Should Direct Mail Be Part Of Your Marketing Mix?

I have a new client who is the best client ever.  In fact, she’s a dream client.  She’s really nice, responsive, flexible, and best of all, has given me free rein to do what needs to be done.  What’s not to love, right?  I’ll call her Client A.

Client A designs and produces really creative, multi-media, multi-dimensional presentations and websites that incorporate video, original music scores, and graphics that leave you saying “wow!”  Given her cutting edge, way out-of-the box business, you might be surprised to learn that I am helping her with a decidedly low-tech project: a direct mail campaign.

In the age of social media and networking when everyone is connecting online, should you even consider incorporating a direct mail campaign into your marketing mix?  

 The answer might be yes. 

The size of the market must be pretty big, obviously, or the mailing will just be too expensive (economies of scale and all that).   Client A’s list contains around 1500 contacts.  If we were doing a national or regional campaign, it would be a lot bigger, but we’re focusing our efforts on the metro Washington, DC area, where she is located. 

When you are pulling together a mailing list (a direct mail production and mailing house generated the list for us), you need to tailor the list specifically to your audience.  No sense in sending a letter, brochure, introductory magazine, product sample, or whatever to the wrong demographic.  Lists can be sorted by age, income level, education, zip code, industry, employee size, job title, etc.  Narrow it down as much as possible!  Client A is reaching out to two industries, and to ensure the mailer gets in the right hands of the person who needs to see it, it is going to people with one of two job titles.  If a company did not have a name with the job title we are targeting, they were not included on the list (the list would have had another 1,000 companies on it had we not excluded them for that reason). 

Whatever you are sending must be eye-catching.  Whether it’s a letter, brochure, or packaging that contains a product sample, it must be well-designed and well-written.  You need it to stand out when it’s sitting on the recipient’s kitchen counter or desk.  When they open the letter or brochure, it should be immediately clear what the benefit of your product or service is.  And watch the length of the letter or brochure!  Have you ever read those two page (front and back) solicitation/fundraising letters you get in the mail from various non-profits?  Me neither. 

Last, but certainly not least, you should also include a special offer in your direct mail brochure or letter: a free one-hour consultation, a percentage off the first service or purchase, etc.  You really want to give the person who received your mailing a compelling reason to visit your website, email you, or call you.   I am not sure if what we are going to do for Client A’s mailing, to be honest.  A fabulous graphic designer I know is only just starting the brochure design now. 

If you are going to spend the time and money on a mailing, be sure to track the results by asking new clients how they found you: website, referral, direct mail?  I am looking forward to the reaction Client A’s mailing gets once we get this out the door in a few weeks.  My goal is to intrigue the mailing’s recipients enough that they jump onto her website.  If we can get them to do that, Client A is halfway to a greatly expanded new client base.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 13th, 2010 at 1:00 pm and is filed under Marketing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.


You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.