DRTV is hot
Major marketers like Procter & Gamble are jockeying for late-night slots
usually reserved for food dehydrators and hair vacuums.
The Contour Pillow was once a mainstay in the late-night world of infomercials, but
suddenly direct-response TV time slots are being taken over by conventional advertisers,
forcing Contour to scale back in favour of print and multi-product ads on TV. And
Contour's not the only classic DRTV advertiser that's being pushed out by big brand
marketers like Procter & Gamble.
TV spending by direct-response advertisers rose 7% to US$3.1 billion last year in the
States, according to TNS Media Intelligence, which just includes ads for products sold
directly, not the P&Gs of the world. But while spending was up, fewer campaigns were
running, particularly amongst short-form DRTV, which is defined as ads lasting two
minutes or less. Response magazine reports that billing for short-form DRTV was up
17% in the third quarter of 2006 to US$813 million, but the number of campaigns
dropped 10% to 1,094. By comparison, short-form spending rose 2.5% in the first
quarter, while the number of campaigns fell 4.5% from the year prior.
So the cheapest TV time is becoming a hot commodity while the upfront has been fairly
flat in the States in recent years. Scatter spending has improved, but not at the same
double-digit rate as DRTV time.
" 'There are definitely more [brand marketer] players driving up the cost of that time,' "
says Rob Medved, the president-media director of Cannella Response Television, a
DRTV buying firm. " 'They're willing to pay more versus someone who's got to make
their money automatically on the front end. The typical gadget guys selling things for
$19.95 needs to return two times his money on the media spend. The guys selling
mortgages or attributing more of their [costs to long-term brand building] are going to be
willing to pay more for the time.' "
Meanwhile, major marketers haven't developed a taste for the 30 minute long-form
infomercials, so the cost had remained fairly steady.
Having sold more than 20 million products since 1991, Contour isn't exactly a newcomer
to the genre, but they're being forced to seek out print and online opportunities. " 'The
costs [of DRTV] are rising much faster than the viewership,' " says Contour Living CEO
Scott Davis.
But not all DRTV players are complaining. A.J. Khubani, the CEO of Telebrands, says
his company is having a banner year with products like Doggy Steps, the Stick-Up Bulb
and Ear Lifts, a cosmetic tape for people with saggy earlobes.
" 'Overall, I think there are still more DRTV hits than ever,' " he says. " 'When media
rates go up, it's a good thing. It means less competition.' "
Source: AdAge.com, 03/18/07, "P&G, Major Marketers Crowd Into Direct Response"
Watch our commercial, win a prize
New tactic to prevent commercial-skipping on PVRs involves special rewards.
Advertisers are beginning to use creative methods to ensure their message is not wasted
on PVR-users, who are easily swayed by the fast-forward button on their remotes.
Among these new tactics is the offering of special prizes and coupon codes, which
reward viewers who don't skip, while other companies are looking for consumers to offer
their opinions on the commercials they see.
A new spot for KFC, created by Chicago's Foote Cone & Belding, contains a secret code
word, which can only be seen when the commercial is played back in slow motion on a
PVR. The viewer is then instructed to visit the KFC website, where typing in the code will
get them a printable $1 coupon for a Buffalo Snacker sandwich.
Other companies are also directing viewers to the web, albeit for a different reason.
Instead of hiding coupon codes in their commercials, Home Depot is focusing on the
reason people would fast-forward in the first place. Roger Adams, senior vice president
of marketing says, " 'Consumers are in control these days and want to pick and choose
what they watch.' "
Television viewers were given the opportunity to visit the Home Depot website and
choose which ad they'd like to see on TV. Three spots were created by the Richards
Group in Dallas and posted online to promote two new products on the John Deere
tractor line, Cub Cadet and Toro. After watching the three spots, visitors were given the
opportunity to vote for their favourite. The winning commercial would then appear on TV.
Although such an idea could have easily drawn mild results, Home Depot was amazed
by the response. From early Saturday, Feb. 18 to late Sunday, Feb. 19, 453,700 votes
were cast on the Home Depot website. With 171,188 votes, the humorous "Indecision"
spot was the winner. This particular spot showed a man so uncertain of which brand of
tractor he wanted that he remained alone at the store at closing time.
