Small firms get direct marketing Web advice

The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) is to launch an online service showing small businesses across Europe how to boost their business using Internet technology.

Fuelled by research from The Future Foundation, DM On-line also plans to set up a forum for electronic commerce.

A year-long study by The Future Foundation found that many small and medium sized enterprises (SME) were unaware how the Internet could help their businesses. They were not technically literate, could not find material in their native languages, and were unaware of the range of services available to them. Their main priority, after survival, was to boost customers through direct marketing, the report states.

Colin Lloyd, chief executive of the Direct Marketing Association, told Silicon News: "Only about 2,000 people in Europe understand direct marketing - and they all work on behalf of the big companies. I want one central point for SMEs who want to improve their marketing and sales, without the expense of hiring an expert."

The DMA plans to launch a SME toolkit in late spring 1999. It will contain third-party software, such as CD ROMs of business addresses, and will be distributed via a DM On-line Web site, as well as traditional distribution outlets. Lloyd said: "We will make sure that SMEs are fully aware of the laws and ethics of direct marketing."

Lloyd's eventual plan is to turn the Web site into an electronic marketplace for the marketing industry, where companies can share their data.