Digital marketing has earned its spot as a popular way of building brand awareness and connecting with your target audience, but digital marketing is by no means the only way you should be connecting with consumers.
Traditional marketing methods, including direct mail printing, also deserve a prominent place in your marketing strategy. Let’s look at three ways direct mail marketing can enhance your other marketing efforts.
People don’t spend all their time and attention in the digital world, so neither should your marketing. You want to reach people everywhere they operate, from social media to their email inboxes to their letterboxes at home.
Consider this scenario: A consumer sees a few ads for an online retailer across their social media feeds. They’re interested, so they browse the website and sign up for emails to get a promo code. They receive some emails from the brand highlighting certain products and reminding them about the items they looked at or added to their cart. They also see a billboard for the retailer during their commute, hear a radio ad, or receive a postcard in their mailbox from the retailer highlighting an upcoming sale.
This combination of touchpoints can ensure an interested consumer doesn’t have a chance to forget about your brand. Adding more touchpoints across any marketing channel can help you make a stronger impression overall. Marketing research shows that response rates rise with each touchpoint, especially up to eight touchpoints.
Your digital marketing and direct mail can work together to drive home your messaging and help you achieve your marketing goals, whether that’s to increase brand awareness, convert prospects, or reengage existing customers.
Compared to other types of messaging, direct mail offers a unique advantage: It’s tangible. That means, in a world where digital messaging has become ubiquitous and even overwhelming at times, direct mail can feel more “real” to many people compared to digital ads.
You can give your direct mail even more relevance in the real world by including something the person can use rather than just a message to read once and then discard. Here are a few examples to consider.
Over three-quarters of consumers say they would try a new brand if they received a coupon. That percentage is even higher for millennials (89 percent) and Gen X shoppers (86 percent)! Including a detachable coupon to a direct mailer can be a great way to pull recipients into your business or get them to take advantage of a promo code online.
Grocery stores, kitchen stores, and more can include recipes on their direct mailers, either printed directly onto the mailer or included as a detachable card. Highlight some ingredients or gadgets you sell in the recipe, and include a picture to get your recipients’ mouths watering. A delicious recipe is a great way to delight customers and give them positive associations with your brand.
Want to help customers find your business location? Include a map to the store on your direct mailers. You may be surprised to learn that, even among people between the ages of 18 and 29, 46 percent don’t regularly use GPS navigation on their phones. Customers who want a little help finding you without using a GPS app will love having a helpful guide on hand.
These are just a few ways you can turn your direct mailers into tangible takeaways, but that’s not all. Fragrance samples, detachable bookmarks, fridge magnets, and more can all make your direct mailers unique and engaging. Want to encourage recipients to interact with your brand online? Include a connection to the digital world in your direct mail, whether it’s a QR code, a promo code, or your social media handles.
Personalization is paramount if you want to make meaningful connections with consumers and help them feel like your band really “gets” them. You can—and should—get personal with all your marketing channels, but direct mail lends itself especially well to a personalized feel.
Imagine the difference between getting a text from someone you care about checking in and getting a card from them in your mailbox. Even if the message is the same, most people will find that handwritten card to be a more sincere and personalized method of communication.
Likewise, when someone gets an ad in their mailbox with their name on it and products or services that genuinely appeal to them, they’ll feel a stronger connection with your brand versus receiving generic marketing messages in other places. They may even continue to associate that personal feel with other ads they see from your brand in other channels.
There are several ways you can get personal with your direct mail marketing. It all starts with obtaining solid data to help you understand your recipients. Beyond just basic demographic information, you should also track buying behaviors and interests so you can recommend relevant products or services.
To put your data into action, use practical tools like adaptive templates and variable data printing. This way, you can personalize each direct mail piece and handle this personalization at scale without it slowing you down.
Direct mail can be a powerful tool on its own, and it can complement your other marketing campaigns by connecting with consumers in more places, in more practical ways, and in more personal ways.
Want to learn more about personalized marketing through direct mail and other channels? Download our eBook, The Customer Experience Just Got More Personal.