6 Musts for Your Next Direct Mailer Campaign

It’s no secret that every marketing strategy needs to be tweaked to optimise response rates. Developing a successful direct mailer campaign requires an intelligent strategy that is intentional, organised, and tailored to your audience.

We have six essential strategies that can’t be ignored when designing your next direct mailer campaign.

1. Always use cutting edge materials

It pays to step away from the predictable materials and formats – standard paper stock and white envelopes.

While these approaches still produce respectable reactions from your potential customers, you’ll stimulate more curiosity and boost your response rates by using more innovative materials for your direct mailer.

Consider 3D brochure printing, oversized envelopes, handwritten fonts, embossing, die-cutting… even envelopes made out of tactile fabric such as linen.

2. Free offers are always a winner

Who doesn’t love a freebie?

Free offers are the most effective direct mail conversion tactic in almost every industry. There is always a definite surge in people motivated to share contact information, demographics, opinions, and positive feedback when they receive a valuable free offer.

Consider offering a 30-day free trial, complimentary product for registering, or being waivered a join-up fee in your direct mailer… This is all the incentive your audience needs to engage with you.

If your product is good and you know it, use the freebie as an enticer for a significant upsell.

3. Incorporate the personal touch

Personalising your direct mailers will always increase the success rate of your campaign. Everyone wants to feel special, and by taking this approach, your customers and potential customers won’t see your mail as junk.

Personalising creates the feeling that you know and understand their needs. Your content will resonate with your audience and generate sales.

So, how do you go about personalising?

Adding a person’s name to a mailer can significantly increase response rates. You can also consider handwritten envelopes (fonts!!), customised content for your audience segments, or postcards printed with personalised URLs.

You might be wondering what a personalised URL (PURL) is? It’s a web address with a unique identifier as a part of the URL link that you have sent out to the individual via the direct mailer. This URL leads to a personalised landing page that holds content and offers specific to the individual.

4. Master your direct mailer call-to-action

This is the same as with any marketing channel. You want to persuade your potential customer that doing business with you will improve their life in some way.

Having a masterful call-to-action is a non-negotiable if you want someone to act.

A great call-to-action needs to be clear, concise, persuasive… and repeated several times. Don’t worry; you won’t be annoying. You want them to remember your offer long after they have put the direct mailer down.

Make your call-to-action stand out from the main body of the content. And again…repeat it numerous times with a consistent voice.

5. Direct mail shouldn’t be left stranded all alone!

Marketing plans need an integrated direct mail strategy. Make it complimentary to all your other marketing efforts.

A one-off approach is never the optimal solution to enhance your business. Perseverance pays off in bucket loads for all forms of marketing. It typically takes multiple contacts before a direct mailer finally spurs a call-to-action.

Align your direct mail campaign with your other marketing efforts – emails, online ads, and social media promotions. Use the same graphics, font, images, coupon or QR codes, and call-to-action across all materials and mediums.

It makes you memorable.

6. Set it up so you can measure performance before you begin

Before you embark on your direct mailer marketing strategy, make sure you know how to measure performance. Then you can identify which campaigns were successful and then optimise what is working and tweak what isn’t.

Ways to track and measure your direct mail campaigns include:

• Source codes
• QR codes
• Traceable phone numbers
• Personalised URLs

When you have a good campaign up and running, set up A/B testing to see which strategies work best with which audience. Doing this will help you present your brand to your audience with highly targeted direct mail campaigns that gain attention and solidify action.

Speak to us

Let our experienced staff at Active Mail take the stress and headaches out of designing your next Direct Mailer campaign. We can find a solution to fit your unique business and budget.

Take the first step now, and get in touch for a no-obligation consultation to discuss how we can maximise your business potential.