10 Direct Marketing Tips

1. Mailing Frequency
   DO NOT mail one-time, mailing frequency and the timing of your mailings is crucial to the success of a direct mail campaign. Consider this item when establishing your direct mail budget. It may be a better use of your marketing dollars to mail to 10,000 prospects two-times versus 20,000 once. We have some examples of very effective postcard mailings that successfully utilized this technique.
   
   
2. Offer, Offer, Offer
   Don't get weak on me now! Give people a reason to call you, now! Also consider testing various offers against each other. We can provide test and control group options, as well as different sets of copy, often at NO additional cost. Present a strong offer, your competitors are! The direct mail marketplace is getting crowded, stand out, be different, get aggressive!
   
   
3. Strong Copy: There Is Too Much "Blah! Blah!" Advertising
   You are trying to generate results, not develop great works of art or write a novel. Get your point across succinctly and effectively, generate quality leads and or sales. If the piece looks great but does not produce results, to us, it is a direct failure! There are proven techniques in the design of a direct response pieces, call us and we can discuss some ideas that have worked for our clients.
   
   
4. Establish a Schedule, Get Ahead of the Curve
   Many direct mailings go out late! Pre-plan for all of the components for your project, then add two weeks! When mailing 3rd class, the United States Postal Service can take up to two-weeks to get your piece to the addressee. Printers can be busy and cost you an extra few days, account for this. Depending on the type of piece and the printer used, steps such as folding, addressing data processing, etc. can cost you time. The graphic design portion can take much longer than you may have originally planned for. A typical direct mail campaign will take between 21-30 days from concept to delivery.
   
   
5. Involve the Reader
   Ask a provocative question! Get the prospect involved! Be BOLD with your copy, willing to be different, anyone can produce boring direct mail ads. Take a look at your mail at home or business, you receive this every day! Direct mail can be fun, and very profitable to your business. Use of four-color printing, graphic design and artwork can combine to create a great solo direct mail campaign.
   
   
6. Keep It Simple
   Forget "Keep It Simple Stupid" or "Keep It Simple" or "Simple Stupid". How about just... SIMPLE! Some really effective ads are quite simple in their design and execution. This can be especially effective if mailing to a client or prospect several times in a short time-period, consider making one of the messages, maybe the first, really unique and simple. Great graphic design work is clean—and effective.
   
   
7. Use the "F" & "G" Words—They Work!
   "Free" and "guaranteed" are two of the strongest words in the direct response business, how can you use them effectively in your ad copy? Do you offer a guarantee, if not, should you be? What do you, or can you, offer for free? In the direct response business, results is all that matters.We have never begun a direct mail project for a client with the goal of winning a design award!
   
   
8. Invest in Your Customers so Your Customers DON'T Invest in Your Competition
   If you don't have a customer database, start developing one now! We can help you in this area. If you have a customer database, how effectively are you using it, how often? What is your strategy to keeping your customers as your customers? Direct mail, quite often using postcards, is a great way to stay connected with your customers.
   
   
9. The Web
   What is your online strategy? Do you have a website? Is it current? Is this an important part of your overall marketing strategy? Do you have the e mail addresses of your customers? If so, are you using it? The Web offers a new, diverse and different audience that will have an ever-increasing impact on your business. Have a plan to maximize this for your business. Many Vision Media, Inc. clients use targeted direct mail to drive traffic to their website.
   
   
10. Know Your Target Customer
    Do you really know who your ideal customer is? Who is the most profitable? What are the common attributes of your best, current customers? We can help you in this area, then identify prospects that best match that profile. One of the biggest advantages to solo direct mail is the ability to target on a one-to-one relationship basis, compared to more broad-brush marketing or advertising options.