Media-driven marketing

DIRECT MARKETING CONCEPTS AND CASES: Mukesh Chaturvedi; Excel Books, A-45, Naraina, Phase I, New Delhi-110028. Rs. 595.

MARKETING IS an ``interactive system of marketing which uses one or more advertising media to effect a measurable response and/or transaction at any location''. This definition given by the Direct Marketing Association is perhaps no longer valid with the continuing growth and development in the field.

Bob Stone, the author of Successful Direct Marketing Methods,has virtually dissected the definition and has established that direct marketing is a mainstream marketing medium and the database is the linch-pin of marketing in future.

The book under review, divided into 13 parts of 87 small chapters, deals with the entire gamut of direct marketing, bringing out clearly that it is a media-driven selling unlike personal selling or direct selling which is face-to-face selling.

Part I deals with the new paradigms and philosophies in direct marketing. Is junk mail superior to mass communication? The author has not answered this question. In part II he has clearly brought out that direct marketing is not for everyone. Part III deals with the economics and the chapter on ``inter-channel marketing'' is good.

Part VI, the smallest write-up on consumer behaviour, does not throw much light. In fact, F. Lyttle's ``What does your customer really want'' throws much more light on the core topic itself. Part VII, the longest one with 28 chapters, deals with the nuances of direct mail even though the whole thing mirrors part I more elaborately.

Advertising is part of marketing. Marketing and advertising become effective only when the deal is closed by sales. Should this not have been brought out better in part VIII? Part IX, ``Telemarketing'' should have gone with parts VII, XII and VI, instead of getting scattered as separate parts.

The author has rightly concluded that the ``industry crystal ball is cloudy'' and ``database marketing is still only a promise.''

Direct marketing has certainly picked up now, with the advent of dot.coms and definitely has a good future.

This excellently got up, highly readable book with good contents, could have been much better if ``too small and too many chapters'' are combined into condensed numbers, supported by Indian case studies, since this well-known concept has yet to catch up with our culture of ``seeing is believing''.

What is suitable to the West will not and need not suit us. However this book spreads awareness in direct marketing.

N. RAMASWAMI

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