The first thing to point out is what means all of those marketing types, mass marketing seeks to reel in the largest quantity of customers through impersonal contact and requiring no demographic specificity. On the other hand, direct marketing, micro-marketing and one-to-one marketing have a common goal, address a niche, groups of people with interests and features in common willing to buy the product or service offered by the advertised company, in short terms, potential customers. Besides, the 3 marketing techniques mentioned above have differences from each other, which will be described in the next paragraphs.
Deepening in mass marketing strategy, the budgets required to run an ad campaign tend to be lower than in micro-marketing and one-to-one marketing but higher than direct marketing, this is explained by the fact that mass marketing does not need personalization, with a shorter variety of designs and ads they reach a larger audience, it’s simpler but the relationship brand-client is shallower and the ad engagement is lower, an example of this is a billboard, which works efficiently with groceries and not so much with services, wherein the customer relationship management is paramount.
Additionally, direct marketing is a middle point, because it uses personal contact (through emails, text messages, etc.) in contrast with mass marketing, but the advertised service or product isn’t immediately changed by each client’s review (one-to-one marketing) and the targeting is defined by the initial interest of the potential customer through filling forms, asking for free samples, and so on (in contrast with micro-marketing).
In sum, every type of marketing has its pros and cons, depending on the product or service offered, the current market, the company’s advertisement budget, the demographics amongst other variables. A marketing expert assessment is necessary to set the most appropriate strategy, however, as general statement, direct marketing and micro-marketing work better on service providers, low demand products and niche products; one-to-one marketing is suitable to service providers (specially for high net worth individuals) or business to business sales (B2B); last but not least, mass marketing can be used to increase brand awareness and status, but when it comes to sales daily use products and events (concerts and alike) are favorites.
Sources:
Peppers, D. (1999). Is your company ready for one-to-one marketing?. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/1999/01/is-your-company-ready-for-one-to-one-marketing#:~:text=There%20are%20four%20key%20steps,fit%20each%20individual%20customer's%20needs.
Twin, A. (12/19/2022). Micromarketing Explained: Definition, Uses, and Examples. Investopedia. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/m/micromarketing.asp#:~:text=Micromarketing%20is%20an%20advertising%20strategy,geared%20toward%20that%20specific%20group.
Twin, A. (12/19/2022). Micromarketing Explained: Definition, Uses, and Examples. Investopedia. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/m/micromarketing.asp#:~:text=Micromarketing%20is%20an%20advertising%20strategy,geared%20toward%20that%20specific%20group.
Kenton, W. (05/13/2022). Direct Marketing: What It Is and How It Works. Investopedia. https://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/direct-marketing.asp#:~:text=Investopedia%20%2F%20Daniel%20Fishel-,What%20Is%20Direct%20Marketing%3F,among%20the%20delivery%20systems%20used.
MasterClass. (03/02/22). Mass Marketing Definition: 3 Examples of Mass Marketing. MasterClass. https://www.masterclass.com/articles/mass-marketing
Marketing strategies comparison: Mass marketing, direct marketing, micro-marketing and one-to-one marketing
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