Cadbury Schweppes used a similar "voting" idea for a new Dentyne spot with three
potential endings. The spot currently airing was created by McCann Erickson Worldwide
in New York and finds a young man offering an attractive young woman two types of
Dentyne Ice gum. Before revealing the spot's ending, the commercial is cut off and
viewers are encouraged to visit the Dentyne website and vote on how the spot should
end. Anyone who submits their vote gets a free pack of Dentyne Ice Soft Chew gum.
Source: New York Times, 02/27/06, "Want a Prize? Just Watch This Commercial,
Please"
DRTV ad firm follows its own advice
New TV campaign has phenomenal effects on business
Advanced Results Marketing (ARM), the Mass.-based direct response television (DRTV)
advertising firm decided it was time to make their own TV ad, in an attempt to boost business.
Victor Grillo, ARM's founder and CEO soon realized that this was the best move he could have
made. What he also discovered in 2004, after the campaign was launched - soaring sales, an
incredible increase in leads and plummeting costs per lead.
(We thought), " 'Why aren't we doing what we preach?,' " says Grillo.
ARM had been contemplating their marketing strategy when the idea of the TV ads came up. The
company was not generating a satisfactory amount of new leads and decided it was time to make
a move that would hopefully vault ARM ahead of its major ad agency competition.
The $1 million DRTV ad campaign did indeed succeed in bringing in new clients and also creating
more awareness of the benefits of DRTV advertising. During the campaign's first week, ARM
acquired twice as many client leads (50) than it usually secures in a whole year (24). Since then,
results have been on the constant rise, with some weeks even generating as much as 75 or 100
leads.
" 'DRTV, in general, is much more efficient than traditional advertising. And it's much more
quantifiable,' " Grillo says.
Cost comparisons are noteworthy as well. While the cost of a lead in a print direct response
campaign is about $500 to $1000, the cost per lead in a DRTV campaign is generally a mere
$10-$15.
ARM's 60-second commercial has been strategically placed during the early morning news, to
attract the business community. It will continue to run until at least the third quarter 2005 on
Bloomberg News, CNBC, CNN, Headline News and Fox News Channel.
Source: Marketing News, 02/15/05, "Commercial Success"
Direct TV audience viewing trends
The newest study on DRTV viewing habits and perceptions shows that DRTV
has a stronger impact on the population then previously thought. (U.S. Data)
Though Direct TV is a multi-billion dollar industry, there has been little information
available on the audience, their viewing patterns and their demographical profiles in the
past. To obtain these answers, the Electronic Retailing Association commissioned a
2002 Electronic Retailing Tracking Study. The results reveal the ways consumers
interact with direct response advertising: infomercials, 60 second and 2 minute
commercials, as well as live shopping programs. Findings prove that DRTV has an
audience impact that is larger than first thought.
The study found that 63% of the population watch some form of DRTV advertising and
are likely to watch more than one type of DRTV. Contrary to the common perception that
women are the main DRTV viewers, the study found that men are equally attracted to
DRTV, depending on the products and services offered through the advertisement.
People who watch and buy from DRTV are more likely to be employed and more affluent
than the rest of the population. They are also more likely to be married with children,
compared to the non-viewers.
The average age of viewers is actually younger than that of buyers, indicating that
younger people are attracted, but do not take action, which points out a missed
opportunity. Among the youngest viewers (aged 16-24), the time spent watching
infomercials has increased from a year ago. "This is the same highly desirable population
group that national advertisers spend billions to attract. This industry should explicitly
address them," according to Response Magazine.
The following are the results of the study broken down to different DRTV approaches:
Infomercials
"Viewers who buy from infomercials do so because they believe the product will help
them," according to Response Magazine. Infomercials have a purchase rate of 29%, but
nearly 77% of infomercial viewers purchased the products/services offered, by their
second viewing. The study also shows that the viewers tend to watch infomercials for an
average of 15 minutes, though the average running time for one infomercial is about 28
minutes. This validates the need for repetition to sufficiently inform the audience to close
that sale. The study also reveals that 54% of viewers begin to watch the show during the
middle and nearly 25% of the viewers watch the whole program. This has obvious
implications that the programs must be designed in such a way that the viewer doesn't
need to see the whole program to obtain all the information necessary to make the
purchase.
Spots
Also referred to as Short-form DRTV, spots last one to two minutes. Spots rely on
frequency to reach the target audience, and studies show that 80% of respondents need
three exposures before taking action to buy. Nonetheless, spots attract the largest DRTV
viewer population (92 million), with its purchase rate at 19% (18 million buyers in the
U.S.), proving to be a highly effective medium.
