Discusses the state of direct marketing and what channels are available for companies to use direct marketing.

Direct marketing is becoming increasingly  common in Honduras, in spite of the fact that telecom and mail delivery infrastructures are not well developed for this type of marketing. Obtaining reliable addresses is problematic, as the use of “reference” addresses (and not street names and numbers) is the common practice.  Mail advertising of products and services is generally conducted through credit card companies,

Direct Marketing thru mobile telephony
Mobile telephony carriers including the government-owned HONDUTEL and the private companies TIGO and CLARO have escalated their promotional programs and advertising in their bid to increase their market share. With number portability having entered into effect on April 30th, 2014, the competition to offer even better services and content has increased. Telemarketing services are offered to companies that now send ads for their products and services via SMS or text messaging.

Direct Internet marketing – Advertising 2.0
Direct Marketing through the Internet is growing in the region yet Honduras ranks 129th in internet usage in the world. In 2017 only 32.5% of the population had access to the internet. These numbers do not include the percentage of the population that goes online through mobile phones and or has access to the web via their places of employment, which brings the total of Honduran internet users close to 35%.  Between the years 2000-2015, internet usage in Honduras has seen an increase of 5,900% according to Internet Usage World Statistics. This new way of direct marketing has caught on in Honduras with tremendous ease. The most popular forms of internet direct marketing in Honduras are:

CPM - Cost per thousand impressions - It is used for measuring the worth and cost of a specific e-marketing campaign. This technique is applied with web banners, text links, e-mail spam, and opt-in e-mail advertising. Companies like Marketing & Medios have employed this practice with great success.

PPC- Pay Per Click – This is an Internet advertising model used on websites, in which advertisers pay their host only when their ad is clicked. With search engines, advertisers typically bid on keyword phrases relevant to their target market. Content sites commonly charge a fixed price per click rather than use a bidding system. Many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have employed resources like Facebook and Twitter to reach out to their potential clients.

CPA- Cost Per Action (sometimes known as Pay Per Action or PPA) is an online advertising pricing model, where the advertiser pays for each specified action (a purchase, a form submission, and so on) linked to the advertisement.

Social Media
With advertising through social media,large companies like TIGO and CLARO dominate as the most popular Honduran companies on Facebook and Twitter. It is estimated that over 2,700,000 Hondurans actively use social media sites.

The experts show that in mid-2017, Honduras had already surpassed  three million users on social media (more than the 25% of the total population). 

Direct Mailing
Banks utilize direct marketing strategies as they generate new and alliance based financial products for their customer base, however, this is limiting the target market only being their respective clients.  Local company listings and mailing information can be obtained through local chambers of commerce and industry associations. Call centers are an emerging source for direct marketing in Honduras but the industry still has a long way to go until it becomes a contender  both for international call center assistance and as a regional marketing device.

Traditional Media
Overall growth in cable TV and Internet subscriber markets has created  increased opportunities for direct TV sales and e-mail-based promotional campaigns. Among the companies that currently utilize non-conventional distribution channels are TV Offer, Ofertel (direct response TV) and Avon (catalog and door-to-door sales).

Prepared by our U.S. Embassies abroad. With its network of 108 offices across the United States and in more than 75 countries, the U.S. Commercial Service of the U.S. Department of Commerce utilizes its global presence and international marketing expertise to help U.S. companies sell their products and services worldwide. Locate the U.S. Commercial Service trade specialist in the U.S. nearest you by visiting http://export.gov/usoffices.