SoWhatcha Got?

In direct marketing, an offer is an incentive that motivates consumers to do something they hadn't planned on before they viewed our television spots, visited our Web site, read our print ads, got our electronic or postal mail or heard our radio commercials. Naturally, we want it to be an incentive that can't be refused.

Offers are the major factor that separates creative executions that are brand or image advertising — no matter how targeted — from creative executions that are direct marketing tools. Following lists and media, offers are the second most significant element in analyzing response variance from program to program, and since response is the critical metric, we need to develop the most compelling offers possible.

OFFER TYPES

Most traditional direct mail offers fall into the following categories.

• Cash and cash surrogates

  Discounts, dollars off, and buy one, get one free incentives.

• Premiums

  Books, CDs, “trinkets and treasures.”

• Frequency/relationship marketing credits

  Frequent user rewards — points, dollars, miles, etc. These work best when the category is a virtual commodity, intervals between use are short, and valuable, tangible benefits are available to the consumer for loyalty.

• Sweepstakes

  A great tool for building response, and frequently an even better one for building unqualified response. Due to the highly appealing, general nature of the grand prizes, there's absolutely no reason not to enter as “no purchase is necessary” other than a first class stamp.

• Experiences

  A chance to meet with a famous person, tour the Galápagos with National Geographic, or sit on the sidelines next to Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning.

• Information

  Can be quite compelling, especially if delivered in an interesting format. For example, Nissan generated more than 10 times the average industry response for a video during its launch of a new car line.

SALES CYCLE DYNAMICS

An offer's role will vary de-pending on when it's used in the sales cycle — at the opening, during the closing, or as a sustaining incentive.

• Opening

  Here, offers are used to motivate consumers to begin a dialogue about our products or services.

• Closing

  At this stage you want to encourage consumers to buy. A financing offer is a closing tactic designed to get a consumer to buy a car today.

• Sustaining

  When a sales cycle is multistep and complex, it may make sense to use sustaining offers to foster a continuing sales dialogue.

Offers help define direct marketing efforts. They're critical to understanding response variance, and deserve the same strategic import as audience targeting, creative development, and tracking and analysis.

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ROBERT BLINICK (bblinick@powerpact.com) is principal, direct marketing account strategy at PowerPact LLC in Richmond, VA.