Marketing Information

Direct Mail Formats: How to Choose the Right One for Your Next Mailing


Which pulls the best response, a postcard, a self-mailer or a letter? The answer, you'll be irritated to know, is clear. It depends.

The success of your mailing depends on who you mail to (your list), what you promise (your offer), when you mail (your timing), and what you mail (your format and creative). Here are a few questions to ask yourself to decide which format is likely the best one to use for your next mailing.

Letter
Does your sales message need to come from one person by name? Does it need to be addressed to a person by name? Is privacy or confidentiality a concern? Then a sales letter inside an envelope is the way to go.

Postcard
Is your sales message short and simple, and designed to motivate your prospect to visit your website to hear your full pitch (and place an order)? A postcard is a good option.

Self-mailer
Do you need to illustrate your sales message while keeping printing and mailing costs down? Then try a self-mailer (a document that mails without an envelope, such as an 8 ˝ x 11 sheet of card stock, folded once on itself and sealed with a tab).

Classic direct mail package
Do you have things to say that do not really fit in a letter (technical specifications, for example)? Is your sales message longer than 600 words? Does your prospect need to mail back a check or order form? Then a classic direct mail package is your best choice, consisting of a mailing envelope, letter, brochure, business reply card or order form, and business reply envelope.

Dimensional mailer
Do you need to reach C-level executives in Fortune 500 companies? Executives who have mailroom staff and executive secretaries who screen their mail? Then a dimensional mailer may be the most effective way to reach their desk with your sales message. One firm recently mailed a portable DVD player in a high-end box, and enclosed a sales letter explaining that the executive could get the remote control unit (without which the player did not work) by meeting with a sales rep from the company who mailed the package. The response rate was high.

Catalog
Do you have a lot to sell? Do you need to show the color, shape or quality of your product? Mail a catalog.

Unaddressed flyer
Do you have a message that needs to reach everyone in a given geographic area, such as a business park, for the least amount of money? Consider mailing a simple 8 ˝ x 11 sheet with copy and design on one or both sides.

Email
Do you have a short sales message for your existing customers? Send them an email (with their permission, of course).

Buckslip
Do you have a short announcement for your existing customers? Do you need to remind them about something? Include a buckslip in your next mailing. A buckslip is a slip of paper the size of a dollar bill, with copy and graphics on one or both sides, that is enclosed in a mailing envelope with other materials).

Alan Sharpe is a business-to-business direct mail copywriter, lead generation specialist and publisher of "Sharpe & Direct: The B2B direct mail marketing e-newsletter." Receive a free report when you sign up at http://www.sharpecopy.com


MORE RESOURCES:

TSN

IndyCar returning to Milwaukee Mile
ESPN
AP A marketing company led by former Indy driver and current team owner Michael Andretti announced Friday it will promote a race weekend at the one-mile oval June 15-16. The race will be held Saturday afternoon, and the two-day event is expected to ...
A Saturday afternoon for IndyCar at the MileMilwaukee Journal Sentinel (blog)

all 95 news articles »


SEO Services Alert: Internet Marketing Blueprint Unveiled at 2012 AAJ Winter ...
MarketWatch (press release)
10, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- When you design your house you need an architect; when you design your lawyer Internet marketing campaign, you need an SEO architect who understands the online legal marketing industry.

and more »


BILMBA Marketing & Associates Launches 1SwingThought.com to Aid Golfers in ...
MarketWatch (press release)
10, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- BILMBA Marketing & Associates has launched a new website http://www.1SwingThought.com with a simple yet revolutionary product for golf equipment designed to help the 20+ Million golfers in America and duffers around ...

and more »


5 Ways to Market Your Brand on LinkedIn
Mashable
Linda Coles is the author of the book Learn Marketing with Social Media in 7 Days (Wiley) and is a social media speaker and consultant at Blue Banana. LinkedIn provides plenty of marketing opportunities, but lets take a look at some of the lesser-known ...

and more »


Nan Richardson Named Director of Marketing & Business Development for JG ...
MarketWatch (press release)
based commercial/retail contracting firm JG Construction as director of marketing and business development. In her new position, Ms. Richardson will be responsible for all marketing activities both internal and external, including client relations, ...

and more »


Brafton (blog)

Lead Scoring: How B2B Search Marketers Can Lead the Process
Search Engine Watch
by Derek Edmond, February 10, 2012 Comments B2B search marketing teams should step up to the forefront in lead generation initiatives in 2012. According to the 2012 B2B Marketing Benchmark report by MarketingSherpa, three of the top four challenges ...
Content Marketing is King: Are You in the 82?Exec Digital (press release)
Why content marketing is your key to B2B lead generationBrafton (blog)
Survey: Marketing resource allocation to social lagsBtoB Magazine
Business 2 Community -Econsultancy (blog) -Business Strata - Business News
all 23 news articles »


Manufacturer.com

PepsiCo to Cut 8700 Jobs, Spend More on Marketing Brands
BusinessWeek
9 (Bloomberg) -- PepsiCo Inc. plans to cut 8700 jobs and boost marketing spending for its brands by as much as $600 million as Chief Executive Officer Indra Nooyi works to speed up profit growth at the world's largest snack-food maker.
Pepsi to increase marketing spend at expense of 8700 jobsManufacturer.com
PepsiCo To Cut Jobs, Boost Marketing; Lowers 2012 ViewWall Street Journal
PepsiCo Cuts Jobs To Boost Marketing ExpensesDaily Gossip
DM News
all 590 news articles »


BancorpSouth Insurance Hires Texas Region Marketing Manager
MarketWatch (press release)
10, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- BancorpSouth Insurance Services, Inc. hired Larry D. Batie II as marketing manager for the Texas region. He previously served as account executive and assistant vice president at Marsh & McLennan Companies.

and more »


SubmitinME

Marketing Your Business With Pinterest
WebProNews
Typical marketing rules begin to apply here. The main idea is to get traffic to you. What you do with it from there is up to you. And, Pinterest is amassing a great record for getting them to your door/site. Other types of businesses that are using ...
Social Media Marketing with “Pinterest” – In and OutSubmitinME

all 90 news articles »


Pre-Opening Corn Market Report for 2/10/2012
NASDAQ
Outside market forces look negative today with a surge up in the US dollar and weakness in equity, energy and metal markets overnight. While the USDA report showed a sharp drop in South America production and a further decline in US ending stocks, ...

and more »

Google News

home | site map
© 2006