Loose Cannon: Eighty Five Million New DMers Could Use A Handout

Those thinking the direct marketing community is shrinking due to consolidation, bankruptcies and downsizing should take heart: Last week, DMers quietly added nearly 85 million individuals to their ranks.

On Sept. 16, online auction site eBay altered its fee structure to favor its “buy it now” option over its traditional auction structure. Overnight, the onus of determining the appropriate price for offerings, as well as how to best present these items through pictures and text to justify that price, landed more squarely on the heads of eBay sellers than ever before.

For many casual sellers, eBay is the first introduction to do-it-yourself direct marketing. Sellers’ need to understand a range of DM issues, such as the impact of postal rate hikes on their operations, will go hand in hand with their shift from auction managers to direct marketers. And when they start trading lists of buyers (as they will) among themselves, they will need quick lessons about data regulation, as well as customer goodwill.

All this adds up to a teaching opportunity. A guide to direct marketing best practices for small eBay-based DMers will allow any vendor or trade organization sponsoring it to claim thought leadership bragging rights. Such a guide could be offered via electronic download, and function as both a vendor manual as well as a handbook of lucrative and ethical practices.

As small-scale DMers expand their operations, their needs will expand as well. The guide could be underwritten by a few select advertisers, such as a software developer that offers a stripped-down version of its CRM product tailored for eBay users. Online printers that specialize in short-run jobs could sponsor advertorial promoting the joys of tailored fliers or mini-catalogs. And eBay could brand the guide and distribute it as a low-cost way of keeping its service top-of-mind among those choosing from a variety of online sales channels.

Finally, a trade organization that takes an active hand in the guide’s creation would burnish its credentials as a proponent of responsible marketing practices. More important, it would put its party line in front of these new DMers. Eighty-five million consumers who suddenly understand how legislation could affect their livelihood makes for a pretty good activist base.

Any takers?

To respond to this column, please contact richard.levey@penton.com.