Point of Purchase & Direct Mail Advertising | Merits & Demerits

What is Point of purchase Advertising?

Point of purchase advertising refers to the display of products by the dealers near the entrance (known as window display) or inside the showroom. It may be called as ‘Store Display’.

Point of Purchase Advertising & Direct Main Advertising
Point of Purchase Advertising & Direct Main Advertising

Advantages of Point of Purchase Advertising

The following are some of the advantages of Point of Purchase advertising.

1. It is the right place to advertise.

2. It is like serving an invitation to the people to enter the shop and buy.

3. Window display of goods is always done in an attractive manner. This boosts the image of the business as well as the product.

4. The price of the product displayed is also tied to it. This enables the intending buyers to satisfy themselves about the worth of the product.

5. It is not very expensive when compared with radio advertising and television advertising.

Disadvantages of Point of Purchase Advertising

The following are some of the disadvantages of Point of Purchase advertising.

1. Its coverage is much less.

2. Mere display of goods does not provide all the information the buyer wants.

3. It may attract the passerby. But there is no guarantee that he will buy.

4. Only large-scale retail establishments can undertake window display of goods.

5. Display, by itself, cannot induce the buyer to buy.

What is Direct Mail?

It is a direct approach by which the prospective buyers are informed through letters, catalogues, booklets, etc., about the goods and services of the marketer. Publishers of books adopt such an approach. They send catalogues of the books published by them to the teachers to enable them to recommend the same to the students and also place an order for their school or college library. We are living in an era of Internet, which allows any such offer to be sent by E-Mail.

Advantages of Direct Mail

1. The advertisement material can be sent only to the prospective buyers.

2. It is economical. Catalogues, etc., are sent only by book-post. If it is sent by E-mail, it costs nothing.

3. It is easy to measure the effectiveness of advertisement by seeing the orders placed.

4. It can be sent at the most appropriate time.

5. It also helps to maintain personal relationship with the customer.

Disadvantages of Direct Mail

1. Such a method is not suitable if the number of customers is very large.

2. It is necessary to maintain the addresses of all the prospective buyers. It must also be updated periodically.

3. There is no guarantee that the buyers will respond favorably.

4. Such a method can be adopted only by certain marketers.

5. Postal delays, incorrect customer address, etc., are some of the other limitations of the direct mail approach.