Technologies Change the Direct Mail Landscape for Agencies |
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By Jamie Klemcke | August 30, 2010
With the growth of social media and online marketing, many marketers have turned away from direct mail campaigns, arguing that traditional mailings are difficult to track and are no longer an effective way to market to prospects. My agency friends have shared that clients are wanting true metrics, meaning, if they can easily A/B test and provide real metrics on campaigns, the client isn’t afraid to spend the marketing budget.
Direct mail campaigns now are vastly different from the days of huge mailings that were sent to every known address in a zip code. Advances in the printing industry along with new technologies, have streamlined the direct mail process, making it easy to present each targeted recipient with a unique and highly relevant message.
Innovative digital technologies now make it possible to pinpoint specific prospects based on demographics, launch direct mail touches based on event triggers, and capture real-time response metrics in order to determine immediate ROI. Unique codes, mobile technology and new quick response codes have changed the way direct mail is being used.
Check out our latest video, Smart Direct Marketing, that demonstrates how technology and direct mail can be combined to provide marketers with near instant campaign ROI — putting agencies in a great position to track campaigns and gain more access to client marketing dollars.
Stop Whining. Get Smarter About Direct Mail. |
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By Cynthia Fedor | July 12, 2010
Last week the U.S. Postal Service requested a 2-cent increase of first-class postage as part of a plan to cover some of their staggering deficit. Many business groups that rely heavily on using direct mail for advertising reacted in outrage. However, in response to the news, Newsweek.com author, Daniel Gross, wrote a smart article arguing that this move could urge businesses to think of more efficient and cost-effective ways of reaching prospects and consumers—an activity that could benefit the economy, environment, businesses and consumers alike.
“So rather than complain about the rising cost, power mail users should do what others do when the price of any resource rises—figure out how to use it more efficiently. Businesses have to get smarter. And many uses of today’s mail simply aren’t smart.”
Both as a marketer and a consumer, I couldn’t agree more.
Marketers need to take advantage of new tools, technologies and methodologies to deliver smarter, faster, and measurable direct mail. By doing so marketers can save money, get the data and ROI they want while consumers get what they want—relevant mail that addresses their needs and interests.
Here are some technologies marketers can integrate with direct mail in order to bring efficiency and improved ROI to marketing campaigns.
Extreme Personalization:
Nothing captures attention and motivates response like relevant, timely and personalized direct marketing communications. Advances in database integration, variable data printing and event triggers allow marketers to deliver a truly unique experience for each consumer. And when done properly, it’s more than likely they’ll experience a much improved response rate and boost in ROI.
Read my reaction to a personalized direct mail postcard that I received after a shopping experience. I can still remember it like yesterday…
QR Codes:
Eliminate the gap between customer response and delivery of coupons, product information, special offers, or other marketing follow-up communications. QR (quick response) codes are two-dimensional, square barcodes that can store large amounts of unique data and, when scanned, can launch specific actions. They not only allow consumers to immediately access coupons, landing pages, product information or other data directly from their mobile device; QR codes enable marketers to collect data on consumer activity and track the effectiveness of marketing elements in real time.
Mobile SMS Text Marketing:
Motivate immediate response, collect real-time consumer data, and facilitate two-way communication by incorporating SMS marketing elements on direct mail pieces. Consumers may use mobile text marketing to initiate a survey, provide feedback, access customer service and support, receive promotional offers or redeem customer loyalty rewards. Marketers benefit through real-time response metrics in addition to capturing mobile phone numbers and other information to enhance consumer data sets.
Personalized Landing Pages (PURLs) and Unique Access Codes:
Personalized URLs allow consumers to access landing pages which contain information unique to them; a tactic that’s proven to drive response. Unique codes printed on direct mail pieces may be used to deliver more information, rewards, coupons and special offers to consumers via the PURL. Visits to PURLs and use of unique codes are highly trackable and can provide marketers with real-time metrics as well as a way to enrich consumer data sets.
An Integrated, Multi-Channel Marketing Approach:
By blending sophisticated marketing technologies with traditional and emerging channels, marketers have the opportunity to track campaign elements, collect valuable lead data and generate ROI metrics—all of which empower them to make strategic decisions toward achieving campaign goals. This also provides the consumer with information they want via their preferred channel and allows them to engage in more meaningful ways.
