Notes Version: Direct Mail Fundamentals

Notes Version: Direct Mail Fundamentals

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  9/30/2011 DM Crash Course Direct Mail Advertising in Less than 60 minutes! presented by Alan Rosenspan And Keith Goodman 30-Sep-11 WHAT IS DIRECT MARKETING? “Direct Marketing is an interactive system of marketing which uses one or more advertising media to effect a measurable response and/or transaction at any location.” Direct Marketing Association 1
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  9/30/2011 DIRECT MAIL IS PROFITABLE •Each dollar spent on direct marketing yields, on average, a return on investment of $11.65 •By comparison, each dollar spent on non-DM advertising yields an ROI of $5.29 Source DMA Annual Report ADVANTAGES OF DIRECT MAIL • Convenient –It’s on your kitchen table or desk • Written record –File it, save it, show it to others. • Targeted –Mail just to the prospects most likely to buy • Measurable –You know who responded • Scalable –250 customers or 1,000,000 customers DIRECT MAIL OR EMAIL? • Email is a great tool Yes! 10%-15% Open for communicating to Rates for email… a subset of your existing customers. Should not be • Direct mail (especially confused with click through or with postcards) gives response rates! you a 100% connection with your current customers. 2
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  9/30/2011 DOES MAIL GET READ? • 92% of consumers read the mail the day they get it • What do you do when you get home? • Most people sort mail into 2 piles… Relevant Junk Mail COMMON USES OF DIRECT MAIL 1. Generating traffic to your store or website 2. Generating leads 3. Responding to competitive activity 4. Generating customer loyalty 5. Generating customer referrals 6. Special events / sales / seminars HAVE A PLAN • What do you want to accomplish? • What makes your store/product different? • What are the benefits to your customers? 3
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  9/30/2011 WILL ANYONE RESPOND? • The question we ask… “What kind of response will I get?” • The question we should ask… “What kind of response do I need?” HOW MUCH IS A “PASSENGER” WORTH? • What would you pay for a busload of customers? WHAT IS A CUSTOMER WORTH? The basic formula… Average Sale $300 Gross Profit $150 Annualized Value (2X) $300 Lifetime Value (3 years) $900 4
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  9/30/2011 WHATIS CRITICAL TO YOUR CAMPAIGN 1. Timing 2. Mailing Package 3. Copy (Text) 4. The Offer 5. The List THE LIST 40% THE WRONG LIST • Time No Response! Sensitive Offer • Relevant The Imagery Wrong • Excellent List Copy • Clear Call to Action 5
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  9/30/2011 YOUR HOUSE LIST • Your buyers and responders are your most responsive lists. • Capture relevant data. • You can profile, append and model your existing list • You cannot grow without prospecting THE KEY TO PROSPECTING Take your best customers.. Then find more that look just like them! OVER 74,000 LISTS AVAILABLE • Consumer Data - Acxiom, Experian, Equifax, InfoUSA • Business Data – - D&B, InfoUSA, Compass • Occupant Data – - Valassis, Compact Information • Specialty Data 6
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  9/30/2011 IDENTIFY PROSPECTS WITH MODELING SEE WHO YOUR CUSTOMERS ARE • Snapshot of over a dozen demographic elements • Comparison on local, state or national averages • Applicable towards media buys for other channels IDENTIFY THE MOST LIKELY PROSECTS • Automates the target list selection • Ties in the predominant demo and geo characteristics • Illustration of response rate potential and relative impact 7
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  9/30/2011 MODELED PROSPECT LIST COUNTS Provides available prospect qty, after customer file suppression, by desired geographic area and decile WEB-BASED LIST COUNTS AND ORDERING • Acxiom B2C • D&B B2B • Occupant Data • Bundled Selects • Low Minimums • FREE Counts DM AND THE 5 R’s • Relevance – Will it make the keeper pile? • Read – Do they want to find out more? • Response – Will they call you? • Revenue – Is your customer going to part with their cash? • ROI – Increased profitability because everything worked! 8
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  9/30/2011 4 KEYS TO A SUCCESSFUL PIECE Ever feel like your • Graphical treatment home mortgage is like 60 tons of – Format, Imagery, water ready to Layout crush you and your family? • The copy We can help! – Prospect pain points, Benefits, Features • The offer – We will give you… • Call to Action – All you have to do is… 7 Quick Tips Guaranteed to Improve Response 9
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  9/30/2011 1. Do OneThing Different Most direct mail is ordinary, dull, and looks like every other piece of direct mail. Do you want to blend in with everybody else, or do you want to stand out? 10
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  9/30/2011 2. Do Just One Thing  Make sure your message is single- minded  Make sure your message is relevant to your market  Make sure it breaks through the clutter The “Bed of Nails” Approach 11
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  9/30/2011 3. Add Value 1. If your direct mail package has no added value in it – then I’m probably going to ignore it 2. If the only time I ever hear from your company is when you want to sell me something… …then I’m not sure I want to hear from your company 12
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  9/30/2011 Turn your directmail package into a Fortune Cookie Make it something that people will be happy and excited to open 13
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  9/30/2011 4. Add Credibility Many other forms of advertising have a “halo” of credibility Magazine ads in Time magazine. Banner ads on websites. “As seen on TV” adds credibility Direct mail arrives naked at the door – buried in a pile of (mostly) unimportant, untargeted, unsolicited “junk” Who are you?  The first question any prospect will ever ask about your company  Explain who you are, how long you’ve been in business, how many satisfied customers you have  You may think everyone knows who you are – but they don’t 15
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  9/30/2011 Who are your customers?  Customer Lists are extremely important in B2B  They minimize the risk for business people  They give a better idea of what kind of company you are – or what kind of products and services you sell  You can’t always list them, but it’s worth trying Why should I trust you?  Testimonials are incredibly powerful – when used the right way  They should not be overwritten or over-enthusiastic  They should be localized or targeted if possible 16
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  9/30/2011 Add Extra Credibility  Be specific about your claims  Use real examples, if possible  Use numbers; they add 68.5% more credibility. They are 5X more effective. They increase response by an average of 2.3% 5. Focus on your Prospect Most direct mail focuses on a product or a company. The most effective direct mail focuses on a person. 17
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  9/30/2011 6. Improve Your Offer The fastest way to improve response is to improve your offer. Make it “an offer they can’t refuse…” 18
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  9/30/2011 Offer Guidelines  Make it an offer “money can’t buy”  Be very clear about the offer, and why it’s valuable  Build your entire direct mail package around the offer 19
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  9/30/2011 7. Always Be Testing Some companies do direct mail as part of their marketing mix. Some companies live and die by direct mail - Non-profits - Catalogs - Credit cards These companies always do extensive, continuous, comprehensive testing… 21
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  9/30/2011 IT IS ALL ABOUT ROI • Tracking your responses – Create response codes – Varying discount offers – Multiple response vehicles • Record the numbers – How many calls or visits? – How many sales? – Average order value? – Future value of your new customers? ARE YOU MAKING MONEY? 22
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  9/30/2011 THANK YOU FOR LISTENING Keith Goodman VP, Corporate Solutions Modern Postcard Phone: 800-959-8365 ext. 2059 Cell: 303-517-3119 Email: [email protected] Alan Rosenspan President Alan Rosenspan and Associates Phone: 781-784-8283 Email: [email protected] 23