MAILING TIPS

Define your target audience. What are their characteristics?   Find a list of people that meet your target definition. There are so many types of lists available, we can help you find what you're looking for.

Create an offer.   Get your audience's attention and spark their interest by giving them an offer they can't refuse.  Emphasize the benefits.  Make sure your offer inspires them to respond.  Give them a call to action.   Design your mail piece.  This does not have to be complicated.  An oversized postcard can generate cost effective results.  It's all in the design.  The mail piece has to capture their interest in a matter of seconds.  This can be done with appealing graphics, easy to read text and lots of white space.

Print your mail piece.   Two color, four color, glossy or matte, the choices can be daunting.  Your budget may end up driving some of these decisions but the rule of thumb should be that the quality of piece needs to reflect the quality of the product or service you are selling.   Mail your piece. Take advantage of as many discounts from the post office as you can, Presorted Standard, Presorted First Class, barcoding, presorting, etc.

Analyze your results.   Direct mail, if it is designed properly is measurable.  Count the calls, faxes, emails or visits.  Keep track of how many sales vs. inquiries.  Ask for feedback from your callers.  Most importantly - have realistic expectations.  Depending on your product and your offer, a response rate of 1% is considered a huge success.   Test and repeat.   What happens to your response rate when you change your offer, change your mail piece, mail at a different time of year?  By tweaking what you are doing, you can discover what program brings the most cost effective results.