{"id":46538,"date":"2023-03-06T12:47:00","date_gmt":"2023-03-06T12:47:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/glosario-digital\/direct-marketing"},"modified":"2026-10-01T08:47:46","modified_gmt":"2026-10-01T08:47:46","slug":"direct-marketing","status":"publish","type":"encyclopedia","link":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/direct-marketing","title":{"rendered":"Direct Marketing"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-47049 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/direct-marketing.jpg\" alt=\"Direct marketing\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/direct-marketing.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/direct-marketing-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Definition:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Direct marketing<\/strong> is a marketing discipline that addresses identified people or segments to generate a specific, measurable response. That response may be a purchase, an enquiry, a booking, a visit, a registration or another action defined by the organization.<\/p>\n<p>It is not limited to advertising and does not always require an immediate sale. Its defining feature is the combination of a <strong>selected audience<\/strong>, a message, an offer, a response path and a system that connects outcomes with the activity. It can use digital and physical media, subject to the rules governing each channel and the use of personal data.<\/p>\n\n<h2>Characteristics of direct marketing<\/h2>\n<p>A direct marketing activity begins with a <strong>defined objective<\/strong> and a specific group of recipients. Segmentation may use declared data, relationship history, behaviour or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/target\">target audience<\/a> criteria, but it should avoid irrelevant profiles or information that cannot be used lawfully.<\/p>\n<p>Its usual elements include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Defined recipient:<\/strong> A person, account or segment with known characteristics.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Relevant proposition:<\/strong> An offer, piece of content or service connected to an identified need.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Adapted message:<\/strong> The degree of personalization depends on the available information and its reliability.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Call to action:<\/strong> A clear explanation of the expected response and how to complete it.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Response channel:<\/strong> This may be a link, form, phone number, coupon or store.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Associated measurement:<\/strong> Codes, URLs, identifiers or events connect responses with the activity.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Measurability does not prove that every response was caused by one contact. A person may have encountered other stimuli, so <strong>observed attribution<\/strong> requires careful interpretation.<\/p>\n<h2>Direct marketing channels and examples<\/h2>\n<p>Direct marketing may form part of a broader <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/campaign\">campaign<\/a> and coordinate <strong>several touchpoints<\/strong>. A channel alone does not make an activity direct: recipient selection, a requested response and the ability to measure it are what matter.<\/p>\n<p>Common formats include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Email:<\/strong> Informational messages, promotions or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/email-marketing\">email marketing<\/a> sequences sent to a permitted list.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Direct mail:<\/strong> Catalogues, letters, samples or coupons with an identifiable response mechanism.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Mobile messaging:<\/strong> SMS, notifications or app messages when contact is allowed.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Telemarketing:<\/strong> Targeted calls with a defined purpose and controls for consent or objection.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Addressable advertising:<\/strong> Ads delivered to selected audiences with a trackable action.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Direct selling:<\/strong> Individual contact through a representative, demonstration or sales enquiry.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>A mass publication with no identifiable recipients may generate responses, but it is generally closer to broad communication. By contrast, a mailed catalogue with different codes for each segment can support <strong>direct response<\/strong> even though it is not digital.<\/p>\n<h2>How to plan a direct marketing activity<\/h2>\n<p>Planning should connect <strong>audience selection<\/strong> with the proposition and measurement. A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/crm\">CRM<\/a> can bring together contact and interaction data, but it does not automatically make a database valid for marketing or guarantee accurate records.<\/p>\n<p>A basic process includes:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Define the objective:<\/strong> Set the intended action, time period and conditions for a valid result.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Select the audience:<\/strong> Apply inclusion, exclusion, frequency and priority criteria.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Design the proposition:<\/strong> Connect the benefit, message, creative, offer and call to action.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Choose the channels:<\/strong> Consider context, cost, preferences, permissions and response capability.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Prepare measurement:<\/strong> Define events, codes, control groups and attribution rules before launch.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Test and learn:<\/strong> Compare variants on adequate samples and avoid changing several uncontrolled variables.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/marketing-automation\">Marketing automation<\/a> can trigger messages according to events or lifecycle stages, but it requires contact-pressure limits, updated data and rules that stop communications when they are no longer relevant.<\/p>\n<h2>Metrics for evaluating direct marketing<\/h2>\n<p>The primary metric should match the activity&#8217;s objective. An email open or link click can describe engagement, but it does not necessarily represent a commercial <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/conversion\">conversion<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Common indicators include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Response rate:<\/strong> The proportion of recipients who perform the defined action.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Conversion rate:<\/strong> The percentage completing the final outcome within the chosen reference population.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Cost per response:<\/strong> Investment divided by the number of valid responses.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Acquisition cost:<\/strong> Attributable cost for each new customer or equivalent outcome.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Revenue and margin:<\/strong> Value generated, including returns, discounts and relevant costs where appropriate.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Opt-outs and complaints:<\/strong> Signals of pressure, irrelevance or deterioration in the recipient base.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Estimating the <strong>incremental effect<\/strong> usually requires a control group or another method that separates responses that would have happened anyway. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/digital-glossary\/roi\">ROI<\/a> is only meaningful when the scope of revenue and costs is consistent.<\/p>\n<h2>Differences, limitations and compliance<\/h2>\n<p>Direct marketing is not distinguished from indirect marketing merely by the absence of intermediaries. The practical difference is that it addresses identified recipients and asks for a <strong>measurable response<\/strong>. Indirect marketing usually aims to build exposure, recall or preference among broader audiences, although both approaches may coexist in one strategy.<\/p>\n<p>Personalization does not guarantee better results. Poor segmentation, excessive frequency or messages based on sensitive information can reduce trust and create rejection. An organization should identify the applicable <strong>lawful basis<\/strong>, follow channel-specific rules and provide clear ways to withdraw consent or object where required.<\/p>\n<p>Good practice includes keeping evidence of permissions, explaining data use, applying suppression lists, checking suppliers and limiting information to the stated purpose. Organizations should also protect data, correct inaccurate records and process opt-outs promptly. Effective direct marketing therefore combines relevance and measurement with <strong>frequency control<\/strong>, transparency and respect for the recipient&#8217;s choices.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Definition: Direct marketing is a marketing discipline that addresses identified people or segments to generate a specific, measurable response. That response may be a purchase, an enquiry, a booking, a visit, a registration or another action defined by the organization. It is not limited to advertising and does not always require an immediate sale. Its [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":0,"template":"","encyclopedia-tag":[1356],"class_list":["post-46538","encyclopedia","type-encyclopedia","status-publish","hentry","encyclopedia-tag-relationship-marketing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/encyclopedia\/46538","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/encyclopedia"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/encyclopedia"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/28"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46538"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"encyclopedia-tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.arimetrics.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/encyclopedia-tag?post=46538"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}