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Special Issue on Direct Marketing
INTRODUCTION
Special Issue on Direct Marketing: Where the Old Meets the New Harry Timmermans UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, EINDHOVEN, THE NETHERLANDS
Michelle Morganosky UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
W
hat an exciting time to be working in the area of direct marketing—as the old gives way to the new and old ways are considered in a new light. Just a few years ago, you had to explain what you meant if you said you were working in the area of “direct marketing.” Direct marketing used to be thought of quite narrowly, often synonymous with the term “mail order.” As evidenced by the variety of titles in this special issue, we have included both the traditional formats long associate with direct marketing as well as the newer and potentially exciting electronic formats. What then is direct marketing? According to the Direct Marketing Association, direct marketing is an interactive system of marketing that uses one or more advertising media to effect a measureable response and/or transaction at any location. According to Bob Stone (whom many consider the direct marketing guru), interaction or one-on-one communication between the marketer and customer is key (Stone, 1995). Indeed, the Journal of Direct Marketing recently announced that it will change its name to the Journal of Interactive Marketing to reflect the fact: “that the principles of direct marketing have been very influential, and the label ‘direct marketing’ has become too restrictive to do justice to the ideas that it has spawned . . . the logic of direct marketing has become, for many industries from airlines to financial services to restaurants, the logic of all marketing . . . so that interactive marketing we mean little more than good marketing, conversational marketing” (Deighton and Glazer, 1997). Bob Stone believes that if there is one thing that distinguishes the direct marketing disciplines, it is that direct marAddress correspondence to Dr. H. Timmermans, University of Technology, P.O. Box 513, Den Dolech 2, 5600 MB Eindhoven, The Netherlands or Dr. M. Morganosky, University of Illinois, Dept. of Agricultural and Consumer Economics, 326 Mumford Hall, Urbana, IL 61801, USA. Journal of Business Research 45, 247–248 (1999) 1999 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved. 655 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10010
keting is database driven. “Knowing who the best customers are, what they buy, and how often they buy provides a secret weapon” (Stone, 1995). Early in the history of direct marketing, mail-order companies had to collect specific information about customers to know where to send what and to whom (by name and address). The collection and use of customer information is a core competency long associated with the direct marketing business. For those from a retail background, it is fairly common to define the parameters of direct marketing in terms of nonstore formats. From a retail perspective, direct marketing is just that—direct without the necessity of a store to conduct exchanges. However defined, direct marketing appears to be growing both in importance and magnitude. In the United States alone, direct marketing generates an estimated $594 billion in consumer sales and $498 billion in business-tobusiness sales each year, and 19 million U.S. jobs are related to direct marketing activity (Direct Marketing Association’s Statistical Fact Book 1996). The special issue represents this multifaceted perspective on direct marketing in that a variety of formats is considered (Internet, mail order, direct selling) as well as a variety of market contexts (the United Kingdom, China, Belgium, Israel, the United States). Van de Poel and Leunis discuss the viability of the Internet in their article “Consumer Acceptance of the Internet as a Channel of Distribution.” Using data collected from Belgian consumers, they assess the role of risk and risk reduction for this new medium. In their article, “Managing Direct Selling Activities in China: A Cultural Explanation,” Luk, Fullgrabe, and Li explore the acceptance of relationship marketing within the context of China’s cosmetic industry. Merrilies presents a comparative study between China and Australia is his article on “Direct Selling in the West and East: The Relative Roles of Product and Relationship Drivers.” Morganosky and Fernie also present a comparative analysis ISSN 0148-2963/99/$–see front matter PII S0148-2963(97)00235-X
248
J Busn Res 1999:45:247–248
of two markets in their article “Mail Order Direct Marketing in the United States and the United Kingdom: Responses to Changing Market Conditions.” Mail order is also the focus of Eastlick and Feinberg’s study on “Shopping Motives for Mail Catalog Shopping” in which the role of functional versus nonfunctional motives is considered. Membership clubs in Israel are examined by Lieberman in his article “Membership Clubs as a Tool for Enhancing Buyers’ Patronage.” Thus, the context of this special issue is broad both in terms of geography and perspectives considered. We thank Arch G. Woodside, editor of the Journal of Business Research,
Introduction
for providing us with the opportunity to serve as guest editors of this special issue on direct marketing.
References Deighton, John, and Glazer, Rashi: Preview: Journal Editorial from New Co-Editors. Direct Connection (Spring 1997): 3. Direct Marketing Association’s Statistical Fact Book 1996;1: Direct Marketing Association, New York. 1996. Stone, Bob: Successful Direct Marketing Methods, NTC Business Books, Lincolnwood, IL. 1995.
