Direct and Database Marketing: targeting, interacting, continuity and controlby Graeme McCorkell Once upon a time there were the Four Ps and they lived happily in a Mix, in the big wood called Mass Marketing, in the land of Stereotypes, ruled by the Soap Powder Kings. Then one day, along came the Database, with its children, Segmentation, Profiling, and Forecasting, and at much the same time, the people in the wood developed a strange desire for choice, individuality and interactivity. The Database drove out the Four Ps and replaced them with Four Essential Elements - called Targeting, Interacting, Continuity and Control. Database's children listened to the people, and cut down the wood, and named the new plain they had created Direct and Database Marketing, and the people lived happily… This is, very simplistically, how Graeme McCorkell sees the story so far. His book is a comprehensive resource of information on the subject of direct and database marketing. It interweaves description with analysis and includes practical case studies drawn from British business examples. The book is accessible to the interested and intelligent novice, as well as having much to offer the more experienced marketer looking to increase their knowledge of this particular area. The author's writing style is straightforward, with good layout, headings, summaries and appropriate use of diagrams. The scope of the book is wide, starting with defining direct marketing, outlining the use of databases and giving examples of direct marketing in action. It goes on to cover Creating and Using Marketing Information Systems, How to Integrate Direct Marketing, and Direct Marketing Communications. This is a worthwhile investment, if you want to play a major role in the continuing story.
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