Direct to customer is by no means a new channel, but it’s seen a resurgence and a facelift, according to our first podcast guest of 2024, Paul Robinson. Jabra’s Director for Marketing, Europe, Middle East, Africa, Central & Latin America explains how a series of evolutions combined with a big bang in 2020 to give us the new, super charged and effective DTC channel of today.

For manufacturers looking to personalise, increase sales, and develop highly successful offerings to their market, DTC is a mine of useful data. It’s become a huge driver for businesses like adidas, who achieved up to 40% of their sales in DTC. It’s also a game changer in an era where social media has become a sales channel in itself.

Discover online, research online, buy online

Digitally native consumers like Gen Z are becoming familiar with new products primarily on social media, Paul told us on the podcast. The process is: discover a product on TikTok, Instagram and Youtube - research it online - buy it online. It’s a brand new type of consumer behaviour that brands can seize upon to grow and better understand their target consumers as well.

DTC benefits consumers & brands

As part of a multi channel strategy, DTC can be a huge growth driver for the whole business. It also drives better product development, since it gathers real-time consumer data and can help deliver products that better fit consumer needs and wants.

DTC is leading a much more personalised shopping experience than ever before. Additionally, with the buying process easier and more sophisticated, DTC enables new channels and offers to be created. Something like offering free adjacent products with a purchase is much easier to implement in DTC than in-store, for example. Brands can also learn from the data they gather in these scenarios and bring complementary adjacent offers to market - quicker and better consumer tested.

Tune in to the full episode to hear about Paul’s favourite marketing books, understand more of the benefits of DTC, and learn who’s making a success of it.