Whether you’re a mass merchandiser or a small-business entrepreneur, one of the best ways to open a personal dialogue with your consumers is via direct mail. If executed poorly, direct mail winds up in the junk pile, which translates to an unfavorable return on investment. But if implemented expertly, you can provide service and quality that exceeds your customers’ expectations.
These days, savvy marketers are coming up with fresh, innovative strategies to catch people’s attention through the mailbox clutter. Depending on your business category, you can customize creative promotional mailers to match your needs. If you think outside the box—or outside the postcard—there’s plenty of unique, eye-catching ways to target your recipients.
To get a better idea of how to plan a direct-mail promotion, let’s review some current industry trends and examples.
Themed Promotions – The number one reason to send inspired mail-outs is because they will be the most relevant and memorable for your clients. By imprinting an item that reflects your brand character, you’ll gain a competitive advantage in your sales category. For example, a grocery store or restaurant could send out edible promotions for their consumers to savor, leaving a sweet post-purchase aftertaste.
3-D Pieces – When you allocate funds for direct mail, you want to ensure that your message ends up in the right hands. How can you stand out when your consumers are bombarded with junk mail? You’ve got to break through the jumble with a three-dimensional promotion. The key benefit of an atypical sized or shaped promo is that it attracts curiosity, which in turn, increases the chance of it being picked up, read and remembered. For instance, a clothing retailer could customize fashion-forward items, like mirror compacts, sewing kits or combs.
Customer Rewards – Instead of using direct mail to attract potential customers, you can retain current customers and transform them into advocates for your brand. As you reward consumers with a small token of appreciation in the mail, you can actively develop and maintain a viable, long-term business relationship. For example, a bookseller could send branded bookmarks and book lights to its most avid readers to reinforce their post-purchase decisions and encourage repeat purchases. This sort of promotion is very affordable and worthwhile because the items will be used in tandem with the product sold, enhancing the brand’s visibility and image.
Loyalty Incentives - Direct mail helps expand your business because it prompts a single-transaction customer to become a repeated customer. This conversion is important because long-term customers are less likely to switch brands and are less price-sensitive over time than one-shot customers. For the bottom line, loyal customers are the most profitable. You can develop this loyalty with incentives, like a t-shirt postcard, on which you imprint a promotional message to notify frequent customers of upcoming sales or to thank them for their purchase. As a result, the recipient will feel highly valued and more inclined to revisit your company. Plus, the individual becomes a spokesperson as they wear the t-shirt and provide added exposure for your brand.My final word is that direct mail builds strong customer relations that can lead to increased sales volume and profitability. And best of all, brand-loyal clients provide free word-of-mouth promotions and rave referrals!
