Expand Your Outreach with Print Newsletters

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nl-rgb“Print is still the most portable medium for most people, and it’s the preferred way to read large documents (three or four pages and up). Print also gives you total control over the look and feel of your message, which is extremely important when image is a critical component of your program.”         Don Sadler / BrainTrust

One of the oldest and most effective ways to stay in touch with your existing customers, prospects, and members is with printed newsletters. Arriving by snail mail, they contain valuable, information-rich content and are an effective complement to online promotions. They also serve niche markets where print is a preferred format. Due to the decrease in postal mail, print newsletters stand out, unlike online newsletters that tend to get lost in email boxes.

Many businesses understand the value of direct mail as a marketing tool. But have you ever considered the value of a newsletter as a sales-related publication? A newsletter can help your business or non-profit organization generate new business or increase membership, cultivate customer and member loyalty, increase repeat sales or continued giving, and boost referrals.

How can a newsletter accomplish all these objectives? By communicating useful information in an easy-tounderstand format. And when we say useful information, we mean not only facts, tips, and expert advice, but also new product or service information.

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Professional Writing Fundamentals

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writerThe time to begin an article is when you have finished it to your satisfaction. By that time you begin to clearly and logically perceive what it is you really want to say.
Mark Twain

The ability to write effective copy is an important skill to acquire if you are part of your company or organization’s marketing team. In this issue we will discuss the characteristics of effective copy and reveal some techniques to improve your skills.

Effective marketing copy has an accepted form which is in three parts:

  • a headline or attention-grabbing first sentence
  • the development of the sales pitch
  • a call to action

Whether you are writing a sales letter, ad copy, a brochure, or a direct mail marketing piece, the same three parts will always be present.

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A Guide to Postcard Marketing

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postcard-cmyk“Postcards are the simplest, most cost-effective format available. They’re an excellent choice for making an announcement or driving customers to a store, website, or event.”

United States Postal Service

A postcard is one of the most versatile, inexpensive, and effective tools you can have in your marketing tool kit. Compared to the effort and cost of a brochure or a traditional direct mail package mailed in an envelope, a postcard is quick, easy, and a great way to stretch your marketing budget. In addition, some kinds of postcards will help you keep your mailing list updated.

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Content Marketing: What’s Old is New Again

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marketing-cmyk“Content Marketing is the Only Marketing Left”        Seth Godin

Content marketing is certainly not new. It is generally accepted that one of the first businesses to use content marketing effectively was John Deere in the late 1800s. In 1895 John Deere started publishing the magazine titled The Furrow in order to provide farmers with a resource of practical information that would increase their success. At the same time, it helped establish John Deere as the expert on all things related to farming. The magazine is still printed today in 12 languages and distributed in 40 countries.

For the same reason, companies both large and small are now embracing the concept of content marketing to deliver practical and relevant information to their customers. The emphasis on useful and relevant information means that customers and prospects are becoming increasingly sensitive to bias and deceit, demanding transparency from businesses. Rather than relying on advertising alone, customers are reading reviews and comments of those who have a personal experience of the product, service, or the business itself – often without knowing much about the reviewer.

All this leads to the need for today’s businesses to adopt a new marketing strategy. Content marketing consists of focusing on creating and distributing information that a specific target audience will find pertinent and engaging. Rather than emphasizing the features and benefits of a product or service, content marketing is communicating without direct selling. It is providing information that educates your customers and prospects so they can make better buying decisions. It is giving control to customers rather than businesses.

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Maximizing the Advantages of the USPS Direct Mail Program

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DirectMail-CMYKIn an effort to help businesses reach new prospects, the United States Postal Service (USPS) launched their Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM) program in March 2011, and it has grown steadily over the years. The service allows you to focus on your surrounding neighborhoods as a way to expand your customer base. According to the April 2010 BizReport, average consumers spend 85% of their disposable income within five miles of their homes — which means your best customers may be very nearby.

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Press Releases that Grab Attention

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pressrelease-cmykSuppose that your business or organization has just purchased a new piece of equipment or has just launched a new service, and it’s time to get the word out. A multi-faceted approach usually works best. This might include taking out ads in newspapers or trade journals, sending out a direct-mail package or postcard, or utilizing social media. But one of the most effective methods is sending out a news release. Traditional printed press releases remain one of the best ways to get the news to the right audience, at the right time, very inexpensively.

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Brochure Content & Design Fundamentals

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Reading Medical PamphletA brochure is a descriptive piece of literature used for promoting your business or organization. It is one of the most important and fundamental components of marketing literature for businesses and organizations. Typically the first item produced after the letterhead, envelopes, and business cards, its purpose is to put a targeted message in the hands of prospects that is portable, easy to store, and easily passed on to others.

A printed brochure is an integral part of the sales process. It serves as a leave-behind after a sales call or meeting with prospective customers. It is also used as a way to respond to inquiries or to introduce new products or services when cold calling. As part of a direct mail campaign, it can be sent with a sales letter or used as a self-mailer. And finally, a brochure can be a point-of-purchase display to interest customers in additional products or services or to provide information.

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Speaking the Language of Color

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man's hands holding color cards against a white wallColor is an essential element of communication. It can be used to shape perceptions, affect reactions, influence choices, and provoke responses. In marketing materials, it adds a dynamic to the structure – the general form and direction – of the words and image by highlighting and marking important content. The more you understand the language of color, the more effective you will be in speaking to your customers and prospects via your printed materials and web site.

Science describes how humans perceive color. Specifically, color is light. In his 1704 book, Opticks, the English natural philosopher Sir Isaac Newton described the fundamental nature of light as color. The book was based on his observation that when pure white light passes through a prism, it separates into a spectrum of seven hues (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet) known as the visual spectrum.

In Opticks, Newton clearly stated that color is not a property of objects observed nor of light. Rather, it is a product of the mind. His proof was that he could create a color that was not part of the light spectrum (magenta) by overlapping two hues that were a part of it (red and violet). And when he connected the red and violet ends of the spectrum, he created the first color wheel, thus showing the relationship between the colors in the visible spectrum.

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Selling Techniques… Transactional vs. Relationship

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Man drinking lemonade from boy's lemonade stand

Man drinking lemonade from boy’s lemonade stand

Imagine this scenario:
In your business or organization, you are the person responsible for sales and marketing activities. It’s the time of year to formulate next year’s plan and determine how much executing it will cost. Will investing in transactional marketing strategies or building relationships with customers yield the best results?

On the one hand, transactional marketing – which focuses on single point-of-purchase sales transactions – can be maximized for transaction efficiency. This means less overhead costs associated with each sale and therefore a higher potential net profit. Transactional sales are appealing to buyers in today’s busy world because they take less time and can happen 24/7.

In contrast, relationship marketing focuses on generating sales by first developing a relationship with the buyer. This means the business must gather and analyze information about each buyer’s needs and wants in order to offer products and services that are useful and relevant. Such an approach takes business resources (time and money), which compromises efficiency. The tradeoff is that a relationship with the buyer can lead to customer loyalty and long term purchasing habits.

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Developing an In-house Mail List

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housesDirect mail is a valuable tool for businesses and organizations to keep in touch with active customers or members, re-establish a relationship with inactive customers or lapsed members, and introduce the business or organization to prospects. Direct mail can be combined with social media outreach for greater effectiveness together than either used alone.

A direct mail campaign requires an attractively designed mail piece, content, and a mail list. If asked which of these three things – the design of the mail piece, its content, or who it is sent to – is the most important in generating response, what would you say? You may be surprised to learn that who it is sent to (the mailing list) is three times as important as either design or content in generating response.

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