Great Lakes Media Technology Blog

IRMA to Marketers: Discs Draw Better Response, Cost Less

(Dec. 17, 2003) Aiming to prove to marketers that optical discs are a more effective medium than other media, the International Recording Media Association (IRMA) in December released new research that proves that using CDs or DVDs in direct marketing can result in three to six times greater response rates than typical print brochures or advertisements.

The research, conducted by Cambridge Associates, also documents that production and distribution costs for CDs and DVDs in such applications as marketing, instruction, and premiums, is 10 to 40 percent less than catalogs, booklets, and other printed materials. The project's aim is to drum up new business for disc replicators from "non-traditional" (N/T) sources, beyond CD and DVD use for music, movies and games.

The research, available on CD-ROM and also in print form, is initially being distributed free of charge to more than 15,000 members of the Direct Marketing Association to enlighten marketers on the benefits and value of using CDs and DVDs in their marketing plans, as well as to every IRMA member company. Non-members of DMA and IRMA may purchase the report for $995.

Last year, less than only 0.2 percent of the more than $200 billion spent on direct marketing went to the use of optical media, according to the report. IRMA views the growth potential for replicators as tremendous.

The report was first unveiled at IRMA's management conference Dec. 4 in New York. Cambridge principal Dick Kelly noted that until this report marketers didn't have the empirical data to make the case for optical discs as a more effective marketing tool.

The CD-ROM includes video interviews with various marketers that have had success using optical discs as a marketing vehicle.

According to the survey, the range of response rates for CDs and DVDs used for direct marketing was 4 percent to 18 percent. The use of discs in direct marketing applications (as reported by the people interviewed) generated response rates (recipients actually ordering a product or service) of an average of 7 percent. This compares to average direct mail response rates of printed materials of less than 2 percent.

The research also includes charts that hypothetically compare cost breakdowns for a CD/DVD compared to a printed brochure or catalog based on certain assumptions about circulation.

The report expounds optical media's superiority in such areas as:

Enhanced level of communication and providing information due to its ability to include video, audio and interactive features. Higher retention level and recall of the product and its message. More effective response tracking and data collection.

Benefits of Internet links to websites for immediate ordering and/or obtaining the most current or additional information.

Ability to stand out over flat mail--thus breaking through the mailbox clutter of traditional direct mail. Not surprisingly, Internet Service Providers (ISPs) such as America Online and Earthlink dominated the N/T market with 47 percent of total discs distributed in 2002 or 200 million units.

"On Pack"/"In Pack" and "Drink-Lid" marketers that attach discs to the outside or inside of boxes or affix discs to the plastic lids of drinks accounted for 30 percent or 128 million discs off the N/T discs distributed in 2002. Business Card size discs accounted for less than 5 million units in 2002.

Major users of discs for the non-traditional applications in 2002 were: cereal manufacturers; automobile manufacturers; health/fitness promoters; publishers; organizations/associations; colleges/universities; retailers; travel/destination agencies; music/movie/theater promoters; game publishers and household products suppliers.