Focus on your headline – one of the most common reasons we all send direct mail to the trash is because it doesn’t have a captivating headline. You only have a few seconds to grab the reader’s attention; create an attention-grabbing headline so the prospect will want to read further. Make the headline something that will catch someone’s eye without insulting their intelligence.

Don’t over think the design – we’re all attracted to eye-catching colors, interesting shapes and four-color graphics. Don’t lose the content somewhere in the process – the content will sell your product.

Follow up – you spend money on print material; you need a follow-up plan. Be prepared to either call, mail out additional information or fulfill requests for additional information. This will optimize the success of your campaign.

Talk to the experts – companies have spent many years mastering the art of direct mail. They have figured out how it works, the right words to use and the best way to get optimal results. Do your research and ask questions from people who’ve mastered this process; they’ve made the mistakes and you could shortcut your road to success!

What makes direct mail marketing so attractive is the fact that you can target a specific group of potential customers or business prospects with a message that is directed to their specific needs. You can measure your success through responses to the mail piece, and  it can be a more cost-effective marketing component than most other advertising mediums.

Keep in  mind that your campaign must enhance your overall marketing strategy; it’s not a replacement for other marketing components. It’s an excellent approach to bring in new customers as well as retain your current customer base. A well thought out print piece, sent to a targeted mailing list, can bring in many new business opportunities.

Direct Mail Marketing:

• Allows you to target a specific audience of consumers or businesses.
• Delivers a physical mail piece directly into the hands of current and potential customers.
• Gives you the ability to track responses and sales from your mail piece.
• Is cost effect and, in many cases, give you the highest response rate.

Remember, mailing lists can get very targeted. For example, if you are targeting households you can narrow your search by age, income, homeowner, female present, child present and many more. Business mailing lists can be broken down by sales volume, employee size, type of business(SIC Codes), phone numbers and fax numbers.

List response is often confused with list deliverability. A list could be 100% deliverable, but perhaps you did not get any responses to your offer. Automatically it is assumed that the list was “no good.” It could be that the mailing list was targeted to the wrong market. The key to making the mailing list work for you is knowing your target audience. Keep in mind that the national rate of response for direct mail is ½ to 1% and depends on many factors….attractiveness of your mail piece, cost of your product and timing of the mailing. See our step by step guide.

When should I order my mailing list? Timing is critical. Your mailing list is custom ordered – it is not sitting on a shelf waiting to be mailed. Mailing lists are available by e-mail with hours of making your purchase. Make sure you allow plenty of time to receive your list. A general rule of thumb would be to order your mailing list before ordering your printed material. If the list you have ordered has gone through an update, or a count was pulled incorrectly (this can happen) your count may have changed. A discrepancy of even 500 names may affect printing and mailing costs.

If you have dated material to mail – make sure you allow enough time for your mailing piece to be delivered. The post office has 2 working days to process your mail, BUT your mail could go to 3-4 different post offices before it is delivered. It could be 6-8 days before your piece actually reaches its destination. If you have taken your mail to the post office a week before your sale, you run the risk of it being delivered on the day of the sale or after the sale has already occurred – resulting in disastrous consequences.

Remember to plan in advance when purchasing your mailing lists and planning your direct mail campaign.

1.    Using the wrong list. The biggest and most costly, mistake you can make is not using a targeted mailing list that represents your audience. Make sure your list is current and targeted to meet your needs. If you’re purchasing a new list, make sure you have the exact criteria of the audience you’re trying to reach.
2.    Poor copy. Even if it’s only 50 words, it needs to be the right words. Take the time to review your copy and make changes until you know the text will grab the attention of the reader. Don’t write a book; stick to the key points of the product or service.
3.    No call to action. Not telling the reader what you want them to do defeats the point of sending the direct mail piece. Is the offer time-sensitive? Do you want them to respond by calling, e-mailing or visiting   the web site?   Clearly state what they need to do or you may not get a response. Offering a “perk” will increase your response rate; it doesn’t have to be a discount; it can be a “free”  or “discounted” add-on to the purchase.
4.    No testing. Too many people learn the hard way that their direct mail piece is not effective. It should be common practice to test out anything you plan to use to market or advertise your business to see if it makes an impact. Many times, post card copy needs to be “tweaked” to get optimum results or the list may not be targeted enough to reach the desired market.
5.    Using hype over benefits of your product and/or service. Talk about the benefits for the customer; don’t inflate the product or service as it will only backfire on you. Stick to five key points, and the reader will not be overwhelmed with information.

6.    Not proofing the copy. Too many times people send out mail pieces only to find there were spelling errors, incorrect pricing, wrong addresses or phone numbers, or misspelled urls. Have several people proofread your copy and re-visit the piece over a few days before going to print. It’s easy to miss errors when you’re been looking at a piece numerous times; a “fresh” set of eyes can spot costly errors.

7.    Not having an attention grabbing headline. Mail gets tossed if it doesn’t grab our immediate attention. Your opening statement needs to make an impact; this is going to affect whether the reader will continue to read the postcard.
8.    Over-thinking the design and not content. A mail piece needs to look good but the content must work with it or it will be become a disastrous campaign. You want people to focus on the wording not just the colorful graphics. Keep your design to 2-3 graphics along with 5 key points on your product or service. Make sure you have a “call to action”.