These are just a few technologies that are helping marketers use direct mail in more efficient and effective ways. Incorporating them into direct mail campaigns help to motivate consumer response and provide real-time metrics at the individual level. This, in turn, allows marketers to A/B test creative, cleanse lists and get smarter with direct mail.
Why Your Next Business Card WON’T be Virtual |
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By Luis Paez | June 30, 2010
I have to take issue with an article on American Express’ OPEN blog titled “Why your next business card may be virtual”, because it’s a little misleading on the widespread use of “virtual card” technology. Applications like Bump and LinkedIn’s iphone bluetooth app provide simple proximity exchanges of vcards but there’s 2 problems with them that my favorite tech blogs forget to really detail: 1) You have to have the right phone , and 2) You have to have the right App. LinkedIn’s app is iphone-only and Bump is limited to 2 types of smartphones.
Ease vs. Techiness
Even considering the only major virtual card format, the pervasive “VCARD” (files in .vcf format), there’s obvious shortcomings on adoption of this standard across platforms. I have been very impressed that Apple’s taken the standard that Microsoft popularized, and integrated it into their own world. So, .vcf files are indeed an option for exchanging contact information if you are in your office communicating with someone over the internet – whether they have a Mac or PC. However, what if you aren’t in the safety of your office? When you go to a conference or seminar and meet 12 people at your networking table – how long will it take you to ask each of them individually to spell out their email address so you can punch in an email on your iphone and attach your .vcf file? Or do you just want to get their phone number, and have to call them later to ask for “the rest of their information”. That’d be an awkward phone call.
This is the current reality of vCards or virtual business cards – they take way too much time and effort to exchange contact information when you meet someone in person when compared with the traditional paper business cards. Why aren’t we in a virtual card world yet? Couple of reasons: One reason is that cellular companies have lagged tremendously in adopting cross-platform proximity technology, because … well… it would mean that they would have to work together on a common tech standard – and in the real world they don’t like to talk to one another.
The second reason we’re still in a physical card world is that many people make good use of the creative, visual aspects of business cards (in ways that a VCARD format would never allow). A business card can be used as a branding “first touch” in a marketing sense, to make the recipient think about the company or value proposition, like this Graphic Designer does with his complex back. Or the countless other examples of memorable executions of printed cards.
In the OPEN blog post Josh Catone’s tone is that anything physical is inevitably going to be replaced with the virtual. In fact he only passingly mentions this quote from Moo CEO Richard Moross:
“Some of the emerging virtual business card ideas are great, but they universally lack one critical ingredient: personality. Form is still just as important as function these days. A virtual business card is just data.”
In truth, we live in a physical world every moment of our day. More of our time is spent online, but I think we are a long way from being like Bruce Willis in Surrogates, only living to “plug in” to our virtual selves. When we’re at real-life events like seminars, classes, church services, wine-tastings or whatever you like to do in your spare time, you really have three first impressions: what you look like, what you say, and your business card.
How many times should I advertise? |
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By Luis Paez | June 23, 2010
I’ve been thinking alot about this question, as some who are new to direct marketing have a hard time understanding the time-tested methods that result in positive return on investment. It might be a generational or technological culture of instant gratification that makes us want to see our first marketing campaign rake in the dough. It might even be the direct marketing companies that tempt those new to the field with the DMA’s latest ROI metric (and if you haven’t heard it, it’s essentially “For each $1 spent on DM advertising, it results in $10+ of ROI”). I just feel it needs some more context, to put it in the correct light.
If you send only 1 Ad / Impression, then Give Away the Farm
First off, most marketing campaigns require more than 1 touch. (If you haven’t heard the term “touch”, touch = impression = ad; but it can also be a phone call or other interaction.) In fact, marketing campaigns require multiple touches over time to a given customer before they’re ready to buy – just think of any relationship you’ve made in the past – you’re more likely to buy from someone who you’ve had multiple interactions with, than someone you’ve met for the first time (given that choice). The only exceptions to this marketing rule, are in those cases where a product or service is incredibly cheap or incredibly scarce. In terms of offers, think $10 round-trip airfare specials or a seller with an experimental iPhone not available to the public…. you get the picture.