Live Shopping Shows
"People who regularly watch shopping channels are much like the people that visit a mall
intending a purchase," according to Response Magazine. "They arrive with an open mind
and an open wallet." The primary purchasing influencer of this group is "getting a good
deal," which is why value added and "odd pricing" marketing tactics work well for this
segment. The average time spent watching these shows is 17 minutes, during which
time the viewers seek out bargains. It takes an average of nearly seven views for the
viewers to make a purchasing decision. Still the percentage of viewers who are likely to
make a purchasing decision is similarly high to those of infomercials: 28%.
The study also confirmed that DRTV drives consumers to purchase these products
through retail and the web. Viewers of each type of DRTV have indicated that they
purchased products that they first received exposure to through DRTV through other
sales channels. This behavior was highest among infomercial viewers at 39%, followed
by live shopping at 34%, and spots at 32%.
The viewers said that they perceive the value of the products offered through DRTV to
be of average quality. This is positive news, as media previously claimed that DRTV is
associated with low quality.
As for the trust issue, the participants indicated that they trust infomercials more than
they do car salesmen, or even the Congress.
Source: Response Magazine, 02/2003 "ERA-Sponsored Study unlocks DR Consumer"
HEALTH INSURER MOVES FROM RADIO TO TV
Liberty Health has found success with DRTV
Liberty Health, a major health benefit insurer, graduated from direct response radio to a
six-week trial of DRTV spots airing nationally in Canada. It was a test to see if DRTV would
prove to be a good lead generator for sales of FlexCARE, a health care insurance product
aimed at mainly entrepreneurs and individuals that can be highly customized to specific
needs.
Thirty and 60-second spots were created by DRTV producer Northern Light Direct
Response Television of Toronto. The commercials aired on 15 channels, on a national and
regional basis.
Bob Doyle, senior product and advertising manager, consumer and small business
markets for Liberty Health, says the company had done DRradio in just Ontario and
Alberta for about five years. DRradio had been the primary lead generation source for
FlexCARE, but the company felt it was time to look for another potential source and
diversify its lead generation. The radio ads had been running for so long that they were
not likely to surpass a certain consistent level of response they had been receiving, he
says. After consulting with a few advertising people, the company decided that DRTV was
the way to go.
Initially, the response during the first two weeks exceeded expectations and was markedly
higher than what had been experienced from DRradio, he says. The second week was
even higher than the first. Response remained high throughout the trial. Doyle says
Liberty Health received a total of about 7,000 phone inquires at its call centre or more than
1,000 calls a week. A high percentage of callers asked for more information. Although final
results are not yet in, Doyle believes that the outcome has been positive and hopes to
proceed with a similar DRTV campaign next year.
According to Ian French, writer and president of Northern Lights, the commercials set out
to accomplish two goals. "First we wanted to make people aware of the fact that there
were many health expenses not covered by government health insurance including
prescription drugs, eye glasses, dental care, private and semi-private hospital rooms.
Second, we wanted to motivate people to call and find out how Liberty Health could
provide the protection they were missing."
Liberty Health is also considering a long form infomercial. "We definitely have given some
thought to it," says Doyle. "Because we are so new to this, it's going to depend on the
numbers. But if these numbers look good, I would say there is a very good possibility we
would look at doing a long form."
Source: Direct Marketing News, Nov/Dec 2002
SCOTIABANK SEES GROWTH FROM ADVERTISING INVESTMENT
By using a down-to-earth customer point of view Scotiabank was able to
become Canada's second-largest bank in terms of market capitalization.
The challenge
Banks have gone through dramatic change over the past several years. Once an integral
part of the community, consumer sentiment towards them has shifted from primarily
positive to overwhelmingly negative. And while enjoying the benefits of an oligopoly,
banks have endured the frustrations of regulation. They have also experienced difficulty in
meaningfully differentiating themselves - either on a brand or a product basis.
Scotiabank has traditionally been the fifth largest of the six-chartered banks, and for
decades been the lowest advertising spender with no consistent message. As a result, it
was near the bottom of the competitive set for advertising awareness, familiarity and
relevance. This led to the double challenge: build a meaningful, sustainable and
differentiated positioning for Scotiabank as a brand, while driving sales for individual
business lines.
