The availability of digital technology for gathering, analyzing, and storing information, combined with the efficiency of digital printing, has greatly expanded the ability of businesses and organizations of any size to reach out to customers and prospects with a customized message. This ability, called one-to-one marketing, is very different from the one-to-many marketing messages of traditional media.
In one-to-many marketing, the same content is sent to the entire audience, who are assumed to share an interest in the content being sent. In contrast, one-to-one marketing sends a custom message to each individual in the audience, often producing a response of “How did they know I was interested in that?!”
The process for conducting one-to-one marketing is called variable data printing (VDP).
Use of social media sites has exploded in the last seven years. In February 2005, the Pew Research Center conducted the first of six surveys as part of the Internet & American Life Project. In 2005, only 2% of adults who use the Internet were using a social media site.That number increased to 16% in 2006, 29% in 2008, 46% in 2009, 61% in 2010 and 65% in 2011.
Who are these users?
According to a Morgan Stanley report issued in December 2009, 67% of 18-34 year olds use a social networking site – and so do 67% of 45-54 year old and 55% of those aged 55+. In 2007, social networking represented about 1 out of every 12 minutes spent online, while today it accounts for 1 out of every 6 minutes spent online.
Along with this growth, social media sites have evolved from purely personal to commercial use – a way for people to connect to a business and its fans. Businesses find they can use social media sites for marketing purposes, such as engaging in a dialogue with customers, building brand awareness, making offers or providing premiums, coupons or samples, and alerting customers to upcoming promotions or product launches (sneak previews).
Direct mail is still relevant
Does the popularity of social networking sites mean that businesses and organizations can drop direct mail as a marketing tool?
What’s your opinion of direct mail marketing versus e-mail and social media as a marketing tool?
• Do you see e-mail, Facebook, and Twitter as today’s relevant marketing strategies, replacing direct mail marketing?
• Are you convinced that most customers and prospects view marketing mail as junk mail?
• Did you try direct mail marketing once, with disappointing results?
If so, you may be surprised to learn that a large body of research supports the fact that direct mail marketing remains an effective marketing tool and that it is enhanced, not supplanted, by e-mail and social media. It’s not that direct mail is dead – it’s that single-channel communication is dead.
A few months ago in this newsletter we introduced you to the power of combining traditional direct mail marketing with web-based communication, and provided supporting research for the concept. Since then, new research has been published, providing even more evidence for the idea that print remains a viable and valuable part of any marketing campaign.
FedEx Office, in conjunction with the Ketchum Global Research Network and Braun Research, conducted the third annual Sign of the Times small business survey in spring 2010. The survey respondents were small business owners employing 5 to 100 employees and whose companies generate over $100,000 in annual revenue; over 500 interviews were completed. Survey results include:
• 87% of survey respondents indicated that printed marketing and advertising tools are somewhat to very effective in driving customers to their businesses.
• 57% of owners aged 18-34 believe in the power of flyers and brochures – more than their older counterparts (47%).
In addition, 44% of respondents said they plan to increase communication with existing and potential customers via a printed piece – a newsletter or direct mail.
If you’ve been reading our most recent newsletters, you’ll notice a theme – that traditional direct mail and e-mail work best together. Both have their place in a marketer’s tool kit, neither cancels the need for the other, and the two may even work symbiotically, as when a post card is sent offering a premium if the recipient provides an e-mail address.
While we acknowledge the growing importance of web-based communication to reach customers and prospects, computers and mobile wireless devices like smartphones cannot by themselves reach everyone in a business’s or organization’s target market. That could change as the use of mobile wireless devices spreads (which is happening rapidly). But until that time, traditional direct mail still has valuable place as a marketing tool.
Traditional direct mail is a good choice for some audiences (such as an older demographic whose adoption of web-based communications may be lagging younger audiences) and for anyone who clearly states a preference for direct mail.
Traditional direct mail is also a good choice for businesses and organizations whose target audience is local. Sustaining member campaigns, fundraisers and financial support appeals by community-based non profits are a good example where outreach by traditional direct mail to the homes of donors is likely to outperform web- based appeal.
Anticipating the addition of, or even the switch to web-based communication, businesses and organizations are collecting e-mail addresses and starting permission-based newsletters and blogs. But until that task is complete, traditional direct mail could be the only way to reach a customer or prospect.
Amid the ongoing debate about whether direct mail or e-mail is the best method to market to customers and prospects, very little is being said about the one thing that is crucial to the success of both – the message. Unless the message is relevant to the audience and persuasively presented, it doesn’t matter how it is delivered. So while the discussion about direct mail versus e-mail continues, focus on developing good content and honing your writing skills.
Why market with mail?
The objective of both direct and e-mail marketing is to persuade a customer or prospect to take action, either now or later. When a seller consistently and regularly sends a communication such as a mailed post card or a newsletter (either mailed or web-based), a buyer is more likely at a future time to take the action desired by the seller. In other words, direct or e-mail marketing is less about an immediate sale than about positioning the business or organization to be top-of-mind when the potential buyer is ready to make a purchase.
This is especially important in business-to- business selling where the sell cycle is often long (especially when compared to business-to- consumer), and it is hard to stimulate demand. Direct mail is also important during an economic downturn when either budgetary constraints or the unwillingness of the purchaser to spend money creates a long sell cycle for both businesses and consumers.
If you’re a regular reader of Printips, you know we strongly believe in the power of direct mail marketing as a way to build business. Keeping your company or organization’s name in front of customers helps to reinforce their decision to use your products and services; for prospects, it creates name recognition; and for both groups it builds top of mind awareness for your brand.
The success of any direct mail marketing campaign is determined by three factors: the quality of the mail piece itself; the offer; and the mailing list. Of these, the mailing list is significantly more important than the other two. In fact, the Direct Marketing Association attributes 60% of the success of a mailing to the list itself and just 20% each to the mailer and the offer.
Direct marketing is an outreach to consumers or businesses that is designed to generate a response: an order, a request for further information, or a visit to a business. Direct marketing is effective because it can be targeted at a specific audience; it arouses interest; and its results can be measured. When done properly, direct marketing creates a relationship with an existing or potential customer.
The word direct denotes that the marketing outreach is straight to the intended recipient, without the use of third party media such as newspaper, magazine, or television advertising. Although some direct marketing outreach is in the form of door hangers, package inserts, broadcast FAX, telemarketing, or e-mail, the most prevalent means of reaching consumers or businesses is by using the mail.
Direct mail is a very popular way to market a company’s products or services. We have helped many customers design and print effective direct mail marketing pieces.
But here is something you may not know – the success of any direct mail marketing campaign is more dependent on the mailing list than on any other factor. You can verify this for yourself with a simple hypothetical example. Suppose the owner of a pizza parlor mailed a post card that looked just exactly like a delicious pepperoni pizza and offered a pizza for free just for returning the card. That would seem to automatically guarantee a high response rate. But suppose the mail list used for the mailing was comprised only of vegetarians – a sure case of a great mailing to a bad list.