Direct and Internet Marketing - Essay Example

Internet Marketing Technological innovations have brought changes on how business operations are undertaken. With the popularity of the internet, enterprises have tried shifting from traditional face-to-face transactions to electronic usage which is prevalent in the emerging worldwide trend on marketing. For households with Internet access, the web is now the first port-of-call for finding information to select or buy the best deal. Online marketing has been introduced in which internet is utilized to conduct affairs on sales. The term online marketing is a broad concept which covers and oftentimes simultaneously referred to as direct or e-marketing or even online shopping. To assert that the internet is just another channel to market is an understatement. It has revolutionized the way in which marketing is done. The advent of the New Media and Internet has increased possibilities of online marketing and internet retailing with new features of interactive shopping, pod casting and e-marketing. Consumers are connected to online shopping sites with WiFi, Internet or 3G mobile phones. E commerce has taken a new dimension in retailing with increasing number of people shopping online and even making flight bookings online (Papers4you.com, 2006). There is a range of access platforms such as web, e-mail, mobile phones and interactive digital TV that comprise the online channels which e-marketers use to build and develop relationships with customers. E-marketing, as specialists of CISCO puts it, "is a generic term utilized for a wide range of activities - advertising, customer communications, branding, fidelity programs - using the internet. More than the simple development of a website, e-marketing focuses on online communications, direct dialog with consumers who thus participate to the creation of new products, finding efficient methods to win customer's fidelity and ease their business-making process. eMarketing is the sum of activities a company makes with the purpose of finding, attracting, winning and retaining customers" (Otlacan, 2005). Accordingly, e-marketing allows relational exchanges in digital, networked and interactive environments. As a way of online shopping, e-marketing include service providers selling services and retail businesses selling items to customers and auctioneers as well who create marketplaces where citizens can buy and sell goods through the internet (Summers, Smith, et al, 2003). The tools used are a wide array of electronic possibilities that very much involve electronic mails. Practical illustrations of how internet marketing works are observed in the processes on which eBay, Yahoo! and Amazon.com undertake to facilitate its business. People who've got used to eBay don't often stop to think how amazing it is - an online marketplace where you can buy things from all over the world, without leaving your home. You can get things that you would never think anyone would bother to sell, and you can get them cheaply. The powerful search engine means that you can find things you'll like without even knowing exactly what you're looking for. Customers can buy goods from these online shopping sites by logging on to their websites (www.ebay.com). As online retailers, these businesses provide customers with pictures and descriptions of the products posted for sales transactions. In the case of Amazon.com, customer reviews of their books in addition to the book descriptions are provided. The sales process is conducted with the use of credit cards. Customers are required to enter the information from the credit card into the computer. With the information coming from the credit card, the modem sends out the details to the financial institution. Credit card is undoubtedly the dominant method of payment used to shop online. As the popularity of online shopping grows, many online retailers have increased their credit card security on their websites. Online retailers use encryption technology to make credit card information more secure and provide the padlock or unbroken key symbols in the status bar at the bottom of the screen. These symbols indicate to customers that they are entering their credit card number in a secure environment. Even credit card merchants have realised the importance that customers place in credit card security. After the payment process is carried out, the buyer waits for a specified time to receive the ordered goods (www.wiki.media-culture.org.au). The process is quite easy to make since the websites present the step-by-step procedures. Online shopping or e-marketing is important because it offers buyers convenience that has never before been achievable. The technology that is now available allows customers to shop on the internet 24 hours a day and seven days a week, without having to leave their homes or offices. Shoppers are provided with an abundance of merchant sites where almost any goods on earth can be bought. Consumers can also compare prices from a variety of different retailers with greater ease, compared to them physically going to shop in a built shopping centre to check prices. Online auctioning which is an underlying concept of online shopping and electronic-based marketing and sales, is a relatively new phenomenon that is simply a community of people buying, selling and exchanging items on websites through the Internet. It is much like a real life auction where potential buyers place bids for a particular item and whoever places the highest big over the reserve price becomes the new owner of that good or service. Unlike real life auctions, however, the sellers place a time limit on how long the auction will run for, either hours, days or weeks. To give a prima facie evidence on the fact that the internet has revolutionized the way marketing is performed, it is necessary