Direct Marketing

Direct Marketing

In recent years more sophisticated approaches to direct marketing have been adopted. Developments in electronic media, telecommunications and computers are now presenting greater opportunities for developing an integrated programme of direct marketing activities. These can be used in conjunction with each other to reinforce the personal selling, advertising and other promotional elements. Many DEIs are taking the advantage of the benefits of a coordinated, direct marketing programme. Contacting the potential feeding centres, wherever there are cluster of prospective learners, could be another effective tool. For example contacting Banking / Insurance institutions could help promoting courses on banking, insurance etc. it is only the effective teaching that creates a lasting impression on the minds of the learners and help create goodwill on DEI.

People

The success of marketing of distance education programmes is tied closely to the selection, training, motivating and management of people. There are many examples of distance education programmes failing or succeeding as a consequences of the ineffective or effective management of people.

The importance of people within the marketing of services has led to great interest in internal marketing. Internal marketing aims to encourage effective behaviour by staff. Which will attract customers to the firm. This means that, the Distance Education Institutions should ensure that their employees should

have the desirable behavour that will attrac employees are our greatest asset‟ is increasi statement is often a platitude. By recognizing the contribution, people make to acquiring and keeping customers, within the overall marketing mix, substantially enhances.

The idea behind internal marketing is to ensure that all members of the staff in the DEI provide the best possible  contribution  to  the  marketing  of  education  programmes  and  successfully  complete  all telephone, mail electronic and personal interactions with the learners in  manner that adds value to the

service encounter.

Internal marketing in all its forms was recognized as an important activity in contributing to the people element of marketing mix and in developing a customer focused organisation. In practice, internal marketing is concerned with communications, with developing responsiveness, responsibility and unity of purpose. The fundamental aims of internal marketing are to develop internal and external customer awareness and remove functional barriers to organisation effectiveness.

Processes

The processes by which services are created and delivered to the customer is a major factor within the services marketing mix. All work activity is process. Processes involve the procedures, tasks schedules, mechanisms, activities and routines by which a product or service is delivered to the customer. It involves policy decisions about customer involvement and employee discretion. Identification of process management as a separate activity is a prerequisite of service quality improvement. The importance of this element is especially highlighted in service businesses.

If the DEI functions effectively with a well established administered systems and procedures, it shall have a clear advantage over less efficient competitors. For example, a DEI which ensures proper

recordingofofaddress‟„change of a particular learner, confusion in recording of changes in address of the learners, is likely to be more critical of others services offered by the DEI.

Thus, the successful marketing of distance education requires identifying and devolping right type of educational programmes, pricing theme within the reach of the learners, making the programmes available at the places convenient to the learners and promoting them with suitable pormotioanl tools. Further, the success of marketing of distance education is tied closely to be behaviour of the members of he staff working in the DEIs. The well established procedures and systems in the functioning of the Institute is an added advantage. Above all, in the case of duel mode universities, the Distance Education Institute is a major sub-system and requires administrative, academic and financial support and freedom to make the marketing of distance education effective and efficient.