Does direct mail marketing still work in the modern business world? If you think it has been overtaken by events, you need to think again. The rate of mail marketing may have dropped significantly over time, but it remains a valuable marketing tool.
What is Direct Mail Marketing?
The approach entails sending physical letters, brochures, packages, mailers, or postcards to prospects and already-existing customers. This type of marketing is commonly used for consumer marketing but is also applicable in B2C and B2B selling.
Its digital equivalent is today’s email marketing. When done right and incorporated with other channels of marketing, it’s effective in making your business stand out.
How to Wage a Direct-Mail Campaign
The first step in creating a productive direct-mail campaign is to identify your target market. Once this is in place, do the following.
Create a Mailing List
Draw up a list and the description of your targets so that you know who you’re mailing. If you have a long list (probably more than 20,000) of prospects and customers, you may want to engage a professional direct-mail service provider as you can find on https://www.action-mailing.com/direct-mail-marketing. They’ll assist you with high-quality mail printing, meeting the volume demand, and sending the mails on time.
Create a Mailing Piece
You won’t just mail out a brochure to your prospects as that can be too expensive. Instead, it would help if you create a direct-mail piece with an offer they can’t resist. The primary idea of all direct mail is to lead to a call of action, determined by what you need the recipient to do next.
Direct mail can never be too pushy, but you should strive to be creative, cute, smart, or whimsical. Remember you’re investing in resources in search of a specific reaction. Your designer can get creative with the graphics, ensuring they stimulate the desired course of action.
Create a Code for Your Response Vehicle
Whatever response you expect from your recipients, ensure you code your mailing. This implies assigning each mailing a batch number that identifies the list. For example, 10192001 where 1019 is the month and year of the mailing, 20 is the list identifier, and 01 refers to the specific offer.
Coding is the most specific device for tracking who responded to which offer. This way, individual responses become more valuable as you tabulate the codes to see what works best for you.
Test the Campaign
Test a portion of your mailing list and see what the results signify. Before running the test, determine the response rate that will support the continuity of your mailing campaign. However, this will also depend on your budget.
If you have a response rate of less than 2%, your list could be wrong or your offer too weak. A 7% response rate and above signifies a job well done.
Run the Campaign and Handle the Responses
Your mailing pace should be proportional with your capability to handle the responses. The response rate you got during the test is a good indicator of what you can expect.
A successful response to the prospects isn’t easy without proper planning. If, for example, your call to action is for recipients to request additional information, what will you send them?
Take Away
Direct mailing is a powerful tool that many small businesses can employ to grow their client base. Although considered an outdated approach, it’s still highly effective if implemented in the right strategy. If it sounds like too much work, let a professional extend some help.