Most of Us Like Balanced Offers
However these extreme types of offers are the exception, not the rule. Most marketing campaigns balance an offer with a description of marketing features/benefits. Consequently, both your brand (if you have a new/unknown brand) and your specific offer needs time for consumers to recognize the brand, then hone in on your exact message.
Many clients ask – how many times do I send out my mailing / advertisement? This question is relevant across marketing disciplines, whether you use TV, Radio, Direct Mail or any other outbound method. I get the sense that most people are looking for a definitive number – an absolute truth in marketing that they can rely on, to do the marketing for them. It’s good then that people step up to the plate: some advertising students say 5 impressions is required, Creative Directors say 8 impressions, and others say 27 times. I’m glad they step up with these firm numbers, as I am not sure I would ever float a definitive number, because it really depends on all the demographic and psychological factors that go into a specific brand & offer being marketed to a specific audience. Even the proponents of the renowned professor John Philip Jones who asserts that in the end, a single ad impression can influence a buyer, have to consider the observable, historical fact, that “enough concentration of media weight” must be placed to that buyer, for it to cross the necessary threshold with her for a purchase decision. So for many campaigns, this means that one impression won’t cut it.
O.M.G. – Is this going to be a drain on my marketing budget?
Most companies see ROI fairly quickly if they know how to approach their campaign. Instead of asking “How many times do I send out this ad?”, it might be better to ask “How many minimum touches do I need to send in order to start seeing returns?” This takes into account all the factors that I mentioned above. Your ROI trendline will probably look more like a bell curve anyway, so expect that there will be a ramp up period and a period of ongoing positive returns that will make up for the startup cost of branding your impressions on a given audience. Just make sure you send out your ads for repeated impressions.
Your 5th Ad should not be a Clone of your 1st Ad
I cannot tell you how many times companies take it for granted that they have designed the best possible piece – and never consider improving it as they go along. Do research on how to do A/B Testing (sometimes called Split Testing). The same audience demographic should be getting two different versions of your ad. Pay close attention which performs better. Typically you need a large mailing to prove statistically which one wins, but even if you do two small mailings side by side – if you get zero responses from one and 7 from the other, I think you can feel secure to judge a winner. (Caveat: there may not always be a winner). The point is that you are increasing the effectiveness of your ad in measurable ways, and by the 6th, 7th, or 8th impression your piece will have matured enough to make the appropriate impact with your prospect.
As a closing thought to the number of times one should advertise – in most cases if your campaign is a direct order campaign, and you can link positive ROI from one of your “Nth” mailings, then watch that ROI percentage closely. That metric will tell you better than any marketing veteran when to stop advertising. If you’ve sent out your 20th mailing and there is still positive ROI from the marketing campaign, then ask yourself – is there any reason to stop?
Postcard Marketing — The New Cutting Edge Medium? |
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By Jamie Klemcke | May 24, 2010
RISMedia announced the findings from a new HomeGain marketing survey where real estate agents indicate postcards are yielding the highest response over popular social media platforms. The article titled, Social Media vs. Direct Mail goes on to share that even though this type of marketing has been around for decades, it is still working.
QuantumDigital was in fact founded to help agents with making a name for themselves in their local markets using postcards. Technology has improved allowing agents to send personalized postcards to drive potential prospects online where they can view more information about themselves and their listings. The new TriggerMarketing™ automated marketing system has also been developed to close the loop between sending a postcard and receiving a real-time warm lead.
It shows that marketing success is truly achieved when you use a mix of mediums for prospecting — postcards, printed materials, websites and social media can all be used in conjunction to drive awareness and response.
Data, Data and Oh Yeah, More Data |
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By Jamie Klemcke | May 7, 2010
In the midst of outlining strategy for a new marketing campaign and summarizing the metrics I need to track on said campaign, I happened across an interesting article on adage.com, “The Case for Less Data and More Vision.” Near the end of the article, the author, Jonathan Salem Baskin writes,
We need to stop embracing the latest variable or dashboard VU meter and demand a better, bigger, more thoughtful perspective on how to measure the ways marketing outreach meshes with consumer needs and expectations.
His statement confirmed my direction on the true goals of my upcoming campaign – to capture relevant market data, giving me a clear picture of the challenges that my prospective clients are facing, creating a relationship with said prospects based on their terms and needs, and adding them as a new customer by selling them a direct marketing solution that works…well, for THEM.