Special Issue on Direct Marketing: Where the Old Meets the New Harry Timmermans UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, EINDHOVEN, THE NETHERLANDS
Michelle Morganosky UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
W
hat an exciting time to be working in the area of direct marketing—as the old gives way to the new and old ways are considered in a new light. Just a few years ago, you had to explain what you meant if you said you were working in the area of “direct marketing.” Direct marketing used to be thought of quite narrowly, often synonymous with the term “mail order.” As evidenced by the variety of titles in this special issue, we have included both the traditional formats long associate with direct marketing as well as the newer and potentially exciting electronic formats. What then is direct marketing? According to the Direct Marketing Association, direct marketing is an interactive system of marketing that uses one or more advertising media to effect a measureable response and/or transaction at any location. According to Bob Stone (whom many consider the direct marketing guru), interaction or one-on-one communication between the marketer and customer is key (Stone, 1995). Indeed, the Journal of Direct Marketing recently announced that it will change its name to the Journal of Interactive Marketing to reflect the fact: “that the principles of direct marketing have been very influential, and the label ‘direct marketing’ has become too restrictive to do justice to the ideas that it has spawned . . . the logic of direct marketing has become, for many industries from airlines to financial services to restaurants, the logic of all marketing . . . so that interactive marketing we mean little more than good marketing, conversational marketing” (Deighton and Glazer, 1997). Bob Stone believes that if there is one thing that distinguishes the direct marketing disciplines, it is that direct marAddress correspondence to Dr. H. Timmermans, University of Technology, P.O. Box 513, Den Dolech 2, 5600 MB Eindhoven, The Netherlands or Dr. M. Morganosky, University of Illinois, Dept. of Agricultural and Consumer Economics, 326 Mumford Hall, Urbana, IL 61801, USA. Journal of Business Research 45, 247–248 (1999) 1999 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved. 655 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10010
keting is database driven. “Knowing who the best customers are, what they buy, and how often they buy provides a secret weapon” (Stone, 1995). Early in the history of direct marketing, mail-order companies had to collect specific information about customers to know where to send what and to whom (by name and address). The collection and use of customer information is a core competency long associated with the direct marketing business. For those from a retail background, it is fairly common to define the parameters of direct marketing in terms of nonstore formats. From a retail perspective, direct marketing is just that—direct without the necessity of a store to conduct exchanges. However defined, direct marketing appears to be growing both in importance and magnitude. In the United States alone, direct marketing generates an estimated $594 billion in consumer sales and $498 billion in business-tobusiness sales each year, and 19 million U.S. jobs are related to direct marketing activity (Direct Marketing Association’s Statistical Fact Book 1996). The special issue represents this multifaceted perspective on direct marketing in that a variety of formats is considered (Internet, mail order, direct selling) as well as a variety of market contexts (the United Kingdom, China, Belgium, Israel, the United States). Van de Poel and Leunis discuss the viability of the Internet in their article “Consumer Acceptance of the Internet as a Channel of Distribution.” Using data collected from Belgian consumers, they assess the role of risk and risk reduction for this new medium. In their article, “Managing Direct Selling Activities in China: A Cultural Explanation,” Luk, Fullgrabe, and Li explore the acceptance of relationship marketing within the context of China’s cosmetic industry. Merrilies presents a comparative study between China and Australia is his article on “Direct Selling in the West and East: The Relative Roles of Product and Relationship Drivers.” Morganosky and Fernie also present a comparative analysis ISSN 0148-2963/99/$–see front matter PII S0148-2963(97)00235-X
248
J Busn Res 1999:45:247–248
of two markets in their article “Mail Order Direct Marketing in the United States and the United Kingdom: Responses to Changing Market Conditions.” Mail order is also the focus of Eastlick and Feinberg’s study on “Shopping Motives for Mail Catalog Shopping” in which the role of functional versus nonfunctional motives is considered. Membership clubs in Israel are examined by Lieberman in his article “Membership Clubs as a Tool for Enhancing Buyers’ Patronage.” Thus, the context of this special issue is broad both in terms of geography and perspectives considered. We thank Arch G. Woodside, editor of the Journal of Business Research,
Introduction
for providing us with the opportunity to serve as guest editors of this special issue on direct marketing.
References Deighton, John, and Glazer, Rashi: Preview: Journal Editorial from New Co-Editors. Direct Connection (Spring 1997): 3. Direct Marketing Association’s Statistical Fact Book 1996;1: Direct Marketing Association, New York. 1996. Stone, Bob: Successful Direct Marketing Methods, NTC Business Books, Lincolnwood, IL. 1995.