Direct Marketing: Theoretical delimitation andimpact on consumer buying behavior

Abstract

Direct marketing has become one of the most important communication tools for marketers. Direct marketing activities’ budget is even higher than that for traditional advertising mass media, such as TV. However, there is not a single definition. On the contrary, several definitions have emerged in the literature. In this work, we establish a theoretical delimitation for direct marketing concept from those different perspectives analysed in marketing literature. In addition, an empirical analysis is presented in order to know if (really) direct marketing activities affect consumer buying behavior. From the results, key managerial implications are extracted in order to improve and optimise marketers’ communicational budget.