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Friday, May 16, 2008

Different Strategies in Direct Mail Marketing

Direct mail is an advertising strategy that is very effective and easy to keep track of the success of the marketing campaign. Direct mailing campaigns are much more personal and more targeted as compared to a radio or television advertisement which covers a much more broad area but it is not a focused area. In other words, you might be advertising to a million people but penetrating only 1%. Direct mail postcards have the advantage when it comes to price as they are a lot less expensive but the amount of information that you can put on a postcard is limited so you have to be very selective in your wording and make each word count.

Many direct mail advertisements can be very effective if you follow the rules that have been proven to work such as keeping your message simple yet strong. One way to put a time restraint on your direct mailing is to offer the customer something but make sure that the offer includes an expiration date which forces them to make a move within a specific time frame. Free offers have a tendency to entice customers and make sure that the free offer is clearly visible. If you decide not to use a postcard and instead have chosen a direct mailing in the form of a letter enclosed in an envelope then the free offer should be stated on the outside of the envelope and clearly visible. In the letter itself you need to be sure that you take full advantage of the heading and the first line or two because odds are that is as far as they will read.

Try to use direct mailings in smaller sequences rather than one huge campaign. This way they are easier to keep track of and see your ROI. One thing is certain and that is regardless of which type of direct mailing you opt for you had better make sure that it is attractive and quite an eye catcher. Remember that direct mailing is not going to seal any deals but rather just a step in the right direction towards building the customer relationship, which is where the profit lies. So of course this type of advertising campaign is going to require stringent follow-up. It is very important to make sure before you start mailing anything that you are working from a good list that is updated and current. You can further reduce the costs of direct mailing strategies by merging in on incorporating your direct mail with three of four other businesses. It cuts costs but also reduces your visibility so keep that in mind before you attempt that strategy.

Other forms of direct mail marketing include catalogs, self mailers, poly bag packages, snap mailers, dimensional mailers, and intelligent mailers. These are all options that should be considered when you are planning your direct mail strategies in order to make it successful and prosperous. Weigh out the advantages against the very few disadvantages. The advantages include targeting, personalization, optimization, analysis, and accumulation. Disadvantages include cost, waste, and alienation.

MBI Direct Mail was founded in 1989 and is home of the industry-leading 24 hour turnaround time. They feature Direct Mail Printing services, Direct Marketing Mailing List services, and Mailing Management services. Check out the list of services on their homepage http://www.Directmail-MBI.com

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