Best practice for direct mail marketing

Michael Lundberg

Yes, in this age of ultra-technology, direct mail marketing is showing no sign of being out-dated. It’s still regarded as the most effective marketing tool. But yes, direct mail has transformed immensely from sending postcards, fliers, pamphlets, catalogues - it has evolved to send relevant content and personalised direct mails.

All successful direct mail campaigns are run on five best practices in direct mail campaigns, as mentioned below:

Best Practice #1: Target customisation and personalisation

Send a relevant message at the right time to the right customers and prospects by using customer segmentation and profiling, as this makes your recipients more likely to connect and generate qualified leads. Optimise your direct mail marketing campaigns by using an updated and verified mailing list, and track the response rates based on your customers’ behaviour or buying patterns. Target your customers with customisation and personalisation depending on their socio-economic demographics, lifestyle attributes, and geo-location and buying patterns. Send direct mail messages using recipient’s correct and full name, along with highlighting sections of the catalogue which are relevant to your customers’ interest.

Best Practice #2: Include ‘direct Mail’ in all marketing campaigns

Make sure that you do not forget to include direct marketing in your overall 360-degree marketing campaigns, along with digital marketing. Do make optimum use of your mailing address and send out multiple marketing campaigns in sync with your direct mail communication. Get email addresses of your direct mail recipients and email them an online coupon codes, sale offers using related or similar images to your social media and direct mail campaigns. This will give your customers and prospects a signal that they are on the same page of communication.

Best Practice #3: Add effective calls-to-action words

Just like digital marketing campaigns, even your direct mail messages must contain effective calls-to-action (CTAs). These CTAs should be short, crisp, and yet compelling enough for your readers to take some action, like using the code given, visit your social media profile, or send an enquiry through an email. Not only in digital marketing, but also in direct mail marketing, catchy CTAs bring maximum response rates and business opportunities.

Best Practice #4: Give more than one way to respond

Make sure that you provide more than one way for your message recipients to respond. Create a hassle-free preference for customers to respond, which includes as many ways to respond. Apart from your business mailing address also mention another point of contact information like QR Code, coupon code, scratch card, official website, and social media URLs with icons and username, email address, and contact numbers.

Best Practice #5: Give complete information

The way your customers or prospects read a message on an email is different than they read in direct mail. Direct mails have more room to place marketing content in an effective manner. Ensure that your message content is focused on customers highlighting the benefits they get on buying it, rather than only the features of your products and services. Also, its great way to flaunt what your loyal and regular customer has to say about your company and its products in ‘testimonials’. These authentic testimonials (along with pictures) are very effective and generate qualified leads. These physical mails give better and complete information about company and products.

These top five best practices are different ways to achieve  marketing goals by providing enough options for customers to respond or act on our marketing messages. A key to successful direct mail marketing is to have complete, correct and clean customer databases, as without that either a message will be undelivered, or contain content which your recipients may find irrelevant. With a high-quality mailing address database, you can launch an effect direct mail campaign by sending relevant and personalised messages to your customers and prospects.