Founded in 1917, the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) is a United States trade organization that strives to further all forms of direct marketing. Currently DMA has more than 4,800 corporate, affiliate and chapter members from the United States and 46 other countries, including 55 companies listed in the Fortune 100.
The Direct Marketing Association's objectives are to promote direct marketing techniques (including business to business direct mail and consumer direct mail advertising), dispel negative portrayals of the direct marketing industry, conduct direct marketing research, host market conferences and provide training and direct mail business opportunities.
Because of its involvement in spam, junk mail and telemarketing, the DMA has incurred quite a bit of controversy. However, this direct mail marketing association avers that mass direct mail campaigns are both economical and environmentally beneficial (the latter meaning an important benefit of direct mail marketing it that it reduces consumer car trips to customary stores.