7 Keys to Marketing Genius: Get the Facts
The following is an excerpt from The 7 Keys to Marketing Genius by Michael Daehn
Several companies sell marketing lists that contain names of people that fit a particular demographic. These can be useful in some cases, but you are still reliant on the quality of research provided by an outside source. The best way to find information is to get it yourself. Most organizations already have a relationship with current customers and should be implementing tools to better serve them. You can provide a valuable service to your customers by offering them products of use to them. You can also annoy them into the arms of competitors with useless, ceaseless, irrelevant marketing. Gain feedback (Key 6) from customers then adjust your marketing messages (Key 7) to make your offerings relevant and build a better relationship (Key 5).
Your best recipients for direct marketing are those people that are prequalified or self-qualified. This means they have already expressed an interest in your type of product either directly to your company or through a third party source. Many people out there would welcome your advertising since they are in the market for your product. The process of getting preapproval for the sending of marketing materials is called permission marketing.