We too often get caught up in tracking numbers – hits, clicks, usage – and forget the main reason we are in business: to truly understand the client and customer challenges, needs and business goals by asking key questions; thereby increasing sales.
Imagine if you had data on an individual, not just a name and address, but what they are challenged with in their businesses (for BtoB). Your direct mail and email campaigns would take on a new light. They’d be personalized and relevant.
Ultimately, we should all develop better technologies, products and services that meet those relevant needs and see an increase in repeat sales — a metric worth tracking.
Women Want a Personalized World |
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By Luis Paez | April 28, 2010
There’s an interesting consensus as society settles into
understanding what a personalized experience means. It means we’re creating a “world” (i.e. consumer experience) that’s tailored to you.
In the online ad space, one marketing agency, Q Interactive , conducted a study regarding online ads that were served up based on behavioral data:
Women’s Channel, an agency that researches online trends among females, reported that 65 percent of its participants were intrigued by the system of behavioral marketing. They were especially interested in how the ads seemed to “know” what they wanted. A sizeable number of them — 88 percent — said that they wanted more tailored ads served online. (imediaconnection.com)
This study is relevant to offline marketing in that it focuses on the question of “how did you like the experience” – when it comes to personalizing an experience for a recipient / web user. The women who were part of this survey found, on the whole, that advertising that is tailored to them as an individual, creates a better experience. It implies that the marketer has done the legwork necessary to intelligently recommend a product, instead of past approaches of simply yelling out a feature or benefit to anyone within earshot (or on a mailing list… or on a webpage…).
To some extent the personalization and relevance that some websites have (think facebook’s recommendations or personalized homepages like alltop) have shown us how useful this technology can be – and now offline technology like PURLs and demographic selects will translate a similar experience through the mail. True this is but one study, but I think if you focus on the ad experience, we’ll find it to be a better world when even your dinner menu arrives personalized.
The Importance of Sustainable Forests |
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By Luis Paez | April 14, 2010
For those of you designing green print pieces or managing print marketing campaigns, the paper that you print on sometimes isn’t at the forefront of your mind – but increasingly it might be on the mind of your readership. According to a recent report, approximately 25% of consumers tell other consumers not to buy products because of a company’s poor environmental practices. As marketers, sometimes we don’t do a good enough job of communicating how environmental we actually are – and with printed campaigns, this starts with paper.
In order to address what some consumers believe is “greenwashing” (the practice of falsely portraying a product as green), every industry from Autos to Retail Food depends on third party organizations to provide credence to a company’s claims of environmental responsibility. Our company achieved chain-of-custody certification from the Forest Stewardship Council to provide some transparency to how we print and use paper. There are alot of aspects to this accreditation, from their website :
The intent of the FSC system is to shift the market to eliminate habitat destruction, water pollution, displacement of indigenous peoples and violence against people and wildlife that often accompanies logging. Just like other forest products, in order to use the FSC logo as an “environmental claim” on paper, the product must have flowed through the FSC “chain-of-custody” from the FSC-certified forest, to a paper manufacturer, merchant, and finally printer who have FSC chain-of-custody certification.
FSC is probably the largest of the independent certifications that one can get with regard to printed paper products. However, there are other organizations like the Sustainable Forestry Initiative with a long list of conservation supporters that endorse timber and paper companies like the one we use. These organizations exist to provide both transparency and a source of information to consumers, so why not help educate by mentioning that chain-of-custody responsibility which passes on to your brand (if you use a provider that is certified).
Besides the marketing benefit of mentioning this in a message – think about what this really means – that we can know we’re doing the right thing to both live in society and manage it sustainably.
Social Media Enhances Direct Marketing |
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By Robert "Dude" Spellings, Jr. | March 26, 2010
Why does McDonald’s spend $2 billion per year telling people about the Big Mac? Do you really think there are people in the developed world who haven’t heard of the Big Mac?
So why do they spend so much on marketing if everyone is already very familiar with their product? The reason is to make sure that their product stays in the forefront of their customers’ minds all the time, so when they think about getting a hamburger the first one they think about is a Big Mac.
If you are a small/medium business, you probably can’t afford to use mass media to ensure that you customers hear your name several times per day. But you can achieve the same kind of effect using social media.
