“Direct Mail” is one of the most effective marketing tools available. For Direct Mail to Work (DMLw) to work it must reach the targeted recipients in sufficient time. Time means money. If you send a letter that gets lost in the mail or is promptly neglected then your potential client may view your product or service as not important to them. While direct mailing can still be an important tool for any business it is much more effective when used by small businesses or personal clients.
One of the first considerations you should make when designing direct mailing marketing materials is who you want to reach. For example if you are mailing to business owners then the focus is probably on profit. You want to design your printed marketing materials with your business in mind and consider things such as font style, stock photos, graphics design, and colored text.
If you are a personal client then your goals will be different than a business. When you direct mail a marketing letter to a personal client you want to make sure that the printed marketing materials you use reflect your personality. This does not mean that your graphics design is not important; it just means that you want to make sure that the colors you use are something that is personal to you. Some of the most popular colors for direct mailing are bold reds, pinks, and blues.
One thing that many direct mailing services forget to think about is their customer’s privacy. You may have seen many examples on television of the person being advertised, but in real life there are many things that can be done to ensure that the real information is on the direct mailing letter. For instance if you are mailing to a potential customer you should know that they might be looking at their telephone bill, white paper, or receipts. To ensure that you don’t violate the privacy of your customers you should request that you can have a printing company print out the information that is on the envelopes for you. This way you will know that you are not breaking the law by passing along information that a potential customer would find to be unprofessional.
The next aspect to direct mail targeting your target market is to choose your distribution method. One of the most effective ways to gain exposure is with bulk mailers. However if you are trying to reach a highly concentrated area you may want to consider using hand fliers or postcards. Hand fliers are also very affordable and work well for a local market. Postcards are more expensive, but are targeted better because they are mailed to a larger area.
Direct mail campaigns are a great way to generate traffic to websites. The cost is very low and the results can be very dramatic. But remember that even though direct mailing campaigns are inexpensive, if they are not put together correctly you could be wasting your money. Use a professional direct mailing company or printing company to do your direct mailing campaign and you will be guaranteed to see results. A good direct mailing company will know how to design the right mailers and make sure you get the best chance for success.