The cost of not doing it may be more!

A few weeks ago my brother’s birthday card failed to arrive. I had included it in the same envelope as his christmas card (saving postage). Even though I had sent it in plenty of time (I was quite pleased with myself) he thought I’d forgotten him. Of course, the envelope was overweighted so Royal Mail decided to put it on ‘snail mail’ instead! It did eventually arrive but very late even for Christmas. If I had used a Direct Mail service for all my cards I would have saved a fortune and they would have arrived on time.

However it is not only the increased postal charges that have affected the lower volume of mail being sentl. The internet and email has had a huge reduction on the need to post documents and really it’s only the rise in the popularity of ‘online shopping’ and Amazon that keeps the ‘Postie’ on his rounds.

Social media and online marketing has had huge growth and commercial printing has been hit drastically but to ignore the potential of Direct Mail is very short sighted. With less mail coming through the door a good Direct Mail campaign will make far more impact.

We see 3-5000 marketing messages every day but how many do we absorb?

How many make us take action?

Direct Mail offers you the ability of placing your marketing message physically into the hand of your target customer. Placing it in front of their eyes enabling your customer to digest the information at their leisure.

Direct Mail has a very powerful impact when done well.

• Attractive design is essential.
• Powerful copy and interesting text.
• Quality and weight of the printed article.

Creating the “love at first sight” syndrome

Instant recognition and instant interest is how Direct Mail gets it’s best results.

Why bother though, when your competitor is using internet marketing so well?

Shouldn’t you just step up your online marketing budget?  No one is sending mail these days…..

But if you did, while your competitor isn’t, won’t your mailing be top of the pile?

The cost of Direct Mail may seem to be detrimental but many mailing houses can save considerable amounts on normal posting costs. Sometimes almost as much as the cost of the actual printing.

Careful design plays a big part.

Recently working on a 32 page DVD direct mail catalogue, space was limited. Rather than crowd all the products together or add pages, certain items were dropped. To increase the number of pages meant an increase in postage per catalogue. Juggling the quality of the design and paper against higher posting costs needs expert advice.  Although good design and layout is essential to attract the customer’s attention and produce results, ensuring the end product is cost effective is critical.

Grammage versus Postage

While discussing a high quality, 160 page catalogue, printed by Barclays Print in London, (full colour with metallic silver throughout) I commented on the weight of paper. I was surprised it was slightly thinner than I would have expected on such high profile job. They told me that if the catalogue had been printed on the original specification of 130gsm the weight of the finished item would have increased the postage costs by £25,000. On a run of 30,000 catalogues the cost of the heavier paper would have been negligible but the extra posting costs were unbelievable.

There are not many printers who would have realised those consequences and taken that much care in their customers interests.

Direct Mail does not have to be expensive.

Done the right way Direct Mail can generate excellent results used as part of the marketing mix. One direct mail shot can add considerable support to an online campaign and vice versa. Building confidence and visibility across a variety of media enhances the chances of conversion and lead generation.

Only advertising in the yellow pages or only online is unimaginative and parochial. Take advantage of all the media around and use it in conjunction with innovative good design and your results will be more effective and more rewarding.

Written by Angie Phillips, Design Consultant - Helping you create business by creating IMPACT! Fabulous effective design that makes you say WOW! Using my expertise to promote yours. Fiercely committed to my clients and getting my hands on your assets! Always happy to offer help and advice. Promoting and helping you to grow through networking & introductions even after our work is done. #CreatingBusinessByDesign  #CreatingIMPACT  #LOVEwhatIdo

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