Social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, & LinkedIn are free. You can use these tools to keep your name in front of your customers and friends so that when they need your product or service, you are the first one they think of.
Make sure that your friends and customers follow you on social media sites, then post to them regularly. Posting regularly is the key. Just like McDonald’s will buy ads in multiple times slots on multiple mediums several times per day, you want to make sure your friends and customers see your name as often as possible.
Every post doesn’t have to be worthy of a Pulitzer prize. Just make sure you get something posted at least daily. Set up a Google alert to monitor your company name, the products/service you sell, industry terms, etc. Then you can keep your customers informed with a social media post when Google alerts you to an interesting article. Posting weekly specials or promotional codes will always be appreciated by your customers. If you cannot think of anything directly related to your business, you can always post something motivational or inspirational. People always like that.
Social Media is also great because your customers decide if they want to follow you on social media, so its opt-in from the start. Of course, you will still want to keep them interested with relevant and timely posts. If your posts become too bland, they may lose interest, so although you don’t have to be a social media entertainer, you do have to put in the effort.
So how does social media enhance your direct marketing? The short answer is: it’s more impressions. It’s usually not one direct mail piece or one marketing email that spurs someone to buy. It’s making sure that your customers remember who you are so when they need your product or service, they automatically think of you. Adding social media will keep your name fresh in their minds so when they receive a direct marketing promotion, they will recognize it and be more likely to act on it, rather than just ignoring it because they don’t remember you.
Dear FitPregnancy: We’re not pregnant. But thanks for assuming. |
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By Luis Paez | March 25, 2010
Some background on me – about 8 months ago my wife and I had a beautiful baby boy. A few months into our pregnancy we found a magazine called FitPregnancy and ordered it. My wife enjoyed several months of reading FitPregnancy’s articles geared toward women who are going through those 9 months of wonderful growth. Fast forward a couple of months, we get our last issue of our subscription period and it has this wrapper on it:
Fit Pregnancy's renewal cover
Now I realize that with almost every other magazine out there, that this wrapper is pretty typical marketing tactic to spur renewals… But think about it for a minute. Your reader was pregnant 12 months ago. That’s why she ordered your magazine – but at this point it’s highly unlikely she’s still pregnant. I know that my wife is not currently pregnant – and if FitPregnancy knows before I do … well, I will need to start a whole other rant – and probably not on this blog 
From a marketing perspective, it would make better sense to put this in some context. I researched FitPregnancy’s owner – American Media, Inc. and it seems that they own a wide variety of magazines, including 3 other magazine titles aimed toward health-consicous women, including Shape and Muscle & Fitness Hers. So why couldn’t FitPregnancy cross promote those titles in addition to this renewal call-to-action?
If you stop and back up a moment, this is relevant both from a direct marketing perspective for those with magazines they’re steering but also for the rest of us who aren’t in the magazine game. How unique is your product that perhaps the typical ways of marketing oneself needs to change depending on who you are? Or a better question – what is the end experience that your prospect / customer receives? Do you have the tracking (qualitative and quantitative) that would tell you the moments that your audience has disconnects with your marketing message? Have you invested in people on your marketing team that are “listening” to what your audience is saying?
Companies that are both tuned into what their customers are thinking and saying AND have that feedback loop that enable them to translate those things into tweaks to future marketing touches will mean greater customer engagement and loyalty long term. If you aren’t willing to go the “listening” route, then you better be really good at knowing the moment your customers start “expecting” again…
Mobile Real Estate Tagging: Interactive 2D Barcode Reader |
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By Jamie Klemcke | March 19, 2010
Matthew Swanson, Agentopolis, highlights the benefits of the new Microsoft Tag application and the benefits it will have for the real estate industry.
“In a nutshell, Microsoft Tag will allow you to create a unique tag that can be tied directly to any page, site, URL, etc. (Think your home page, Twitter URL, Facebook Profile, you name it). You can then print that tag out, put it on a listing flyer, business card, heck, even your car window if you wanted. Next, anyone with a mobile device using the Microsoft tag reader just snaps a picture of your tag and voila, they’re taken directly to your URL that was associated with that Tag,” said Swanson
Interesting concept for the real estate industry indeed! You can even take your tag and include it on your just listed, just sold postcards or house flyers. Great way to stand out from the competition in your marketplace.
