what it will be," comments one focus group participant in a recent study of

direct mail trends commissioned by the Graphic Arts Marketing Information

In the late 1800s, Richard W. Sears, a railroad clerk in North Redmond, Minnesota, acquired an abandoned case of pocket watches. Using his list of other railroad clerks throughout the Midwest, he marketed his watches with great success. Sears recognized immediately that an entrepreneur with a list of accurate names and addresses, and a stock of quality merchandise, no longer needed a store. He only needed a good message delivery vehicle and first-rate customer service. And so was born an American institution, one of the first and most successful direct marketing stories of all time: Sears Roebuck. The business grew to be the largest direct mail order company in the world. It wasn't until 1931 that its retail store sales surpassed mail order sales. And many, many more mail order business success stories followed. In fact, because distances between suppliers and consumers throughout the newly forming territories were so vast, and the increasing variety of merchandise being produced wa

While prospecting via the Internet may be a tough nut to crack, it's clear that e-mail is well suited for keeping customers active. "On the retention side," says Brady, "marketers now have a powerful new vehicle. Unless you were a cataloger or a club, you didn't always invest in

“Today, the U.S. boasts a $1.5 trillion market for direct marketers. This is without a doubt the largest and richest single market in the world and growing at an unprecedented 8.6% per year. With over 10,000 different catalogs alone being mailed in the U.S., there is a niche for every player and every project and service.” Technology and innovation have improved, but the principles fostered by Sears have remained intact.

regular customer communication. A lot of companies are seeing the power of e-mail in particular to drive revenues and customer loyalty and retention. As e-commerce has found its place on the Internet, the impact on direct mail remains uncertain. In many ways, the Internet complements direct mail, providing a unique way to generate leads and enhance prospecting efforts. Even today the Internet is an attractive option for new direct marketing advertisers. There is no doubt that the Internet will reduce the need for conventional direct mail, but e-commerce businesses are potential new direct mail advertisers. “Email is cheap, sending out a catalog can cost $1 or more, according to a report issued last year by Cambridge, Mass.-based Forrester Research. Companies can send an e-mail for a cost of less than 1 cent to 25 cents, depending on volume and on the cont

Some topics in this essay:
Direct Marketing, Brush Company, Direct-mail Marketing, Internet E-commerce, Sears Roebuck, Redmond Minnesota, Research Companies, Constitution United, direct mail, , Postal Service, direct marketing, direct response, percent americans, direct selling, direct salespeople,