Direct Response Advertising
If you watch television at all or listen to the radio, you have probably heard some advertisement urging you to take advantage of a “limited time offer” by calling a toll free phone number. You are also probably told that the product is not available in stores, or that you are given the limited time opportunity to double the product you receive by calling the number given.
This is a very popular type of direct response advertising. There are many more ways to respond to direct response advertising, including a business reply card or a coupon to cut out return by mail. You are also likely to be familiar with telephone advertising that ends with a request to you to call a press one to place your order. With the growth and expansion of the Internet, you might have been asked to click on a link or an image.
By definition, direct response advertising refers to a method of advertising or promoting a product or service in which you, the targeted customer, are asked to respond directly to the marketer. The best explanation is probably an example.
You receive a letter in the mail that announces the publication of a definitive new book on a popular subject. After describing the book, providing a brief author or editor biography, and adding a few endorsements of the book from people you are likely to respect, the letter concludes, “available September 1 from your favorite online or local bookseller.” This is not direct response advertising.
Later the same day, you log on to your e-mail account and find an email from the manufacturer of the power tools. The same sale is announced in stores nationwide. But you are given the opportunity to click on a link or call a toll free number and learn about a special offer only available to premier customers. This is direct response advertising.
The second example incorporates all of the definitive components of direct response advertising:
1. The advertising piece or ad makes a clear offer.
2. Sufficient product and sale information to allow you to make a decision about responding.
3. A clear request that you take a specific action.
4. You are given at least two ways to respond.
The reason for the popularity of direct response advertising with is that it has an inherent evaluation mechanism. It is easy for the marketer or the sales person to know exactly how many people responded to the advertisement and how many of those people made the purchase.
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