Check out the full article.
Free Email Tracking. |
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By Robert "Dude" Spellings, Jr. | March 12, 2010
I just ran across this very interesting email tracking service: www.WhoReadMe.com. Essentially, the service will allow you to do some limited basic tracking on emails that you send, for free.
I say “limited” above because (1) its only truly “free” for your first 20 emails per day, and (2) their email tracking is still handicapped by all of the same pitfalls as all of the other tracking services, which include:
- If the recipient’s images are turned off, then none of the tracking will work at all.
- The number of forwards/opens/unique-opens is inaccurate if multiple users are behind a corporate firewall and all have the same outward-facing IP address.
- The metrics about browsers and operating systems requires that the recipient be using a web-based email service like hotmail, yahoo, or gmail.
- Cookies are used to track some metrics, which don’t work in most email clients that are not web-based.
- You are dependent on their network for the tracking, and if they experience a network failure, the tracking will not occur during the outage.
- Cannot truly track if an email is “read” or not.
- Cannot determine if an email was delivered to the inbox, the spam folder, the trash bin, or quarantined in a spam-filtering system.
In short, this system has all the same Achilles heels as most of the other email tracking solutions, but since this one is free, it’s a pretty good value. I point out the limitations only because people who may not be so tech-savvy may not understand the current limitations of technology. The current trend in online marketing is to rely heavily on these kinds of metrics, so just be sure you know what’s really happening.
Top 5 Ways to Get Your Direct Mail Noticed |
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By Jamie Klemcke | March 2, 2010
I came across this blog post by Missy Jensen, Social Media Manager at DMEautomotive. The examples provided are for automotive dealerships, but are applicable across multiple industries.
In the blog post titled, “Top 5 Ways to Get Your Direct Mail Noticed,” Jensen concludes by sharing, “By sending personalized, consistent, relevant and timely messages to your customers when they need them most, you will ensure that your mail is always pleasantly received by your customers. Remember, customers will welcome information when they need it, so be sure to send them believable and appropriate mailings, offers and promotions at the most opportune time!”
I couldn’t agree more.
Printed Business Cards on the Path to Extinction? |
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By Cynthia Fedor | February 10, 2010
With the rapid introduction of mobile applications (like BUMP and DUB) which foster the digital exchange of contact information, are traditional business cards on the verge of becoming obsolete?
I recently came across a few articles that challenged the relevance of printed cards in the age of virtual business cards, online networking sites and mobile applications that make it so easy to exchange information.
Those arguing against the traditional printed business card format made some great points:
- Platforms like LinkedIn allow users to access a more robust profile that may include a description of the contact’s skill set, past affiliations, links to other social networking sites and websites, etc. in addition to basic contact information.
- Many digital applications allow users to instantly sync collected contact information across platforms and programs, i.e. – on smartphones, in CRM systems, within email contacts, social sites, etc.
- Utilizing digital applications to store and manage data makes it easier to update contact information over time. In many cases, changes that contacts make to their own information will be shared with anyone that has access to the contact’s profile.
Here’s what they failed to consider:
- Currently, there is no standard that is shared across the various mobile applications and platforms available. So, how one app organizes data may differ from another, making it a bit more cumbersome to digitally exchange information.
- Not everybody uses mobile or digital applications for exchanging business cards or sharing contact information.
- Business cards are great for leaving behind, for one or for many.
- Physical business cards give an individual and/or business the opportunity to express their style and provide insight to their thought process. As Daria Steigman pointed out in her blog on the subject, “The paper, logo, design, and readability give me clues to a company’s personality and whether they have thought about that first impression.”
- Artists, photographers, design agencies, architects, etc. can feature visual elements on business cards that will help to better tell their story and differentiate them from competitors. To my knowledge, many digital applications do not allow the user to include photos or visual examples of work when exchanging contact information.
Business cards and the exchange of contact information will continue to evolve as more digital applications become available. However, there’s a fat chance that they’ll ever go away for good.
PS – Just for fun, read how Hugh MacLeod made a name for himself by drawing cartoons on the back of business cards.
