If You Want Your Marketing To Be Profitable…Read This!

Brandweek, July 10, 2000 by Brandan Nakamura

From a technical aspect, DVDs hold several major advantages over CD-ROM. First, DVD comes in several different formats, which allows for it to be played on either a television or in a computer's CD-ROM/DVD drive, which has become increasingly prevalent. Second, DVDs can hold a massive amount of information. A single-layer, single-sided DVD can hold up to 135 minutes of full-motion video, with a capacity of 4.7GB, the equivalent of seven CDs. A dual-layer, single-sided DVD has a capacity of 8.5GB. The dual-layer, double-sided DVD holds up to 17GB and can hold over 8 hours of video.

Finally, new technological breakthroughs have also made DVD more affordable and viable for even small and medium-sized businesses to take advantage of. New computer software makes it inexpensive and simple to transfer video directly onto DVD. It's called authoring software and it's just fueling the revolution.

The New Marketing Methodology and How to Tap Into It

Because the costs of producing, duplicating, and mailing videos, DVDs and CD-ROMS have dropped so dramatically in recent years, why would a corporation continue to mail a piece of paper when you can mail a videotape for nearly the same price? Video is pulling as much as six times the response rate of print direct mail. A Wharton School of Business study has shown that video direct response rates can be up to 600% higher than printed brochures. When you consider lower costs with substantially higher response rates, video direct mail is the clear winner versus print in terms of your return on investment.

For many categories, it is cheaper to mail videos to a precisely targeted audience than to advertise via mass media. In comparison to television advertising, video direct marketing will cost significantly less and will impact a far more targeted audience. A video direct mail campaign can also reduce cost-per-response by as much as 25% or more.

In the head-to-head comparison of marketing with video, DVD and CD-ROM against traditional print, radio and television advertising, direct marketing with new media wins hands down. The Internet? It has a long way to go before it can merit serious consideration as a truly effective marketing tool.

Marketing with video, DVD or CD-ROM allows you to market your product or service directly to your target audience and almost guarantee that it will be opened and viewed by them.

Why wouldn't a corporation do this?

Cost? Not a factor.

Return on investment? Marketing with video, DVD and CD-ROM provides you with your highest return on investment.

Given this scenario, it's time for all businesses--large or small--to take advantage of this burgeoning marketing phenomenon right now, while the market is fresh and the opportunities are still boundless.

A small sampling of companies utilizing video, DVD & CD-ROM marketing:

There's a marketing revolution taking place. What are you waiting for?

Acuson Lenses

Air France

Bank One

Bekins Van Lines

BMW

Boeing

CAPCOM

CBS Television

Cadillac

Chevrolet

Citicorp

Compaq Computer