If you’re not talking to the right person, then nothing you can say or do with direct mail will be effective. Most direct marketers select audiences based on a combination of two factors: what they’ve done(behavior) and who they are (demographics). Of these two, behavioral characteristics will always be the more powerful predictors of response. But sometimes, when the data is not available, direct marketers are forced to rely on audience selection based on demographic factors, like age, income and gender or business type and size, as well as geographic location. The ideal approach is to combine the two – find prospects with demographic characteristics similar to your best customers who have also responded to you or to someone else in the past.
List Fundamentals
Direct mail lists vary widely in their responsiveness, ranked in the following order:
1. Your own database, known as your “house file.” These are the customers and inquirers with whom you have a prior relationship, a ...
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(Hint: It’s all about targeting)
The biggest mistake businesses make with direct mail is confusing it with advertising. Direct mail is too powerful (and too costly) a medium to waste on brand awareness. For success in direct mail, it’s essential that you apply the principles of direct response communications. That means targeting people or businesses most likely to respond to your message with an offer they can’t refuse.
While you might think the copy and art are critical to the success of your campaign, in fact it’s the target audience and the offer that are responsible for the bulk (80%) of your results. So, before you worry
about your font size and the color of your envelope, be sure you spend sufficient time on audience selection and offer development. This is where much of your leverage lies.
The 3 Elements of Direct Mail
Each of these elements of a direct marketing campaign has an essential role to play, but the three elements are not equally important.
■ 50% - The targ ...
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Some people have devoted their entire lives to direct mail. Over the years, these direct mail experts have discovered the secrets to direct mail success. They know all the tips and techniques for squeezing out more response to their direct mail and getting more return on their marketing spend. What’s their secret? It’s really no secret at all. Just consistently follow the rules (or know when to break them) and make incremental improvements to continually increase response with each new effort. Anyone can achieve the same results. You can too, by taking a logical approach and following tried-andtrue, simple-to-implement methods.We will share more tips in future blogs that will help you create direct mail campaigns that make it easier for recipients to respond than do nothing at all.
Proven tips and techniques you can use today.
It’s simply getting harder and harder to break through the clutter and get people to respond to your call to action. According to current research, each of us is exposed to more than 5,000 messages per day. Of those, we only remember about four. And we don’t even remember those for very long. A large portion of those messages are coming through channels, media and devices that didn’t even exist 30 years ago. In fact,
the Kiplinger Letters reports that today companies have at least 60 ways to reach customers.
Why Use Direct Mail?
It works. Even in today’s digital world, people like getting mail. While we might be overwhelmed with the
volume of mail in our digital inbox, printed mail gives us something to touch, hold and peruse at our leisure.
In fact, going to the mailbox to discover what’s inside is a daily ritual for most of us. Whether it’s a catalog,
a discount offer from a favorite restaurant or an invitation t ...
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Whichever format you choose, envelope, postcard or self-mailer, the experts recommend asking yourself these questions:
• Do I have the right list? A poor mailing list will cause even the best direct mailer to fail.
• Am I making the right offer? Craft a well-defined offer that will appeal to your target audience.
• Am I making myself clear? The primary message and call-to-action should be obvious.
• Am I saying it in the right way? Do your message, copy and graphics complement each other – in a way
that will stimulate readership and response?
• Am I making it as easy as possible to reply? Whether you want a response by mail, phone, email or
website, make it easy for recipients to reach you.
Popular formats and when to use them
Envelope Packages
This usually contains a letter and envelope, a brochure and a business reply card. This is the most commonly-used type of direct mail, and it typically delivers a higher response rate and better ROI than other formats. What makes it great? A letter can be long enough to explain complex concepts and include supporting features and benefits to help you make the sale. Think of an envelope package when you have multiple offers or a lot of explaining to do.
Self-Mailers
Self-mailers are usually very simple – typically, they’re just paper that’s printed on both sides, then folded and sealed. Self-mailer advantages can be summed up in four words: cost, simplicity, space and flexibility.
The format’s simplicity means self-mailers can be affordable to design, produce and mail. Self-mailers provide space for information, graphics and offers, including tear-off coupons, order forms or even business reply cards. From a single ...
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Promotional products increase customer satisfaction! A survey conducted by Dr. Richard Beltramini of Wayne State University found that customers who received a promotional product with a
“Thank-You” letter were 43 percent more satisfied with the company than those who received the letter alone.
And, direct mail (DM) gets better responses with promotional products! According to a study done by the Dallas Marketing Group, a DM piece that incorporated a promotional products incentive item generated a stunning 9.55 percent response rate. The same DM, when mailed alone, only received a 0.7 percent response.
Promotional products generate more sales referrals! Research done by Baylor University indicates that salespeople who give promotional products to their customers received 22 percent more referrals than those who did not use any ad specialty items.
A well-designed direct mail program will allow you to measure results quickly and precisely. You’ll learn what is working and what is not, so you can adjust offers, lists, and messaging and take your next mailing to the next level.
Identify the best way to measure success during the planning stages, so measurement is built in from the beginning.
Apply the latest techniques to encourage and track response, including the use of variable data printing and personalized URLs (PURLs) or Web pages. By sending respondents to their own personalized Web page, they’ll receive a customized online experience and you’ll get real-time reports of their activity. By making the lead retrieval process more efficient, PURLs allow you to deliver qualified responses to your sales team for immediate follow-up.
Your fulfillment process should be tied closely to measurement. How will your targets respond to your offer (mail, phone, fax, email, online) and how will you fulfill their request ...
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Experts agree 80% of direct mail success is based on the list you use and the offer you make. You can’t sell if you aren’t talking to the right people. And they won’t respond if you don’t give them a good reason.
Choose the best list
Current customers are often the best prospects for additional sales.
Past inquirers are also a good bet.
For new prospects, define what your ideal prospect “looks like” then ask Allegra to help you identify the perfect list.
The best lists send mail to a person’s name, but if you are mailing to smaller organizations, mailing to a title instead of a name can also be successful and assure better market coverage.
Craft a strong, relevant offer
If you can sell direct, simply offer your product along with a convenient way to complete the transaction. But if your product or service is more expensive or complicated, or requires additional sales support, use your offer to trigger the first step toward the sale. By offering ...
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When it comes to marketing communications, nothing lets you target an audience, engage them, and spur them to take action better than direct mail. Mail is also one of the most measurable marketing vehicles, allowing you to track response and resulting sales activity to get a clear picture of your return on investment.
Before you put words to paper, create a design, then print and rush your mailing package to the post office first define your goals.
Whether you want to introduce a new product, test an offer, generate immediate sales, create retail traffic, encourage existing customers to buy more, or attract new customers from a pool of prospects…your goals will have a direct impact on how you’ll achieve them. Strategies and tactics are your roadmap for success: Who will you target? What will you offer? What will you send? When and how often? How will they respond? How will you follow up?
That may seem like a lot to worry about. But don’t be discouraged. Allegra has&nb ...
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