7 Reasons Why Snail Mail Still Works

In business when choosing how to market our products or services we are confronted with so many choices of marketing tools and channels and as a result it can be difficult to know which one/s will deliver the results we desire and need to ensure the continuity of our businesses.

What’s even worse, recently in a conversation with a potential new client, he told me that they find it that overwhelming to a point that they had just continued to do they same thing they have done year in and year out in the past. I am sure you have heard something to the effect that “if you do what you always did, then you will always get what you always got!”

Every business may have one marketing tool or better yet (actually I believe a necessity) a mix of marketing tools that has and does deliver results. The question is, is Direct Mail one of them?

Proven results show that old school direct mail campaigns is still going strong and should be a part of that mix.

Put aside what the doom sayers are preaching about print and direct mail being a dead marketing channel, break away from the heard, did you know that even a basic direct mail marketing with all the right elements can be more effective than ever and even produce better results than some other digital channels. Here are just 7 reasons why direct mail still stands out in our digital marketing age:

1
With the rapid growth of online marketing and especially then combined with the situation that some businesses in your industry who have possibly shifted largely or even completely away from Direct Mail campaigns there is less competition today in peoples mail boxes than there was yesterday. Generally people only have one mail box and not numerous filters and redirections to other folders or inboxes that even I have set up in my email, so even with a good but basic mail piece you have more opportunity to stand out from the crowd.
2
Direct Mail is physical, your prospect and or client can touch, feel and even smell a direct mail piece. They can sit it on their desk, put it in their in-box, stick it to their fridge, put it on the kitchen bench and save if for later. How quickly does an email disappear in the digital inbox never to be seen again, or what’s worse even be seen in the first place if the spam police pick it up? Same can be said for banner advertisements on websites.
3
Direct mail is still a very trusted by recipients
4
Direct mail is generally still viewed as less intrusive by people, as they can choose to view it when and where they want. As opposed to some other forms of marketing which works on an interruption approach , this results in them generally being more receptive and providing you with greater opportunity to capture and retain their attention.
5
You can target your audience very precisely.
6
You can make your campaign as big or small as you want to ensure you can handle the business that a powerful campaign may generate with direct mail. Or you can even start by doing a small campaign either as budget allows and or to test before you invest more money and roll it out.
7
Digital printing now means that you can supercharge your direct mail and make it even more powerful with personalisation (for more see my blog on Cross Media Marketing) which is proven to capture, engage and retain a prospects or clients attention, what’s more effect results.
8
You can target your offline clients or prospects and direct them to your online initiatives.

All right, that was 8 but there are plenty more reasons to consider Snail mail, just think about it, you may have even received a direct mail piece from one of the online giants like Google who have put out Direct Mail Campaigns recently encouraging small businesses to take up Good Adwords accounts.

For most of us in business we need to generate an tangible outcome, let’s be honest we need to generate some business primarily as it needs to be more than just a branding exercise, as with any marketing channel, there are some rules to follow to help you generate positive results. Here is a snapshot of what you need can include:

1
Identify your ideal clients and really know who your target audience is.
2
Create a headline that resonates with the prospect and or client that grabs their attention.
3
Have a great incentive / offer that encourages them to take a next step, this does not mean an insane discount unless of course you have some stock or something you are prepared to move at any cost. It can mean providing a fantastic value add offer or directing them to some free but value adding content that helps them solve a problem.
4
Have a great call to action
5
Have some great visuals and a good overall look and feel to your design
6
You also need to be tracking your results so have a unique offer to the particular campaign, specific offer codes, and or even a specific phone number to ring or person within your business to ask for.

Remember there is no silver bullet in marketing so continue to improve your campaigns by testing, measuring and modifying future campaigns based on the results from your previous campaigns.

Just because time is short, there is no reason to miss an opportunity to promote your business!

Cheers

Tom Dickson

7 Reasons Why Snail Mail Still Works

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