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Introduction Database Marketing today is doomed. How many businesses have thrown thousands of pounds, even millions, at the marketing database? How many now are rushing to the bank to cash in the returns on their investment? How many are questioning the wisdom of it? Database marketing need not be doomed. However, the blind, unquestioning adherence to a 'database' strategy needs to be shaken up and questioned. A fundamental rethink is badly needed before database marketing can be made to work effectively and reach its full potential. The vision - computer integrated marketing In database marketing, the state of affairs is very confusing. Few people can agree on a definition of database marketing. In 1987, I defined database marketing as follows: "Database marketing is an interactive approach to marketing, which uses individually addressable media and channels (such as mail, telephone, and the sales force): * To extend help to a company's target audience * To stimulate their demand * To stay close to them by recording and keeping an electronic database memory of customers, prospects and all communications and commercial contacts, help improve future contacts and to ensure more realistic planning of all marketing." (Shaw and Stone, 1988) Lisa Petrison, Professor of Marketing at Northwestern University, cites this in her 'History of Database Marketing' to be the first definition of the term. The concept I envisaged was of an integrated, closed-loop marketing process where information about the 'customer' was the main driving force. It was a break with earlier approaches to marketing, where 'product, promotion, price and place' were the driving forces. The origins of this approach go back over a century. Some say it began in 1872 with the Mongomery Ward catalogue, since Ward carefully monitored each of his customers' orders and sent personalized sales letters based on his knowledge of individual customers. Others believe that database marketing began in the 1930s, when Aldens began to rank the value of their customers on the recency, frequency and monetary amount (RFM) of their purchases, or in the 1960s when powerful mainframes allowed list brokers to sell contact names and addresses for junk mailing purposes. Some see it as a 1980s phenomenon, resulting from the fusion of 'integrated marketing' and 'integrated computer systems'. The two database marketings...