to look at the superiority of online transaction. It is very evident from the structure of eBay, Yahoo! and Amazon.com that purchase through them benefits buyers because of the seemingly no limitations on geographical boundaries. As Hahn puts it, it is the strength of the online shopping business that is inherent by the fact that it is online (Hahn, 2006). Use of the internet allows both the sellers and bidders to participate in online auctions from anywhere in the world. A seller let's say in China can put up a doll in an online auction site that can be bid on by bidders that reside in the United States. In essence due to the absence of territorial barriers made possible through the use of the virtual space, technically technically everybody anywhere in the world can purchase items. Inherent in the worldwide interdependence of buyers and sellers is the comfort given to the buyers. The buyer simply sits in front of the computer, logs on to the online shopping site, uses an e-money, and then waits for the delivery of the product. There is no longer a need for personal visit on stores which could require much effort especially for busy buyers. The Internet offers variety that is simply impossible in traditional stores (Postrel, 2004). Definitely, buyers do more than purchase items of their choice because they also work or study. More than the comfort offered by online shopping, time is saved for other purposes. Basically, the cost of participating into Internet auctions through various retail agents is zero (Hahn, 2006). Online shopping also allows buyers to customize their products, as well as benefit from cheaper prices. As buyers are purchasing directly from the supplier, it eliminates the need for retailers and distributors who often add to the cost of the product. Postrel (2004) found that prices on the Internet were 6 percent to 16 percent lower than prices off-line. Items can be posted on auction sites at any time of the day, and bids can be made on items any time of the day as well. And since items are listed for usually one to 10 days, potential bidders have a lot of time to ponder their bid (Hahn, 2006). Aside from the fact that purchase through online auctions saves time, it also allows the buyer to offer a bid at the time convenient to him since there are time constraints (Miller and Layton, 2000). Bids can be made on items any time of the day and because items are listed for usually longer than a week, potential bidders have a lot of time to ponder their choices and bids. Power has shifted from sellers to buyers; more competition yields more choices for the consumer. Elderly people often have more trouble accessing built shopping centers because transport is usually not as readily available to them. This market has begun to realise the convenience of shopping at home. Tedeschi (2004) found the percentage of seniors on the Internet who were also shopping online in 2000 at 38 percent and by February 2004, that figure had increased to 49 percent. Buyers also have better access to product review and rating systems. These services allow potential buyers to read product evaluations and comments made by other consumers who have previously purchased the product. It also gives customers the power to make more informed choices. Customers can also save a surprising amount of time by shopping online. Research indicated online Christmas shopping is at least four times faster than pounding around the shopping precinct. For experienced online shoppers, who know where to go, the time saving is even greater - for them it's typically six times faster than a trip to the traditional shopping destinations. (M2 Presswire, 2003). The main benefit for sellers is that it allows them to reduce costs in relation to overheads. There are cleaning, building maintenance and rental that can be avoided. Some companies may reduce costs further by not printing catalogues and solely allow their customers to visit the website for product pictures and descriptions. Technology employed for auctioning also allows sellers to track customer, product preferences and alert these customers of new products they may be waiting for or could be interested in. This may help the business increase their visibility in the marketplace and assist buyers to remember the company. As a result, customers may be more inclined to buy from that company when they decide to make their actual purchase. Raisch (2001) believes the importance of customer relationship in which the ability to interact with customers at any moment creates the opportunity for growth and brand loyalty. An underlying benefit for sellers is that the products displayed on their websites may prompt people to make in store purchases. Hof (2001) found that half of consumers use a retailer's website for research before buying a product in its physical store. Myriad companies are making a shift to e-marketing as they find it more profitable utilizing the internet. In terms of payment schemes, Daly (2007) presents the big disparity of e-marketing vis--vis traditional marketing. Online banking allows buyers 24/7 access to their accounts, not just during typical banking hours. Every transaction takes the buyer to a target website, providing more cross-selling opportunities. E-statements offer a logical first e-communication tool, especially for online-banking members. Account statements and notices online can be provided, strengthening buyer connections while reducing postage and printing costs. Not only that, but you can send money quickly and electronically to almost all of these sellers, without worrying about currency conversion or exchange rates or anything else (www.terravision.com). Outlined below are the straightforward differences of e-marketing in relative to traditional marketing campaigns (www.millerbydesign.com): 1. Increasing response rates in over traditional direct marketing. By using e-marketing, theresponse can be immediate. 