The strategy
The starting point was to examine perception and reality. The bank's long history and East
Coast roots have contributed to Scotiabank's perception as friendly, helpful, small, a bit
old-fashioned and folksy. This however, belies the banks reality. Scotiabank is Canada's
most international bank, with competitive technological sophistication and impressive
diversification, both geographically and in breadth of services. The decision was made to
focus on product, with this effort having the additional objective of establishing
Scotiabank as a brand. Four areas were selected - share of mortgages, online
activation/usage, share of investments and the small business program. The advertising
launched in April 2001.
The advertising took the customer point of view, and was based on a consumer truth. And
since life is often spontaneous, ironic and humorous, the advertising reflected this.
Overall, the creative was founded on Scotiabank's respect for the customer, putting a
consistent human face on the bank. This applied to all media: TV, radio, print (primarily
national and local newspapers), DRTV, FSIs, FSAs, database marketing, in-branch
merchandising and collateral.
The results
Scotiabank experienced steady growth in total advertising awareness, from a base of 24%
pre-2001 to 40% in 2002. Propensity to consider went up in all key areas, and the hard
business numbers were all well ahead of plan. Scotiabank also had the highest purchase
intent, in relation to its spending, of any bank. And over the course of this period,
Scotiabank became Canada's second-largest bank, measured in terms of market
capitalization.
Source: Marketing Magazine, November 18, 2002 - Cassies 2002 insert
THE POWER OF DRTV
More corporate companies and brands are finding success with DRTV.
The traditional DRTV ad is changing and is now being used by more corporate brands.
Companies which in the past have put their marketing behind more traditional forms of
advertising have now added DRTV to the mix. According to a recent report from Nielsen
Media Research, the greatest boost in U.S. advertising volume during 2001 came from the
direct response sector, which was up 18%, a trend that the firm believes was ignited by an
increase in infomercials.
The New York-based Direct Marketing Association estimates that in 2000, sales driven by
direct response television, including long-form, short-form, and home shopping, reached
$117.6 billion, up from $68.5 billion five years earlier and is projected to grow to $178.9
billion by 2005.
On a more local note, Nicola Petrie, account executive at Toronto Star Television says the
network has witnessed a "huge movement of conventional advertisers using the medium,"
such as Tribute TV, Dynamic Mutual Funds and Bell Sympatico. She estimates that in the
past year, there was a 55% increase in the number of Fortune 500 companies using DRTV.
"Products and services are becoming more difficult to explain," she says, "particularly in
financial and technology offerings. The only way to get customers is to educate them. This
format allow marketers to do that." According to Petrie, the benefit to conventional
advertisers is that infomercials offer enough time to present features of a product or
service that are complex or difficult to explain. "They can provide demonstrations,
testimonials and then the ads are measurable."
For example, Scotiabank launched a 60-second commercial with a DRTV component
which outlined the rewards of an RSP savings account. The ad featured a husband and
wife going over their monthly budget, information on RSPs, while offering a 1-800 number
throughout. "We'll be testing a lot more of those," says Rick White, VP of brand and
marketing management at Scotiabank. "Now that we have more functionality online,
people can go to the Web and make investments. To be able to refer them to the site, as
well as to call centres, makes DRTV more viable in the marketing mix."
"It was directed at first-time homebuyers who tend to be hungry for information, but are
concerned about approval and going to the bank," explains White. "This enabled them to
get a better understanding about what's available." White says the bank received about
5,000 calls from the mortgage spot. "We would absolutely use the format again, for the
right product," he says.
Amex Canada is also a user of DRTV. In the spring it repackaged a 60-second commercial
- in conjunction with a scaled down 30-second brand spot - for its Amex Air Miles card,
which has been on air for five years. Jennifer Howard, senior marketing manager of
advertising, won't give results but points out that, "In five years, we haven't looked back."
Also this past spring, Amex launched a French version for the Quebec market. "Real
People" focuses on consumers using the credit card. "Because it is so benefit-focused, 30
seconds wasn't enough time to talk about the product," explains Howard.
Bell Sympatico has also seen the benefits of DRTV and debuted its second infomercial last
October. "Our technology is new to some people and some are uncomfortable with it,"
explains spokesperson Karen Ming-Sun. "This allows us to site down and go through its
features. You can't talk about the product for that long elsewhere."
Monster.com used a 30-minute commercial last year to overcome the complexity of its
online job search service. The commercial was MC-ed by Monster founder Jeff Taylor and
starred consumers who had found employment via the site. "It wasn't so much a direct
response pull, as that we wanted to take the opportunity to introduce our product and our
brand in a much more in depth way than we could with a 30-second TV commercial," says
Peter Blacklow, SVP of marketing. "With 30 seconds, we could get the basic message
across, but we wanted to take 30 minutes to show how you can use the product - from
building resumes, to searching jobs and creating agents to search jobs for you."
