally entertaining the press, or media, is undertaken when trying to gain as much media space as possible. This could be for a product launch or to promote an acquisition.

Advertorials in newspapers, magazines or on websites.

Advertorials are paid for advertisements that are designed to appear like copy (i.e. normal reported text). Many countries insist that advertorials do contain a line of text to explain that they are sponsored or placed by an advertiser. Advertorials are often used to imply that some ground breaking treatment or solution has been uncovered.

Corporate promotional materials, websites, in-house magazines and customer magazines.

The market for promotional materials is large. Promotional materials include items such as pens, balloons, mouse mats, and so on. They tend to carry a company's logo and contact details, and are another way to promote goodwill between and organisation and its publics. Websites are a vital marketing communications and public relations tool that can convey information to publics on how to contact an organisation, key personnel, products and services, corporate history, and financial reports, as well as any other targeted and planned information.

In-house magazines are used for internal marketing, communication and change management from within the organisation. In-house magazines are targeted at internal publics. Conversely, customer magazines help organisations to communicate with external publics (mainly customers) on all sorts of topics such as good news stories, product launches, customer clubs and many other subjects.

Referensi:
http://marketingteacher.com/lesson-store/lesson-public-relations.html
http://marketingteacher.com/lesson-store/lesson-public-relations-page-2.html
http://marketingteacher.com/lesson-store/lesson-public-relations-page-3.html

Definition of Sales Promotion

What is sales promotion?

Sales promotion is any initiative undertaken by an organisation to promote an increase in sales, usage or trial of a product or service (i.e. initiatives that are not covered by the other elements of the marketing communications or promotions mix). Sales promotions are varied.

Often they are original and creative, and hence a comprehensive list of all available techniques is virtually impossible (since original sales promotions are launched daily!). Here are some examples of popular sales promotions activities:

(a) Buy-One-Get-One-Free (BOGOF) - which is an example of a self-liquidating promotion. For example if a loaf of bread is priced at $1, and cost 10 cents to manufacture, if you sell two for $1, you are still in profit - especially if there is a corresponding increase in sales. This is known as a PREMIUM sales promotion tactic.

(b) Customer Relationship Management (CRM) incentives such as bonus points or money off coupons. There are many examples of CRM, from banks to supermarkets.

(c) New media - Websites and mobile phones that support a sales promotion. For example, in the United Kingdom, Nestle printed individual codes on KIT-KAT packaging, whereby a consumer would enter the code into a dynamic website to see if they had won a prize. Consumers could also text codes via their mobile phones to the same effect.

(d) Merchandising additions such as dump bins, point-of-sale materials and product demonstrations.

(e) Free gifts e.g. Subway gave away a card with six spaces for stickers with each sandwich purchase. Once the card was full the consumer was given a free sandwich.

(f) Discounted prices e.g. Budget airline such as EasyJet and Ryanair, e-mail their customers with the latest low-price deals once new flights are released, or additional destinations are announced.

(g) Joint promotions between brands owned by a company, or with another company's brands. For example fast food restaurants often run sales promotions where toys, relating to a specific movie release, are given away with promoted meals.

(h) Free samples (aka. sampling) e.g. tasting of food and drink at sampling points in supermarkets. For example Red Bull (a caffeinated fizzy drink) was given away to potential consumers at supermarkets, in high streets and at petrol stations (by a promotions team).

(i) Vouchers and coupons, often seen in newspapers and magazines, on packs.

(j) Competitions and prize draws, in newspapers, magazines, on the TV and radio, on The Internet, and on packs.

(k) Cause-related and fair-trade products that raise money for charities, and the less well off farmers and producers, are becoming more popular.

(l) Finance deals - for example, 0% finance over 3 years on selected vehicles.

Many of the examples above are focused upon consumers. Don't forget that promotions can be aimed at wholesales and distributors as well. These are known as Trade Sales Promotions. Examples here might include joint promotions between a manufacturer and a distributor, sales promotion leaflets and other materials (such as T-shirts), and incentives for distributor sales people and their retail clients.

Referensi: http://marketingteacher.com/lesson-store/lesson-sales-promotion.html

Personal Selling

Personal selling occurs where an individual salesperson sells a product, service or solution to a client. Salespeople match the benefits of their offering to the specific needs of a client. Today, personal selling involves the development of longstanding client relationships.