2. Fast, flexible and responsive - results seen in days, not weeks. 3. Inexpensive to produce and personalize as opposed to printed material 4. Easy to target, track and measure. 5. Easy integration with print and other "offline" campaigns. 6. Useful to annouce short-term events with minimal lead time, allowing for better - and faster - communication with your customers and prospects. 7. Sound, animation and design allows for a more impressive presentation than is possible with a traditional mailings. 8. Unlimited capacity: email is not constrained to the physical size limitations of printed materials. E-marketing allows the creation of niche e-mail lists. That means specific members are reminded of what there is to offer when they are most ready to act. 9. All the feedback and marketing data can be obtained andanalyzed to improve the e-marketing strategy and response ratefor the next campaign.Instead of the usual shotgun approach, e-marketing gives the opportunity to customize the right messages for the right audiences. Turning to an in-depth technical consideration, it is imperative to examine the hardcore marketing concepts related to online and traditional marketing. As essentials of marketing, consider the ideas of the product mix which is known as 4P's. The product mix includes the following: product, price, promotion and place. In the traditional marketing, product is simply offered as the output of production which is made available for purchase in exchange of an agreed amount of money, the price that is. Products are communicated through promotions which usually come from the ideas conceptualized by the marketing group of the seller alone. At the top of the product mix is the place which consists of in-store sales that primarily defines traditional marketing. In the e-marketing paradigm, products acquire more value as a result of inherent capabilities of the internet tools. Testimonials are given by other buyers in a created virtual environment of buyer-to-buyer interaction. The traditional marketing approach does not have the ability to gather buyers around the world of the same products to provide insights of the satisfaction that it guarantees. Through suggestions by different buyers, improvements on qualities have higher possibilities to be undertaken sooner. With e-marketing, costs are reduced and in turn could affect the price of the product. Segmented pricing is easily done as well due to inherent monitoring advantages (www.nilsem.com). As to place, direct selling on the internet connects sellers to a bigger pool of buyers. Promotions are also improved with online advertising and round the clock information updates. Another thing to consider is the ability of internet marketing to build a lasting customer relationship as a result of a good buyer monitoring and update processes involved. E-marketing with internet as its formidable tool has shaken the world of marketing with its holistic advantages over traditional marketing that involves superiority on price, promotion, distribution, monitoring, convenience and a whole lot more. If the case of utilizing the virtual world that produced the concept of electronic based marketing is just but another channel, it should not have been made a 360-degree turnabout on what the traditional marketing could do. The levels of improvement on business operations achieved through online marketing are critically revolutionary. It is revolutionary as it has created a better paradigm for marketing that supplements the international trend of global interdependence. References: Ebay. (2006). What is eBay Retrieved August 23, 2007 from eBay website http://www.ebay.com Daly, R. (2007). The Advantages of E-Marketing. Retrieved August 23, 2007 from Digital Mailer website http://www.digitalmailer.com Hahn, J. (2006). Advantages of the Online Auction Business Model. Accessed August 12, 2007 from http://www.gotlinks.com Hof, D. (2001). Business Week: Don't Cut Back Now; Bricks and mortar Retailers Are Finding That Online Visits Boosts In-store sale. Accessed August 12, 2007 from http://proquest.umi.com Melendez, T. (2000). Its Too Late for Wait and See Approach in E-commerce Arena. Houston Business Journal Miller By Design. (2006). E-Marketing. Retrieved August 23, 2007 from Miller By Design website http://www.millerbydesign.com Miller, K. and Layton, R. (2000). Fundamentals of Marketing, 4th ed. Australia;McGraw-Hill M2 Presswire. (2003). IMRG: Cristmas Shopping is Four Times Faster Online Than on High Street. Accessed August 12, 2007 from http://proquest.umi.com Nilsem. (2005). Internet Marketing Comparisons to Traditional Marketing; 4P's. Retrieved August 23, 2007 from Nilsem website http://www.nilsem.com Otlacan, O. (2005). E-Marketing Strategy: 7 Dimensions to Consider (the e-Marketing Mix). Retrieved August 23, 2007 from Ezine Articles website http://www.ezinearticles.com Postrel, V. (2004). The New York Times: Selection Ranks Above Price Among the Benefits of Online Shopping. Accessed August 12, 2007 from http://gateaway.proquest.com Stone, B. (2000). Online Auctions. Accessed August 12, 2007 from http://www.ucs.mun.ca Summers, J., Smith, B. et al. (2003). Essentials of Marketing. Australia; Nelson. Tedeschi. (2004). The New York Times: No longer a Niche Marketing Outlet, the Internet is Now Attracting Shoppers from Almost All Walks of Life. Accessed August 12, 2007 from http://gateway.proquest.com Terravision. (2006). Advantages of E-Marketing. Retrieved August 23, 2007 from Terravision website http://www.terravision.com Waggoner, D. (2000). Competitive Advantage. Encyclopedia of Management, 4th ed. Farmington Hills; Gale Group Wiki Media-Culture. (2004). Accessed August 12, 2007 from http://wiki.media-culture.org.au Read More