According to Guy Stephenson, managing director at Toronto-based direct marketing
agency OlgilvyOne, in the last five years, the number of his clients interested in DRTV has
doubled, and a new term, "brand response television" or BRTV, has emerged at the
agency as a result.
"It means combining a branding message with a DRTV technique," he says. "The ad builds
brand attributes and generates an immediate response through both a 1-800 number and
the Web. Its ability to do both is what is exciting clients." An advantage to the BRTV
format, he adds, is its innate ability to monitor feedback, a benefit to advertisers who want
the ads measurable. "We assign a unique telephone number so that we know exactly
which stations perform and which ones don't, whereas normally you wait until the end of a
buy and evaluate it based on the orders received."
Infomercials still work well for the usual companies. Greenwood Village, Colo.-based
Orange Glo International, manufacturer of cleansing products OxiClean, Orange Clean and
Original Lustre, first used direct TV in 1996 on the U.S. Home Shopping Network; since
then, sales have jumped for US$1.2 million to US$245 million last year.
Thane Direct, which has a Canadian subsidiary based in Toronto and produces
infomercials for its own merchandise, went from a US$6-million to a US$200-million firm
12 years, according to Patti Booth, VP and GM of the Canadian unit.
Source: Strategy Magazine, July 15, 2002.
ING DIRECT DRIVES BRAND WITH TV
The company is launching its third direct response television ad that the
virtual bank says is helping it "grow at a faster rate."
The 60-second spot is promoting ING Direct's relaunched line of credit products (simply
called "credit account") and is running for six weeks on specialty channels. Stacey GrantThompson, ING Direct's senior vice-president of marketing, says DRTV has become "key
to building a brand that can only be reached by phone or on the Web."
ING Direct's first DRTV campaign first ran last summer to advertise ING's Investment
Savings Account. "We more than doubled our qualified leads, and almost doubled our
number of clients when that campaign is compared to the results from a year earlier," says
Grant-Thompson.
That response has helped increase the number of the Toronto-based virtual bank's clients
to 500,000 Canadians, about double the number two years ago. ING Direct is also signing
up 12,000 new clients each month. "We've grown while spending about half as much per
client we've got," she says. DRTV is very efficient buy in terms of evaluating what
television does for us, she adds.
ING Direct has always relied heavily on running 30-second TV spots featuring its sternlooking, straight-talking Dutch spokesperson, Frederik de Groot. "Frederik is still very
much the passion and advocacy of the ING Direct brand," says Grant-Thompson. "But
what we're finding is that DRTV is a complementary presence that doesn't erode the
brand, but supports it."
Source: Marketing Daily, March 18, 2002
KITCHENAID'S SUCCESS WITH DRTV
The KitchenAid mixer, which is considered a high price point product, has
found great success with DRTV. (U.S. Data)
The Challenge
Most companies would not consider DRTV for a product worth $369.95, but for the
KitchenAid mixer it's working, and it's working well. Says Brian Maynard, director of
integrated marketing for KitchenAid at the company's headquarters in Benton Harbor,
Mich., "The ratios are very positive."
According to Michelle Cardinal, president of Portland, Ore.-based Cmedia, which planned
and executed the campaign along with Respond2, "The response has exceeded our target
expectations by 60 or 70%. Our hope was that we could, minimally, break even on the front
end and drive retail, but it has proven to be a very responsive campaign."
KitchenAid makes products for commercial and home use, and in the past has primarily
used print and broadcast advertising to promote its products. In fact, KitchenAid was one
of the first companies to try radio advertising in 1923 when that medium was in its infancy.
For the past 10 years the company has concentrated its advertising dollars in print rather
than television.
As the economy began to soften in 2001, KitchenAid started thinking seriously about
DRTV as an additional advertising and distribution avenue. Also, contends Maynard,
"Retailers are not opening a lot of new doors, and there are not a lot of other places for us
to go. We have grown the product by double digits for many years, and we didn't want that
to change."
The Strategy
Regardless, it took a lot of "soul searching" before deciding to promote the mixer with an
infomercials. One cause for hesitation was the common perception among traditional
Fortune 500 companies that there's something just a little shady about DRTV. But, say
Maynard, KitchenAid noticed the greater number of high-end brands using infomercials,
and it also learned that DRTV can drive retail sales. KitchenAid was also unsure how their
retailers were going to react to them going direct to the consumer. However, they
"wouldn't have done it if we didn't feel it was also in the best interest of our retailers", says
Maynard.
