Delivering an emotional package through DRTV

Direct Response advertising is a vehicle that is well suited for pulling in consumers who are not accessible through traditional television advertising methods. Via this vehicle the advertiser can draw on the potential customer’s emotions and in turn increase sales, because many purchases are made based upon emotional not rational elements. If an advertiser strikes an emotional cord for the consumer, then the consumer want to buy the advertised product hoping that by making the purchase they can experience the conveyed emotion. The advertiser can achieve this effect with a well made and engaging commercial that draws the consumer in and provides them with a lot of information as well as connects with them on a personal level.

Compared to traditional advertisements, DRTV commercials tend to reach out to these consumer sentiments by building around their brand message an emotional and rational layer that compels customers to pay attention, listen and buy. Universal in nature, DRTV is useful for nearly every product and service that's advertised to the general mass market or a specialty niche.

Whether through a one- or two-minute spot, or a half-hour infomercial, the more time you engage a customer in dialogue, discussion or conversation, the more credible your brand will be, and the greater chance you'll have of closing the sale.

Does your product live up to your advert?

Great advertising is essential to the marketing of your product. An experienced DRTV agency can produce a first-rate campaign for you, however if your product does not live up to the claims made in the advertisement, it can actually work against your product and company. For example, imagine if a DRTV spot has well presented demonstrations, a great call to action and constant assurances that the customer service is nothing less than perfect. This type of creative will motivate the viewer to call or log on to the number/email address displayed on the screen and place an order. When the order is placed a representative will collect the consumer’s information and send out the product to them. If for some reason the customer is not happy with the product or if the product is faulty, they will want to return it or get it exchanged.

Now, if even one of the above steps does not work smoothly, the campaign will lose credibility. In other words, if your customer service and your after-sale support does not live up to the claims made in your advertising you're being set up for failure. Hence it is very important to evaluate not only your product, but also your customer support system, shipping & logistics, as well as the complaints department. If any of these are not quite ideal, it might be a better idea to tone down your DRTV campaign as well.

Multi-pay options in DRTV campaigns

By offering payment breakdowns and different methods of payment DRTV advertisers have seen an increase in profit. A commonly used technique is the use of credit card multi-pay or easy-payments credit terms.

The multi-pay option draws the impulse buyer into a purchase decision, because it allows them to perceive the item to be more affordable because to them if it is offered in installments. Therefore, companies can offer a higher quality or perceived value product, while maintaining a more affordable price point for the consumer. Customers within all categories see the benefits of multi-pay options with increased sales, better customer retention and a maximizing of profits.

Before implementing such a program however, credit polices should be studied to see how they contribute to company growth and profit objectives. A tight credit policy curbs growth while on the other hand, a policy that is too lax will reduce profits. A likely issue to be tackled with easy-payment programs is soft declines. Soft declines often occur when the card expiration date passes, the account is stolen, lost or closed, and at its limit. Often the card-holder is unaware that a soft decline has occurred. The marketer will need to initiate recovery effort with the customer to reinstate the payment process and restore the relationship.

DRTV – A multichannel medium

Although DRTV, even today, is mainly about generating immediate responses from customers, the method of these responses is undergoing a change. In the olden days, almost all responses were by phone, thus making it easy to judge the success of a product by the number of calls and order. Now, potential customers are no longer confined to TV as a channel for entertainment. Their attention is divided by a myriad of channels like the internet, mobile phones, text messaging, instant messaging, etc… Today it is not uncommon to receive up to 50 % of DRTV responses via the internet. The consumer today is not satisfied with just a TV spot; they will also research on the web, compare with other products and check with other similar customers before deciding to place an order.

Therefore DRTV today is not a standalone medium. It has to be integrated along with other media to effectively reach out to the maximum number of potential customers. Marketers today adopt a multi-stepped sales model, with ongoing programs to sell consumers over time until they decide to buy. Moreover, DRTV today is also heavily into brand building, so that even if just 5%t of the TV viewers actually place an order, the other 95% have been made aware of the product.

DRTV: Handling customer complaints

DRTV has many aspects involved. Although when the subject of DRTV is broached, most people only think of campaigns, upsells, ROI, etc, there are other matters involved which require very careful consideration.

One of these is customer complaints. Although this is not a very pleasant topic, nevertheless, it is very, very important to give it due consideration. It is known to all direct marketers that state attorneys general and the Federal Trade Commission are authorized to investigate or sue a marketer for violation of consumer protection laws and regulations. The most common reason for such a situation arising is if you ignore or mishandle customer complaints.

If you establish an efficient complaint system with the right desk handling each category of complaint, then chances are that even if initially dissatisfied, the customer will not directly go to the Better Business Bureau, preferring to resolve all issues with your business personally. Setting up a dedicated team just for handling complaints, taking the time to listen to customers, and showing them that you are genuinely interested in solving any issues goes a long way in sustaining credibility to your business. It is also important to analyze the trend of complaints just as you analyze marketing trends. Other small gestures like following up with the customer after a solution has been offered, or trying to reach a resolution in case of difficult decisions will go a long way to uphold not only your reputation as a business, but also customer loyalty.

DRTV is more dynamic as compared to traditional advertising

Unlike traditional television advertisements, DRTV is much more accountable. With DRTV, no matter how many people see your spot, unless the phones ring with inquiries and orders, it cannot be considered a winner. DRTV allows for the monitoring of cost per order and lead on a daily basis, this data then helps to determine if the offer, creative, or media buy needs to be adjusted. In fact, testing and tweaking are the keys to success with DRTV. Once you have a campaign that is achieving its profit goals, you can expand it for as far and long as it remains profitable.

DRTV is undergoing constant evolution. From the olden days when it relied heavily on impulse purchases, today DRTV is more often used to boost retail sales and even generate leads. With the right media buyers, telemarketing scripts, and fulfillment operations, a campaign can really take off and show retail profits. Retailers and lead generators are turning to DRTV in a big way.