Direct mail is an incredibly effective marketing tool. It is tangible, interactive, and engaging. When your target audience opens your direct mail campaign, they take the time to read the content, concentrate on the information provided, and retain its message. However, if your direct mail campaign is boring, and implemented with zero strategy, you will get minimal results.
To help maximise your direct mail marketing, we have put together tips to help you create a successful campaign:
Target the Right Audience
This is the most important part of creating a direct mail campaign. You need to understand your target market and create a profile of the people you intend to reach. You need to get as specific as possible with this identification process. Know your audience! It is all well and good to know that your target market is men aged between 30 and 40 – but you need to dig deeper.
For example: these men earn R800 000 per year, go grocery shopping once a week, and reside within a few kilometers from your business. With this kind of in-depth understanding of your audience, you will have much greater success when designing your campaign.
Think of who your perfect customer is, and design your campaign to their personality and needs. You can create a mailing list that targets those exact people, helping you reach the ideal potential customer.
Personalise your Mail with Variable Data Printing
Once you know your audience, you can connect with them “one on one.” Variable Data Printing is more than just changing the name and address on a postcard. Today we can take it one step further, and completely personalise a direct mail campaign to reflect a person’s interests and values.
If a customer is a fan of a specific product, you can make that the focal point of the direct mail campaign they receive. You can take it further if you have a lot of data on your customers and potential customers. For example, if a client is a sports fan, you can theme the marketing material to suit this interest. This kind of personalised marketing builds trusted relationships and opens up communication between your brand and target market.
Make it Eye-Catching
For your campaign to work, you need to quickly catch your readers attention. Your print materials need to stand out from any other mail they receive. Consider your graphics, text, size, shape, and paper quality. Investigate unique printing techniques such as die-cutting and embossing. Create something unique, interactive, and eye-catching.
Speak to your printing company to find out how they can make your design stand out using these kinds of techniques – and don’t be afraid to get creative.
By being creative in your approach, you are giving your audience a reason to read your content.
Be Upfront with your Message
Keep your message concise, simple, and interesting. The most successful message will tell a story and appeal to the “what’s in it for me” nature of your potential client. Your direct mail copy should quickly connect with the reader and explain the benefits they will receive by taking on your call to action.
You need to have a bold headline, this is vital to a successful campaign. This is how you quickly communicate your service, product, or special offer. The headline is the first thing your potential client will see. These words are more important than any other content on your print. This is what will make them read the rest of your content and finally take your call to action.
Make those few words count!
Make it Urgent
Include an incentive or exclusive offer that has a sense of urgency, i.e: a cut off time, ensuring readers act quickly. Be direct in your copy by letting the reader know that this is a limited offer.
Tell them What to Do
Then we get the call to action (CTA). This is where you tell your reader what they need to do after receiving your content. Do they need to go through to your store? Visit your website? Call you directly?
Make sure that your CTA is clear, simple, and visible. Don’t give your potential client too many ways to respond to the offer, give them a primary direction, ensuring the best response.
Track your Progress
The only way to maximise any marketing effort is to know what works and what doesn’t. This is where tracking comes in. Keep track of who has been mailed and who has responded. Update your mailing lists for any mails that have been returned to sender, and use a call tracking system to track any received calls from your direct mail recpipients.
If you are directing your audience to visit your website, create a separate landing page for them. By creating a unique landing page for your recipients, you are able to track numbers, evaluating the success of your campaign effectively.
Direct mail is a learning process, and comes down to analysis and data collection.
JETLINE PRINTING COMPANY SOUTH AFRICA: PRINTING EXPERTS
Jetline creates state of the art personalised mail drops and is able to create mailers that are personalised to the very last detail. Personalisation possibilities include: letters, cards, envelopes, packaging, and more!
Contact your closest Jetline store for more information about our printing and Variable Data printing solutions.
