In a world where digital marketing has become the go-to for many companies, it’s important to ask the question whether direct mail marketing is still relevant? In short, the answer is yes. But it’s important to note that the best way to keep direct mail marketing relevant is by utilising the data received from customers and consumers to create a relevant and responsive marketing campaign.
Direct mail will only work if it is in line with your marketing strategy. We specialise in campaign management from concept to completion, and understand the importance of a comprehensive marketing campaign to build trust and brand awareness.
Here’s our top things to consider when choosing direct mail marketing as part of your marketing strategy:
Ask yourself why and how it will benefit your business
Anyone can print a direct mail piece, but as a business, it’s important to ask yourself why?
Why are you printing it?
Why will it help with your marketing campaign?
Why does it need to be sent to A to Z?
Why does it need to include A and B?
Asking yourself these questions helps to improve your marketing strategy to give you a better indication of the wants and needs of your consumer and how that can in turn lead to better response rates and further custom.
Link it to your wider marketing campaign strategies
Direct mail won’t necessarily be the only form of marketing you are using in your overall campaign, so be sure you link everything back to each other. You might find certain customers immediately delete their emails, whilst a DM piece might gain more traction.
You might also find customers who receive a DM piece might then respond via electronic channels. So, it’s always important to link your brand, product or service effectively in order to track back to your overall messaging.
Become the data – maximise your response rates
The data you collect is one of the most important elements of any marketing strategy. By utilising it correctly, you can determine your audience response rates to direct mail and electronic marketing. In turn, you can use it to cross-check your consumer database and send a DM piece to a potential customer who hasn’t responded via email.
You can also utilise first-party data to track who your demographic is, where they are located geographically and what their purchases and interests are to help you to produce more relevant messaging and gain better traction with them.
Add personalisation for greater engagement
By utilising your data, your direct mail marketing will be more creative than just adding a recipient’s name and address. You’ll find that when you add further personalisation based on demographic, geographic and personal preferences you will get greater engagement from your audience. Consider creating interchangeable imagery or products based on location or age to gain greater response rates from your consumers.
Of course, this level of personalisation does require a lot more work and time, but the outcome results in a more relevant piece of direct mail, increased custom and is the future for effective marketing campaigns.
Work with Birch
Whilst there is a danger that direct mail becomes an afterthought in your overall marketing campaign, the best way to keep direct mail marketing relevant is to combine the data and marketing strategies with DM pieces.
This will help you identify, target, and message more effectively, leading to an enriched marketing campaign, with more relevant DM that proves useful to your customers and profitable for your brand, product or service.
If you’re looking for some help or inspiration with your next DM piece or are looking for advice with your marketing campaign, we would love to hear from you!
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