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This article presents a definition and discussion of direct selling, a marketing method that has received scant attention in the literature. Direct selling is discussed from operational, tactical, and strategic perspectives, and a summary ofthe available knowledge about direct selling-its worldwide revenues, product and service lines sold, its customers, and its salespeople-is presented and referenced. A suggested research agenda is offered in hopes of stimulating academics, practitioners, and students to develop greater knowledge and understanding of direct selling.
More than 6 million persons are involved in direct selling in the United States today, a number greater than in any other form of personal selling. Yet with few exceptions (e.g., in this journal: Beltramini and Evans 1988; Wotruba 1989; Peterson, Cannito, and Brown 1995), the topic of direct selling has received scant attention in the marketing literature. Direct selling is a topic that is widely discussed yet often misunderstood. Frequently direct selling is confused with direct marketing (e.g., Bauer and Miglautsch 1992); at times, direct selling is improperly equated with one of its undesirable manifestations, the pyramid scheme (e.g., Ella 1973). The primary purpose of this article is to offer a definition of direct selling and discuss the implications of this definition in such a manner that a better understanding of direct selling will ensue. A secondary purpose is to provide a compendium of direct selling operations, strategies, and tactics to help frame future discussions of direct selling, especially in the context of nonstore retailing. Hopefully this article will also stimulate and facilitate increased interest in direct selling as a topic for future research and inquiry, and toward this end a suggested research agenda is provided.
Before proposing a definition, however, it is important to note that direct selling is being considered here only as a vehicle for marketing to consumers or end buyers. It is not being considered in the context of marketing to organizations such as firms, government agencies, or the like. Even though portions of this discussion apply also to selling to organizations, the term "direct selling" is typically associated with selling to ultimate consumers.
A Definition of Direct Selling
Despite being the oldest method of commercial distribution known to mankind, direct selling is not well understood. Indeed, it is not...