For decades,
direct mail
has been a popular marketing tool for many business owners, helping their
companies reach new audiences and drive higher sales. While digital
marketing tactics have certainly exploded on the forefront within the past
few years, smart marketers realize that direct mail
still works. Many times, it can even beat the success of digital
advertisements. Direct mail is a classic channel that can offer real results
and sales growth for those who use it. This guide will give you more
information about how direct mail works, why it's effective, and how you can
determine if it's the right fit for you and your marketing budget.
Why Direct Mail Works
Some business owners may feel skeptical regarding direct mail marketing's
effectiveness. After all, we’re inundated with digital marketing tactics
everywhere we turn in daily life – our phones, our inboxes, our social media
feeds. But this is exactly why direct mail works as well as it does: With
customers exposed to such a wealth of information, it’s hard to compete. But
reaching customers is a lot easier when you call on the time-tested methods
of direct mail marketing. Direct mail works because of the hectic digital
marketplace as much as it does in spite of it. It gives you a chance to cut
through the clutter of the digital marketplace and reach people in a
personal, tangible way with things like postcards and brochures. In the
midst of the digital age, a well-designed postcard showing up in your
mailbox – one that you can hold in your hand; one that speaks to you in a
personal, authentic way – means a lot more. And it has a much better chance
of reaching the eyes of its intended viewer, too.
Direct Mail Success, in Numbers
The idea behind why direct mail marketing works isn't merely speculation or
assumption. There’s plenty of data to back it up.
Small Business Trends magazine surveyed customers
and found that 54 percent (the largest portion) of customers surveyed prefer
receiving updates and promotions from their favorite brands through direct
mail to any other form of marketing, and 56 percent said that direct mail
marketing is the most trustworthy form of marketing. The mail is an
ingrained institution in the minds of consumers; it’s a standard that they
can count on.
Businesses can count on direct mail too. Those same studies show that direct mail is more memorable (promotes 70
percent higher brand recall), gets opened more often (80-90 percent of
direct mail gets opened, compared to 20-30 percent of email), and boasts a
consistent ROI of 18-20 percent. It’s clear that direct mail is memorable,
motivating and consistent in the results it produces.
In a nutshell, direct mail is right for most any business.
There’s a method and a mailing piece for your business and its marketing goals. But direct mail means more than just postcards and
calls to action. The details of a campaign can be tailored in a lot of
different ways, can feature a variety of different printed pieces, and can
work towards a very specific goal. The versatility of direct mail means it’s
useful in almost any marketing effort, and that any business can find a
place for it in their total marketing efforts.
Building and Strengthening Relationships through the Mail
For some businesses, most of their marketing efforts are geared towards new
leads and new customers. Direct mail marketing can meet those needs with
different strategies, but incorporating the right mailing list is one of the
most important features. With different options – from third-party purchased
lists tailored by demographic to fit your ideal customer, to EDDM plans that
employ high-volume efforts to reach everyone in a given area – you can count
on a direct mail campaign to reach anyone or everyone that could potentially
be converted into a customer.
For those who seek to strengthen those vital, existing relationships – the
ones that fuel growth and profit – direct mail is a useful tool as well. No
email or social media notification brings with it the personal, tangible
feel that a well-designed printed piece does, and your customers will
recognize that. Including everything from personalized messages through
variable data to loyalty rewards that help strengthen the relationship and
provide feedback for future campaigns, direct mail provides an affordable
way to remind your customers that their business is important and valued.
Options for Mailing
The variety of options that direct mail provides you in what kind of piece
you can mail makes for another benefit. If you value being able to provide
unique, memorable experiences in your marketing efforts, direct mail is the
right method for you. From postcards to folded mailers, there is a host of
direct mail pieces, sizes and options you can choose from, so you always
have the perfect vehicle for your message. Here's the most popular options
for mail:
-
Postcards: This is the most popular direct mail piece, and for good
reasons. It's easy to design, quick to produce, and is the most affordable
option to mail.
-
Brochures/Folded Self-Mailers: When you want to give your audience more
information, brochures (also called folded self-mailers) can be a great
option to mail.
-
Newsletters: Have a monthly or quarterly newsletter you want the world to
see? Mail it to your customers! You can provide them with useful
information and keep your company name in front of them all year long.
-
Letter and Envelope Mailers: This is a great option for B2B companies,
non-profit organizations, and educational organizations. With variable
data, you can personalize the letter so each recipient receives something
custom to them.
-
Catalogs: Best suited for companies that sell physical products. Even if
you only sell online, you can add a coupon code to the catalog and track
the number of sales you receive from this mail piece.
With full-color printing, quality paper, and the ability to print your
perfectly customized design on our products, U.S. Press will ensure that
your printed piece leaves our presses exactly as you imagined it.
How much does it cost?
That might be the next question you're wondering. We understand! Keeping
marketing costs low is always important, but rest assured, you can create a
direct mail campaign to fit nearly any budget. The exact cost depends on a
wide variety of factors, including the type of piece you're mailing, whether
you need design services or a purchased mail list, the weight of the piece,
and where you are mailing to. The best thing to do is contact us and get a
custom quote, that way we can help you create the right campaign to fit your particular
budget. But here a couple of facts to think about when deciding if direct
mail is right for you:
What's most important though is not initial cost, but your return on
investment. Direct mail consistently boasts a healthy ROI of 18-20%. You can
invest in a direct mail marketing campaign, and as long as you’ve done your
research and employ the proper design and mailing lists, you can feel
comfortable making the investment. And with your U.S. Press account manager
helping you
navigate any questions or detailsthat arise in the planning stages, you can make sure your campaign is
effective and efficient. From information and resources to customer service,
U.S. Press will provide the extra ingredients that will get you on your feet
and help make sure your efforts are a success.
Get Started with U.S. Press
If you’re looking for marketing methods that are effective in reaching
customers and forming real relationships in the modern competitive market,
results that are personal and meaningful to customers, but trackable and
efficient for your business, all in a quality product that will leave a
lasting impression and help your business stand out from the crowd, direct
mail is right for you. And with U.S. Press, you’re one phone call away from
getting started – and reaping all of those results.
To get started, call us at 800-227-7377, talk to us on our Live Chat, or
request a custom quote.