Is your company still using one of these tried-and-true sales models to market its products? If so, it may be time to consider a new strategy:
- Direct mail: There are still some organizations that manage to run effective DM campaigns, but the age of direct mail is mostly over. E-mail offers have all but replaced DM as the mode of chpice. The lack of convenience (e.g., return this form to us, or register online at …) , along with the costs involved with DM make e-mail a much more cost-effective model.
- Telephone: Contact rates are down, and new laws continue to make it more difficult for companies to use telemarketing as an effective means of selling. Caller ID, increased dependence on cell phones, voice mail and e-mail are just a few of the obstacles salespeople face these days as they try to negotiate the increasingly difficult terrain of prospecting via cold calls.
- Newspapers/Classified ads: Subscription rates are dropping like a stone as more and more readers take their business online. Advertisers aren’t seeing nearly the same type of ROI as they were as recently as three years ago. Meanwhile, online classified services like Craigslist have all but replaced the traditional newspaper/magazine classified ad.
- Radio: Radio ads are still an option, but they’re not nearly as effective as they used to be. Satellite radio, iPods and online music services have severely watered down the number of people who listen to AM/FM radio on a regular basis. In fact, these days, a lot of companies are producing their own podcasts and/or video advertisements as a cost-effective alternative. To wit: One viral video could produce the same type of ROI as 10 radio spots.
- Fax: Fax is dead, done, gone the way of mail-in rebates … at least as a means of direct marketing or promoting special offers. Upgrade to e-mail, social networking or text messaging ASAP.
Can you think of any other traditional Sales & Marketing channels that are going the way of the dinosaur? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.
(Based in part on “Twenty Dying Technologies,” Bloomberg Business Week)