In planning the infomercial, KitchenAid drew on its knowledge of their typical customer.
"We view our customer in a psychographic way, rather than in a demographic way,"
Maynard explains. "She loves to cook, her home is very important to her, she's on a neverending journey to make her home her showcase, and the kitchen is the heart of her home.
There are a lot of people who fit that profile who make less than $50,000 a year, so if we
used demographics and cut ourselves off at $50,000, we'd miss a lot of customers."
The style of the infomercial was a cooking show featuring real chefs "teaching" an actress
something that they each specialize in. After each cooking segment, KitchenAid airs two
of its traditional TV commercials for other KitchenAid appliances. This allowed the
commercial to appear like a real cooking show.
Tim O'Leary, CEO of Respon2 who was responsible for the creative, was concerned
initially about the response to the show. "Our worry was that everybody who saw the
show would just go to retail and we wouldn't get a good read on direct response," he
adds. "We were extremely pleased to see that this is very successful even without retail."
In addition to the infomercial, KitchenAid created a website for Internet sales. The website
was very easy to use, with the offer front and centre with at "Buy It Now" button. The site
even allowed the customer the choice of paying the whole $369.95 at once or paying for it
in six easy installments of $61.66. The site also offered the customer the opportunity to
purchase extra attachments, which would fit any KitchenAid mixer, regardless of how old
the appliance was.
The result of the careful web planning and design has paid off handsomely and at a
higher-than-average rate. Cardinal reports, "45 percent of the orders are coming via the
Web site." The mixer's price has prompted many "just send me literature" calls Maynard
contends. "A greater number of people than we thought are ordering the mixer from the
infomercial, but there are also a lot of people calling and asking for literature," he says. "A
product that is almost $400 is a considerable purchase. A lot of couples want to discuss it
first."
The Results
KitchenAid has gone from hesitance concerning DRTV to fully embracing it. Retailers are
happy, says Maynard, and so is the company. "We're committed to spend significantly on
it this year, in the multiple hundreds of thousands of dollars. We expect to spend millions
of dollars next year," he says.
The success of the KitchenAid show has given O'Leary another perspective on DRTV
marketing. "If you can take a brand that's been on the market for decades and widely
available at retail, a brand with a premium price point and aimed at a specialty niche in the
viewing public - if you can take that product and make it run profitably as an infomercial,
then the possibility of what you could do with other KitchenAid products or other product
in the same situation really opens doors," he says.
Source: Response, January 2002.
GOLF PRODUCT MANUFACTURERS SUCCESS WITH DRTV
Entrepreneurs and established brands raise profits with direct response
television. (U.S. Data)
With the popularity of Tiger Woods and the publicity surrounding his record-breaking play,
golf manufacturers are seeing their business boom.
Entrepreneurs in the industry, who once had a hard time breaking through to sell their
products, have found success marketing through DRTV. Since the early 1990s, golf
products have been pulling in sales using long-form shows. Now the big, established
brands are taking notice and releasing DRTV commercials of their own.
Initially, golf product manufacturers that did not have a niche in the marketplace had a
challenging time selling any product, let alone compete with established brands. DRTV
used to be the only format entrepreneurial golf start-ups could afford to introduce their
products. Thanks to DRTV, start-up golf marketers are quickly becoming major players in
the golf industry in a relatively short period of time.
Minneapolis-based Wedgewood Golf, which released an infomercial for its golf clubs in
early 2000, increased it revenue significantly, says Jim Lindahl, vice president of sales and
marketing for Wedgewood. Lindahl says that DRTV was the company's launching pad into
successful business. "Last year, selling through print and word-of-mouth, we sold about
500 clubs," he said. "This year - with the infomercial as the driving sales force - we sold
about 90,000."
"Smaller companies can't go right up against big advertising," says Wedgewood's Lindahl.
"Big companies don't need to do that because they're already established. The infomercial
gets you in the door with a successful item."
As more small golf companies see fast success with DRTV, established brands like
Callaway Golf Company of Carlsbad, California are using direct response to maintain their
brand positions and to introduce new products. The company recently used long-form
DRTV in an effort to drive retail sales for the Callaway Rule 35 golf ball, and increase
overall brand awareness.
Source: Response Magazine, December 2000