6 DO’S AND DON’TS OF DIRECT MAIL

In today’s economy, no one wants to waste money…especially on your direct mail marketing. Our six dos and don’ts of direct mail marketing will ensure that you don’t waste a penny!

DON’T: CLUTTER YOUR DIRECT MAIL

There’s nothing worse than an overwhelming direct mailer littered with words, taglines, figures and percentages, exclamation marks, bold statements, and multiple calls to action. Talk about distracting! The goal is to keep your flyers, postcards, newsletters, sales letters, and other direct mail pieces as neat and clean as your website, although scaled down to “mailer” size. Rather than trying to include it all, choose wisely when it comes to images, what you decide to place in bold, the amount of information you include, and the number of exclamation points you add. Use these pointers to cut down:

1. Include no more than 1-2 images per page. If you’re sending a flyer or postcard, stick to one standout image.
2. Decide on one exclamation mark, if at all. Where marketing is concerned, exclamation marks are used to center the focus on something exciting. If you use more than one, you defeat that purpose and risk overwhelming people.
3. Avoid the inclination to use multiple fonts in effort to “highlight” various information. Instead, stick to one or two fonts, and experiment with the size and degree of your font (a.k.a. light, bold, thin, italicized, etc.)
4. Eliminate extraneous information that can easily be found on your website.
5. Employ a freelance graphic designer if you don’t know your way around design software or have difficulty balancing your ideas, fonts, or images.
6. Keep the focus on your main objective. Which brings us to…

DO: UNDERSTAND YOUR TRUE OBJECTIVE FOR YOUR DIRECT MAIL

We’ve all received more than one direct mailer muddled with chunks of disconnected information with no central focus. Try to market new web store additions, a special event, and an upcoming sale all at once, and you’ll immediately overwhelm your recipients, landing yourself and all of your good intentions in their circular files.

The key to an effective direct mail piece that delivers results is to choose one main objective and include a call to action and details that adhere to this singular goal. If you effectively drive your audience to your website or place of business, they’ll quickly realize you have a multitude of positive happenings in addition to your main objective—so there’s really no need to cram everything but the kitchen sink on your direct mail piece.

DON’T: DESIGN WITHOUT YOUR AUDIENCE IN MIND

Keep your recipients’ needs and wants in mind as you design your direct mail piece and hone your objective. A predominantly older audience may not connect with an image of a younger model, while a people under 50 strongly prefer contact methods other than having to “Call Now.” Scannable QR codes might confuse Baby Boomers, but they have the power to drive hoards of younger Gen Xers and Millennials to your site. “Hip” language will land your younger prospects, but potentially alienate those of a more mature age. If you’re in a different demographic group than many of those on your mailing list, request feedback on your layout and wording from people in your targeted demographic. And don’t be afraid to send different mailers to different audiences; if you’re having difficulty creating a “one-size-fits-all” direct mail piece, it might be for a reason!

DO: PROOFREAD!

This one seems pretty obvious, but imagine the horror of sending hundreds or thousands of flyers and either forgetting or misspelling an important event date, your website URL, or important contact information. For this reason, it’s critical to compile a direct mail check-off list that you go through at least twice, with two different sets of eyes. Include the following in your list:

1. Did you remember to include your website? Is it spelled correctly?
2. Is your preferred method of contact included, easy to find, and correct?
3. Are your office or special sale/event hours and times listed correctly?

DON’T: SEND A DIRECT MAIL PIECE WITHOUT VALUE

Research proves time and time again the effectiveness of direct mail across all age groups. Direct mail is much more personal and they can’t be spammed or deleted. But they can be tossed in the trash if you don’t provide the people on your mailing list with something of value, such as a special discount code, exclusive invitation, a rebate, or a giveaway. Make it worth their time to retain your mailer and add you to their list of contacts or things to do. Speaking of time, your mailer should focus on a limited offer, so your recipients are incited to take immediate action or add your deadline to their smartphone calendars. An ongoing offer is an open invitation to forget about you quickly.

DO: USE A REPUTABLE PRINTER

Choosing the right printer can make or break your entire direct mail marketing campaign. Imagine investing time, effort, and money into your mailers only to discover you’ve missed an important deadline or failed to catch an embarrassing typo that will be seen by hundreds or thousands of readers. Choose a printer like Dazzle Printing that offers the following guarantees:

1. The convenience of working with the same consistent customer service rep who understands your needs, concerns, and deadlines from the first point of contact. Your assigned rep will also personally check your final proof to ensure that everything looks sharp and according to plan.
2. Quick turnaround. Don’t risk sending your direct mailers to a fly-by-night printer that takes multiple days to respond and, heaven forbid, weeks to complete your order. At Dazzle Printing, we print and your order in just two days (no more than four days for multipage documents) and respond to your questions quickly via online chat, email, or phone—whatever works for you.
3. Low prices with the ability to order the exact amount you need. Why pay for 50 copies when you need 44? At Dazzle Printing, you don’t have to!
4. A money-back guarantee. At Dazzle Printing, if you aren’t satisfied with your shipment, we’ll refund your order.
5. Consistently Awesome Testimonials. Life is about taking risks…except when it comes to your printer. Why take a chance on a ho-hum printer when you can choose a reputable company like Dazzle Printing with consistently great feedback?

Call us today and ask how we can help you!