Direct Mail Strategy: JCPenney’s New Postcard Campaign

by Cynthia Fedor | April 17th, 2012

Last month when I read about JCPenney’s new integrated marketing strategy I was excited to see how the retailer would execute on the direct mail component of their plan. Through the approach described in the article, JCP seemed to understand the value of highly targeted and personalized direct mail as part of an integrated mix and the role it could play in getting people into physical store locations.
JCPenney Marketing

“We’re focused on targeting our customers through an integrated marketing campaign, and direct mail is a key component to this outreach strategy,” says Kate Coultas, spokesperson for jcpenney. Source: Deliver Magazine

This month, I received my first direct mail postcard from JCPenney. The oversized square format along with their bold new logo caught my eye; however, they failed to keep my attention and motivate action. In this post, I’ll outline a few things they can do to make future direct mail touches more effective.

Deconstructing JCPenney’s April Marketing Postcard

Upon review of JCP’s direct mail postcard, I noticed several missed opportunities to:

  • provide relevant content
  • track the performance of offers and channels
  • collect key data that could aid in refining future messages

Weakness: Poor Targeting and/or Lack of Personalized Content

The front of JCPenney’s postcard features a large, colorful photo that fills the entire frame. Images that are colorful, simple, and direct—like the one on their postcard—often work well for conveying a message quickly. However, this image did not resonate with me. It was a photo of a yawning baby. The back of the piece included the message: “Don’t let another precious moment go by without making it memorable. Capture their smiles, the surprises and event the sleepy times that fill your heart.”

I do not yet have children or grandchildren. There are no small children living in my house.

Recommendation #1: Segment your mailing list. Use demographic selections to narrow down your list to target recipients that more closely match your service offering or message. By doing so, JCPenney could have saved money, reduced waste, and realized better return on investment.

Recommendation #2: Personalize mail pieces and include relevant content that matches the interests and/or needs of the target audience. JCPenney could have easily increased the efficacy of their direct mail campaign by using variable data printing to swap out images and copy. Rather than include a photo of a baby, they could have advertised their “business portraits” service to me or let me know if I could get a portrait taken with my pet (my husband and I have two dogs and a cat).

Pets

Weakness: No tracking mechanisms to measure campaign response

If you were JCPenney, wouldn’t you like to know if you were generating more business due to a direct mail piece vs. newspaper ad vs. online ad vs. social media campaign, etc? Digital technologies available today—like PURLs (personalized URLs and landing pages), QR codes, and SMS text elements—make it possible to track responses to traditional media. The call to action on JCPenney’s postcard directs recipients to a general website and generic telephone number. Read More »

USPS Bailout: Crucial Lifeline or Pointless Boondoggle?

by Eric Welch | March 6th, 2012

In his 2013 Budget, President Obama has promised “bold” action to prop up the ailing and venerable USPS with a $25 billion injection. Among other things, this proposal would put an end to Saturday delivery and, if you trust the math, generate a savings of $25 billion over the next 11 years. As most of us are well aware, the rapid development and expansion of electronic delivery systems have resulted in a significant decrease in traditional mail volume, and there are no indications this will slow down or stop anytime soon… at least not in the lifetime of anyone reading this post.

This begs the question: Is the USPS worth saving at all? For direct mail providers and their customers, the obvious answer would seem to be a resounding ‘yes!’ But is it really that simple? And are these electronic delivery systems entirely to blame for the problem? Or is it, as Ralph Nader points out, a manufactured crisis resulting from “bad management, corporate barracudas and a bevy of editors and reporters enamored with the supremacy of the Internet?” Should we do everything possible to keep the USPS afloat, or do we bow our heads in reverence as this once-mighty American icon sinks into the murky depths of crushing debt and irrelevance? Give us your thoughts!

Is Your Marketing Doing Its Job?

by Michele Shubert | February 22nd, 2012

When we send out marketing, we have a specific goal in mind. We want customers to stay customers and non-customers to convert. We want recipients to recognize our brand.

Sometime before the holidays, I received two boxes in the mail. One was from a vendor whose goal was to form a business relationship, the other from a company with which we are already doing business. Both types of communications are equally important—nurturing prospects to turn them into customers, and keeping current customers as loyal customers.

Here’s something to consider when designing your marketing mailings: Put yourself in the place of your recipients. If you received your own package or mailer, how do you think you would react to it? Read More »