Direct Marketing Vs Personal Selling
Was there a time in your life when you received a call from a telemarketer inviting you to a lunch or dinner only because they have to introduce some powerful scheme of theirs? Such type of selling is commonly the support system of various companies all over the globe, and thus it is called as direct marketing.
Direct Marketing Vs Personal Selling
What is direct marketing?
Was there a time in your life when you received a call from a telemarketer inviting you to a lunch or dinner only because they have to introduce some powerful scheme of theirs? Such type of selling is commonly the support system of various companies all over the globe, and thus it is called as direct marketing. In this direct marketing technique, there is absence of any middlemen during the sale process whilst the customers are addressed directly. There is no doubt in the fact that almost all business brands are engaged in direct marketing some way or the other.
However tough it may seem, direct marketing provides the long- lasting customers to a business. Not only the small and unknown businesses, but also the most reputable brands have adopted direct marketing to maintain their position in the market. There are various methods employed in reaching out to the target consumers such as through mobiles, SMS, emails, sending invites through magazines and newspapers to attend a seminar or conference. Oftentimes, telemarketing is known to be a very aggressive and offensive kind of marketing. Direct marketing is followed by a call to action in which it is used to allure a customer into buying the product with support of an incentive or any irresistible offer.
What is personal selling?
Personal selling is another selling technique that involves building effective relationships with customers making proper use of communication and negotiation skills in order to close the final sale of a product or service which otherwise would be lying on the store shelf. It is like deriving meaning out of a meaningless product and then selling it to a customer by keeping up the good points. It often requires an oral representation by a person called a salesman to close a sale by putting in the best efforts possible. The considerate dialogue between the seller and the prospective buyer at first seems to be about increasing awareness of the product but in the end it is all about an attempt to somehow sell the product. These push or pull strategies are effectively used in the oldest form of selling called personal selling. Their end result is to close a sale by putting in the best marketing efforts.
Comparison between Direct selling and personal selling:
Direct selling | Personal selling |
Focuses on sale of all types of products | Focuses on sale of complex products |
Direct contact with customers through chat, mails, calls, etc. | Direct contact with customers in person. For eg, salesman talking to a prospect |
Aims at telling benefits of the offer directly | Aims at building relationship with customers |
Widely used by big and small companies | Oldest form of marketing |
In a nutshell, both forms of marketing are effective and used for increasing sales, gaining more prospective buyers and bringing exponential growth in business. Both the techniques have their own advantages offered to the business people. Although digital marketing focuses more on direct selling than personal selling to reap the benefits, still many companies rely on personal selling and think of it as a more effective marketing tool. With digitization on its peak, more and more customers are looking for online purchases rather than visiting offline markets, this gives rise to more direct marketing efforts by business brands. Brands send personalized messages, mails, and whatsapp forwards to attract customers towards their product or service. It is known to be very effective in today’s times when every other person is looking for instant purchase options rather than waiting at the store in line.
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