In many ways, mass marketing - broadcasting one's message to a large and anonymous population of potential customers - no longer works. In a marketplace increasingly defined by customer niches with high expectations for service, quality, and responsiveness, companies are discovering that they must invest more heavily in reaching and communicating with their customers directly in order to stay competitive. But to many consumers, direct marketing has a bad reputation, associated with intrusive door-to-door salesmen, telephone cold-calling, junk mail, and, most recently, e-mail spam. In "Direct Marketing in Action", a team of experts from academia and business sets the record straight - dispelling common myths and misconceptions about direct marketing and showcasing the most current practices, principles, and techniques. The authors cover the full range of issues that must be considered in developing an effective direct marketing strategy, including competitive analysis, information and data management, media and channel selection, building brand loyalty, and measuring the results of campaigns. Bridging the gap between research and practice, clearly defining terms and concepts, featuring numerous examples, and presented in a format that can be read cover-to-cover or in modular fashion, "Direct Marketing in Action" will serve as an essential handbook for marketers and a comprehensive overview for students, teachers, and researchers.