The need to explore consumer reactions to any form of marketing is central to the marketing concept and this paper reports part of an industry‐funded project to investigate how consumers interact with direct marketing. The programme was qualitative, based on both individual depth interviews...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to uncover common and outdated misconceptions about couponing and present new, updated strategies that can improve redemption statistics. Design/methodology/approach – ICOM sought to understand the landscape of couponing by examining data from a...

Many corporations that engage in direct marketing have been more sensitized to the concept of ethics in marketing than in years past. The marketing manager must be capable of formulating as well as implementing policy that calls not only for economic reasoning but also for ethical awareness....

Libraries should not be put off by the initial investment required to build an annual fund. Although direct mail is expensive, it is the only way to acquire a large number of new donors to launch an annual fund program. Such programs can raise significant revenue for library operations. They...

In March 1994 British Gas began a major restructuring of its UK gas business. In place of the 12 regions there are now five business units – gas transport and storage, public gas supply, contract trading, servicing, installation and retailing. Addresses issues relating to the retailing...

Examines the workings of a new and highly flexible relational database which is allowing The Automobile Association to generate more than £1 million of extra revenue a year. The additional money has come from reviewing the communication process surrounding membership renewals. Further benefits...

Since Family Assurance started life in 1975 the society has grown to become the UK′s largest tax‐exempt friendly society. In 1994 the first phase of a new computer system – FACE, for Family Assurance Client Environment – will come on‐stream. Describes how the core of the new system,...

Details how a leading financial institution in the UK developed a £15 million relational database from scratch. Roger Ivey, head of Direct Marketing at the Leeds Permanent Building Society, had the task of bringing together a dozen previously unconnected and non‐communicating customer...

Increasing competitiveness in the marketplace has led to pressure being applied to brands and past poor brand management in the 1980s saw brands suffering under short‐term, profitability‐based aims. The need for stability throughout the commercial environment in the 1990s has led to the...

This case chronicles the changing of a corporate unit’s business model, organizational model, and mindset. The reinvention process started in early 1999 when Mercer Management Consulting received a call from Bob Romasco, who had recently assumed the role as CEO of J.C. Penney’s Direct...