9.     Not following up. Repetition is key in the success of any mailing campaign. A successful direct mail campaign involves 2-3 mailings. The biggest mistake companies make is to send one mailing and stop if they don’t get the desired response.

10.   Tracking your success. It’s key that you track your response rate as it will play a key role in future mailings. Create a simple “in-house” tracking method that allows you see the number of calls, sales, etc. that have been created from the mailing.

Direct mail campaigns can be very successful if you use a “check and balance” system. Don’t rush to put a campaign together – remember, the mail piece is going to represent your company. You don’t have a second chance to make a good first impression.

To target your best customers effectively and efficiently, you need a deeper understanding of who they are, where they live, what they do, what they like and dislike, etc. This is called profiling. You don’t have to profile to send direct mail, but it will improve your results.

Profiling helps you:
•    Visualize the people you want to reach
•    Fine-tune your offer to a well-defined audience
•    Create more appropriate and more effective mailings

What is a profile?

Put simply, it’s a set of characteristics that help identify and group your target audience.
•    For consumer mailings, you can use age, gender, income, geographical area, home type, hobbies, and special interests, or any combination, to provide a profile; for example: men, aged 30 to 40, who enjoy scuba diving, and live in San Francisco, California.
•    For business mailings, typical characteristics may be: industrial classification, sales turnover, number of employees, geographical area and technology or machinery used. Are you looking to contact small-to-medium enterprise company car drivers in New York?

What if I have a little in-depth information on my customers?

If your database holds little or no profile information, you can usually get a much fuller view by matching it against external data, such as one of the major demographic or lifestyle databases, such as Experian.

Cross-referencing data in this way can be quite illuminating at times. You might, for instance, find that a segment of your database is actually youngish, just-married and enjoys rock-climbing and other active sports. Not ideal for that cruise you’re trying to sell… but you could position a mailing as ‘a gift for your parents’.

Industry standards for the return on investment (ROI) are 1 – 2%. However, a well thought out campaign can see as much as 4-6% return on investment. Once  you’ve created the piece you want to mail, you should consider a test run before mailing to your entire list so you can see the impact it has on the recipients. Once you’ve “tweaked” the mail piece, and achieved your target response, send it to your entire list.

Here are some key points to consider:
•  Paper quality, size, color and texture are all part of the presentation, not just what you have to say. Don’t cut corners – you’ll never have a second chance to make a good first impression.

•  Don’t over-design;  keep it simple. Remember you want people to read what’s on the card.
•  Send a separate mailing to repeat customers with special offers, promotions or advance notice of
upcoming sales. They are vital to your business.
•  If you are mailing to a business, try to find the best name to send to.
•  If possible, ink jet your addresses directly onto the mail piece. It’s more professional looking.
•  Write copy that states what your product or service can do for the reader.
•  Avoid technical jargon – keep it simple so the recipient understands the key points.
•  Make your phone number prominent on the mail piece.
•  If you are requesting a return by mail, make the process simple and the instructions very clear.
•  If you have a web site, include it on all direct mail pieces.
•  Add a personalized touch when sending letters; merge the names into your mail piece.
Direct mail campaigns can get costly; keep track of your expenses. A successful direct mail campaign should generate a profit, so keep track of your spending versus your return on investment (ROI).

Many times it does take more than one contact with a consumer or business to turn a prospect into a loyal customer. Success campaigns usually have multiple mailings for optimum results

Response Rate?
Begin tracking the results of your direct mail campaign as the first responses start to come in. The best way to measure the success of direct mail is to analyze the results to determine your best course of action. Response rates will vary because there are many factors that go into a direct mail campaign. Important components include the mail piece itself, your offer or product, timing of your mailing and of course the mailing list.

How do I narrow the geography?
You are able to narrow your target by selecting the geography that you think will best suit your target market. You can select the geography by state, county, SCF, zip code or by carrier route of the postal carrier if you need to get even more specific. Carrier routes can usually be obtained from your post office or by going to their website www.usps.com. SCF is the first 3 digits of a zip code that is a useful way to target a broader area than pulling just by zip code.

Will all of my mail pieces be delivered?
Direct mail is a very effective method of marketing a product or service, and the mailing list is a very important part of the of the campaign. However, mailing lists cannot by guaranteed 100%. Look for a mailing list that is guaranteed to be at least 90% deliverable. This is an industry standard with most business and residential marketing mailing lists. Some of your more specialized mailing lists should be guaranteed to be about 95% deliverable.

When should I do my mailing?
This depends on the product you are selling. If you are selling Christmas ornaments you would want to start your marketing efforts in the fall. If you are selling a gardening tool you may want to consider the spring to start your campaign. It is important to analyze your product and the target market to determine the best timing for your mailing campaign.

How often should I repeat my mailing?
When a consumer sees a product more than once or twice that consumer is more likely to remember your company; you’re building name recognition. Repetition – the more something is put in front of them the more likely they would be to respond to the offer. So, depending on your product or offer the answer to this question can vary. With your first mailing you can determine what worked best and what did not work, so with your additional mailings you can revise your mail piece and your offer to best suit your needs. Follow up mailings are best done fairly close together so that the consumer can recall the product.

Should I follow up with a phone call?
You can enhance your mailing efforts with a telemarketing program. Most mailing lists have phone numbers available as well. This is a good tool to use as a follow up to a direct marketing campaign to remind the consumer of your product or service.