Is Direct Mail Marketing Dead?

Oct 2
09:17

2009

Kristie Lorette

Kristie Lorette

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You may (or may not) have noticed a decrease in the junk mail that lands in your snail mailbox every day. With the move toward email and online market...

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You may (or may not) have noticed a decrease in the junk mail that lands in your snail mailbox every day. With the move toward email and online marketing many companies have all but abandoned direct mail marketing altogether. Does this mean that using postcards,Is Direct Mail Marketing Dead? Articles letters and other direct mail campaigns are not considered to be effective?

Direct Mail is Alive and Well

With everyone making a mad dash to use online marketing for its effectiveness and cost effectiveness, now may be the perfect time to use good old fashioned direct mail. If all of your competitors are using online marketing then you may be able to stand out from the crowd by implementing a direct mail campaign through the United States Postal Service.

So if you have a database full of mailing addresses for prospects, current and past clients, now may be the time to put it to work. This is especially true if your business can benefit from the upcoming holiday season. So put this 3-step direct mail campaign process in place and test the results.

  1. Frequency is the key. Sit down and sketch out a postcard campaign that drops two different postcards per month over the next three to six months to the same group on your list. The frequency and duration of this type of campaign will allow you to test the list and the effectiveness of a direct mail campaign for your business.
  2. Follow-up with the responders. Depending on the call to action you include on your first direct mail piece (call, email or get them to register online at your website or on a special landing page), follow-up to the people that respond with a second direct mail piece or email. This direct mail or email piece should move them up to the next level of your marketing plan. So if the first direct mail piece got them to register for a free report on your website, then the follow-up piece should urge them to register for a webinar you’re giving, get them to register for a free trial or provide them with a discount coupon on their purchase.
  3. Clean and scrub your list. When each mail piece is sent at each stage of your campaign, be sure to scrub and clean your list on the postcards that are returned for bad addresses. This should be done after each mailing in order to keep your list up-to-date. This will also save you from wasting money by continuing to pay for printing and postage for pieces that aren’t reaching the intended recipients.

Stand out from the online marketing crowd. Use offline direct mail marketing to gain the attention of your current, past and potential customers. With more mail piling up in their email inbox, their snail mail box is feeling empty. It’s the prime opportunity for you to engage them the old fashioned way—the direct mail way.

For more information on creating marketing plans and campaigns, visit http://wp.me/ptLrh-1.