In comparison to other marketing communications tools such as advertising, personal selling tends to:

• Use fewer resources, pricing is often negotiated.
• Products tend to be fairly complex (e.g. financial services or new cars).
• There is some contact between buyer and seller after the sale so that an ongoing relationship is built.
• Client/prospects need specific information.
• The purchase tends to involve large sums of money.

There are exceptions of course, but most personal selling takes place in this way. Personal selling involves a selling process that is summarised in the following Five Stage Personal Selling Process. The five stages are:

1. Prospecting.

2. Making first contact.

3. The sales call.

4. Objection handling.

5. Closing the sale.

A Five Stage Personal Selling Process.

Stage One - Prospecting.

Prospecting is all about finding prospects, or potential new customers. Prospects should be 'qualified,' which means that they need to be assessed to see if there is business potential, otherwise you could be wasting your time. In order to qualify your prospects, one needs to:

• Plan a sales approach focused upon the needs of the customer.
• Determine which products or services best meet their needs.
• In order to save time, rank the prospects and leave out those that are least likely to buy.

Stage Two - Making First Contact.

This is the preparation that a salesperson goes through before they meet with the client, for example via e-mail, telephone or letter. Preparation will make a call more focused.

• Make sure that you are on time.
• Before meeting with the client, set some objectives for the sales call. What is the purpose of the call? What outcome is desirable before you leave?
• Make sure that you've done some homework before meeting your prospect. This will show that you are committed in the eyes of your customer.
• To save time, send some information before you visit. This will wet the prospect's appetite.
• Keep a set of samples at hand, and make sure that they are in very good condition.
• Within the first minute or two, state the purpose of your call so that time with the client is maximised, and also to demonstrate to the client that your are not wasting his or her time.
• Humour is fine, but try to be sincere and friendly.

Stage Three - The Sales Call (or Sales Presentation).

It is best to be enthusiastic about your product or service. If you are not excited about it, don't expect your prospect to be excited.

Focus on the real benefits of the product or service to the specific needs of your client, rather than listing endless lists of features.

Try to be relaxed during the call, and put your client at ease.

Let the client do at least 80% of the talking. This will give you invaluable information on your client's needs.

Remember to ask plenty of questions. Use open questions, e.g. TED's, and closed questions i.e. questions that will only give the answer 'yes' or the answer 'no.' This way you can dictate the direction of the conversation.

Never be too afraid to ask for the business straight off.

Stage Four - Objection Handling.

Objection handling is the way in which salespeople tackle obstacles put in their way by clients. Some objections may prove too difficult to handle, and sometimes the client may just take a dislike to you (aka the hidden objection). Here are some approaches for overcoming objections:

• Firstly, try to anticipate them before they arise.
• 'Yes but' technique allows you to accept the objection and then to divert it. For example, a client may say that they do not like a particular colour, to which the salesperson counters 'Yes but X is also available in many other colours.'
• Ask 'why' the client feels the way that they do.
• 'Restate' the objection, and put it back into the client's lap. For example, the client may say, 'I don't like the taste of X,' to which the salesperson responds, 'You don't like the taste of X,' generating the response 'since I do not like garlic' from the client. The salesperson could suggest that X is no longer made with garlic to meet the client's needs.
• The sales person could also tactfully and respectfully contradict the client.

Stage Five - Closing the Sale.

This is a very important stage. Often salespeople will leave without ever successfully closing a deal. Therefore it is vital to learn the skills of closing.

• Just ask for the business! - 'Please may I take an order?' This really works well.
• Look for buying signals (i.e. body language or comments made by the client that they want to place an order). For example, asking about availability, asking for details such as discounts, or asking for you to go over something again to clarify.
• Just stop talking, and let the client say 'yes.' Again, this really works.
• The 'summary close' allows the salesperson to summarise everything that the client needs, based upon the discussions during the call. For example, 'You need product X in blue, by Friday, packaged accordingly, and delivered to your wife's office.' Then ask for the order.
• The 'alternative close' does not give the client the opportunity to say no, but forces them towards a yes. For example 'Do you want product X in blue or red?' Cheeky, but effective.

So this is the Five Stage Personal Selling Process. Now have a go at it yourself by completing the lesson.

Referensi : http://marketingteacher.com/lesson-store/lesson-personal-selling.html