Why is Direct Marketing spending increasing? |
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By Luis Paez | February 3, 2010
To all the social media consultants out there who downplay the role of direct mail and direct marketing, there are two standout points that they should be considering very closely from the DMA’s latest economic impact study:
- As an industry, the amount spent on direct mail will rise by $1.1 billion this coming year (to $45.5 billion)
- 2009 will mark the fifth year in which direct marketing has captured more than half of all advertising spend nationwide
To be clear, I’m not arguing that there are not rates of increased use of the newer marketing vehicles (commercial email, online advertising and social media) – certainly marketers everywhere are finding the best ways to use these mediums. What is happening is that firms, small and large, are realizing the effectiveness and special role direct marketing has in a firm’s overall marketing efforts. When asking ourselves the question “Why is direct marketing spending increasing?” there are a couple of main drivers that come into play (and because of time constraints, I’m going to quote the latest Wall Street Journal article about direct mail mostly for anecdotal evidence):
Emotional Appeal
This is probably the most important aspect, and it’s hard to quantify the impact of emotion. In the book, “How We Decide”, Jonah Lehner outlines the massive importance of emotions in any decision making process (and for us that means the buying process), and direct marketing often uses emotion as a way to build trust and a relationship with clients. A fun example from the WSJ:
To save money, Peter Taffae, founder of ExecutivePerils, a Los Angeles wholesale insurance broker, stopped his small firm’s humorous [movie themed] postcard mailings last year. …
“We would visit some clients and notice they were hanging the postcards on the wall, collecting them,” says Mr. Taffae, who says he secured $270,000 from a new client who chose to do business with the firm in late 2008 after receiving the postcards. “After two or three months [of no postcards], we got a lot of emails and phone calls asking us, ‘Did you take me off your list?’” says Mr. Taffae, who restarted the postcard mailings in November.
ExecutivePerils is a stand-out company in that they use the medium effectively to entertain their clients, and by doing so increases clients’ emotional attachment to the company. Successful direct marketing often uses this as a call out – and when it comes across in a physical medium that people can hold in their hands , it ends up being a higher value piece, so much so that people may start collecting them and sharing them with friends. It’s true that emails have the “forward to a friend” feature designed into them, however with direct mail that friend will not get a barrage of emails thereafter. So in that sense it creates a sense of ultra-private information sharing.
The Exclusivity of Postal Mail
A few years ago it was easy to make the case that a business should start emailing their customers because of the low cost of email – and the fact that not many businesses were taking advantage of commerical email. Now, as every business uses email in some form or another, the volume of email that people receive has diminished the effectiveness of one particular email from one particular company. Here’s a relevant anecdote:
William Kapas, president of J.C. Kapas Real Estate Co. in Rochelle Park, N.J., says he has secured clients as a result of his high-gloss, four-color monthly mailings that list who has bought or sold restaurant properties though the firm.
“Our clients look forward to knowing, and it’s a little bit of gossip, too,” says Mr. Kapas, who exclusively uses traditional mail to reach clients. “I think it’s easier to delete the electronic junk mail without taking a second look.”
Mr. Kapas spends about $1 a piece for the monthly mailings, sent to about 2,200 current and prospective customers.
Email will always be a component of how you communicate to customers. However, brands have to consider *when* to send an email. For certain communication, especially loyalty, relationship & acquisition customer campaigns, email isn’t necessarily the best option.
Targeting a Message for Relevance
Personalization (including a recipient’s name or identity somehow) on a message is just one way of creating relevance. Equally important aspects are creating the marketing list in the first place. Demographics, customer profiles, customer segments will always apply differently to different companies. It was refreshing to hear this reiterated by Kellogg’s professor of marketing – again from the WSJ:
Many entrepreneurs find that the boiler-plate methods of the past—such as purchasing mailing lists and sending fliers or coupons to a mass audience—often aren’t cost-effective. Instead, business owners are creating personalized mailings, which may include special offers or other valuable information, and sending them to a hand-picked list of current and prospective customers. The idea is to send something that’s more appealing than “junk” mail and potentially more noticeable than an email message, says Eric Anderson, a professor of marketing at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.
MBA’s should take note that the new tools of relevancy are now getting to be more mainstream. These tools will only get better with time, and it increases the value of a direct marketing message & campaign. In general, 2010 will bear out whether these trends will stick, improve or change – but one thing is certain – if the recession has forced us to go “back to basics” , direct marketing is certainly one of these.